In the digital marketing world, using videos when making content is always considered a good idea. In fact, videos are so popular that according to studies, more than half of consumers want more video content from the brands they support. With the help of this guide, we will show you how you can create viral videos. Why do you need viral videos? Well, they boost engagement, brand awareness and in the end, sales.
Having the right approach to your video content creation will increase the likelihood that it will go viral and reach a wider audience. And all digital marketers know that increased reach means better business.
Where Will You Find Viral Videos?
There are many platforms that will see your content go viral, and the most popular are Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
We suggest that you choose one platform that you want to focus on to create viral videos. At least at first because you need to see what works and what doesn’t. If you’re sharing your content on multiple platforms, it will be a bit more difficult to track success.
Of course, the platform that you choose will influence the kind of content you use to create your viral videos. There are many factors that influence how viral a video goes. If you start off the right way your marketing strategy is more likely to be successful. That’s what we hope to help you achieve with this guide.
Creating Viral Videos – A Quick Overview
Before we dive into the best practises for creating video content that goes viral, let’s quickly discuss what it takes to make viral videos.
You need to keep things short and sweet. Unless you’re creating an in-depth look at your brand or products, short videos do really well. Obviously, your video has to be interesting and catch the attention of your target audience. The video should definitely be very high quality too. No one will entertain a bad video for longer than they have to – the ‘skip’ button is easy to click on.
Subtitles, a strong start and a clear message are also very important if you want your video content to go viral. Creating timely content is also very important while making sure the sound/music you use is relative and pleasing.
However, you need to be sure that your video will work without sound. Many platforms play videos automatically and without sound, and many users choose to not play the sound.
What Makes Viral Videos Perform So Well?
You may think that using cute animals or creating funny content is what makes a video go viral. And you’d be half right. Sure, animals are always popular and people like to laugh, but there is a lot more to viral videos.
Good videos don’t force a product down your throat but make sure that you know what the video is all about.
You don’t have to put your product on the centre stage. As long as it’s clear what your video is about, it doesn’t have to feel like you’re promoting anything. And although many of us thing controversial videos do well, we’d suggest you steer clear of that approach.
Instead, play it a bit more safe. One controversial video that doesn’t sit well with your audience can ruin your whole brand.
Combining your videos with social media sharing is really how you will get your video in front of as many eyes as possible.
Before You Start: Experiment With Content
Although you may feel like you want to jump in and start sharing videos that will hopefully go viral, we suggest you experiment first. You can experiment with funny clips, music and dance videos as well as the latest trends. You want to entertain your target audience and by experimenting, you will learn what they like and what they ignore.
Now that we’ve covered those basic points, let’s get right into how you can create viral videos.
Have A Strong Marketing Plan
Sometimes you can get lucky and see your content go viral through sheer luck. That doesn’t happen often, sadly, so you’ll have to work hard. Having a proper and good marketing plan is vital to any marketing campaign. You’ll find much information in the many guides we share that will help you create a killer marketing plan.
When you create great videos and combine them with a good marketing plan, you are increasing your chances of going viral. Without a marketing plan, how will you know where to share your video? How will you determine what kind of content your target audience will want to see? Will you even know who your audience is?
To have viral videos, you have to know exactly where, how and why you’re sharing it. With that said, your video needs to be pretty awesome. Don’t put all your faith in a good marketing plan and hope that a mediocre video will do well.
Your Videos Should Portray Your Brand’s Image
If your video goes viral, it will reach many people who have previously not heard about you. Once they’ve seen the viral content, what will they think of you? What will their impression of your brand be?
These questions are why you have to make sure that your video(s) reflect the identity and image of your brand. You don’t want people to have the wrong idea or be confused about that. Your viral videos need to be basically dripping with your brand’s personality.
Viral Videos Work Well With Influencers
Influencer marketing is an interesting and creative strategy that works very well when done right. You want to rope in the contribution of an influencer because they’re very aware of what works and what doesn’t.
Influencers also come with a good following so you’ll get added exposure and a better shot at your content going viral. Give your influencers say in what you create and let them do what they’re paid for – content creation.
Although this can be risky, if you communicate well and use a trusted influencer, you could hit the jackpot this way. With that said, it is suggested that you use an influencer that knows how to bring videos to life. They should have experience in creating viral videos and content.
