Give me a reason ….

Social Media Marketing Tip for Going Viral

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If you are active on social media, whether you want to admit it or not, I believe we all harbor the hope that our content will go viral. Having a post go viral feels good and gives us the proverbial 15 minutes of fame.

Shares, not Likes or Comments

Anecdotal data suggests that ‘shares’ have a disproportionate impact on a content’s reach compared to ‘likes’ and ‘comments.’ Hence, while ‘likes’ and ‘comments’ are important, if we want virality, we need to focus on getting shares and that means developing content while constantly asking ourselves the hard question of “will my network share this.”

Proof Facebook Likes Mean Nothing

In 2011, The NY Times published a study titled “The Psychology of Sharing: Why do People Share Online.” While the study is over a decade old, I believe the insights provided still offer us relevant tips on getting shares. According to the study, there are five main motivations for your network to share your content:

• Paying it forward — to support you and causes or…