One of the hoped-for goals of any post or campaign is for it to go viral. By going viral, it can potentially reach millions of people and garner amazing results.
A recent example is the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which raised money for the nonprofit ALS Association to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig”™s disease. According to the ALSA website, it has received donations from more than 3 million people, exceeding $100 million, a 3,500 percent increase over the same time period last year. Although these are amazing numbers, what is equally amazing is that this “campaign,” which has received over 10 million online mentions, was not started or promoted by the ALS association. It allegedly began in the professional golfing community with a video of a golfer dumping a bucket of ice water on his head and issuing a challenge.
So, what are the key characteristics of this campaign that made it so successful? It was fun (well, kind-of), easily doable and repeatable, original, could provide free promotion or publicity and was for a good cause. But these factors don”™t explain why this campaign went viral while so many others do not. One common characteristic of all viral campaigns is their dependence on word of mouth.
I keep wondering why people like Bill Gates and other celebrities would want a video of themselves being doused with ice water. Perhaps this is a key indicator of the type of behavior that a successful viral campaign requires. Why would he do it? To demonstrate his support for ALS research? He could do that with a check. For the publicity? He doesn”™t need it. Maybe it”™s as simple as it”™s just a quick, simple and fun way of generating positive attention for both him and a good cause. (If this was actually the case, you would think all the members of Congress would be rushing to have ice water poured on them.)
The answer appears to be far more basic: Catch the wave. Jump on the bandwagon while it is still hot and show that you, too, can be a part of it. The idea of torn jeans became a fashion statement a few years ago, and many celebrities jumped at the opportunity to be seen in them. They jumped on a wave of publicity and became a part of it.
Since the ice bucket campaign did not start as a wave, something was needed as the stimulus. I think it was a combination of all the factors mentioned above with no one factor by itself being sufficiently strong or enduring to create such a strong reaction.
Creating a viral post is kind of an extension of what social media is all about: providing a platform for people to communicate as both individuals and as members of any number of groups. What sets the viral post apart is its ability to reach many people and have them reach many of their friends and contacts, in essence creating an expanding wave of proponents. Whether it is for a good cause such as ALS research or for the ”“ tacit ”“ promotion of a product or service, the wave characteristics are the same. However, in the case of the latter it must include great content that is usually very original or informative and that people will closely scrutinize and want to share. And persuading people to share is the key element.
On your own, you cannot make any of your content go viral ”“ that”™s something only your readers can do. Nor can you plan for it to go viral. You can only lay the groundwork by continuously addressing those key elements ”“ including originality and consistent content directed toward your target audience that provides thepossibility of your post going viral.
So the answer to how to make your posts go viral is actually quite complicated. Most importantly, you need an audience that is sufficiently impressed and motivated to share your content with others in sufficient numbers to form an enticing wave that others want to join. And this content is dependent upon many other factors, including your groundwork from prior posts, its appeal and the breadth of your social media presence.
Bruce Newman is vice president at The Productivity Institute L.L.C. and a regular contributor to the Business Journal. He specializes in content creation and digital marketing. He can be reached at bnewman@prodinst.com.
