Unleashing the Ideavirus

Unleashing the Ideavirus
103
 www.ideavirus.com
Of course, you don’t have to sponsor Planetfeedback. Some day they may offer a different
program… or your competitors can pay to talk to your unhappy customers instead of you.

---

Unleashing the Ideavirus
104
 www.ideavirus.com
SECTION 4: Case Studies and Riffs
STEAL THIS IDEA!
Here’s what you can do to spread the word about 
Unleashing the Ideavirus:
1. Send this file to a friend (it’s sort of big, so ask first).
2. Send them a link to 
www.ideavirus.com
so they can download it themselves.
3. Visit 
www.fastcompany.com/ideavirus
to read the 
Fast Company
article.
4. Buy a copy of the hardcover book at
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0970309902/permissionmarket
.
5. Print out as many copies as you like.

---

Unleashing the Ideavirus
105
 www.ideavirus.com
The Vindigo Case Study
One of the best examples of a company unleashing an ideavirus is Vindigo. You can find
them at vindigo.com on the web, and you’ll need a Palm (or something compatible) to use
the software.
Vindigo is a directory of restaurants, entertainment venues and stores in major U.S. cities.
You download it to your Palm and carry it with you. Tell it where you’re standing (in the
illustration above, you’re on the corner of Amsterdam and Broadway in New York City), and
it will show you whatever sort of restaurant or fun you’re looking for. Sorted by distance
from where you are. With ratings. For free.
What a killer app! I need to tell 
everyone
. This is why they invented handheld computers!
IT’S SO COOL!
But, while that alone is grounds for this to become an ideavirus, as described it doesn’t seem
particularly smooth. After all, after a sneezer tells you about this cool software, you’ve got to
remember the name (vindaloo? indigo?), go home, type it into your browser, download it,
synchronize it, etc. A disaster. No way it’s going to work.
Which is where the smooth part comes in. You see, right on the bottom, underneath the
buttons for eating, shopping and entertainment, is a button that says “give.”

---