Almost everyone who has a good knowledge of the internet has heard of "viral marketing" or "viral videos". This phenomenon refers to a resonance of content so powerful that it imposes itself on the whole web, ending up becoming a catchphrase. It occurs when what you produce or create is appreciated, retweeted, republished, commented, blogged, discussed on the street, from Los Angeles to Viti Levu, and allows you to earn more visits or views than you ever hoped for in yours. innermost dreams.
It's a powerful result for your internet content and your brand reputation (even if the brand is yourself). However, wanting a magic wand to make something go viral is an unrealistic wish; certainly you should do your best to make your content the most fascinating and interesting experience online, but no one knows for sure what can go viral. What you can do is improve your chances of achieving this by accepting the fact that many things go viral by chance and luck.
Steps
Step 1. Appreciate the varying degrees of viral content
The content of your website, your photos or a video that you have created can go viral, your marketing can go viral and, in the case of social networks, a blog, a page or a Facebook group and a tweet can go viral. In fact, any type of content that you create and that is shared via mobile, iPad, computer or other electronic gadgets can be viral, be it an app, a game, a puzzle or a story, so don't limit your idea of what it can. go viral just thinking about videos of children dancing or million pixel websites! The next big viral idea is… uncertain!
Your content could go viral in the niche of your interest, for example among fans of photography, cooking, Star Wars or whatever, or go beyond the niche and enter the stratosphere, becoming widely known and shared by everyone., simply because there is something within them that affects a large group of people, such as a human interest element, a solved problem, a wound, a video or a story involving a cute child or pet, etc
Step 2. Try to understand the limitations of viral content
It's a good idea to understand this clearly before getting too excited - you can't directly make your content go viral. You can hope that happens, you can position them so that they are the best and the most interesting with the inherent desire that they have a hold, but you cannot make them go viral on your own. At most, like Ann Handley and C. C. Chapman explain in their book Content Rules, you can "urge, push and pray for your content to go viral, but the truth is that this happens by a happy accident." So, don't try to check the viral nature of your content; rather, fully focus on making them intriguing, quality for their niche, interesting, fun, engaging, and absolutely capable of grabbing the attention of many readers or viewers. Accept that these people will be your audience, making the final decision as to whether content is viral or not.
Step 3. You need to know which strings to touch
One of the key elements behind viral content is touching people, one way or another. And what is most likely to win over a group of people interested in technology, who have already seen everything and who are always ready to receive new information? Without too many surprises, the same as always: things that put you in a good mood and that make you feel good about yourself. What most likely will convince people, prompting them to share it on social networks, is the content characterized by the following nature:
- Content that inspires amazement. Think "Christian the Lion". Can you believe that once two boys were able to buy a lion cub at the department stores (Harrods) in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world (London), that that lion roamed the gardens of the metropolis before being brought to Africa and then recognized its original owners years later? That kind of surprise story leaves us all in awe of the wonders of the world and the fact that we can all have intricate and important roles in life.
- Content that triggers an emotional response.
- Positive articles and optimistic and uplifting messages. Pieces capable of opening the mind and spreading knowledge through positive messages are particularly appreciated.
- Items that make us feel good about ourselves and with others. A viral event that has achieved this goal is certainly the video "Validation", in which people witness the positivity deriving from the appreciation of other people. Articles that create a sense of admiration and overcoming mere self-interest tend to be the most shared, showing that we are capable of giving importance to others and that we are moved by the stories of other people actively doing something to prove it.
- Longer articles tend to be more successful than short ones. Believe it or not, people spend more time reading a text accurately when the content deserves it and when it conveys a clear message that convinces them to want to know more. Just make sure "longer" means "more engaging", not "verbose and repetitive"!
- Peculiar topics, especially unexpected ones. The extraordinary, very unusual and extremely interesting things.
- The cute things. The laughter of children, crazy cats, trained dogs, etc. We've all seen such content and loved it.
Step 4. Try to communicate a value, perceived or not
Some examples of information that helps others improve their lives, understand things better, or make timely decisions include:
- Articles that teach how to do something and educational content.
- News, especially the fresh ones.
- Warnings (such as those about scams or online viruses).
- Free stuff and contests.
Step 5. Try to follow an ideal of abundance
Information usually was something that was carefully protected and distributed to the masses. Nowadays, things have changed and information is spread as much as possible, even if we are not talking about any information; they should be useful, quality, informative and even detailed, something that people really need or want to make their lives better. The person, company or group who is most willing to provide quality information to others, who are able to share or solve something, and who do not have an ulterior motive (such as sales or inquiries), is more likely to gain a respected following, which improves the chances of turning your content into viral. Either way, be careful how you promote this large amount of productivity; read on to avoid overdoing the promotion.
Step 6. Make sure people can find your content
Those buried and difficult to access will not go viral simply because they cannot be found by anyone. Start with your own domain or host. If you have your own domain, is that an easy-to-remember name or one that requires an elephant's memory to spell correctly? If you are using another site to host your content, make sure you use one that has a good following, such as Flickr, YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc. And make sure your content includes exactly what people are looking for, such as an expression, a specific question, specific keywords, etc.
- Search your content using one or two search engines. Can you find them easily or do you have to dig page after page through the results for them to appear?
- Use social networks to add arrows to your bow. Activate Facebook and Twitter accounts, ideal for posting information on recently uploaded content and encouraging information to be spread widely.
- Provide easy search and categorization in your content, so people can quickly find things if they want to check out more than one piece. Also, search engines like categories.
- Tag and keyword anything you can. Search engines can find content better this way.
Step 7. Advertise yourself
While it is not possible to create a viral result, it can encourage its potential. Advertising your content through reputable channels is an important way to get it seen, noticed and maybe chosen from among many others. In other words, make it easy for people to notice the presence of what you post.
- Post your content on more than one site. Use Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, RSS feeds, microblogging sites and also the links on the profile pages you have on various websites and the signatures you use in emails. Go to the forums, IRC and any other places you usually hang out, casually naming your masterpiece and suggesting people to check it out.
- Use a link. Most retweets have links inside. When it comes to viral videos and web pages, the link is a crucial part of it.
- Link your content to everyone you know, such as friends, family and co-workers - as long as you don't bother them.
Step 8. Don't overdo the promotion of your content
Be very selective about what you promote among readers and viewers. You don't want to convince them that every single piece of content you produce is the flower of the web, otherwise they'll start to think of you as someone shouting “Wolf! Wolf! and they may even stop taking an interest in your job. Be smart about what your best works are, and only urge them to be shared around. In this way, you can increase the chances of going viral both for the quality of the content and for the fact that you will not put too much pressure on the first people who share it.
Step 9. Build momentum and incite action
Not only should you advertise yourself, you also need to help your viewers and readers do something with your content; it is not enough to simply publish an article or a video and wait for it to succeed. Suggest that people check it out and allow them to be arbiter of its value and any interest in your other work. For example, if you want to be retweeted, just ask. And make sure you try to use that magical expression, "Please". It has been noted that a higher percentage of retweets contain it. Some ways to incite action include (and the more you can use, the better):
- Provide clear sharing icons on social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Reader, etc. These icons are commonly known as "social bling" and as they increase the ease with which people can get to your content, treasure them.
-
Explain to people what you hope to achieve with your content by gently cheering them on with unobtrusive requests. Some of the ways to do this include saying phrases like:
- "Check out my link, my eBook, my post, my video, my article, etc.".
- “Please include my interactive video / quiz…” (and make it easy to do).
- "Follow this person".
- “Download my widget / game / presentation to PowerPoint / eBook!”.
- "Please vote!".
- "Help me …".
- Ask questions, such as “What do you think of…?”, And so on.
- Invite people to visit you and interact with you, your content, or something you've created about it. Maybe a webinar, a Skype call or a Twitter party. Be open to all possibilities to enlighten people of the potential of your content.
Step 10. Don't forget the timing
As with most things in life, timing is everything and you need to get an idea of whether or not the time has come for your content to go viral. If not, patience may be a virtue until the right time comes, so don't waste a moment if someone else got there before you. Only you will be able to calibrate your timing, as this depends a lot on your topic and interests, and is something you will need to monitor for yourself.
In terms of timing regarding the post itself, a related but slightly different issue occurs. Make sure you post in what you know is the busiest time online for your target audience. The more people read, view, or actively interact with your content when it is posted, the more likely it is that it will be disseminated for their innovation and shared in a sustained way
Step 11. Leave room for the connection
Ultimately it is the ability to make a conversation that helps a lot of the content posted on the web go viral. Make sure it's easy for people to contact you if they want to know more, including through comments, private messages, forum chats, email, or any other means you use. And answer, don't be a hermit!
Rating systems can also be as useful as the number of visitors. They can influence readers and viewers, who can understand what others think of the content and how many other people have been involved
Advice
- No matter how hard you work or how much you analyze existing viral content, some phenomena become famous as a matter of luck, timing and the momentary mood of the internet audience. You cannot predict it, the people who claim they can do it cannot have any certainty, which is why they will receive less than optimal results compared to those they dreamed of.
- Check to see if your blog, website, or other publishing source settings allow sharing. You don't want spread to be hindered because you haven't ticked the right boxes!
- Moderate comments to remove inappropriate, irrelevant or offensive posts that appear under your content. However, do not edit or remove relevant comments. This could cause comments inserted in a conversation to be deleted and offend people who had good intentions, so make all genuine comments easier to read, be supportive or constructive criticism of. of your content.
- If you want to use a centralized sharing service like ShareThis.com, this can greatly simplify the placement and use of the share buttons on your site.
Warnings
- Not everything you think might be viral will go viral. Accept it and be honest with yourself about the value, quality and merit of the content in and of itself.
- Avoid making magical predictions; this will distract you from focusing on making sure your content is quality.
