home Diets and weight loss How to create an ad virus. What is viral advertising on the Internet?

How to create an ad virus. What is viral advertising on the Internet?

Regular advertising on the Internet does not provide the desired conversion? No wonder. Internet users are so tired of annoying advertising messages, videos, banners and other things that on a subconscious level they try to avoid them. What to do in this case? Stop advertising? Of course not! It is possible and necessary to advertise a product and/or company, it just needs to be done more competently, unobtrusively, interestingly, and originally. Content must be presented in such a way that users themselves want to not only perceive, but also disseminate information. We are talking, as you understand, about viral advertising.

Viral advertising got its name because it literally “infects” the audience with its idea and spreads like a real virus. Thanks to its originality, it is well remembered and quickly transferred from user to user. But such success is possible provided that advertising helps solve consumer problems and can reach the maximum audience. Viral advertising is most easily spread through social networks, forums, email, i.e., through the Internet.

Advantages of viral advertising

Benefit. Creating and distributing a “virus” is much cheaper than launching a traditional advertising campaign, since in this case you only spend money on creating the video, and distributing it is completely free, while you have to pay for each impression of traditional advertising.
Scale. If viral advertising is successful, the reach of the target audience will be simply enormous and the cost of 1 contact with a consumer will be minimal.
Freedom from censorship. Of course, everything should be adequate. However, viral advertising is not subject to advertising law.

So, we come to the most important questions. How to create viral advertising? What viral marketing methods exist? We have to disappoint you: there is no universal algorithm of actions or uniform recommendations. Every company, every product has its own individual characteristics, your target audience, so viral advertising should be different, unique, aimed specifically at the interests and needs of potential clients. However, let us highlight key points, used when creating any viral advertising.

Stages of developing viral advertising on the Internet

Unobtrusiveness. Advertising should not be intrusive; the key message should be clear, but not “shout” to the viewer: “Buy me!”
Humor . Note that the most popular viral videos are usually humorous. Although this is not a panacea. Your idea may not be compatible with laughter and evoke completely different emotions.
Relevance . It is important that your idea corresponds to current events in the world, people's mentalities, and pressing problems of society.
Positive emotions. We talked about how viral advertising should evoke emotions. Disgust, anger, contempt are also emotions, but you should not evoke negative feelings in people, otherwise they will be associated with your product/service and the company as a whole.
Novelty. The idea must be unique, one that no one has used before.
Discussions. Your advertising should provoke people to discuss and express their opinions. Only then will they begin to broadcast this on their pages on social networks and forums.
Advertising message. In pursuit of originality and creativity, do not forget about the message you want to convey to your target audience.

Thus, in the first 3 days after the launch of a viral advertising campaign, you can immediately determine its success in the future.

Examples of cool viral advertising for inspiration

Disney Characters Surprise Shoppers video - shared 3,757,909 times.

Video Love Has No Labels - shared 2,741,138 times.

Budweiser USA video: #BestBuds - shared 2,511,546 times.

Video “The first day of your new life” - 1,919,525 views.

Video “You have something to be proud of” - 8,235,902 views.

The animated video “Stupid Ways to Die” has received more than 30 million views.

Video “The end of the world during an interview.”

Check out these examples of viral marketing and get inspired! And also stay tuned for updates to our articles and learn new useful information to develop your business and increase your sales.

Viral marketing is gaining popularity. To talk about the company and product, some organizations resort to it. Creativity and spontaneity make viral advertising attractive. The consumer is surprised and even shocked; he is interested in you.

The task of viral advertising is to unobtrusively present a company, product or service. Most consumers are tired of the same type of advertising. They ignore her. With the virus, things are different. It is almost impossible to pass by it. It's a bright flash that's intriguing.

Sometimes the importance of viral advertising is comparable to PR promotion, which gives a successful start to your business. When other methods of promoting a product have failed, creatives resort to the virus. As a result, they get their audience, some of which later become clients.

Your audience is men

Before you launch a viral ad, you need to know who will see it. You must define your target audience. Experience shows that men aged 16 to 40 with above-average income are susceptible to the virus. They are well versed in information technology, actively use the Internet, are fond of sports, and love to travel. Correctly influence this audience, and buyers will be drawn to you.

Women also do not ignore the virus, but they are not so willing to be interested in the advertised product. This may be due to the fact that the products of companies that use viral advertising in business are made for men (cars, cigarettes, office equipment, etc.).

Planning work

Before you start producing viral advertising, it is important to pay attention to the work plan and answer a number of questions.

1. Develop a marketing message. You need to clearly decide what product you are going to advertise.

3. Will it be used? Email? Are you going to send viral advertising?

More provocations, sensations and shock

Experience shows that consumers are interested in something unusual, funny, and sometimes shocking. Your viral advertising should be exactly like this. But don’t go too far, be ethical. Chasing provocation can be costly. Not all audiences are ready to adequately perceive the same black humor and someone else's tragedies. This sometimes becomes the main theme for the virus. You better give up the dirt and focus on current topics. What is trending now attracts attention.

