How to Create Viral Videos Easily

This article was updated on August 6th, 2020 at 05:57 am

There is no denying the fact that videos have become an integral part of a digital marketing strategy. Video is a popular form of content for internet users, whether they watch it on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, WhatsApp or any other platform. This belief has been reinforced from time to time through several researches and studies, most recently via an interesting question that was part of the HubSpot Consumer Behavior Survey, Q1 2016. Participants in this survey were asked: “When it comes to content, what do you closely pay attention to and what are you less attentive to (e.g., skim)?” Finding the top spot in the results was the content type of “videos,” where 55% of the survey respondents mentioned that videos are what they “consumed thoroughly” online.

So, if you’re planning to break into the illustrious list of most viewed online videos in the first 24 hours, here’s what you need to remember.

Key Ingredients that Make a Video Go Viral

Know Your Target Audience – It helps to know who your target audience for the viral video is, unless you’re a celebrity from the entertainment world, like a Justin Bieber or Psy, the men behind “Baby” and “Gangnam Style,” respectively, two of the most watched music videos of all time. If you’re just starting, try and narrow down your audience a bit further, factoring in things like age, region and language.

Dealing with Shorter Attention Spans – The fact that you are creating videos for the 140-character Twitter generation of today necessitates a shorter video duration. Attention spans are shrinking and viewer abandonment is now a growing concern. So, the million-dollar question to ask here is: What is an ideal duration for a possible viral video? Well, a 2-minute video or anything under it is often considered to be the sweet spot, as was also reiterated in a study by Wistia, an internet video hosting and analytics company.

Time is of the Essence – Always make sure that the gap between ideation and execution is the shortest journey possible. If you’re creating a video on a time-specific event, say a reaction to a news event, make sure that the video is shot and published quickly, for it to have the desired outcome.

Never Compromise on Quality – Top reasons for viewer abandonment include the fact that the video was shot using inferior equipment or by an untrained person. Delegating the task of shooting a high resolution video to a professional is therefore an absolute must and a fact that was also established by a Wall Street Journal report, which mentioned that 9 out 10 viral videos on YouTube in 2012 were created by professionals producers.

So why wait? Work towards creating viral videos and leverage their massive reach to become an internet sensation in a matter of days and even to get new audiences for your business.