Viral ads are called so because they are sent through emails, from account to account, spreading like viruses. The negative connotation of the name is merely due to its dispensational nature and not necessarily to any potential ill-effect brought on by its presence or any possible disruptive intent of the Viral Ad's designer.

The key convenience of the Viral Ad is the fact that it's implanted in an email; they regular day-to-day emailing process takes care of the rest of the job. As each email is sent out, the Viral Ad, usually appended at the bottom, is then passed on from the multiple recipients who sent it on to a greater number and on and on and on. In a matter of one day, a single Viral Ad reaches over a million people easily, and by a week's time, the Viral Ad, as well as several others, is scattered all over the Internet. The traffic snagged by this process increases in an exponential rate in numbers by the day, and this is only in a very short period of time.

But how do these ads draw the attention of surfers and potential patrons? The Viral Ads feature images, bold lettering, video clips, even sound. The icon seen in the email is always active, so people who ?hit? them are instantly taken to the site in question where, perhaps, pop-ups are launched as soon as they arrive, leading them onward to yet other related business sites. All of this happens within only a few seconds or minutes, and the ?hits? tally up fast. With the Viral Ads, the icons compound with each email repeatedly sent out, ultimately increasing ?hit? potentials along the way.

The number-one innovation of the Viral Ad is with surfers all the time, especially when the emails are saved in an account. The Viral Ads are designed as personal icons for each email account holder. Instead of being placed in a public domain like a banner or pop-up ad, the Viral Ad goes to the surfer and sticks like glue--another characteristic analogous to the virus. In this way, the ad will never go away, unless all existing emails containing it appended are deleted. If this happens, the email holder can possibly get it back again by associates who respond to the email having the viral icon as well as others that have been floating around the Internet.

Viral Ads are probably the new wave of Internet advertising because of their prevalent and contagious nature. What can one say about advertisements that become one's own and aren't easy to shake away? Furthermore, these are small enough so they aren't right in one's face. Annoyance here is never a problem because they do not constantly disrupt multitasking or everyday online activity. Because they do not have that annoyance factor, they will likely be received more openly and enthusiastically, which might be one of the intents behind this ad type. The large size of the ad has been replaced by number, which just might be the key to success with the Viral Ad.