As you know, one of the keys to running a successful blog is to create really good content.
And when your content is not just good but GREAT, people share it.
It goes viral on social media.
And you soon have the sort of blog that people visit repeatedly and tell their friends about.
But here’s the thing…
Viral content doesn’t just happen by accident.
If you want your content to go viral and engage your visitors, then you need to plan it out carefully using the ideas that you’re about to discover.
Before we get to that, let me make one note…
Some bloggers publish a lot of content, and then on occasion, they seek to create a “viral” post.
My recommendation to you is to create each post with the following tips in mind.
In other words, create a blog full of engaging, viral content, and you’ll have a very successful blog!
So, to that end, check out these ideas…
Find Out What Your Audience Wants
There are two parts to this step.
First, you need to find out what sort of information your audience is seeking. This is where you do your market research to find out what sort of topics they want – specifically, what sort of content they’re already buying and consuming.
Secondly, you’ll want to look specifically at social media to see what sort of content is going viral. Look not only at the topic, but also at the format. For example, do your prospects like videos? Short articles? Long articles? Lists? Tips? Infographics? And so on. Do some experimenting to see what your audience responds to.
Craft Attention-Getting Titles
The title is the first thing a prospective reader is going to see, and this prospect is going to make the decision to read your article based on the title.
That’s why you need to invest some time in creating attention-getting, benefit-driven, and even curiosity-arousing titles.
For example, consider this title: “Avoid High-Carb Cereal If You Want to Lose Weight.”
The problem with that title is that it gives everything away – the reader doesn’t even need to click on the article, since the tip was revealed in the title.
Now consider this one: “How One of Your Favorite Foods is Making You Fat.”
That title promises a benefit (in that people will learn which food is making them fat so they can avoid it), but it also arouses curiosity.
(Which food? Am I eating it?)
And the only way to satisfy their curiosity is to click on the link and start reading the article.
Next…
Create Something Unique
It’s probably pretty obvious that people don’t tend to share everyday content that they’ve seen a million times before.
That’s why you need to create something unique.
Does this mean the content needs to be something so novel that no one on the entire planet has ever seen it before?
Nope. It just means that SOMETHING about the content needs to be unique.
For example:
- It includes a novel tip that others aren’t sharing.
- It shows people how to do something in a new way.
- It showcases the content in a different way (e.g., via an infographic).
- It presents the content in a unique format (such as creating a fresh “formula” around a standard step-by-step process).
- It shares your unique stories, case studies and other experiences that no one else can replicate.
Next…
Engage Emotions
The next thing you need to do if you want your content to go viral is engaging your readers’ emotions.
Simply put, people don’t share content unless it makes them feel something.
Now, heads up…
Researchers have studied viral content quite a bit, and they’ve found that content that elicits positive emotions is more likely to go viral than content that elicits negative emotions.
This means you should seek to create content that produces joy, happiness, delight, surprise, love, inspiration, motivation, curiosity and similar positive emotions.
For example, a piece of content that surprises the reader and makes them happily exclaim, “Whoa, I never thought of that before!” is likely to go viral more so than a piece of content that disgusts them.
Encourage Interaction
Even if your content ticks all the right boxes above (e.g., unique content that generates positive emotion), people still need that little extra nudge to encourage their interaction (which means liking, sharing and commenting on your content).
That’s why you’ll want to do the following:
- Include a specific call to action. E.G., “Click here to share this post with your friends, because they’re gonna love it too!”
- Encourage people to comment. A good way to do this is to ask a question at the end of the content. E.G., “What do you think? Join the discussion below…” or “Share your most embarrassing moment below…” or “Have you ever tried this? Share your experiences below…”
Now let’s wrap things up…
Your Turn
For this lesson, I want you to think about the next post that you’re about to create for your blog, and consider how you can tweak it to make it better (and more likely to go viral). Ask yourself:
- Is the title compelling enough to get the click? How can you make it better?
- Is at least some aspect of the content unique?
- How will you engage the reader’s emotions?
- How will you encourage sharing and commenting?
Go ahead and plan out your next piece of content using the questions above.
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