Social media marketers know that making posts go viral isn’t a top priority. In fact, it might prevent them from interacting with their intended audience. 

This does not imply that you cannot gain knowledge from popular postings and advertisements. Strategic viral marketing raises brand recognition, improves participation and loyalty. Brands can build enormous fan audiences with the appropriate viral content.

These guidelines will help a firm’s viral marketing results in the long-term. Use them to increase the social reach of your brand, and they might even help you go viral.

How likely is it that this will go viral?

How likely is it that your content will become viral in the first place? A 2016 Stanford University study found that the likelihood of something becoming viral is one in a million.

However, platforms like TikTok and Instagram provide marketers additional chances to go viral on social media. However, there are no easy tricks to create a viral video. In order to go viral, you need both ability and luck.

1. Read the space

The first step to becoming viral is to comprehend the audience you’re attempting to reach. Identify your target market if you haven’t previously.

The demography most likely to be interested in your brand or product is known as a target audience. Members in this group frequently have similar interests, pastimes, and behavioural patterns. Focus on your target market by keeping an eye on who is following your brand, how they communicate with you, and why they do so. Observe how the world around them is affecting them as well.

2. Post at the appropriate moment

Each social media site caters to a certain demography and fulfills a specific function. For customer service, Facebook is essential. TikTok is renowned for being easy to find. Influencer alliances frequently occur on Instagram, and so on.

Each platform has a vital function to play in the social media ecosystem. Discover which platforms your target audience uses the most and why after you’ve honed in on them. Create a digital trip map for them and your brand.

After you’ve determined where, concentrate on figuring out when your audience is most active. When you post at the right times, your material will stick out in congested feeds.

The following are the ideal average posting times for each platform, according to statistics from @digitalbizguru:

• Facebook: Daily at 3:00 am; Tuesdays at 10:00 am and noon
• TikTok: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, between 1:00 – 3:00 pm 
• Instagram: Mondays at 11:00 am; Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm; Thursdays and Fridays between 10: 00 am and 11:00 am
• Twitter: Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 9:00 am
• LinkedIn: Tuesdays between 10:00 am to noon

The behavior of your target audience will ultimately determine when to post. However, it isn’t rocket science, please try several things to see what works.

How much time does your audience spend online and when? To determine your publishing cadence, use your response.

3. Superiority of quality over quantity

Invest your resources in producing high-quality content to boost your chances of going viral. Don’t post too frequently or just for the purpose of blogging. That could exhaust your staff, overwhelm your audience, and lower engagement levels.

You should post to all of your platforms no more than 11 times every day, citing digitalbizguru’s research. Observe the following cadence recommendations:

• TikTok: Once to four times daily
• Instagram: Twice daily
• Facebook: Four to five times daily
• LinkedIn: Once daily, at maximum
• Twitter: Every three to four hours
• Pinterest: Once daily, at maximum

4. The “a” word is everything: Authenticity!

Authenticity is more than just a catchphrase; it’s an important component of any post or campaign that goes viral.

There are no quick fixes that can enable you to increase your exposure over time. For instance, it wouldn’t be authentic to adopt a sarcastic brand voice just because your competitor is. Your audience will be well-educated and will see right through you.

Create content that is authentic, unique, and grounded in the personality of your brand instead.

Consider whether your content meets all the criteria for authenticity:

Do you have related content?

Do they feel that you “understand” them, your audience?

Are you representing your brand honestly?

Do you have a successful content mix on each channel that is catered to your audience?

5. Engage your audience

Don’t overlook the priceless resource at your disposal when producing content for your brand: user-generated content (UGC).

Unpaid or unsponsored social media posts regarding your brand, product, or service are known as UGC.

Asking your audience for the kind of content you want to share will help you find the greatest UGC. Make social media competitions and campaign hashtags to entice your audience to participate.

6. Create content that is worthwhile to share

You may easily increase your chances of becoming viral by producing material that is very relevant, practical, and instructional. Make your material simple to read and shareable to enhance social media shares. Consider interactive information, short movies, and infographics.

7. Partner with the proper artists and influencers

The creators’ economy is booming. Influencers and producers are now an essential part of your complete marketing plan and can increase the efficacy of your viral marketing campaign.

Influencers and artists may increase the number of people who know about your company, increase awareness, and strengthen your neighborhood.

Ask them these important questions when you find an influencer or artist with whom you want to work:

Does this person’s reputation align with the objectives of our business?

Which indicators matter the most to us? (Note: If you’re trying to become viral, look for creators with high average impression numbers.)

Does this person’s target market overlap with ours?

Going viral involves more than what is initially obvious.

Even though becoming viral isn’t the “end all be all”, there are important things we can learn from brands who have quickly become social media stars. Even while luck is out of your control, you may optimize your content to gradually increase the size of your audience.

Use these best practices as inspiration for your content strategy. No matter what, the right audience will find your work interesting.