Over the past few weeks a video has been released that has gained a significant amount of attention know as “Gangnam Style” by South Korean Rapper “Psy”. From dance routines at the football games to skits on Saturday Night Live, in just a few weeks this song has gone from unknown to viral.
Now my question is, why? What makes or breaks a video from hitting the absolute threshold in order to touch every nook and cranny of the globe. The team backing Psy didn’t just release the video recklessly. Careful intrigate planning went into assuring that the video went viral, so let me give you the crash course on how to make a viral video.
The first part to making a video go viral is having a plan. As many people are very familiar with the now famous-infamous “Kony 2012” video from last spring, they released it with an intricate plan. On March 5th, every member of the Invisible Children organization shared the video via every social media medium at the same time. With more then 100,000 members in Invisible Children, the video spread like wildfire. That being said, with every viral video the first is having a plan to assure that it gets to as many as people as possible in a quickly fashion.
The second part to a successful viral video is the delivery. If you are trying to make an informational video, you want the video to be short and deliver the information in a quick, concise fashion. If you are attempting to make a music video go viral you want it to be particularly flashy with several different settings and backdrops along with jaw dropping special effects. Regardless of viral video genre, every viral video should focus on the delivery of a “big idea” whether that idea is implicit or explicit.
The third part is finally releasing the video on the web to be criticized and critiqued by the masses . One thing to keep in mind when releasing the video is to be aware of the audience that it is suppose to be targeting. Once you have determined the audience you will be targeting, carefully execute your plan and your set. If you are lucky, you’ve made it to the promise land and your video has gone viral.