Viral Videos: The Hows and Whys

Social media networks have taken over the world — and by world, we mean all of us. Wherever we go and whatever we do, these social platforms play a key part in our lives.

From communication, tasks, events, entertainment, and life landmarks — social media is present in all of it. A big factor in all of this is the advent of smartphones — a small device capable of doing a lot of things. 

In 2021, the number of global smartphone users skyrocketed to 3.8 billion, which is almost half of the Earth’s population. Through this, social media platforms, which come in the form of ‘phone apps,’ penetrate even deeper into people’s lives.

The Philippines holds one of the highest populations of people with smartphones, specifically in Asia. When 2021 arrived, the number of smartphone subscribers in the country rose to almost 76 million — 68.41 percent of the entire populace. 

This is one of the biggest reasons why many businesses and brands have adopted digital marketing as a strategy for increasing presence, sales, and interaction. And one of the avenues they utilize is, of course, social media via smartphones.

A tactic that successful brands and enterprises often use to take advantage of the diverse audience these social networks provide is the employment of viral videos. Nowadays, it’s become more apparent, especially when TikTok entered the scene — a community made specifically for making videos go viral. 

If you’re interested in knowing more about viral videos, specifically the hows and the whys, then we’ve got you covered. Just keep your fingers on the screen and scroll!

The Hows

Due to the effectiveness of viral videos in gaining attention, recollection, and views, many companies and businesses have been trying their hand at creating video content that will garner mass appeal, which could potentially translate into sales.

However, these attempts are often met with less than stellar results, primarily because they fail to dissect the very essence of viral videos. 

And that’s something we’ll teach you! To create a viral video, you need to make sure that you embody and capture the following elements: 

• Emotion — Most of the videos that have gone viral on the internet over the years contain a specific emotion. It’s the part that the audience connects to, especially if they find it relatable enough. Nowadays, the most prevalent theme of videos with mass appeal is either humor, confusion, or those that tug at people’s heartstrings. Take for example Jollibee’s ‘Best Friend’ and RC Cola’s ‘Family.’

• Quality — In the early days of viral videos, video quality wasn’t a big issue. Most of the time it would still work, even though the film is borderline pixelated. However, at present, people are gravitating towards videos in high-definition (HD) — of course, due to the fact that technology in that department is becoming more accessible to creators.

• Personality — If you’ve seen your share of viral videos, then you’re probably aware that to become popular you have to have a big, bold personality. It’s what draws people’s attention towards you, your brand, or your business.

It also serves as an introduction of some sort, which could make or break your video.

• Appeal — Another thing that you should consider is who you’re targeting with your video. It’s important to narrow down your audience to get the most of your video campaign. 

However, most of the time, viral videos only appeal to a younger demographic. So, if you’re thinking of expanding your business towards the younger sector, then this is definitely a route you can take.

• Story — The most important of all is creating a story for your video. This is the part that people will look into when they’re watching your campaign. It’s always important to take into consideration trends when creating a story, specifically ones that a lot of people relate to. 

A great example would be the ‘Kwentong Jollibee Series,’ a video ad campaign by fried chicken retailer Jollibee that makes use of common Filipino narratives to evoke emotion from viewers and create recall. 

The Whys

In recent years, the demand for video content has skyrocketed. And it’s made even more evident by the rise in popularity of social media features such as Instagram Story, Facebook Story, Twitter’s Fleet, and of course, TikTok’s whole platform. 

The trend is expected to continue even further, with 80% of web traffic expected to be video-based by 2021. This is one of the major reasons why businesses, brands, and enterprises are focusing their efforts on creating video content that has the potential to go viral. 

• Engagement — People naturally gravitate towards content that they can visually consume, which is why viral marketing videos are effective in expanding presence online. Another advantage to this is the fact that these videos are often shorter, which is ideal for people with shorter attention spans. 

• Reach — A very obvious trait that viral videos have is that it’s highly shareable. You won’t need to spend money to get as many eyes on it as possible. People will willingly do it themselves if they find your video interesting or worth watching.

• Transition to Video Content — As we’ve mentioned earlier, video-based content will dominate digital marketing in the coming years. On that note, it’s integral to start now more than ever. 

By starting early, you set yourself up for success. This way, you’ll be able to gain valuable experience and gain an insight into what works and what doesn’t. 

If you want to make things easier for your business, you can always seek the help of experts in the field of digital marketing, specifically on social media. Social media management agencies in the Philippines have become integral parts of businesses, especially those that are online. 

Partnering with the right social media agency will help you traverse the intricacies of digital marketing on social platforms and make use of strategies — like viral videos — to increase your presence online.