I’ll never forget the first time I had a piece of content I’d written go viral. Fortunately for me, it was a piece of ghostwritten content, so you’ll never find it! The reason it went viral was because people hated the piece. I, in my lack of experience, had been asked to write a piece about popular teams within a certain sport. Let’s just say my choices turned out to be not-so-hot. At the end of the day, though, I had written a piece that, while hated, brought continuous traffic to the site that published it for well over a year, and that is not a bad thing at all. Not every piece you write can be super-popular or go viral, but here are some things you can do to help the process along.
Choose an Interesting Topic
This should really go without saying. You could spend hours on a well-researched piece full of valuable information, but at the end of the day, if the topic isn’t something that is actually interesting to your followers, the post will tank. Completely. End of story. Save the super-hard research and work for topics your readers actually care about.
Fuel Controversy
Is your niche controversial? Is there something happening within your niche that is controversial? Choose the lesser-loved side of the equation and write something your readers will enjoy. Highlight the pros and cons of the controversy. Uncover interesting facts. Show them both sides of the story. If you have fun and share your ideas on a popular subject, showing your expertise, you’ll see quick results. Act like the devil’s advocate and you’ll be sure to fuel some conversation.
Carefully Write Your Headline
Your headline and your introduction are critical to the success of your blog post, especially if you want it to go viral. You need to carefully choose a headline/title that is catchy and intriguing while remaining clear and concise. The longer your title, the less impact it will have.
Make the Post Interactive
Another great way to get people involved in the reading and promotion of your post is to include something interactive, like a poll. Include a poll form in your blog post and ask your readers to share the post so that others can participate in the poll as well. You’ll not only buy yourself some valuable research statistics but you’ll find your post exposed to a larger audience.
Write Passionately
Write a post that evokes some sort of emotion – not only in yourself but within your readers. I’m not saying to be controversial, necessarily. I’m saying you should put your best into what you have to say, show your readers how enlightening and entertaining you can be. Write something that will make them think, “I wish so-and-so had seen this,” so that they’ll share what you’ve written without you having to ask first. You may not get the same emotion from your readers as you felt yourself, but as long as they feel something, you’ve done your job.
Solve a Common Problem
What are some of the things your readers ask about most often? What’s a common problem within your niche? Is there a problem people commonly try to “sell” the answer to that you could share a solution to without damaging your credibility or potential for income? Truth be told, most niches aim to solve several problems, so taking the time to really detail a solution to just one of those problems will make you an outright hero.
Timing and Social Media
Study your blog analytics and determine what time of day is usually busiest for your blog. Make sure your post publishes within or before that timeframe so that it gains the greatest visibility. Then make sure you are writing tweets and Facebook posts and putting the content out in front of your readers via all avenues. The easier you make it for your reader and friends to share, the more likely they are to do it.
Truth be told, there is really no magic formula for making a blog post go viral. Write the most captivating and entertaining content you can and do your best to promote it. The right topic will find its way around the web in no time flat.
About the Author: Jeffrey Geris loves blogging and social media and enjoys helping writers create high-quality content that is not only informative but engaging as well. He uses enterprise social media tools to track his blog and social networking statistics.
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