What does ‘going viral’ mean?
Essentially, if you go viral, a story or a piece of information will be shared multiple times online over a short period. If a business goes viral, it usually means an increase in the customer base and a massive surge of new interest. The general rule of thumb is that a piece of information is considered to have gone viral after being shared over one hundred thousand times. That should give you an idea about the impact this marketing technique can have. But how do you achieve it? You need to run an integrated marketing campaign and connect all the different pieces together.
1. Create a context
The first step is to create a context of information around your business for it to go viral. This is just a story linked to your company that is sellable, and it could be anything. For instance, you might be about to release a new product onto the market. Or, you could have just achieved an award for your services. However, there may be a story that you can create from nothing. For instance, a car mechanics company may not have achieved anything significant. They may also not be changing their service in any way. However, they can create context around a linked story such as increased number of car crashes and cheaper deals. This is the type of issue that is sure to go viral online. Particularly if you follow the next steps.
2. Target your customer
Remember, when you create your context, you must ensure that it appeals to your target customer. Some context will naturally appeal to consumers such as a new product being released on the market. Even then, though, you’ll have to promote it the right way to new buyers. You cannot just assume that they’ll want your product because it’s being released. Do everything you can to get them more interested in the purchase. Make sure it seems like your product, service or company is fixing an issue in their life.
3. Use your allies
If your business is picked up by the media, local and general, viral is going to be far more likely. The media will pick up your story, selling it for you. Particularly, if they think that your business is interesting and appealing. Or, if something that you have done will create a buzz in the business world. You need to make it appear as though your story is important. You can do this with a press release distribution service. By using press releases, media outlets are sure to pick up your story. You just need to makes sure they have all the information that they need.
4. Use social media
Lastly, you should use social media profiles to sell the story and generate interest yourself. You can do this by sharing content associated with the information that you want to go viral. Once you start sharing the info, more people will take notice. If it’s targeted content, customers will share it online for you, and this is the start of going viral. Mix this with interest from the media and you have a bankable campaign.