I immediately remember a viral video in which the police detain a passerby on the street. A young man (a native of the Caucasus) calls the police “borscht” and asks to return his red moccasins. A “random” witness films the arrest on camera, comments on the actions of law enforcement officers and, as if by chance, shows the audience a green car from one of the Moscow companies. It contains addresses and telephone numbers, the name of the organization.

The authors of this viral video got into the trend: some social network users like to joke about red moccasins, which are worn by everyone. Result: the video received thousands of views, the company successfully advertised itself.

Give preference to video

Unlike photos or text, video will be distributed faster among your potential buyers. Remember following rules shooting a viral video:

1. Shoot video with a regular camera. Shooting with a camera like this feels like home, people won’t even think that you are showing them an advertisement.

2. The length of the video should not exceed two minutes. Most the best option- 30 seconds.

3. Prepare several videos that will be united by a common idea or hero. Organize a series for your potential buyers.

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Main distinctive features Viral advertising is the naturalness of the message, which contains information regarding the product/service, as well as a unique and extraordinary idea that is sure to attract the attention of the audience. This type of advertising received its name “viral” due to the fact that it is transmitted from person to person.

How and by whom is viral advertising used?

Today, viral campaigns are actively used by large and medium-sized companies. It is especially relevant for global corporations, whose products are known almost all over the world. These enterprises have already reached high level skill in carrying out such advertising campaigns.

The main forms used in viral advertising: audio recordings, videos, photographic materials, original news feeds and the launch of rumors, short informative texts and news, holding flash mobs. Content is composed in such a way as to evoke emotions in the audience. Preferably positive.

Pros and cons of viral advertising on the Internet

First, let's look at the advantages of viral marketing:

If we talk about the advantages for advertising customers, we can note the absence of any restrictions, there is not even any special censorship. This even opens up opportunities for promotion special categories goods, for example, products for adults/alcohol/tobacco products and so on. And again it is worth emphasizing the duration life cycle, which is from three years and above.

The disadvantages include the following:

It is not easy to plan and forecast a campaign. Today it is almost impossible to determine whether the campaign will be successful and whether the “virus” will spread; it is impossible to calculate even the approximate speed of its spread. This is due to the fact that the main role in distribution is played by a live audience, users. It is quite difficult to predict their behavior.
The cost of a good idea and preparation of a viral product can be high. It’s not enough to come up with a great idea, you also need to implement it well, otherwise the whole effect will be lost and will not make sense.
Audience limitation. Unfortunately, viral advertising on the Internet only reaches Internet users. If you are promoting products/companies/services that are more aimed at users who are rarely online, it is better to abandon viral marketing.

Examples of viral advertising

Such advertising is aimed at a male network user; he will obviously be interested in such a “motorcycle” and will pass it on to his friends.

Here's another one good example. The pizza is so hot that even the cat lay down on it to warm up. Well, how can you not be touched and send it to a friend?

And here is an interesting Hugo Boss banner. It is clear that this is editing. However, many take it at face value and share it with friends.

Speaking of video content, Android's "Friends Furever" video is a must-watch. It was shared 6,432,921 times in 2015 alone, when it first appeared. This speaks of a colossal success.

How to run viral advertising

First you need to analyze the target audience, on which Internet resources they spend most of their time. Perhaps these are social networks or video hosting, etc. Then a viral marketing strategy is drawn up, since the matter is not limited to the publication of one material. In this case, you need to take into account all the characteristics of potential clients.
Content development. This is the most difficult stage: you need to work out the material in detail and create a high-quality advertising product that can boast high potential.
Spreading. After the advertising message is ready, it is necessary to distribute it online. If the ad is really interesting, it will be viewed by thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of users of the World Wide Web. Advertising of this type allows you not only to attract new customers, but also to force existing customers to place a new order.
Monitoring. As you know, we do not control what we do not consider. It is necessary to constantly monitor the process and monitor for feedback. You need to get statistics on the prevalence of the virus to see the picture and draw conclusions about the effectiveness.
Grade. It is necessary to calculate such indicators as demographic data, number of unique views, peaks of activity, tone of feedback, volume of comments.

It will be useful to use the principles of creating viral advertising. This tool is designed to attract the attention of the audience and transfer it to the product/product.

You can do this through:

Scandals. Incredibly, fights and scandals spread on the Internet at breakneck speed.
Shock. The public needs to be shocked, break existing rules, and do crazy things.
Laughter and humor. Advertising messages with a touch of humor spread much faster, since we all love to laugh and want to make the people we know smile more often.
"Cutness." These are our beloved kittens, puppies, little children. All this cannot but evoke tenderness, along with a desire to share.

1. Script writing and evaluation

· The incredibleness of the scenario: The plot of the video should “blow” the mind.

