Ellen DeGeneres has managed to break Twitter records after taking a ‘selfie’ with Hollywood’s hottest celebrities at the Oscars. The photo smashed the record for the most retweeted image of all time in less than an hour.
This is the ultimate goal of every marketer; to create an idea that ‘goes viral’ and becomes instantly recognisable online.
Going viral refers to when your content achieves extraordinary reach through being shared, liked, retweeted, republished and commented on; earning you a vast amount of views.
It is a powerful outcome for your content and your brand’s reputation.
Users don’t share just anything they find online. They need to see your content as valuable, feel that others will benefit from seeing it and be compelled to share it or engage with it.
You need to ensure that your content offers something of value to the user, whether it’s a great video, expert advice, valuable insight or a humorous image.
If only Bradley’s arm was longer. Best photo ever. #oscars pic.twitter.com/C9U5NOtGap
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) March 3, 2014
Here are some tips to help get your content to go viral.
Understand your target audience
The key to having a successful viral campaign lies in really understanding your target demographic. The success of Ellen DeGeneres’ tweet relied on tapping into her audience’s interest in the top celebrities being honoured at the Oscars this year.
Tap into your audience and find out what their interests are, what kind of content they usually share and the social media networks they access. Tailor your content to ensure that it is relevant to your target audience.
Create unique and interesting content
Your content needs to be unique, interesting and relate to your audience in order for it to create a buzz. The Oscars selfie was unique as it showed a fun and cheeky side to the high profile actors at the formal Oscars event.
Don’t be afraid to add personality to your content and make sure it is never dry or lifeless. Make your brand feel like a friend to your followers.
The top reasons users often share content is because it is:
- Humorous
- Exciting
- Emotional
- Nostalgic
- Thought-provoking
- Surprising
- Dramatic
- Cute
Ensure all the content you produce reflects your brand’s values and personality. Hold regular brainstorming sessions to try to capture a range of ideas that can be turned into exciting content.
Encourage engagement
It is important to demonstrate to your audience that you genuinely care about them and what they have to say. Focus on starting a conversation as opposed to advertising your products or services.
Actively engage with your audience by asking questions to generate comments, likes and replies. Answer back to your followers’ questions in a timely manner. By consistently engaging with users, you can help to build a meaningful, supportive community for your brand and extend the reach of your content.
Use visuals
If you look at posts which have gone viral, such as Ellen DeGeneres’ Oscars tweet, you will find that nine times out of ten an image has been used.
When users visit web pages or social media sites, their eyes are naturally drawn to the most colourful part of the page. Including images gives your content a better chance of being shared across different networks, as images grab attention and express ideas simply.
Include photos, infographics, logos or other graphics to your content to give it an edge.
Include sharing buttons
To make sharing easy for your audience, provide the right mix of sharing buttons to your content so that users can share it via their social media channels, website or blog. Put prominent share buttons where they are easy to see, reach and click.
Ensure that you include a call to action within your content so that readers will be encouraged to pass your content along to others.
Make it succinct
For social media posts it is important your message is succinct, catchy and to the point.
For longer-form content such as blog posts, it is also important to be brief and succinct. The way we read internet content is different to how we read print text; people tend to scan the page by skimming over large chunks of text and focusing on subheadings and summaries. Use subheadings, bullet points and spaces to make it easier for readers to scan the article and find your key messages easily.
Users will share your content when it inspires them, makes them laugh or adds value. By taking into account who your target audience are and what they want to see as well as thinking about how to add personality to your content, you can encourage users to share your content.
Sydney Public Relations Agency, CP Communications provides specialist media, traditional and online PR strategies that get amazing results. Contact us today. For more great tips visit our website www.cpcommunications.com.au.
photo credit: ebbandflowphotography
