What's your secret sauce for creating viral content?

Svitlana Palamarchuk
28 replies
Hey hustlers! We all dream of that one piece of content going viral and bringing a flood of traffic. Have you cracked the code? Or stumbled upon a happy accident?

Replies

Igor Pavlov
I once posted a video with my cat where she gives me a high five on TikTok. This got half a million views or likes I don't even remember... What the hell was that I am not sure. I guess right content in right time to right audience.
Michael Cho
If talking about viral text/articles - I like this guide from the guy who started viralnova.com (a clickbaity site but gets tons of traffic). https://www.scottdelong.com/guid...
Debajit Sarkar
Controversial content To get people talking about your brand, you can post controversial content, however you should not cross the line into offensiveness. The timing of the content can greatly affect its chances of going viral. IOW, content that is released at a time when people are already talking about the topic is more likely to go viral than content that is released at a time when people are not talking about the topic. So at the right moment post your controversial content. Use strong, provocative language that makes people think and challenge their beliefs. Be mindful of your audience and avoid using language that is offensive or inflammatory. Use good judgment when creating and sharing controversial content. Examples of controversial content that has gone viral: 2014: An article in The New York Times that argued that the death penalty is not an effective deterrent to crime. 2015: A video went viral that shows a homeless man being harassed by a group of teenagers. 2016: Social media post by a celebrity that criticized the way the media covers women. 2017: A poem went viral that explores the dark side of social media.
@dsarkar Though controversial, after reading through, I actually kind of think this is true.
Hunter Carter
@dsarkar Anyone who engages in this approach is actively undermining the wellbeing of society.
Algorithms change a lot - but nothing rewards better than consistency IMO! Compound growth for your audience :)
Paul Pamfil
Try to stick to the trend ca be a good strategy
Check Ryan Reynolds take on this: he literally sees a social media trend (eg bottle cap kick challenge) and recreates it within 24 hours, gaining vitality himself. His whole marketing campaign for every company is like this. So basically be quick on trends and try replicate if possible.
Elissa Craig
@timcha Ryan Reynolds certainly does make great content - but his platform allows him to garner a lot of attention and activity. Additionally, because he has consistently high engagement, his content ranks higher in algorithms. So yes, he seems to have cracked the code, but he has the unique advantage of being a celeb. For the average company or person, I think it may fall more to happy accident albeit, using trends is part of a solid, sustainable approach for any account!
Edgars
@timcha Do you think he is using tools to see trends first?
Filippo Pietrantonio
@timcha I think this is the best strategy to go about this. In my opinion, it's very hard to come up with content that could be viral, so you either (1) get lucky (and it happens!) or (2) be quick on trends and capitalise on what's already working. Ryan's strategy is by far the best way to achieve virality and most of all evaluate whether you did a good job in emulating/following the trend (and learn & iterate from that).
@edgarsgriga no he has a marketing team if like 15 people who check trends
tawheed abdul-raheeem
For me, it is about throwing as much content out there and hoping one stick. Trend hijacking can feel very inauthentic
Nimesha Buvanendran
The secret is there's no secret ;) at least that's how I see it. It depends on how attentive you're to the current industry trends and how well you understand your audience.
Nicola Alessi
I don't think there is a secret sauce for making viral content...From my experience I can tell you that you definitely need to be creative, but at the same time you need a lot of little tests to find out what your target audience will like.
Morgan Kung
I'm here waiting for great answers.
Elissa Craig
I think truly "viral" content is typically a happy accident - but that doesn't mean you can't have and see success every day! So much thought and planning goes into social marketing and strategy. Having the added "pressure" of creating viral content is not sustainable, nor is it a healthy approach to marketing. Staying consistent and true to your audience needs to be valued over trying to manufacture viral content.
Olivier Fade
I guess humor remains a key element? Don't you remember anything that made you burst out laughing or even smirk out a faint smile? Did I ever create anything viral? Certainly not ^^
Deniz Can Ilgın
Being creative is crucial. And creativity is combining two distinct things in a single content to me. Just like; electronics and toilet. And putting also some minor effects (ASMR is a good sample) works a lot.
Looking for great answers 🤭
Felix
The Simple Finance Tracker
The Simple Finance Tracker
To be fair... Just posting something related to my niche and adding a personal story! It sounds very simple, but has been very effective for me so far!
Lacey Winter
It depends on which platform you want to use. Timing is a big one for all platforms - if you can keep things less than 30 seconds (ideally between 10 -15 seconds now for best performance) for video content it helps. TikTok content that feels genuine always performs better. Also adding text on screen to your VO helps the backend claim what content category your stuff fits in. Less hashtags, do not bombard the hashtags they don't work as well as text on screen does. Instagram capitalize on reels and aesthetics. It's a visual platform for a reason so remember that branding can make it seem less authentic and give poor aesthetics.
Alan Jenkins
Interesting question! While there's no guaranteed formula for creating viral content, there are a few things that can help increase the chances of your content taking off. First, make sure your content is visually appealing and easy to consume. This can include using eye-catching images, videos, or graphics, and breaking up text into short paragraphs or bullet points. Additionally, it's important to create content that's shareable, whether that's because it's informative, funny, inspiring, or emotionally resonant.
Amanda Johnson
Creating viral content is something that many businesses and creators aspire to achieve, but it's not always easy to predict what will go viral. That being said, there are a few things that can increase the likelihood of your content taking off.
Marilyn Barnes
Well, there's no one secret sauce for creating viral content, but some key ingredients include understanding your audience, crafting compelling and shareable stories, and leveraging social media platforms to amplify your message. With some creativity, persistence, and a bit of luck, your content could go viral and reach millions of people!