The document provides guidance on creating a successful viral marketing campaign. It explains that viral campaigns spread through social media and differentiate themselves through rapid growth rates. Key factors for success include creating interesting and memorable content through tactics like true stories, rumors, or surprise. The content must then be distributed to influential smaller groups online who can spread it to their followers. While certain strategies like being honest, unprofessional, and edgy can help, luck also plays a large role in whether a campaign goes viral or not.

1. How to Create a Successful Viral Campaign
This article was akin to a “How-To” manual for creating a successful viral marketing campaign.
I believe many people know why a viral marketing campaign is successful, i.e. it’s funny, it has
attractive models in clown makeup, cute babies’ roller skating, etc. but are unaware of the
process to make it an epidemic. There are several core ingredient necessary to create a thriving
viral campaign, but a good serving of luck is necessary too. Let’s start with the definition of viral
marketing. It’s defined as electronic word-of-mouth spread through social media channels
(Kaplan, Haenlein). What differentiates a viral campaign from a normal campaign is the growth
rate and social media applications used to transmit these messages. Simply using social media
apps is not enough for a campaign to go viral, there needs to be messengers to carry and move
this campaign from place to place. These movers are known as market mavens. The mavens then
distribute this material to social hubs and then allow the salespeople to make the message more
interesting for redistribution.
An integral aspect of viral marketing is making the content interesting and memorable. There are
a few tactics one can use to generate such exciting content, for example: true stories about real
people, rumors, short lists about fun topics, sex, and elements of surprise combined with other
positive emotions (Kaplan, Haenlein). Once this is achieved, then message should then be
dispersed to smaller groups on the internet that have a wider reach. It may be difficult for a
marketing campaign to go viral unless these smaller groups of people, who have more influence,
can reach their followers and persuade them into viewing the campaign. If viral marketing
campaigns were recipes, luck would be the main ingredient. Without luck, your viral campaign
will fall as flat as bread without yeast. There are a few rules to abide by when creating a
campaign:
1. Be honest about who you are and what you’re doing
2. Be unprofessional; no need for excessive planning
3. Be edgy, but be careful not to cross any inappropriate lines
4. Combine traditional media with viral campaigns for better effectiveness
All of these factors should hopefully generate a successful viral campaign, especially if you have
luck on your side.
Works Cited
Andreas M. Kaplan, Michael Haelein. Two Hearts In Three Quarters Time: How To Waltz The
Social Media/Viral Marketing Dance. 2011. Web. 22 May 2015.