Unleash the Power of Virality: Proven Strategies for Making Your Content Go Viral

Master the art of viral content creation with these tried-and-true tactics for boosting engagement, driving traffic, and increasing conversions

Going viral refers to the rapid spread and widespread popularity of a piece of content, typically through social media shares and online word-of-mouth. It is the ultimate goal for many content creators. It can lead to increased brand awareness, engagement, and conversions.

There are plenty of stories about finding inspiration, writing better, and promoting content. There are fewer stories about going viral. On that less beaten path, checklists to get results are hard to find. Making a few tweaks behind the scenes helps. Following a few rules can have a significant impact. In the best-case scenario, it can generate viral traffic.

Admittedly, going viral can be a mix of art and science. Yet it is within anybody’s reach to make the right moves. Content creators routinely skip those. They require a bit of effort through research, learning, and polishing. I will describe concrete actions you can take today to increase your odds of success and amplify your visibility.

How to boost your content’s quality

You can improve the quality of your content without re-writing it again and again until it is perfect. Using specialized applications and avoiding traps will help the most. A few manual extra steps will put a bow on your content. All of this will help your search rankings and raise your odds of going viral.

The best tools to boost the quality of your content

Spelling and grammar checkers are the most obvious tools to use. You can start with the one in your word processor. You should also use the free or premium versions of Grammarly, ProWritingAid, and Hemingway App.

The key is to use multiple applications. They each catch different issues. It is also helpful to run the story through each program more than once. As issues get corrected, the different applications find new errors and make new suggestions.

If you are ambitious, aim for close to zero error and top reading scores. If anything still pops up but the sentence seems correct, try rephrasing it. You should not have any sentences or paragraphs deemed “hard to read” or marked in red.

As an extra step, run the draft through a broken link checker. That ensures all the links work well. Avoid redirects, shortened URLs, or questionable links. It does not always affect your chance of getting published. It does, however, decrease your ranking on search engine results pages.

Effective manual strategies to enhance your performance

Some typos are invisible to software. For example, you can use the wrong word spelled correctly. That is why it is worth proofreading and editing manually, at least once. I find it helpful to read my text aloud or use software to read me back my story. It must flow, be crystal clear, and sound engaging.

Check that you have the legal right to quote or insert any content you inserted. That includes any images or videos. Many content creators break those rules. It is an area where you cannot take shortcuts. You need to be 100% sure you can use the content. If not, seek permission or secure the rights.

It is easy to get intellectual property rights wrong. If you use a stock photo website, make sure that the pictures are free to use for your purpose. It is the same thought process for any website. That applies to sites providing charts (such as Statista), analysis, or any form of content. You do not want it to come back to bite you later.

Copyright issues can get your story pulled and your account canceled. Avoid the risk and err on the side of caution. Just in case. You cannot claim fair use, good faith, or ignorance. If there is an issue with one piece of content, that threatens your entire portfolio. Publications could put everything on hold until they complete a review.

To credit license-free work, you simply need to copy-paste the source and the author’s information. Skipping credits would not prevent you from going viral. However, editors usually reject stories missing proper credits. It is also proper form and the right thing to do. That is especially true if you did not pay for the work.

How you can use this: check your content using various tools to increase the quality without over-editing.

Maximizing your content’s visibility through search engine optimization

Using SEO is the best way to go viral. The goal is to have a leading search engine recommend your story at the top of the search results, preferably for popular keywords.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Understanding and Improving Your Website’s Search Engine Ranking

Search Engine Optimization is the art of getting ranked well for free.

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO for short, is about optimizing your website and its content to rank higher in search engine results. The purpose is to increase your visibility to potential customers.

By using strategic keywords, creating high-quality content, and building backlinks, you can improve your website’s search engine ranking. That will drive more organic traffic to your site. It is the art of making your website easy to find by both search engines and people.

Web traffic and its optimization are mission-critical these days. That is why companies hire web content writers, consultants, and SEO experts to support growth by ranking well in search results.

