10 Keys to a Successful Viral Marketing Campaign

Martin Gray
6 min readOct 20, 2020

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Photo by Campaign Creators on Unsplash

Not being neutral and allowing others to share the content you post are some of the tips for your viral strategy to bear fruit.

When you advertise your brand or your products on social networks or the Internet, through self-replication processes, that is, transferring information through? Word of mouth? But in electronic media, you are applying precisely the concept of viral marketing.

This way, you can reach a large number of people at the same time, and it is tremendously effective. But how do you make your viral marketing campaign successful?

Let’s Go Viral Now, LLC., a digital marketing agency based in Duluth Georgia, with its more than 20 years of experience is redefining the dynamics of viral marketing. The agency has a proven track record of planning and executing viral campaigns, generating data and insights that are verifiable.

Most importantly, Let’s Go Viral Now specializes in social media marketing, staying on top of the social media trends which are integral for business marketing objectives. In recent times, one of the most important works led by the company has been for small and medium sized businesses and independent record artists like Mike Epps and Big Daddy Kane.

With that being said, let’s analyze the factors involved in the success of a viral marketing campaign:

1. Simplicity

If there is a unique characteristic that must be met when creating a viral campaign, it is that it must be simple. Simple works. Many companies insist on creating huge campaigns, with many elements, that only complicate it. And, in the end, they end up creating very elaborate marketing campaigns with a large investment, but that does not reach the user.

However, you don’t have to have a large amount of money to create a good viral marketing campaign. Although in many cases, the simple is not synonymous with a minor investment, the truth is that many ideas are discarded because they are too simple.

One of the keys to viral marketing is working with simple ideas but with a great message. Which is what makes everyone think when they see a viral marketing campaign: “That could have been my brand.”

2. The protagonist is the product

Another key to viral marketing is that the protagonist always has to be the product. This is a practice that is being lost in marketing today. But the detail of highlighting the product as the star of the campaign makes your content more direct and that users better understand the message you are trying to convey.

Therefore, if you have a product or service that you want to promote, always try to put it as the center of attention. This way, you will achieve your goals in a better way. And the publicity you do, if it goes viral, will make your product go viral and end up selling even more. Remember that if users recommend your campaign, they will be expressly recommending your product or service.

3. Humanize your brand

Another key to viral marketing is to humanize the brand. The audience is tired of seeing impersonal brands that seem to be targeting robots instead of people.

Beyond working on a logo and a specific corporate image, it is necessary to make your brand friendly to users. If they can put a face on the brand, you will have taken a big step. Personalizing the experience of your users and humanizing your brand will allow you to be recognized as unique and different from all the other brands on the market.

4. Don’t cheat

If you want your marketing to become viral and work among users, you should never deceive the consumer. Even the smallest detail counts. When working on a campaign to promote a product, show things as they are. Do not exaggerate the benefits or try to highlight something that is not correct.

Users highly value this aspect because nobody likes to be fooled. Therefore, be transparent so that users trust your brand. Only then will you get them to talk and share about your brand, thus providing you with one of the keys to viral marketing.

5. Videos

Videos are a great way to communicate and connect with users. In recent years, on the internet, there have been many cases of viral videos that have gone around the world and that even after many years, are still popular. Video support offers you the opportunity to create different, original and dynamic content.

In the case of using this strategy, try to create entertaining and short videos. About 2 or 3 minutes maximum. Otherwise, the videos are very long, and it will be difficult for them to achieve many views.

Also, you mustn’t go crazy when creating a video. The technique is important. But even more, so is telling interesting things. Good storytelling is essential for your campaigns to have the possibility of going viral. But remember that it is better to have a few seconds of good content than a long, boring and meaningless video. Quality always over quantity.

6. Take advantage of social networks

Trying to make a campaign go viral today without the contest of social networks is naive. Users are on social networks. And these channels are the right ones for the expansion of a campaign based on the recommendations.

If you want to make a campaign go viral, social networks have to be part of your strategy. It would help if you did not miss the opportunity for your content to be shared on different social networks. Currently, it is one of the best ways for content to go viral and thus reach as many people as possible. If users like your content, they will share it, and that way, your campaign will be able to expand at the speed of light.

7. Encourage humor

Another key to viral marketing that you must work hard is to incorporate humor into your campaigns. Everyone is attracted to content that has humor as its axis. Many users connect to the internet or their social networks to have a good time and escape from reality. For this reason, users highly value fun content.

If your brand can afford to create a type of advertising with humor, do not think twice. Take advantage of your imagination and make your campaign on everyone’s lips.

8. Boost participation

The possibility for users to participate in promoting your offer is one of the most interesting keys to viral marketing. Users need to feel part of something. And a good incentive marketing campaign can be the cornerstone of going viral.

You can get participation in many different ways. Create games that can be played with other users. Design a service related to the product that they can use. Encourage feedback on different aspects of the campaign. Whatever, as long as users become more involved with your brand, encouraging them to share it.

9. Offer an attractive prize

Another key to viral marketing is to offer an attractive reward for the user. People are carried away by instinct. Therefore, it is usually good to offer them an incentive that makes them want what you offer. Or, at least, share it with those closest to you.

For that incentive to work properly, you must think about it being of value to users. Make it interesting and motivating for your target audience. In this way, if the prize you offer is to the liking of the user, they will not hesitate to seek more information about it. If besides, you request registration or content to be shared to access the final prize, users will not hesitate to expand your content, helping you to make it viral.

10. Take care of the content and design

It’s the little details that count. Try to create a good structure and a balanced and harmonious mix of colors. The same goes for campaign copy. If you are thinking of highlighting a phrase, try to make it easy to remember and pronounce.

Also, although it may not seem like it, these small details will encourage people to share your content. If a campaign is poorly structured or has poorly maintained elements, it will no longer be to the liking of users. And therefore, they will not share it. On the contrary, if the content is good and the design is careful, the chances that your campaign will go viral increase.

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Martin Gray
Martin Gray

Written by Martin Gray

Martin Gray has BSc Degree in MediaLab Arts from the University of Plymouth. He currently lives in New York city. All links here: linktr.ee/martingray

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