4 Mistakes You Make Doing Viral Marketing

[Devor]

This is an article I saw on HBR the other day.

4 Mistakes Marketers Make When Trying to Go “Viral†- David Spitz - Harvard Business Review

It doesn't flow well, and is a little abstract. But here are the main points:

• Content is spread by individuals. It's not really "viral marketing." Things don't just spread on their own like a virus. Much of what you're doing on social media is content marketing.*
• Try a few things, figure out what kind of content your audience wants to share, before pushing anything to hard. When you see what works, give them more of that, and less of what doesn't.
• Give people a reason to share. Find out what kind of content your audience is naturally interested in, and offer content that contributes to that interest. Don't just ask people to share as if sharing was the goal all by itself.
• Don't stop with a single post. The web is brutal on old content. You'll do better if you find a new angle or approach to the content and post again. So for instance, you write a blog post with subheadings. Each time you tweet about it, mention something from a different subheading. Find different things to say about the post to keep it fresh for the audience that's seeing your tweets but hasn't yet read the post.
• Develop relationships with the people who are sharing your content, your "multipliers" or connectors. Simply thanking them, by name on twitter or in the comments, goes a long way to encouraging them to repost.

*The phrase content marketing does not appear in this article, but is found in other articles on the same site.

 

[Nihal]

It's an interesting article and it rings true.

Something that wasn't mentioned and is a good practice is to use google analytics or another statistics tool whenever possible to gather some data so you get to know better your audience. Stick with which hours and days they're more likely to visit, and what kind of content fares well first. When you feel comfortable enough in working with this information discover where your audience is and referrals, so you know your "multipliers". Add this knowledge to the feedback you've already received directly from your audience. Now you have some solid information to adjust your posts accordingly.

For us the not-specialists there is no recipe for the perfect posting pattern. In some places it's better to post before the peak activity; sometimes you'll not want two relevant posts one right after another or they'll will eclipse each other. Some specific types of posts draw audience but don't get a very high exposure themselves, they serve as a gateway to other content instead. You'll have to try minimal changes and figure out what works.


But whatever you do nothing beats quality. Think of adjusting how you share your work as a way of making sure it lives up to its potential, not simply "going viral" with "something". It's about the content, not the exposure. Exposure is a consequence and nothing else.

And what you'll do with that exposure? That's up to you. If you want people to hire you make sure they can contact you and that they know you're available for work. Don't spam, just place this content strategically. If you want people to buy your books post links to stores that sell your books. Again don't spam, you'll be better with a link or two with high visibility than a thousand links.


Oh, and I cannot stress it enough: Don't just ask people to check your work. There are ways to do that and there are ways to not do that. Sending a friend request to someone on Facebook and a message "Take a look at my blog!" and spamming requests to like your page is a big no-no. Posting on your own wall an excerpt or image + "Did you know? Now I have a Page on Facebook! You can find (X type of content) there." is a good way to do that.

Certain things are ok to ask to share. When it's useful for someone (let's say a tutorial, or you're mentoring) it's worthy a shot, however watch your wording. Don't command people to share/like/reblog, ask nicely and acknowledge the help.

These promotions "share and win Y" are also okay if used sparingly and wisely, and I personally prefer the "leave a comment" version if possible. People will share if they like what they see.