· The idea must be “catchy”, showing an unusual look at familiar things or demonstrating something fundamentally new.

· Advertising connection with the advertised brand should be subtle and unobtrusive. If the video is overtly promotional, viewers will not share it and viral promotion will not work. Purely commercials are still a rare exception, like any masterpieces.

· Relevance: how well the plot of the video corresponds to current events, news and people’s moods.

· Spread speed: the essence of the emergence of a viral wave requires that the main number of views occur in the first 2-3 weeks after the video is launched on the Internet. Experience shows that successful videos receive 40% of all views in the first week.

2. Shooting a video

· You don't need professional video shooting in the studio. All you need is an ordinary household video camera or even a high-quality mobile phone. Home filming does not reduce the chances of a video becoming a hit, since it is not associated with direct advertising. However, do several takes and edit the video well so that it fully reveals the original script.

· Final the video should be short, maximum 2 minutes, and ideally 15-30 seconds.

· Prepare a series of several videos at once united by a common idea. Viewers who are inspired by your first video will always want more, and you shouldn’t keep them waiting, as interest in your videos will quickly fade over time. Having a series of videos at hand, you can try to display them one by one on the main pages of video hosting, which cannot be done with a single video, since the lifespan of each video on the main page is limited.

· Use a sex theme– Hire the most beautiful women you can find to film your videos.

· Provide an opportunity for a remix. As the popularity of your video grows, there will be enough people who want to parody it. Help them in advance - the video should be simple enough that fans can easily re-edit it and voice it in their own way.

3. Virus culture

You can’t hope that your video will be noticed on video hosting sites and will get a start in life on its own. No matter how good your viral video is, it won’t get even several thousand views on its own. Tens of thousands of videos are uploaded to popular video hosting sites every day, and the chances that your video will be seen by anyone just like that are very small. There is simply no chance that it will become popular on its own. For a video to become popular, the virus must be seeded correctly.

First of all, our goal is to get to home page or to the “popular videos” section of a video hosting service so that you can get the full power of your own audience. To do this, you need to ensure a certain number of initial views and comments on the video. Fortunately, this is not so difficult, especially if you prepare for video promotion in advance:

1. Think “in depth”, not “in breadth”– you should not post the video on 50 video hosting sites at the same time. For the realities of Runet it is enough to limit yourself to YouTube, RuTube, [email protected] and became popular in Lately video service Vkontakte.ru. These video hosting sites are the leaders in terms of traffic, which, taking into account the low overlap of the audience of these video hosting sites, will ensure maximum audience coverage.

2. Optimize your profile on video hosting. These sites allow their users to subscribe to playlists and other people's video lists, and if you have a lot of friends, they will immediately see your new videos. Therefore, by the time the video is uploaded, it is advisable to “pump up” your profiles so that you have several hundred (preferably a thousand) friends. To do this, add videos that have already proven their popularity to your favorites and create them in your profile. good selections thematic video, become a member of thematic communities and make friends with other video hosting users whose interests coincide with yours.

3. Optimize your video description. Video preview picture, text brief description and the video title should work together. Try to make them intriguing and challenging. For a preview it would be ideal to be present in the frame beautiful woman or at least human face or figures. When the video gets on the page of a popular video, such a combination of an intriguing title and a picture with beautiful girl will provide him with an additional competitive advantage.

4. Post all your videos at once. If you have prepared several videos in a series, post them not sequentially, but all at once. In this case, seeding and promotion are carried out only for the first video, but the viewer has the opportunity to immediately watch the continuation of the series. Thus, our goal of advertising our own brand is more reliably achieved - the viewer sees not one, but several of our videos. When the maximum potential has been squeezed out of the first video, we erase the second video from the video hosting site, upload it again and begin seeding, trying to get to the main page again.

5. Use unique video tags. When posting a series of videos, make sure they are not descriptive. keywords, focused on video search by visitors to video hosting sites. No, no - come up with your own set of unique tags, the same for the entire series. The tags you choose should not be used on video hosting in the description of other people's videos. This way, you will be able to control that in the “similar videos” section, the viewer is presented with all the videos in your series, and not a set of other people’s videos that have nothing to do with you and your brand. A week or two after planting the viral campaign, edit the tags so that the videos are found in searches using obvious keywords.

6. Let everyone know about your video. Send the video to entertainment portals, write letters or via ICQ to all your friends, post the video on your home page on the Internet and on social networks such as Odnoklassniki.ru and Vkontakte. Post the link or the video itself on popular thematic forums and communities. Yes, all this requires a lot of effort and time, but we need to ensure as many views of the video as possible in the first day of its placement.

7. Don't forget about bloggers. Be sure to include in your plan the placement of the video in the blogosphere. Modern communication systems with bloggers, for example blogun.ru, allow you to quickly and efficiently reach the blogosphere and quickly receive a large number of views and comments on your video.

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