With the boom in dotcom businesses, there has been a subsequent explosion in the success of viral marketing. By using social media to spreading the word about your business, product or interests you can capture traffic, which depending on your ambitions can either be translated into a cash return or help you to build your online brand.
Finding Your Edge!
With 48 hours worth of video material being uploaded to YouTube every minute, to execute a successful viral marketing strategy takes consideration. Although there are a few basic principles to guide you in producing strong viral content (which this article will address in a moment), the real secret to producing profitable viral marketing is this: the main reason social media users share anything is in order to build their own image. If you keep this simple truth at the forefront of your mind at all times you will find it easy to produce super shareable viral content. If your clip is able to provoke a reaction, it is more likely to be shared. Simple!
Share Your Creative Juices
Perhaps the first principal when it comes to successful viral marketing is size. Keep your clips short, sweet and preferably ripe for a remi x. Also remember that whatever you want to go viral – a video, an animation or a jingle – your piece of content should aim to be unusual. Whilst it’s almost impossible to be original nowadays try to think outside the box when it comes to developing your idea. Another clip of a dog barking the words ‘I love you!’ is not likely to spread like wildfire.
Ship’em Out!
Remember that attention span is a short and precious thing. Attempting to slow release content or encourage people to return for a scheduled announcement just isn’t going to work. If you have related items, release them at the same time and cash in on those click throughs.
Finding a home Sweet Home
Think carefully about which forum you might release your material through – forums belonging to your target demographic are a great place to start. Likewise, using social media platforms can be a great place to begin circulating your content through your faithful followers. If you think your material is strong enough, use a charm offensive to target a celebrity with similar interests. Just one repost from them and you could be well on your way to a huge share count.
Theirs A Time And A Place
Plan your release by picking a sensible time to share. Don’t compete with television schedules or make a post whilst the football is on. Think about the trends that are relevant to your chosen topic and try to time your release and if possible, try to connect your viral to an existing promotion. Most reposts happen on Twitter between 9am and 6pm, on Facebook around lunchtime and in the evening and Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are the best weekdays for sharing as people are bored at work.
Always Fresh
Keep it current and concise. Choose trending topics, news items, anything that will grab your audience’s attention instantly. When you title it, keep by-lines pithy and purposeful and remember that friendly titles that will translate clearly when shared are ideal.
Hook, Line And Sinker
With these tips in mind, you will be well on your way to a successful viral marketing campaign in just the click of a mouse.
About our guest author: Steve Seymour is MD at Project Print Solutions, a printing and design company based in Manchester, UK.
