Viral advertising is content that emotionally infects the audience. Every person influences the choice of others, so in most cases, emotional advertising, which people share themselves, helps attract the maximum number of users. If a video interests Masha so much that she posts it on her page, and Konstantin comes across her post and sends the link to the video to his friend (sister, classmate, neighbor), and the video is watched by millions more, then viral advertising can be considered effective.
Let’s not deceive ourselves – there is no universal secret to creating viral advertising campaigns. The creators of ads that gathered millions of views did not know the magical “secret” of all time and peoples. Everyone wants to do viral marketing, but no one knows which idea will explode and take the internet by storm.
Viral advertising is always a lottery: either it works, or it doesn’t. Audience behavior is unpredictable, so even the best ideas often go unnoticed. Viral content can be of different types: videos, memes, inflatable “characters” at the entrance to a supermarket… These things have something in common – they evoke bright emotional associations in people.
To create high-quality viral content, follow this algorithm: “idea-effect-seeding-result”.
- Idea. Do you want to increase the brand’s popularity, sell a specific product, or expand your audience? Define the goal of the ad and don’t forget: the key message of the ad must match the goal, and the plot of the video, image, or meme should express the idea as fully as possible.
- Emotions. When creating viral videos, appeal to emotions, not reason. Content that causes a vivid reaction – surprise, laughter, inspiration, or joy – is shared faster. There is a chance with “negative” content that causes shock, sadness, or anger. However, positive content still “works” more often.
- Financial aspect. Viral marketing is not cheap; filming a viral video is expensive, according to many marketers. Such a video should be ordered from specialists, so you will indeed have to pay quite a lot. But there are exceptions to the rule. For example, Bob Wagstaff, the inventor of an innovative toothbrush, was thinking about how to promote his invention. At first, he ordered regular advertising for $40,000 but only sold 100 toothbrushes at $10 each. Bob decided to go a different way and ordered a video from a student titled “Bad Breath Test – How to Talk If Your Breath Stinks.” The video was viewed by 18 million people, and Bob received 4 million orders for toothbrushes. The advantage of viral marketing is that even a video shot on an iPhone can become viral.
- Seeding. The most interesting video won’t become viral just because it evokes bright emotions. To give it a start, you need to choose the right publishing date. The best days for business are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Post your video on social networks, YouTube, blogs, and forums, as well as on vimeo.com and howcast.com. Set up targeted advertising campaigns in social media, send the video to your subscribers via email. In short, use all available methods to show the video to as many users as possible.
- Effect. If the video is liked by the audience, they will share it themselves. Be prepared not only for praise but also for a storm of criticism. The main criterion of quality is not the absence of bad reviews, but the number of views, mentions of the brand on the internet, and comments. You won’t please everyone, and that’s not what you need to do.
Surprise – the key to effectiveness
Viral advertising is a message that managed to surprise the user. Often, viral ad campaigns try to make them look like regular advertising. This is a mistake, because if regular good ads could become viral, users would be posting every fifth commercial. A reputable company always tries to “maintain its brand,” but in viral marketing, this approach only hinders the effect.
Don’t try to look good in the eyes of potential users and don’t praise your product. This won’t surprise anyone. Interested audiences will watch such advertising, but they definitely won’t want to share it. Surprising the modern user, spoiled by the variety of information, is very difficult. If your viral marketing doesn’t work the first time, don’t worry, get inspired and try again. Or turn to professionals at “LuxSite” who will shoot viral branded advertising for your company. We will do everything to make your product talk.
