Inbound Marketing: 12 Lessons from Winning Viral Campaigns
Stop interrupting what people are interested in, and be what people are interested in. Have you tried employing viral inbound marketing campaigns? In today’s socially engaged and networked marketplace, viral word of mouth marketing has moved to the top of marketing campaign elements at your disposal.
In this blog, we will discuss viral content marketing examples and lessons we can derive from them.
Viral content marketing campaigns are one of the best ways to get potential customers talking about you.
Viral content takes consumers by surprise, makes an indelible impression, and pops up where and when people least expect it. It often has a large targeted audience and often can be accomplished at reduced cost. While there are definite actions to take, it is very difficult to achieve the optimum results.
Related: Guinness Marketing Campaign Shows Their Creativity
By being a little more clever and unpredictable, you challenge consumers who appreciate a little fun in their products.
The techniques require creativity, flexibility and a willingness to take a little risk. Creating viral content that taps into the human psyche is the Holy Grail for many marketers.
Going viral is quite possibly the fastest, most cost-effective method to publicize your business on a grand scale. The beauty of a viral YouTube video that when combined with a tweet and mass media, is that your brand will make a memorable impression on a huge audience within a short time.
So a viral video is a publicist’s dream and a marketer’s hope for fame but there’s just one question:
How do you do it?
What makes something go viral in the first place? We examine this question through some of my favorite examples of viral content campaigns:
Inbound marketing … WePay
One of my favorite examples of a company going viral and creating a story worth talking about is WePay and their stunt of leaving a 600-pound block of ice in front of a PayPal conference.
WePay’s execution here was brilliant: for years, people had been complaining about how PayPal would “freeze” their accounts, locking them out from withdrawing the money they earned. If you sell goods online, your PayPal account could be a big part of your livelihood, so to be locked out and ignored was obviously enraging for many people.
No surprise, then, that WePay’s jab at PayPal’s willingness to freeze your money was so well received! Press around the story was whirling, starting with coverage on TechCrunch:
Since some of the biggest points of difference that WePay offered were dependability, security, and customer service that PayPal has often been accused of lacking. Taking a jab at their competitor with this stunt wasn’t just for random, pointless press; it got people talking about a problem WePay truly hoped to address.
Related post: Jaw-Dropping Guerrilla Marketing Lessons and Examples
Will it blend?
Blendtec will it blend?
How the heck do you promote a line of blenders? That’s the question Blendtec found itself asking when it wanted to promote its new line of blenders. It’s tough for a blender to have “social currency,” so what could they do?
Funny. Memorable. Manly. The keys to success from the ‘Will It Blend’ marketing campaign. Any certainly something you’ll want to do for a networked market. Like Blendtec did very successfully.
‘Will It Blend’ is a marketing campaign consisting of a series of infomercials demonstrating the Blendtec line of blenders. In the show, Tom Dickson, the Blendtec founder, attempts to blend various unusual items in order to show off the toughness and power of his blender.
This brilliant viral campaign was found in the series called Will It Blend?, a video collection of Blendtec blenders destroying (or not destroying) popular items that definitely should not be in a blender.
The genius of this series was not only in how it made blenders a discussion topic (seriously, kudos) but in how the videos showcased just how rugged Blendtec blenders really were.
The showmanship may have been great, but these videos were also moving products. If a blender can spit up and chew out an airsoft pistol, it can most certainly handle any fruits and vegetables that you’ll throw at it.
Inbound marketing examples … Dove
The Dove Evolution viral ad is effective because it sends a positive message about the true definition of beauty. And this video really did spread like a virus. Not only did it get nearly 2 million hits within a month’s time, but it also received attention from top TV shows.
Inbound marketing strategy … Kmart
With revenue continuing its long, steady decline, Kmart teamed with ad agency FCB to reenergize its much-maligned brand, promoting its product-delivery program by appealing to the fun personality in all of us.
