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Understanding Viral Content Marketing

Understanding VIRAL CONTENT MARKETING O SHARE To say something has "gone viral" usually means that a piece of content has been well received and widely shared. For many content creators online, going viral is a major goal. The truth is that the vast majority of content, even great content, will never enjoy widespread attention. By understanding some of the key components of what makes something viral, you can do a lot to make sure your great content gets the attention it deserves. UNDERSTANDING VIRALITY: METCALF'S LAW Metcalfe's Law is a N? The network effect says that the value of each potential sharer is proportional to the number, N, of other individuals way to calculate the value of a network. he or she can connect to. For viral marketers, this law is the embodiment of why the Internet, and social networking sites in particular, provide opportunity for marketers to create incredible value and ROI through the use of viral marketing. The more interconnections and ways to share between people, the more easily, quickly, and widely information can be shared. SHARE Viral marketing is an attempt to get value that goes above and beyond cost. By tapping into the network effect, a marketer can gain far more value than Cost=N Critical Mass Crossover cost. That's because while cost is still a constant, value grows exponentially based on the number of people whom Value=N? ****** Devices the "viral" touches. ANATOMY OF VIRAL CONTENT Clearly not everything can be viral content. Viral The content is shared The content content widely enough to reap the benefits of the networks they are relies on itself is worthy two things. of being shared. shared on. TYPES OF VIRAL CONTENT Articles and blog Video/audio including vlogs and podcasts posts 2 Interactive content Infographics including games, quizzes, and widgets REASONS WE SHARE It is absolutely hilarious We all need breaks from the seriousness of the daily grind, and something that makes us and others laugh is a natural mood elevator. 2 It is incredible or Unbelievable When something just makes your jaw drop, you can't resist sharing it with friends and family to get a similar reaction. 3 It is deeply emotional Content that touches us emotionally, either negatively or positively, is a natural thing to share because we want to connect with others over the experience, even if it's just via the Internet. It agrees with our worldview Everyone has an opinion these days, and when we find content that backs up our values and reinforces our worldview, it's only logical that we want to share that with other like-minded people. 5 It makes us stop and think When content makes us stop dead in our tracks and ponder the big questions in life, we often want to share that with others so LIFE that they, too, can pause and look at the big picture once in a while. It isn't covered by mainstream media Provocative or relevant news stories that slip through the cracks of mainstream media and wind up elsewhere online can draw a huge audience. It will make someone smile We all need regular reminders to look at the lighter side of life, so content that's fun, silly, or cute serves that simple purpose. It is dramatic Our culture loves a good drama, and something with high levels of drama is certainly going to be shared by people. It is embarrassing It's the story of the proverbial train-wreck: While something is difficult to watch, most people can't look away. Content that exploits people's most cringe-worthy moments is often a guilty pleasure. 10 It is provocative (but SFW) Most of us can't resist adding a little spice to our lives with some content that's risque.but not so much that it can't be openly shared. Viral Content Design While written content can often rely on its own merits of interestingness and integrity, video, interactive content, images, and infographics should meet the following criteria for function and form as well: Relevant Meaningful INFORMATION New Interestingness Proof of Concept Experiment Ugly Truth Easiness Successful Useless information Rubbish Consistency Usefulness Integrity Function Usability Fit Honesty design Accuracy Boring Eye-candy Sketch DESIGN Form Beauty Structure Appearance Title Subtitle Although articles and written content do not need to meet the same criteria as more visual viral content, elements of readability still play a huge role. Text Text Making sure content conveys a point clearly and completely while adding additional rich media where possible (videos, images, etc.) can take an interesting article and make it viral. Polishing an article can make all of the difference. The Integrated Viral Execution Sometimes viral marketing is more than just a single execution; it can also be an integrated campaign as we saw last year with an exceptional job done for Old Spice: Old Spice O On July 14, 2010, Old Spice launched the fastest-growing online viral video campaign ever O Old Spice's agency created a bathroom set in Portland, Ore., and had their TV commercial star, Isaiah Mustafa, reply to 186 online comments and questions from websites like: Garnering 6.7 million views after 24 hours twitter facebook Ballooning over 23 million views after 36 hours digg You Tube The campaign ran for 3 days. THE SECRET SAUCE A great piece of content is necessary for viral sharing, but initial promotion is just as essential. If you have spent the time developing a presence in social news sites and in social media, or have connections with those who do, your viral efforts can be much more successful. Here are a few places to consider putting in your efforts. SU Digg, Reddit, Stumbleupon, Delicious: If your viral marketing campaign goes popular on one of these sites, it will get seen by thousands of people on these specific networks alone. In many cases, this can be enough to get your viral campaign started as these networks are made up digg of the "connectors" of the web. 2 3 Blogs: If you have relationships with a blogger of authority and they mention your story, this will give your campaign another chance of success as you're reaching directly into their community. Twitter: Having a person of authority tweet your campaign can have a snowball effect, so the story will propagate throughout Twitter and into other mediums on the Internet. 4 Social web power users: If you have connections with social media power users across any channels, by all means leverage them to help seed campaigns. ENABLE AND ENCOURAGE SHARING Including easy-to-use social sharing buttons for the major social sites, embed codes for images to facilitate better syndication, calls to action prompting people to share, and even incentives for sharing can be utilized. If we get to 1k shares, x is donated to charity. SOURCES http://www.noahbrier.com/images/060107/metcalfeslaw.gif http://www.blueglass.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/good_infodesign_550.png http://thefuturebuzz.com/2008/09/24/social-media-power-users-and-influencers-part-1 Brought to you by: PROBLOGGER Infographic design by: Contact us: • Website: voltierdigital.com • Phone: 1-866-558-2186 VOLTIER DIGITAL • Email: [email protected] • Twitter: @voltierdigital Dollars LIKES TWEETS VIEWS IIII SOUTH C

Understanding Viral Content Marketing

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Going viral is social media's ultimate measure of success. Viral means more than just popular: Viral means becoming outrageously, over-the-top popular by virtue of being passed around by social media'...

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