Buzz Marketing is a term that is widely used under a number of different definitions; Wikipedia refers you to straight to word of mouth marketing, SearchCRM defines it as a type of viral marketing saying

…that attempts to make each encounter with a consumer appear to be a unique, spontaneous personal exchange of information instead of a calculated marketing pitch choreographed by a professional advertiser.

BusinessWeek makes Buzz Marketing out to be a rather sly, somewhat underhand form of viral marketing saying:

The slightly subversive, slightly underground techniques that form the basis of buzz marketing have been building in popularity for a few years.

For me however the definition given by Mark Hughes:

Buzz marketing is:

• capturing attention of consumers and the media to the point where talking about your brand becomes entertaining, fascinating, and newsworthy.
• Starting conversations.

My emphasis. Hughes provided one of the best examples of this when as VP of marketing for Half.com he persuaded the town of Halfway, Oregon to rename itself Half.com. The move generated so much Buzz Time magazine referred to it as:

One of the greatest publicity coups in history.

You can read more about Hughes on his Buzz Marketing website, or by buying his excellent book.

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