So you want to go viral eh?

So I was going through the Q&A over on Gooruze (where I am a founding Gooru) yesterday and came across a question by a member wanting to know what to do when a client asks for something "viral". I've seen this question a lot and I've weighed in on it before, but I have refined my thinking over time and wanted to share where I am right now.

The very first thing you have to do is collectively work to define viral. Viral is a goal, not a tactic. Asking the client what their campaign goals are is crucial. You can even ask them "what would be viral success for you?". Get as detailed as possible (400 pass alongs, 50 comments, etc.). As an agency, you have to decide if their expectations are realistic and make a go/no-go decision.

People have delusional dreams that millions of people clamoring for their content. The part that really matters is the engagement that a piece of content creates with your brand. So if something is watched 1,000,000 times and only 10 of those people know who you are and act on it, you have to ask if it's worth it. Alternatively, if something is seen 10 times and the same number know/learn who you are and act on it, your outcome is better. Which is viral to you?

Content that has the goal of becoming viral needs to hit a few key requirements no matter what.

• Uniqueness - viral usually only happens once. Subservient chicken was great, but tell me one of the copycats who followed it up. You can't. Viral happens once and it's done. You have to be the first.
  
• Resonance - things that go viral resonate with their audience so much that they feel a need to share. Could be comedic, cool or dumb, but it has to resonate.
  
• Easy, multi-modal pass-along - should be email-friendly, embeddable, hooked into social networks, IM-friendly, etc. I've seen people make things hard to forward and that kills the idea in its tracks.
  

If a client still doesn't get it, doesn't have goals or won't listen then you should run the other way. They'll never be satisfied, the product will suffer and they'll take you down with them.

Also, check out Seth Godin's take on viral vs. word-of-mouth. Yes, there is a difference and it's important to know.

Are there any other requirements that you set when creating a new campaign? Have you ever walked away from a project or later realized that you should have? What successes have you had and what made people see the value and pass it along?

Technorati Tags:
Gooruze, marketing, Matt Dickman, Seth Godin, social media, Techno//Marketer, viral

Comments

[Jason Mical]

Matt, I was the guy who asked that question and I wanted to thank you again for a great response on Gooruze and a really great one here. Also, nice link to Seth's piece on viral vs. WOM - I somehow missed that.

The viral discussion continues to be a pretty hot one in our neck of the woods. One of my coworkers commented yesterday that you could guarantee viral success if you included Christina Aguilera, Lord of the Rings, cute puppies and kitties, dirtbikes, and explosions, but only if you included all of those things all at once. And then you'd have to come up with something ever more "awesome" to do next time.

One thing we have been discussing though are exploring alternatives to "viral" campaigns. This may be a function of my group working within a much larger (and far more traditional) agency, and that a lot of our viral asks come from internal teams looking to enlist us. We're shifting from asking "what are your viral goals" to "how does this fit into your overall strategy," because sometimes jumping on the "viral bandwagon" doesn't actually map at all to what the clients want to see - they just want to be "out there" because they feel they should be.

I am really digging this discussion, thanks again for the great response Matt!