What makes content go viral

From the engineering side, social technologies measure engagement, map it over time down to the millisecond, and then surface content deemed high quality to get more impressions and even more engagement. The interplay between those two mechanisms is what makes content go viral. Get more expert insights about creating viral content in our upcoming live video master class, 12 Principles of Viral Content.

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Thank You! You have been subscribed. Start free or get a demo. Ollie Smith ExpertSure mentions how Rip Curl a popular surfing company, has created an online publication. McCall Robison from Best Company mentions another way an already well-known business can branch out and create content based on other popular brands and events.

She mentions how Hootsuite, the popular social media managing platform, created a video that played on the popular tv show Game of Thrones. So what makes content go viral? Well, it can be a variety of things. Most people use humor or emotion to elicit sharing.

Which is why videos and memes are so often shared. They can help capture both the message and quick wit that people enjoy and like to share with others.

You may find that reoptimizing content can also go a long way. As it pans out, videos, GIFS, and social media advertising are well-loved and for good reason.

These all seem to play a role in what makes content go viral. People love sharing funny and interesting video type content. And brands can help boost it by social media ads. Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on linkedin Check out our other popular articles.

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Referral Program Ultimate Guide. Affiliate Marketing Ultimate Guide. Run an affiliate program that can multiply your sales and raise your bottom line. Knowledge Base. In-depth documentation about our referral marketing software. Product Guide. The definitive guide to everything Referral Rock. Marketing , Roundups. We went on the hunt to see what other marketers felt contributed to content that goes viral. Here are their tips along with some great examples.

By Megan Mosley. June 17, We had respondents from 15 different industry types give us feedback. Video GIFS are the most effective at becoming viral We asked a question in which we wanted people to rate the effectiveness of different types of content in becoming viral. Webinars, on the other hand, were more consistently rated lower on the scale. Social media advertising is believed to help the most in creating viral content We asked: Do you believe any of these items can help aid in the viral growth of content?

Tips for creating viral content Most people associate viral content with funny memes and videos. Create Interesting content Interesting content is shareable content.

Use drama or humor Dramatic content can create virality. Get a celebrity behind you No matter how big or small a brand is, a celebrity endorsement can take it to the next level. There is still no guarantee millions of people will see your content, but, by following a few basic rules, you will give it the best chance.

Before you create any piece of content, first determine your target audience. The psychology behind why content goes viral is fascinating. When you look on your Facebook feed you will generally see posts about children, animals or just something downright disgusting — just Google trypophobia as an example. How many times have you seen this type of image? This rule may also be of benefit when it is applied to your social media platforms, and Social Media Today examines this concept in more detail.

Emotional engagement is by far the biggest factor when it comes to the appeal of content. These will have stayed hidden deep within blogs and would never have gone viral. If your content elicits a highly roused emotional state you have succeeded in the first step of creating your viral content. That may sound easy, but you need to get it spot on — to make someone feel joyful you must have a very good plan!

Jonah Berger is a thought leader in this area and he has published books and in-depth papers on this subject. Zazzle caught up with Jonah recently and he gave us some insight into the role of emotion in engagement and sharing:. And the deeper our emotional tie is with a brand or service, the more likely people will be to purchase. Why are people using a product or service in the first place, and how can you focus on that emotional core? The more fired up we get, the more likely we are to share.

These emotions are often a lot easier to trigger due to them being natural and innate in human beings. Take the example of someone who loves animals and is passionate about their welfare. This upset a lot of people, but they also wanted to share the news with friends to spread the story and help the animals, which happened through both raising money and awareness.

This story shows how emotions and social triggers work together to bolster social currency. We have talked a lot about emotion in this post and how you should use it to enhance the shareability of your content, but there are three emotions you should steer clear of:. There is a fine line between making someone angry or upset and disgusting someone. In some cases, disgust can work if a shared passion is involved or there is a familiarity with the situation among the different parties.

Provoking an emotional response can be difficult.