Evoke Emotions
One of the best ways to make sure that your content gets shared and goes viral is to evoke emotions. This is true for all content, not only videos. If you want people to feel like they want to share your video with the world, there has to be a reason, their emotions have to get involved.
Take a minute to think about the viral videos you have seen. The reason they reached you is that they evoked some kind of emotion in the people who shared it. And if you shared it as well, it’s likely that you were driven by some emotions, perhaps even a mixture of emotions.
Choose Your Platforms Well
As we mentioned earlier, you don’t want to overwhelm yourself and be active on all platforms at once. Well, at least not at first. You want to start with the best options available to you and move on from there. Once you have mastered your chosen platforms, you should, by all means, move on to others. This will allow your brand to grow.
But start off by choosing your platforms well. We suggest that you start on ‘the big guys’ at first – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Then you can find what works on each of the platforms and work from there.
The kind of content that works on Twitter may not work on Facebook, and vice versa. It is not likely that a video will go viral on all your platforms, unfortunately. Do lots of research when choosing your platforms. (See why having a marketing plan is so important?)
Have Good Marketing Balance
As with all things in life, you need to have a balance when it comes to viral videos. With balance we mean you should not focus solely on creating awesome videos. You have to have other marketing efforts that are just as strong and get as much attention.
For example, having super videos are good and all, but if your website is an ancient and boring space, the virality of your video will all be a waste. You want viral videos to drive traffic and create brand awareness. So everything that happens after people see the videos is very important. You don’t want them losing interest because the video was cool but your brand’s sites and blogs were lacking.
Make sure that your marketing strategies are up to scratch and that you’ve got a balanced thing going. Once you’ve got your audience hooked with your viral content, you need to keep them with a stellar marketing plan. If you need help, check out our other guides, you’ll be able to learn a lot more.
Examples Of Viral Videos You Can Learn From
Let’s take a look at some videos that went viral over the years and see why they did so well. You can learn a lot from just looking at what other brands did and how their audiences reacted.
1. Old Spice
What would a list of viral videos be without including the Old Spice ad? It was extremely popular and went viral in a big way. Who doesn’t know the Old Spice Man?
The video is funny and charming while also making sure everyone knows exactly what is being advertised. The thing is, you’re not getting the feeling that you’re being ‘sold to’ and people love that. It is creative and the humour is clean yet a bit tongue-in-cheek.
Old Spice was also very smart. When they noticed how popular the video is, they cashed in on the momentum. The brand created multiple videos and even had a Twitter campaign which saw people ‘winning’ micro-videos featuring the now-famous Old Spice Man. That’s how you take viral to the next step.
You shouldn’t be afraid to create bold and distinctive characters, and that is exactly what Old Spice did. And they talked directly to their audience – men who want to smell nice and be the ‘hero’ in their own lives.
2. Always
This is a feminine product that caters to young women and mostly middle-aged ladies. However, they managed to have a viral video by creating content with emotional impact. The video was able to resonate with many women, which is why it did so well.
By using a phrase that is often used negatively, Always was able to hit a nerve without being offensive or rude. The overall message is positive and inspiring, which is something you’d want to go for as a marketer.
Always used a hashtag (#LikeAGirl) to make sure their content can reach audiences on more than one platform. This was very smart and helped the video go viral. Combined with the emotional connection, the brand had a winner.
3. Dollar Shave Club
With this viral video, we saw something actually focused on the product reach surprising popularity. That’s because the content was entertaining and people loved it.
By incorporating a lot of humour, Dollar Shave Club was able to reach its audience and more. Although video marketing can sometimes be very expensive, it truly paid off here. By spending roughly $4 500, the brand received about 12 000 orders within just 2 days of sharing the video.
It just goes to show you don’t need to have a big brand or a massive budget to create viral videos. You do need the right strategy and content though.
Conclusion
So there you have it – guidance on how to create viral videos. Of course, we only shared the skeleton of a good strategy here. It is up to you to give it flesh and colour. With enough planning, dedication and determination, you are bound to get there. Use what you’ve learnt here and absorb the strategies of the examples to create your own killer content. Good luck!