Jim Calhoun

Featured Author

: Jim Calhoun is the CEO/Founder of Popular Media and a Silicon Valley veteran. Before founding PopularMedia, Jim was a co-founder of CustomerClick LLC, a multi-million dollar direct marketing firm whose clients include Yahoo!, UnitedHealthGroup, and ABC Television. Previously, Jim served as Vice President of Products at NetObjects, Inc. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

Word-of-Mouth’s Ethical Effect: How Fair and Decent Marketing Can Increase your Initiative’s ROI

Written on: January 25th 2007
Author: | Jim Calhoun

There’s been a lot of recent talk about ethics in word-of-mouth marketing. As stealth marketers and shills get more negative press, the calls for transparency and honesty are coming from an unlikely source: marketers themselves. Few advocates give concrete reasons to practice ethical marketing beyond the fact that “it’s the right [...] More...

Enter the Viral Marketing Matrix: Exploring the Template to Motivate Your Word-of-Mouth Revolution

Written on: December 22nd 2006
Author: | Jim Calhoun

Before you present a consumer with your viral marketing program, you have to consider your impact on their social capital and craft your strategy accordingly. You need to understand what’s going to motivate people to spread the word, and use the right tactics for your situation. Failing to do so [...] More...

Viral Psychology 101: Exploring the Social Underpinnings to Unlock Word-of-Mouth Secrets

Written on: November 17th 2006
Author: | Jim Calhoun

Whenever people ask us to evaluate their existing viral programs, I’m always surprised to see how many smart marketers forget include the essential viral marketing call-to-action in their execution. They neglect to invite people to share their content, offer, or online experience. It sounds obvious, but there are good psychological [...] More...

Teaching Values in Viral: How To Instill Cause-Related Marketing in the Viral Space

Written on: October 10th 2006
Author: | Jim Calhoun

Conspicuous consumption is over, and “ethical consumerism” is shaping up as a major force in the marketing industry. People of all types are choosing products and brands that support their values. This means social responsibility is more important to a company’s success than ever — and that goes double in [...] More...

Adding Vitality to Viral: How to Better Manage Your Message in Word-of-Mouth

Written on: September 11th 2006
Author: | Jim Calhoun

When it comes to viral marketing, there’s an assumption out there that’s dangerously close to becoming conventional wisdom. It’s the notion that marketers must be prepared to “relinquish control of their message” in a viral campaign. It’s a blanket assumption, painted with a really broad, confident brushstroke. So I wanted to [...] More...

Art Versus Science in Viral Marketing

Written on: August 9th 2006
Author: | Jim Calhoun

Like the rest of the interactive marketing sector, it appears that viral marketing may have finally exorcised the ghost of the sock puppet. It’s now a valid, valuable, and growing interactive marketing discipline. But, with growth come growing pains. Not the least of which is confusion among about what “Viral Marketing” [...] More...

Spotlight

Turn VP: Ad Network Shakeout “Inevitable”ADOTAS EXCLUSIVE – Turn bills itself as the world’s first Smart Market for online advertising. Turn’s VP of product and [...] more...