How to harness the power of social media, make friends, and be very popular.

1. Recreating the Ice
Bucket Challenge
Or: How to cut through the static

2. Objectives:
To have a deeper understanding of what it
means to go “viral”

3. Objectives
To have a deeper understanding of what it
means to go “viral”
To gain some tools in how to effectively
spread a message on social media

4. Objectives
To have a deeper understanding of what it
means to go “viral”
To gain some tools in how to effectively
spread a message on social media
To stay awake

5. How old were you when you
learned to talk?
 At 3 months, babies know particular voices
 At 6 months, babies babble

6. (Though they seem to understand
what they’re saying)

7. As they get older…
At 9 months, babies know a couple of
words: No. Bye-bye
At 12 months? Mama. Papa.
At 18 months, 10 words – usually
associated with food.

8. And then there are the child geniuses

9. We communicate by a variety of
means
Body language

10. We communicate by a variety of
means
Body language
Spoken word

11. We communicate by a variety of
means
Body language
Spoken word
Written language

12. We communicate by a variety of
means
Body language
Spoken word
Written language
Mass communication

13. Mass communication

14. Mass communication is awesome, until
it isn’t.
Static

15. Issues?
Static
Noise

16. Issues?
Static
Noise
Distractions

17. Issues?
Static
Noise
Distractions
Distortions

18. Let’s think back to 2004
Howard Dean, medical doctor, governor
ofVermont
Declared his candidacy, did surprisingly
well until…
…the Iowa caucus on Jan. 19, 2004

19. The Dean Scream

20. Which opened Dean up to ridicule

21. But don’t be sad about Mr. Dean
Howard Dean become chair of the
Democratic National Committee
Given credit for Democratic Congressional
successes during the midterm elections of
2006, and
Barack Obama’s win in 2008

22. But mass communication can be your
friend

23. Meet the creators

24. You can harness the power of mass
communication

25. The rules were simple:
Within 24 hours of being challenged,
donate $100 to ALS Association OR
Dump ice water on your head and post a
video on social media
Either way, tell your friends

26. The challenge attracted some leaders
of the free world

27. Along with some would-be leaders of
the free world

28. Along with some American icons

29. About ALS:
 Full name: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
 Progressive neurodegenerative disease
 Affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.
 About 15,000-20,000 Americans are affected,
most between the ages of 40-70
 Most people die within five years of diagnosis

30. Another name? Lou Gehrig’s disease

31. But most people who participated?
Knew nothing about the disease
Had never met any one with the disease
Knew only Lou Gehrig

32. It started with this video

33. Why did this work?
Rules were simple
People reached out to people they knew
No “cold calls”
It was just goofy enough

34. What makes things go viral?
From Jonah Berger, associate professor of
marketing at Univ. of Penn.’sWharton
School, and author of “Contagious: Why
Things Catch On:”

35. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages

36. From wpxi.com

37. What makes things go viral?
Information that triggers emotions

38. From Reuters

39. What makes things go viral?
Messages that create social currency,
because everybody wants to feel in the
know

41. What makes things go viral?
Information that has practical value

43. What makes things go viral?
Stories. And more stories

44. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages

45. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages
Information that triggers emotions

46. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages
Information that triggers emotions
Messages that create social currency

47. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages
Information that triggers emotions
Messages that create social currency
Practical value

48. What makes things go viral?
Positive messages
Information that triggers emotions
Messages that create social currency
Practical value
Stories. And more stories.

49. Some numbers from the challenge
17 million uploaded their challenge video

50. Some numbers from the challenge
17 million uploaded their challenge video
440 million watched those videos a total
of 10 billion times

51. Some numbers from the challenge
17 million uploaded their challenge video
440 million watched those videos a total
of 10 billion times
Raised $115 million last year

52. The challenge defied all
explanation
It started as just a goofy thing to
go.

53. But that goofy thing:
Rather quickly took on meaning

54. And isn’t that what we’re all looking
for?
Meaning
Purpose
A cause
Something bigger than ourselves
(So much for slacktivism)

55. Even better?
In August 2015, scientists at Johns Hopkins
said the money raised by the Ice Bucket
Challenge helped them to make a major
breakthrough.

56. Let’s let the scientists explain:

57. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals

58. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals
Create relevant content

59. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals
Create relevant content
Establish your expertise

60. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals
Create relevant content
Establish your expertise
Listen and respond

61. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals
Create relevant content
Establish your expertise
Listen and respond
Use hashtags

62. Social media and the environment
Establish your goals
Create relevant content
Establish your expertise
Listen and respond
Use hashtags
Reach out to like-minded folks/orgs

63. Just remember what works:
Positive messages
Information that triggers emotions
Messages that create social currency
Practical value
Stories. And more stories.

64. So did we meet our objectives?
To have a deeper understanding of what
means “viral”
To gain some tools in how to effectively
spread a message on social media
To stay awake

65. Then:Yay!

66. So go out…
And spread the word