Shocking Fact: Viral Content is Everywhere!
Believe it or not, there are tons of stuff going viral on Facebook and Twitter every single day. In fact, according to a fairly recent estimate, over 2 million new pieces of content get published every day. You best believe that a significant percentage of that goes viral on social media and on the internet in general.
Content goes viral all the time. There are a lot of reasons for this. First, the content has some sort of emotional feel. Maybe it’s funny, maybe it’s shocking, maybe it angers people. Whatever the case may be, people get so worked up that they can’t help but share that piece of content.
Another reason is just raw cuteness. If you keep seeing videos of cute kittens, this is the cute factor at play. This is pretty self explanatory. This can apply to infants, animals, or older people doing interesting stuff. As long as something is doing something cute, you can bet that there’s a high chance that piece of content will get shared a lot.
Another common reason for virality is shock factor. People are just shocked or stunned by what’s going on in the video. Maybe it involves some sort of crime. Maybe it involves something scandalous, disgraceful or shameful.
People like to see something new. People like to get thrown off from time to time. It’s kind of like explaining the appeal of a train wreck. You know you shouldn’t watch those, but people do it anyway.
Another reason why content goes viral is the raw shock factor of newness. For example, if there is some sort of scientific discovery that really blows people’s minds, don’t be surprised if it goes viral
Finally, content can go viral if it tells you something that you don’t already know. Maybe you already know the content, but it resends the content in a very interesting and engaging way. This type of content is like some sort of brain candy.
These are the types of content that go viral every single day. There’s really no specific niche preference. You can be watching a viral video on an otherwise boring subject like furniture, but there’s something about the video that just catches your attention. You can’t help but share it with your friends.
Psychological Bases of Content Virality
Let’s get one thing clear, when you’re sharing stuff with your personal network, you’re putting yourself out there. You’re stepping out on a limb. It can blow up in your face. If you share content that a lot of people find objectionable, you may lose credibility. Still, people share content on their Facebook timelines and Twitter feeds all the time.
Why do they do it? What do they get out of it? What are the psychological factors at play?
Well, first of all, people like to share content because they want to be perceived as “hip.” They want to be seen as cool or as people who know what’s up with the internet. They want to be the first to share something interesting that is quickly becoming viral on the internet. There’s a tremendous emotional reward associated with being the first to share interesting material.
Another reason is just to simply enjoy and exercise one’s personal influence. I don’t know about you, but it makes me feel really good when I share something that I am interested in or am passionate about, and my friends share and reshare that stuff.
Basically, they validate me when I see that. They tell me, in so many ways, that my opinion is important. Every share that my content gets is a vote for my personal authority, expertise and credibility.
Finally, people share content because they simply think it is valuable or interesting. In other words, it captures their range of personal interests.
And here is the secret: if these people’s networks are refined enough to the point that they basically share the same set of interests, you can bet that that content will go viral.
Basically, if you like rabbits, and I like rabbits, and I post videos of cute rabbits, chances are, you will click the “share” button once you see my status update on your timeline. Chances are, you also have friends who are interested in the same things. You probably have friends who are interested in rabbits and they will share your content, and so on and so forth.
Never underestimate how “viral” shared interests could be because this is how Facebook is organized. When you add people to your friend network, chances are, they’re from the same background as you. They have the same experiences, you went to the same school, and you may have a wide range of shared interests. It is these overlapping shared interests that help fuel virality.
So What is the REAL TRUTH About Viral Content Marketing?
There are three things that you need to wrap your mind around. Do this and you will do well with viral marketing. Screw this up and you will continue to mess up long into the future. You will continue to struggle.
First, you don’t have to come up with something new. Second, you can reuse somebody else’s stuff. Third, you can reverse engineer your competitors’ viral materials and networks. Put this all together and you have all that you need for a successful viral content marketing campaign.