WRITTEN BY Caitlin Jardine
What does it takes to go viral?
Firstly, what do we mean by viral? To put it simply, it’s reaching more people than considered ‘normal’. Usually when a brand hits the headlines of mainstream newspapers, magazines, radio and TV broadcasts, this is usually considered as super viral as it is getting the attention of and generating a national view. It is a more rare form of virability and not necessarily one that is achievable by content made by smalls brands and businesses (although that’s not to say that it’s impossible!)
Getting a high number of views, likes and shares is an easier target to hit in this case. Behaving in a way that people wouldn’t expect a brand to behave, can be one way to achieve this. Whether it’s using an unusual combination of ingredients within your product or taking a private matter public online, sometimes it’s about taking a risk. This is because it’s only going to spread if people react to it (commenting, sharing, saving) but there has to be a reason for them to do so.
You almost want a little bit of soft controversy within your content, something that people are outraged by but not so deeply – in a humorous way. Triggering comments like ‘This is awful! How can they do that!’ but in a funny, non serious way, even if it’s planting a seed that audiences can then themselves put two and two together on.
Having Personality on Social Media
Don’t be afraid to push boundaries when it comes to creating content. Sometimes the more playful you can be as a brand, the more relatable you seem in the viewers and ultimately the consumers eyes – who connect deeper with you and are more likely to buy into your brand, product or service because they enjoy the content you make.
Having personality on social media is key to communicating your messages aside from just selling your product or service. Audiences turn to social media to be entertained or educated and within that, internalise sales messages, sometimes without even realising it. This is a key marketing tool to not only extend your brand awareness in getting more viewers sharing and engaging with your content, but encouraging community building can result in increased loyalty and advocacy as they consider you to be more familiar and on their level.
Product posts don’t necessarily don’t do well
Many businesses think that because they have invested so much money into marketing their goods or services, their social media posts must explicitly promote them.
The truth is that this content alone won’t connect with a significant percentage of your audience, which will lessen the impact it has.
Instead, you need to focus on content that provides the viewer value, it’s what a large portion of consumers turn to social media for, right? By engaging them, whether that’s through producing entertaining, educational or inspiring content, you are going to internalise a deeper connection and trust to your brand. Thus, make them more likely to buy into your product, service or business.
However in some cases, a product post can reach viral potential. By literally saying the sales messages in a very on the nose, direct way whilst incorporating an aspect of humour to make audiences enjoy it, can actually work very effectively. In doing so, you are able to successfully tell the viewer exactly what it is you want to, but a lot more clearly and in an engaging way.
Finding humour in your content
Sometimes there are key messages that you need to share on social media that may not seem interesting or relevant to the average viewer or consumer. The might be a rebrand or to let customers know about some important information surrounding your product or service, that isn’t really shareable content but important to get across to your customers. It’s doing it in a way to interest people, something that hooks them in. So if it’s a news announcement for example, perhaps you create such a build up to something that in truth is very simple and you end up telling the audience within a few words. Maybe you make it seem very dramatic, to create that initial intrigue and commitment to find out what it is you want to tell them, that by the time they get to the final destination of your message, they have committed to engaging with your content. It’s very likely that the anti-climax to what they were expecting, encourages them to comment or share as they feel find it funny how invested they were into finding the answer. This style of content feels very genuine and human, and when impact is the main goal, it’s good to be silly sometimes if you know it’s going to work.
Reactive marketing
Any reaction works for visibility and whilst you don’t want negative press generated about your brand, encouraging people to share their opinions is a creative way to boost this interaction as people are usually more motivated to do so, if it provokes angry or frustrated emotions. If you know that there is a certain opinion around your product, brand or service that has come up, by re-sharing this with your reaction and making light of the situation (only if it is a tongue and cheek comments about a surface level issue) can help generate further exposure. This way you are responding and showing that you are listening to your audiences, whilst establishing personality amongst your brand.
Tone of voice
Creating the right brand identity on social media that your target audience can get on board and understand, particularly if they too can relate to and share the same view, is key to going viral. It’s being true and genuine about how the world isn’t as superficial as it seems on social media, and if your brand can show that you acknowledge that, your messages seem more trustworthy and valuable.
How to go viral?
Break it down into different elements, and finding one aspect to focus on, perhaps taking a concept and running with it in a way that is relevant to your brand but meets the unexpected. It’s being accepting of the shift in culture about what brands are allowed to do in today’s digital climate, and being more extreme or over the top to capture the attention of audiences – engaging them whilst delivering your message or sales pitch in a less obvious way. This is likely to be something that stands out amongst the typical content they would consume from other brands and your competitors, to draw attention to your content and encourage traction on it.
Tracking what your audiences react well to on your accounts and on the platforms as a whole, and using this data to drive future content and concepts to build upon that you know viewers bide well with.
The Takeaway.
Finding ways to get everyone sharing should be at the focus of your campaign if you are looking to go viral. To break it down simply:
- This works particularly well if your USP is slightly out there in terms of uniqueness and you can really play on the absurdity of it and debunk any misconceptions that people may have.
- Comedy writing is also a large part of copywriting that can be a way to get people sharing and reacting to your content.
- Being able to take on a different angle within your content to what audiences would expect and subtly talking about the brand to get that attention but that not being the main focus of the content.
Going viral can be beneficial for your brand by increasing awareness and desirability. Moreover, if audiences see that everyone is interacting and engaging with your brand, this can help boost your credibility as audiences consider that if you are getting this much exposure across the platforms, you must be a popular and reputable brand, especially if they can appreciate the creativity of a certain campaign.