We all live in the digital age. Here is the content is the king. You will surely agree. The market is the consumer of content and content is more in demand than ever. It is only because of engaging content that adds value, teaches and entertains the public that any business becomes popular. The average person spends at least 15 hours a day reading and studying different types of content.
Yes, of course, the media is constantly changing. Sometimes we like to watch a video on a laptop, while at some point we send texts from our smartphones and even listen to music while browsing articles is also an addition to the list of things that we do on various media. However, the common pattern you’ll notice here is that we’re sort of still connected. Content is something that can grab attention like that. And by attention, we mean capturing prospects and customers, selling products and services online, spreading brand awareness and building a winning reputation for a brand.
So what’s important here is why content is important in going viral.
Viral Content
Viral content is any medium that becomes very popular on the Internet overnight. Media can be anything from a YouTube video to a Facebook post, a tweet, and almost any type of social media content. Viral means that content is shared by thousands and thousands of times on different platforms. And, when that happens, your brand is exposed to a whole new audience, which of course has led to organic lead generation. You can also think about making your content viral on the Internet like in the lottery. Just in a simpler form, we can say that great content that is intended to be shared online and spreads like a virus is viral content.
Most marketers dream of going viral to get thousands – if not millions – of people to find the content. It is because it takes a lot of time and effort that they have spent a lot of time creating. And the efforts are worth it. A single line of viral publication can generate significant brand awareness and generate useful traffic to your website. Since the traffic from social shares is organic, viral content is relatively cheap compared to paid ads. Yes, not everything is easy. Viral content is difficult to remove. Now that you have to wonder how to get social shares or how to make content viral? Here are some of the best tips and tricks from the experts.
- Do your research
You can’t do something viral overnight. So what’s important to do is research on the subject. You need to deepen the topics with new research, as this is one of the effective ways to generate social media shares. You may have noticed a number of websites that receive a lot of content sharing. This is because they know how to position and label effective and relevant things. Comforting, happy and inspirational messages topped the list. Yes, it was followed by some people and it worked wonders. What else can you do in the form of warnings. It is still more directive research. To get attention, you can do research that is referred by people previously suggested to warn people of things. It would surely be a success. What comes next are the trends. A subset of all research shows trends. Follow a few trends and post something related to them. So all you need is to stand out and potentially escape the hustle and bustle of the content.
- Pictures attract more shares
It is not new to us if someone says that images get more views and shares. We are all aware that captivating images increase engagement. And that’s exactly what we need to get the viral post. Nowadays, almost all social media platforms allow us to share images and content at the same time. In other words, we can say that on average, twice as many people like to share messages with at least one image in the message. And, we get the tip here. This indicates how important it is to mix a visual element with body text.
- Browse Viral Content Sites for Ideas
Of course, each of us has to start somewhere. So what could be better than browsing viral content that has already been successful on the Internet. Honestly, the ideas you are looking for could be found there. So here, the lesson is to learn how to save time and avoid reinventing the wheel by browsing viral content sites for ideas. You can work on and improve these ideas or even personalize them for your readers, by encouraging them to share on their social pages. The Huffington Post is one of the best examples we can learn from, as this site already has a culture of constant creation of viral content. It is a news site and their titles are not entirely explanatory. They make sure to make an attractive headline for people to click on.
Yes, you can also write yours that way, big and fat. Plus, video content is also something that goes viral like that if people like it. Few elements that can make content viral are the authority of the site, your calendar, the subject chosen and the author. Also, an additional tip, place your social sharing buttons like your click to tweet or your Facebook share on your blog. This facilitates sharing.
- Feel good content is the need of the hour
Some of the few things that can make content go viral are wellness content. People should be happy to read the same. The biggest thing that determines whether content should go viral is whether people feel compelled to share it. Every piece of content we create, we surely want it to go viral so, before you publish something, ask yourself, “Are people going to share this?” The question will give you an idea if your content will be shared by people or not.
Always remember one thing, the content shared by people is something that makes them feel good. Few of the things that top the list are funny, cute and emotional. Boring things have no chance. Any message must be provocative and entertaining to win over the audience. This way you will understand what the general public will be linked to. If your video represents something controversial or extreme, you may find it harder to connect with your audience. So be sure to post something that your audience likes.
- Captivating introductions and colorful visuals
What could be better than having content that has a captivating introduction? And, the icing on the cake would be to have this introduction with colorful visuals. To create a viral article, it’s important to create an introduction that entices customers to read and respond to the article. Just a little research-based example for you. Your acquaintances read only about 28% of a blog article. So if you want your article to go viral, it is very important to create an article to quickly attract large readers. This means that the intro that you provide in your content must be compelling and interesting. Also, try to use short, meaningful sentences. It will hook the reader to your message. According to research, short sentences increased the readability of content by 58%. And as we also discussed earlier, inserting images makes your content much more compelling.
- Appropriate platform selection
In addition to focusing only on content and quality, it is also important for you to select a relevant platform for publishing your content. Remember that each social media platform is different. Always be sure what you publish where. Not all platforms will give you success. It is therefore advised to all that before creating content, choose a platform on which to specialize. Twitter, LinkedIn Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook are all good platforms. You can choose one to start a viral marketing campaign. But be sure to create content that may differ depending on the platform you choose. For example, if you choose Instagram, a series of Instagram stories or an image with a compelling caption would spark viral sharing online. Likewise, if you choose Pinterest, make sure it contains quotes and posts.
The Bottom Line
Now that you’ve read the entire article, don’t forget to create quality, user-relevant content. While looking to drive traffic to your business website, be sure to show people how they can implement the advice you give them. Take your time to show them an example. You can also help them by giving them the next action steps. And more, don’t download anything for the fun of it. Write with emotions and good humor. This will allow you to target people’s emotions so that you know your content will be shared.