Thoughts on viral content and how to leverage stories to create it. View original webinar at moz.com/webinars

1. “The Emotional Drivers of Highly
Successful Viral Content”
Thoughts on presentation from Moz. Original webinar
available at moz.com/webinars

2. What is “Viral” content?
● K = P*C*I
○ Shared audience (P) - Avg. # of people exposed to
each piece of content per share (impressions)
○ Conversion rate (C) - % of people who see and click
○ Shares per viewer (I) - % of people who see, click,
and share
● Almost nothing called “viral” actually is — doesn’t mean
it’s not successful

3. Shared audience (P)
● The bigger this initial #, the better
● “Big seeds”
○ Popular/niche blogs, mainstream news outlets
○ Must combine info you think will go viral w/content
outlets see trending in their communities and
consider worthwhile

4. Conversion rate (C)
● Title is single biggest factor in improving C
○ Point out knowledge gap
○ Don’t give away punchline
○ Don’t overhype
○ A/B test multiple headlines
● Thumbnail is second biggest factor
○ Create a feeling of interest/intrigue
○ A/B test different images

5. Shares per viewer (I)
●
●
The more shares the better
Types of sharers
○ Altruists - Helpful, thoughtful, reliable, connected; want to help by
sharing (FB, email)
○ Careerists - Business sharers; consider how sharing will impact their
careers (LinkedIn)
○ Hipsters - More concerned w/how sharing influences how they are
seen (FB, Twitter)
○ Boomerangs - Share to get reaction/feel validated; thrive on how
content can spur conversation/make connections (FB, Twitter)
○ Connectors - Creative, relaxed, thoughtful; sharing based on curating
helpful things; share content that is practically useful (FB, email)
○ Selectives - Resourceful, careful, thoughtful; informative/practical
sharers (email)

6. Broad vs. niche audiences
● Niche content more likely to go viral - Audience closely
connected, shared values and interests
● Broad content - Lower barriers to sharing and “big
seeds” more easily leveraged, but must be incredibly
broad

7. Audience type/accountability affects sharing
●
●
●
●
●
Anonymous - No harm in sharing, no repercussions (4chan)
Accountable - Share content that reflects neutrally/well, feel audience will find
valuable; stand to gain and lose a lot (FB, why NSFW doesn’t go viral)
Casual - Fewer restrictions beyond how content reflects on them, lower risk
when things reflect badly
Professional - More and higher risks
Broad (or large cohesive niche) and accountable is a good target for viral
content
○ FB as example - Large, casual audience, less business-focused, P and
C are higher because of larger # of friends and shared interests

8. Evoking emotions is essential
● Emotions spread virally as an inherent part of the way
our brains work (mirror neurons).
● Can be transferred through images and video as easily
as from person to person
● High arousal — esp. pleasant — emotions spur more
sharing
○ Astonishment, excitement, delight, pleased, amused,
happy, excited
○ Cat images explained!
● And what evokes emotions?

9. Stories!
● Emotional arousal created/enhanced through empathy,
which itself is created through narratives and stories —
the better the story, the more it will spread
○ Love, loyalty, overcoming obstacles, raw human
moments, rights of passage, injustices made right,
heroes/selfless acts, human-animal bond,
nostalgia/reminiscing
● “Emotion stacking” - Build emotions with a series of
pieces, esp. in story form (Buzzfeed)

10. Other motivations for sharing
●
●
●
●
●
Bring valuable, entertaining content to others
Define ourselves to others
Grow and nourish relationships
Self-fulfillment
Get the word out about causes or brands

11. Viral content & the sales funnel
● Best at generating awareness and interest
● Can be helpful lower in the funnel, but is more difficult
○ Branding influence (impressions, followers,
advocates)
○ Search influence (visibility, social sharing, improved
search ranking)

12. Personal thoughts
● I think it’s weird that so much math and research goes
into making and sharing something that needs to be felt
in the soul in order to be successful.
● For companies, requires more strategy and research
than dumb luck (“Double Rainbow”)
● I wish other content I’ve seen on “making viral content”
would focus more on storytelling than on the $