The “Ship My Pants” online video embraces sophomoric wordplay to inform customers that items that are out of stock in Kmart stores may now be shipped directly to their homes for free.
Key elements of viral content
Viral content requires the aligning of the stars, but there are some key elements to look for as part of your campaign:
Play on emotion
Find content that will touch your audience’s hearts, souls or nerve endings. In a world that tends to be all business, make folks laugh out loud, cry or blink in surprise (preferably all three) and you will make them remember you.
If your industry is serious, don’t be afraid to make a joke (as long as it’s in good taste). Find ways to make people laugh.
Use simple concepts
Your message should be simple but compelling and without an ounce of excess flab. Just get your brand out there… in a good way.
High-quality content is key. Most people can tell the difference between meat and fluff, and that makes the crucial difference in what they will take the time to read or view and pass on to others.
Just be real.
Be real
There’s no need to pretty up your product or fake your viewers out. Ikea’s Herding Cats was real, wasn’t it? Relevant also helps. If you can pull it together to relate to a current event, an issue in your industry or a popular trend that will help but you’ve still got to ensure it’s relevant to your audience.
Offer help or be entertaining
Offer something in return for your viewers’ or readers’ time and attention. ‘How to (insert topic)’ tips and instructions, discounts or freebies and solid news updates are all ways to provide perceived value, which can then be tied in with your particular business.
An off-kilter, daring, funny example is the Dollar Shave Club, a parody on the fad of clubs out there, hilarious and at the same time chock full of marketing. You’ll need to watch it at least twice to catch it all.
Reach out
Your goal is not just to manufacture widgets but to make those widgets meaningful and relevant. To do this, you need to tailor your message to your audience. Use language, images and, of course, a medium that your intended customers will relate to.
The launch video for Apple’s iOS5, for instance, showed casually dressed Apple executives demonstrating the device’s new features with catchy, flashy shots of the product. Although at almost 6 minutes, this video is on the long side, it has still been viewed by more than 3 million potential customers.
Use the caring card
A project that you share the same view of the world as your audience. Connect to common concerns. For example, the International Social Survey Program found, in surveying 33 countries, that the state of the economy tops the list of issues considered most pressing.
So the themes of saving money or creating jobs are likely to resonate with your public. Keep the mood positive, even inspirational, and the chances of being liked or forwarded increase.
There are no guarantees
Now, all that being said, you can select all of the above and put them together into an “epic” vlog and then what? You post it and wait for the earth to move, yet somehow… it doesn’t. There is no way of predicting with any certainty what will go viral and what will merely make your mother happy.
As well as content, timing and sheer luck play a role in going viral. But that’s the beauty of viral; some of the best come from a crazy list of ideas, quickly thought up. They are fast projects so even if they don’t get the response you hoped for, you have not invested a major portion of your budget.
If virality can be understood through the emotional state of the sharer, and how aroused they are, the video content (and written content) can be prepared by marketers to evoke the right emotions.
In simple terms: you should not be playing it too safe. In order to evoke high levels of arousal such as awe, surprise, amusement, anger or anxiety, you are going to need to be pushing the boundaries and giving something highly original.
So what’s the conclusion? The conclusion is there is no conclusion. There is only the next step. And that next step is completely up to you. But believe in the effectiveness of word of mouth marketing created by remarkable customer service. And put it to good use.
It’s up to you to keep improving your creative marketing strategies. Lessons are all around you. In this case, your competitor may be providing the ideas and or inspiration. But the key is in knowing that it is within you already.
All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new lessons.
When things go wrong, what’s most important is your next step.
Try. Learn. Improve. Repeat.
Are you devoting enough energy to improving your marketing, branding, and advertising?
Do you have a lesson about making your marketing strategy better you can share with this community? Have any questions or comments to add in the section below?
Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he writes about topics to help improve the performance of small business. Find him on G+, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change. We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way. Call us for a free quote today. You will be amazed at how reasonable we will be.
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