Viral marketing is a strategy that can be used to help your brand, product, or service gain massive popularity quickly.
It is the modern-day word-of-mouth marketing, whereby your customers become ambassadors of your brand, sharing your message with their networks.
The beauty of viral marketing is that it can result in immense exposure and help you quickly reach a large audience- generating leads and market share.
In this article, we will explore the power of viral marketing and why it matters for your business.
What is Viral Marketing?
At its core, viral marketing is a marketing strategy that utilizes social networks and other media types to spread a message.
It relies on individuals passing on a marketing message to others within the same network, allowing the news to spread like a virus.
This type of marketing is often associated with internet marketing campaigns, including videos, images, and articles shared across social media platforms.
Viral marketing aims to share the message exponentially, creating a massive reach with little effort or cost.
How Does Viral Marketing Work
Viral marketing works by using the power of social networks. A message is created that is entertaining, useful, informative, and easy to share. When people see the message, they share it with their friends, family, and colleagues.
The message is shared, and the cycle continues. Viral marketing is often used to spread the word about a product, promotion, or event.
When done correctly, it can reach millions of people in a brief period, leading to increased brand recognition, traffic, and sales.
How do you create viral marketing campaigns to take your brand to the next level?
With the rise of social media and the endless amount of content that saturates the internet, creating a viral marketing campaign is the ultimate goal for most brands.
It’s the most effective way to spread your message, increase brand awareness, and build a loyal community of followers.
But the question is, how do you create a viral marketing campaign that works? In this post, we’ll dive into the key elements you need to create a viral marketing campaign that will take your brand to the next level.
Successful Examples of Viral Marketing
One of the most successful examples of viral marketing is the “Ice Bucket Challenge,” which went viral on social media in 2014.
The challenge involved dumping a bucket of ice water on the participant’s head, sharing the video on social media, and then nominating friends and family to do the same.
The campaign was started to raise awareness of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a degenerative disease that affects the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord.
The challenge spread rapidly, and many celebrities and public figures participated, making it one of the most successful viral marketing campaigns ever.
Another successful viral marketing campaign was the “Old Spice” campaign. Old Spice created a series of amusing commercials that were shared widely on social media.
The commercials featured a muscular, charismatic actor delivering funny one-liners and demonstrating the brand’s products.
The campaign was incredibly successful, creating a massive increase in sales for the brand.
Old Spice’s “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like”:
One of the most successful viral marketing campaigns ever, Old Spice used humor and satire in their commercials.
‘The Old Spice Man.’ The brand made a YouTube channel showcasing its comedic approach to selling body wash and aftershave.
The advertisement went viral, gaining millions of views and using the tagline “Smell like a man, man.” It contributed vastly to Old Spice becoming the number one-selling male body wash.
Blendtec “Will it Blend?” Series:
Blentec’s viral marketing campaign was widespread and served a purpose! They created YouTube videos where items ranging from iPads to marbles and even a rake were put into their blender and blended into powders.
The campaign was called ‘Will it blend?’ and gained a crazy amount of engagement on social media. The result? Blendtec reported a 700% spike in sales and even got a shout-out on The Ellen Show.
ALS Ice Bucket Challenge:
In 2014, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was everywhere! It was the largest viral event on social media, where everyone uploaded videos of themselves drenching themselves by pouring water from a bucket to raise awareness for ALS.
This viral campaign became the eighth-most-googled search phrase globally, raising over $220 million for research.
The Dollar Shave Club:
This brand made its way to success with its witty marketing campaigns showing how its service helps customers save money.
Their viral YouTube commercial generated over 26 million views, showcasing the brand’s unique selling points and ultimately leading Dollar Shave Club to become an industry leader and an acquisition target.
Airbnb’s “Belong Anywhere”:
Airbnb’s campaign went viral globally, showing the power of connecting people from different backgrounds and locations.
Their message was so powerful that it changed the hotel industry by creating a sense of community between the hosts and guests.
With the slogan “Belong Anywhere,” Airbnb propelled itself into the mainstream, creating a community of its own
The Power and Strategy Behind Viral Marketing
Marketing is constantly evolving, and in today’s digital era, viral marketing has become a buzzword.
Viral marketing is a powerful tool that any brand can leverage to reach millions of potential customers quickly.
Through viral marketing, brands can create brand awareness and boost sales by rapidly increasing their reach and engagement.
Some of today’s most successful companies, like Airbnb, Uber, and Dropbox, attribute their massive growth to their innovative viral marketing tactics.
We will explore the power and strategy behind viral marketing and some best practices to create and execute successful viral marketing campaigns.
It creates brand awareness:
Viral marketing allows businesses to enhance their brand exposure without spending much.
Once a piece of viral content is out there, it is shared and reshared, generating ample exposure for the company. This ripple effect goes beyond the present, generating leads and increasing market share.
It is cost-effective:
The cost of creating a viral campaign is significantly lower than that of conventional advertising.
In most cases, your customers do the work of marketing for you, sharing the message with their networks and creating massive reach within a short time. This helps businesses save money while still having a significant impact.
Viral marketing helps you understand your audience better:
When crafting a viral campaign, businesses must create content that resonates with their target audience.
Marketers gather feedback from their audience on what type of content is popular or resonates most. Analyzing the feedback from social media is a great way to gain insights that will help businesses create content that people will want to share.
It Builds Trust and Loyalty:
Viral campaigns work best when businesses can connect deeply with their customers.
When customers feel connected with a business, they become more invested, sharing the message with their networks and promoting the brand.
Trust and loyalty are essential in today’s marketing landscape, and businesses that create viral campaigns will be more successful in creating and maintaining both.
It fosters Creativity and Innovation:
Creating viral content requires a unique approach. Finding a unique angle that captures people’s attention and pushes the campaign to go viral is crucial.
Viral marketing requires innovation, creativity, and critical thinking. Brands and businesses that invest in these attributes improve their chances of creating a successful campaign.
Conclusion:
Viral marketing plays a critical role in today’s marketing landscape. It can be a powerful tool to increase brand awareness, connect with customers, and generate leads quickly.
In our digital age, where social media is prevalent, creating a viral campaign helps businesses tap into a massive audience quickly and cost-effectively. Embark on this strategy and reap the benefits of viral marketing.
