The dream of every content creator: VIRALITY.  Seeing your work shared across the internet, igniting conversations, and racking up views can feel like striking marketing gold. While there is no guaranteed formula, partnering with a Social Media Marketing Agency or Marketing Agency can significantly increase your chances. Here are five detailed tips to help your content go viral, and enhance your brand’s visibility and engagement this 2024–drawing on insights and proven strategies from UpSurge Agency.

Hook ‘Em in the First Few Seconds

The first few seconds of your content are crucial in capturing the audience’s attention. With the sheer volume of content available online, viewers quickly decide whether to keep watching or scroll past. We all know that attention spans are shorter than ever, especially on social media. You need to grab viewers immediately with a captivating intro, a surprising fact, or a thought-provoking question that will grab their attention and consume your content.

You need to start strong. Open with a compelling hook that immediately grabs attention. This could be an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or an emotional statement. For example, start a video with “Did you know that…?” or “Imagine if…”.

Using striking visuals, or bold text overlays can increase the chance of drawing your viewers in. A visually engaging opening can make viewers curious and more likely to continue watching.

Teasing the value of your content can give viewers a glimpse of what’s to come. Briefly highlight the benefits or exciting moments they can expect if they keep watching. This creates anticipation and encourages them to stay engaged.

Ride the Trending Wave

Keep your finger on the pulse of what’s hot.  Is there a viral dance craze or a trending hashtag?  Can you incorporate it into your content in a unique way? Trending topics, hashtags, even music, can dramatically amplify your content’s reach. By aligning your content with what’s currently popular, you can tap into a broader audience.

To do this, you need to stay updated. You can regularly monitor social media trends, news, and viral challenges yourself, or work with a Social Media Marketing Agency that will ensure you are regularly updated on current trends and social media developments. At UpSurge, we provide our clients with regular updates and use trending topics to enhance our clients’ content. This approach ensures that you remain competitive within your industry and on the platform itself. Additionally, tools like Google Trends, Tiktok Trends, and social media listening platforms can help you stay on top of what’s popular.

As mentioned, relevance and timeliness is important when it comes to trying to stay on top of the social media trends. Creating content that is relevant to the trending topic and aligns with your brand will make sure to increase the chance of your content going viral. Remember, timeliness is key—be quick to produce and share your content while the trend is still hot.

Use and Incorporate trending hashtags to increase discoverability. A mix of general trending hashtags and niche-specific ones can maximize your reach. However, ensure that the hashtags are relevant to your content to avoid appearing spammy. We usually give our clients a hashtag strategy for each of their content to maximize the results organically. 

Evoke Emotion, Not Apathy

There are a lot of content concepts: controversial, entertainment, comedy, value, and emotional. Each of them has its own advantages, but emotional content is more likely to be shared because it resonates deeply with viewers. Whether it’s joy, surprise, or empathy, evoking strong emotions can significantly enhance the virality of your content.

When it comes to creating emoital content, you need to use storytelling techniques to create an emotional connection. Narratives that include relatable characters, challenges, and resolutions can make your content more engaging and memorable. 

Utilizing visuals, music, and sound effects to amplify the emotional impact. For instance, uplifting music can enhance feelings of joy, while a slow, somber tune can evoke empathy. 

Your emotional content should always and never fail to be AUTHENTIC. Genuine content often resonates more than overly polished content when posted organically. Share real stories, user-generated content, and authentic moments that reflect your brand’s values and mission

Keep it Shareable and Snackable

In the age of short attention spans, content needs to be easily consumable and shareable. Snackable content—concise, engaging pieces—encourages viewers to share with their network. To do this,  break down your content into easily digestible pieces.  Think eye-catching visuals, concise text, and captions that compel viewers to learn more.

Always aim for brevity without sacrificing value, especially in today’s fast-paced digital landscape. Short form videos, and trendjacking videos are powerful concepts that can swiftly boost the reach of your content while maintaining viewer engagement. Short form videos are ideal for capturing attention spans and delivering key points succinctly, making them perfect for social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Similarly, trendjacking videos capitalize on popular trends or viral topics to connect with current conversations and capture audience interest swiftly. These formats not only enhance your content’s accessibility but also increase its likelihood of being shared across various digital platforms, maximizing your brand’s visibility and engagement potential.

You need to encourage sharing when it comes to your content. Make it easy for viewers to share your content. Include share buttons on your website, social media posts, and emails. Phrases like “Tag a friend who needs to see this” can easily prompt sharing.

Fuel the Conversation

Don’t just post and pray.  Respond to comments, answer questions, and encourage a dialogue with your audience.  This fuels engagement and keeps your content at the forefront of the conversation. Engaging with your audience and encouraging discussions can extend the life of your content and increase its reach. Active participation fosters a sense of community and keeps your content relevant.

When it comes your content, you need to make sure to pose a question. Questions like “What do you think about this?” or “Have you experienced something similar?” can spark engagement. As you do this, you need to be also actively responding to comments and engaging with your audience. This shows that you value their input and can encourage further interaction. To further amplify this, you can include a strong CTA that encourages viewers to interact. Whether it’s commenting, sharing, or visiting your website, a clear CTA can drive engagement and conversions.

As you can see creating viral content requires a strategic approach focused on capturing attention, leveraging trends, evoking emotions, making content easily consumable, and fostering engagement. 

By implementing these tips or making sure to partner with a Social Media Marketing Agency,  you can significantly enhance your chances of creating content that resonates with audiences and spreads widely across digital platforms.

But I want you to always remember, whether you are a content creator or a brand, virality is a blend of strategy and a bit of luck. These tips are based on what has worked for us and our clients at UpSurge Agency, where success comes from consistently creating high-quality content. By following these tips, you can increase your chances of sparking a social media frenzy and elevating your brand or message to the next level.

For more insights and personalized strategies on making your content go viral, contact UpSurge Agency today. Let’s work together to create a strategy for your brand, built on expertise to produce compelling content that captures attention and drives engagement in 2024.