Financial Advisor’s Blog

Todays viral post is going to be a little different, but I wanted to share a few tips for going viral that have been on my mind this week, so here goes:

#1 Think about the audience - You need to research out the group of people you will be targeting, and the social communities they use. There are a ton of targeted social networks out there, but trying to get on them all with one post is just plain silly. Angling Masters is one of the biggest social networks for fishermen, but probably not the best place for a viral piece about fashion disasters. If you know you can create a viral piece about going Green, or something to help the environment then finding the social communities for eco-friendly stories is what you want to be looking for. Go and check out the stories that are popular, or that have made it popular in the past. Find the ones that have received the most votes, and research out the titles, content and exactly just what made them go “viral”.

#2 Create Amazing Content For Actual Readers - Don’t just think $Dollar$ signs when creating a content piece you want to go viral. The truth of the matter is very little stories that go viral actually make people any money. Especially the ones that go viral on some of the bigger communities that are out there like Digg, Reddit or Delicious. How you benefit is from exposure, and the links that will be built up over the months and years. I have stories that made the front page of Digg years ago that still get new links every week, and I still see traffic from every single day. Thats right - EVERY SINGLE DAY! Why? The content is worth reading, and content worth reading is worth sharing and sharing again.

#3 Think Like A Viral Marketer - Now when you get good at this, it will scare you. You will be doing normal everyday stuff and think to yourself - “That could make a good viral post”! Sometimes its even sickening … The other day I was driving and right in front of me (I am talking RIGHT in front of me) a HUGE car crash … someone blew threw a stop sign and t-boned a truck toeing a trailer, and that truck started spinning right towards me. The first thing I thought of? Get my iPhone out and take a picture, and my second thought was that I wish I had a camera to capture that because one of my clients is in the Trucking safety industry, and there has got to be something I could use that video on!!! Then the ideas started flowing - “10 of the Craziest crashes ever caught on video” or “10 Of The Craziest Crashes Ever Filmed By An Amatuer”. You get the point - my mind is sick and wrong. Its funny because even the simple everyday interactions with my kids - I have a never ending supply of viral posts because of all the funny stuff they do for anyone in a kids industry! Now would be a good place to remind you of a post I did a while ago on “how to think like a social media marketer“.

#4 Networking - It is one thing to just become a “member” of a social network and vote on stuff, but if you can truly understand the point of the community, become a good active member of it, and contribute to it, you will see amazing results. Make friends, vote on their stuff, share it with others of every single network you are a part of, and in turn they will do the same for you. Just today I saw a post of mine show up on another targeted social network for women from a person I made friends with about a month ago. It all does come back, so don’t be greedy with your time or participation.

#5 Have Fun - If you can’t have fun, or make fun of yourself and what you are doing then you have no place in the social networks. People who thrive in the social communities and have stuff go viral all the time are the ones that love what they do. They live, eat, breathe, and drink social media. I am not saying you have to become that crazy, but if you love what you are doing, then you will become good at it. If you are new to social networking my biggest piece of advice would be to have fun, make friends, contribute to the community and enjoy the networks that you are a part of! You will see it pay off in the end!