Viral marketing is tricky because it is by nature unpredictable. You can create the most expensive viral ad in the world ever complete with A-list celebs and a rocking soundtrack, promote it in all the right channels and still have it flop. Or, you can slap something together with no resources, send it to a friend and have an international phenomenon on your hands. Going unnoticed is bad but a badly misjudged campaign that results in plethora of hate is worse.

Just ask Motrin, pain management specialists. In 2008, Motrin launched a print and video viral campaign that, I assume, was supposed to be a tongue-in-cheek solution for the headaches and back pain that plagues many mothers. Unfortunately, the ad was in incredibly bad taste, it alleged that babies are fashion accessories, and claimed that carrying babies may be bonding but that while babies cried less, mom’s cried more. In my opinion, the most damage was done at the end, when the mommy narrator said that carrying her baby was bearable because it was a ‘good’ pain and that it made her look like an official mom, and that when she looks tired and crazy ‘people will understand why’. (see the video here)

Last week, the Guardian broke the story about employees at PC World and “Currys” who had created a FaceBook group that mocked customers for their ‘stupidity’. It highlights the need for a good online reputation management strategy, and it astounds me that they didn’t have a scanning strategy in place.

One of the worst comments I saw reads: “Short answer: No. Long answer: No and go f*** yourself you hardfisted, smallwalleted, annoying, ignorant tightfisted f***tard.” Nice. Makes you want to run up and buy from them, doesn’t it?

A mere week later and the piece ranks on page one for the brand search “Currys” and page two for “PC World”. With a cumulative brand search volume of 5 million monthly searches, this is a major issue for their holding company. But, the cost isn’t limited to the damaged public perception of the brand.

The continuing education of children everywhere is a topic that I find endlessly fascinating, and about which I have written before. I’ve spoken against focusing too much on incorporating web 2.0 trends in syllabi, especially at the cost of what I consider essential learning practices. But for some inexplicable reason, my wisdom has been largely ignored and, according to the Guardian, the UK will soon publish draft plans for a redesigned primary school curriculum.

In all honesty, I can’t fault the changed curriculum too much because I quite like the new holistic approach from Sir Jim Rose (former Ofsted chief) that consists of six core learning areas:

• Understanding English
• Communication and languages
• Mathematical understanding
• Scientific and technological understanding
• Human, social and environmental understanding
• Understanding physical health
• Understanding arts and design

I presented this to everyone in the agency this morning, (always the toughest crowd around ). SERM is something that is definitely a specialist an advanced stream of SEO and IMHO is the intersection of SEO and PR. Its critical that more PR agencies are aware of the practise, its uses and limits.

Ive shared it on slideshare under LouisVenter or you can get to it via MediaVison. Will get to the sharecast next week with any luck.

In this presentation:

1. What is SERM?
2. Why is it Important? – Hitwise report on navigational search
3. Who Typically Needs SERM
4. Some Horror Stories
5. Is it only about companies that dont get SEO? :- An SEO agency with an SERM issue
6. What tactics are involved?
7. Some success stories

So here goes: