Businesses can find it difficult to spread their message via online marketing. Finding more ways to reach consumers through internet marketing is an evolving process. Focusing on producing content that can go viral is one such method.
Viral content is media that spreads, most prominently via social networks, far and wide. Users have made the decision to share this content with those around them. If these second-order users find value in the message then they will spread it. This exponential growth is what helps start a viral marketing campaign.
Businesses can look at what methods are reproducible to make this kind of content. A viral marketing campaign should be seen as a definitive project to work on. Once the general guidelines are established businesses can use these, to apply to various media.
Setting out with a goal in mind will help the business to visualize what they hope the campaign can accomplish. Having content that spreads but produces no impact on revenues or customer registrations is potentially an ineffective effort. Most businesses will not only be seeking brand awareness but also measurable results indicating success.
Goals                      Â
A business should decide on one or two concrete goals to achieve. This goal helps to create a path to follow. They can then start to look at what kind of content might deliver those results. Starting from the endpoint the business can work backward and look for ways that will aid in the goal’s success.
1. Appeal
The most amount of time needs to spend on finding the right message. Most businesses will have a general customer profile most important to them. The business should use this profile to ensure that the content they want to spread will appeal to this group.
Initially, the business needs to make sure the content reaches the most important customer groups and then hopefully, finds the attention of non-customer types who still spread the idea. So, the appeal should be to have something that makes their core group excited and then wrap that message up in an entertaining way that others can still relate to.
2. Influencers
Reaching out to the most influential social media users in whatever space the business operates in is a worthy effort. If even one of these influencers finds the content interesting and shares it with their audience the chances of the content going viral increases significantly. This is because the influencer is trusted by their followers and they are more apt to share something the influencer has previously approved. There are various ways to make contact with influencers and present your content.
3. Utility
The content itself must be engaging and usually must provide information that is useful. The hard part of creating an effective content campaign is how to make it entertaining. This will require trial and error. It can help to reach out to trusted sources and give previews of what you are working on before sharing it with the public. By getting as many opinions as possible, there is a greater chance of producing more high-quality content.
4. Branding
The business should make sure the content has its brand woven through the content. It can be confusing if the media does not match the company’s image. Content has a greater chance of going viral the more it parallels the company’s ethos presented in a unique way.
5. Sharing
Making sharing of the content as easy as possible is very important. There should be multiple ways the content can be shared. The content also has a greater chance of reaching a viral tipping point if sharing is easy.
6. Long Term
While seeking to create catchy content should be a priority, it also should have long-lasting appeal. This can refer to the above-mentioned idea of making sure the company ethos is woven into the content. It should be something the company can be proud of for years to come.
7. Infographic
Businesses can increase their chance of viral content by creating infographics. By collating different information into an engaging picture the chance others will share it increases. By putting lots of disparate information in one place users can get the whole picture and when they share, the infographic the business will get credit.
8. Video
Producing an engaging video is an effective way to get a company’s message to go viral. Creating an ad does not have to be very expensive. Instead, creativity and finding the right appeal allow smaller companies to potentially reach the same number of users as large companies.
9. Quiz or Contest
Some businesses will be able to utilize quizzes or contests to spread their content. Coming up with an interesting way to present these types of media that somehow relates back to the business can be challenging. But, businesses who find the right combination can usually expect more signups or some other measurable goal.
10. Platform
Choosing the correct platform can increase the odds of content going viral. Various social media platforms have general user types that can be more interested in specific content. Something that did not spark people’s interest on one platform could just be the right message but in the wrong place. By investigating the user profile types in conjunction with their own media, they can increase their odds of going viral on specific platforms.
Businesses should have in place ways to track their media to be able to compare and contrast campaigns and pick out things that worked well. Planning and coordination should be part of the process when attempting to create viral content.
If the content does break through and starts to spread widely, the business should be ready for the influx of visitors or attention. This allows the business to effectively take advantage of the success of their campaigns and not waste these unique opportunities. By looking at the above information, people can get a general idea of how to produce content that can be widely spread.
