The art of professionally produced viral video advertising has been in circulation now for many years. This continued use of marketing shows that these videos are growing into a mainstay of business advertising. Since LoveLove Films blog post in 2013, ‘WHY VIRAL VIDEOS CAN BE THE BEST ADVERTISING‘, there seems to have been an even greater increase in the amount of businesses using viral marketing, including an increase in the innovation, style of videos and types of businesses using this technique.

According to one of Comscore’s articles, in 2012 “over 34 million viewers watched an average of 228 videos per viewer” in the UK and according to this blog, “35 percent of viewers are watching more video on their smartphones compared to last year ”, showing that viral videos are now more accessible: the more videos are watched online, the more beneficial it is for companies to join the trend.

2015

Viral videos are now being used for more than just simplistic advertisement, but for collaboration and raising awareness. Hitting the top of the viral charts this week is Red Nose Day’s “Coldplay’s Game of Thrones: The Musical”, reaching over 10 million views in just two weeks and with 144,087 shares in just one week.

These stats show how much awareness has been generated for Coldplay, Game of Thrones and Red Nose Day simply through the use of collaboration: creating relevance for three separate entities in one viral video.

The viral marketing world has provided a platform for businesses, including charities, to have a massive impact on social media. Timing the release of Red Nose Day’s video during the broadcast of season 5 Game Of Thrones, generated an even greater interest due to the relevance of the show right now; this has benefitted the charity, as well as Coldplay. So far, the video has raised $21m for Red Nose Day charities.

Viral Videos and Branding

Using viral videos for advertisement has proven to be greatly beneficial for branding. Many of the successful viral videos so far in 2015, have showcased this benefit of viral marketing.

For example, Bud Light released a Super Bowl campaign this year which has reached 21 million hits on YouTube by using the globally recognised game, Pac Man as a real-life simulation; using the hashtag #UpForWhatever, they have established more active audience participation on social media.

Seasonal Advertisement

Even though videos can go viral on their own accord, ways to improve the potential of viral status is to take into account relevance of seasonal holidays.

Ford is a prime example of using a seasonal video in 2015, with their Valentine’s Day video based around speed dating. The reception for this has been staggering with over 12m hits on YouTube and over 19 thousand likes on the video.

How To Make A Successful Viral Video

What is crucial to remember when considering viral marketing, is what actually makes a video successful.

One of the main success criteria that seems to be evident within viral videos, is emotive content. Many, if not all, viral videos evoke some sort of emotion: whether it be humour, empathy, happiness.

Dove consistently uses emotive content throughout their viral video campaigns, including their ‘Choose Beautiful” 2015 video, creating emotion with the concept that everyone is beautiful.

Dove are a great example of a company who is very brand aware, and plays on this in their marketing; branding is also something to regard when trying to create a successful viral.

Their 2015 campaign has maintained their presence online, following on from similar campaigns such as the 2013 “Real Beauty Sketches” which received over 65m views since its release.

Another thing to consider is the attention span of online audiences. This report states that in 2015, the average attention span of audiences is 8.25 seconds; this is less than the average attention span of a goldfish. This means that shorter videos tend to be the most effective at engaging audiences.

It is worth considering that when telling a story through viral video, it should be short, evoke emotion and something that is brand aware for a chance at achieving results.

Sources

http://www.comscore.com/Insights/Data-Mine/UK-YouTube-Viewers-are-Avid-Music-Fans

http://www.brandrepublic.com/article/1350367/campaign-viral-chart-coldplay-game-thrones-spoof-takes-top-spot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs7xO5P3Az4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9A1NowrnGI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nyr1Ao7iZA

http://www.communicateandhowe.com/2012/02/15/using-video-to-tell-your-stories/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DdM-4siaQw

http://www.reelseo.com/viral-videos-february-2015/

http://supercoolcreative.com/how-to-make-viral-video-go-viral/

http://www.ibtimes.com/coldplays-game-thrones-musical-helps-raise-21m-red-nose-day-charities-watch-full-1941200

http://www.reelseo.com/increase-mobile-video-consumption/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/korosirego/4481461680