SEO is about generating non-sponsored traffic to your content. That means free traffic from search results. We also hear about it as natural or organic traffic. It contrasts with paid traffic. Paid traffic typically refers to advertising and sponsored links. It includes bidding on keywords and combinations of keywords. Purchasing banners or any other ads fall under that category.

Search Engine Optimization is about enhancing the quality and quantity of traffic from search engines. That translates into more visits to your article, blog, website, or web page. Ranking well within the first page is good. It is better to end up at the top of the first page. That can drastically increase your chances of going viral.

Why not just pay for it?

Somebody always asks: “Can I just buy ads to drive traffic to my article?”. The answer is “Yes you can”. The best question to ask is if that would be a profitable strategy. In a majority of cases, it would not generate a superior return on your investment.

That is why ads linking to articles are rare. Large companies compete for those sponsored links by bidding on the best keywords. Using SEO and social media, for example, is usually more effective than purchasing ads to drive visitors to your content.

The other issue with buying ads is that if you stop paying or get overbid, your content becomes less visible. The quality of your content has a longer-lasting effect in terms of traffic and boosts your rankings in results.

10 Proven Search Engine Optimization Techniques to Boost Your Website’s Visibility

You do not need to use long lists of keywords and impersonate a shrewd spammer to rank well. It is quite the opposite. Search engines those days aim at rewarding high-quality content.

The web is full of endless insights on best-using search engines. There is no shortage of Search Engine Optimization experts. They offer consulting services and tutorials. Here are 10 of the most effective recommendations. I have unearthed and tested the following so far:

1. Search engines prefer longer pieces, typically around 1,700 to 2,000 words.
2. They value detailed sentences, explanations, examples, and the right terminology.
3. Using alternative words around a concept helps as well. Do your best to use synonyms and associated ideas.
4. Google Trends is even better than using a thesaurus. It will show you trending and connected topics that users are searching for online.
5. You can use Google Trends to refine your examples and topics. For example, if you write about Coinbase you would want to mention NFTs and Dogecoin if they are trending topics.
6. Use your key phrases throughout your story. Those are the words or combinations of words that users search for. It will make your content easier to find in online searches.
7. Search engines prefer content with at least one image and reward descriptive alternative text.
8. They favor content with multiple back-links to quality content.
9. Fast-loading pages rank better. Check your page for speed using Google Page Speed Insight. Adjust the top offenders. Using well-compressed images and videos, as well as removing unused code, is beneficial.
10. The algorithm ranks content that shows Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-A-T) the highest.

Structure your content systematically

The way you structure your content matters. Search engines prefer content with headers, sub-headers, and sections which do not exceed 300 words. Large blocks of text and unstructured content negatively impact ratings. Having at least a picture, with alternative text, is helpful. It could become a thumbnail and increase the visibility of your content.

If your goal is to direct traffic to your website or get new business out of your content, use a byline in all of your pieces. It is a brief paragraph at the bottom of your story. It can be a short bio or a summary of what your business does. Include links, especially to well-respected sites such as LinkedIn, Medium, and Twitter.

Think about searchable terms when you write

Instead of having a “Think about SEO” sub-header, I used “How to optimize your content for search engines”. It is a more searchable term, and it is more specific. Somebody would likely search for some of those words and land here. Nobody is likely to search for “Think about SEO”.

Lots of writers think of their story showing up in searches for a couple of keywords summarizing their article. It is much more complex. You could get ranked for multiple combinations of words. They could bring you visitors doing different searches and interested in different topics, for the same story. Pick the right terminology throughout your story. That will optimize your rankings across the board. Your target audience will find you.

How you can use this: As you edit your story, make sure you are being specific and refine your writing. It needs to please the bots inspecting your article and indexing it in search engines.

10 parting thoughts

Getting published is one thing. Getting traction is much more challenging. Be everywhere to ensure lots of traffic goes to your pieces. Start by working on SEO. Then use the right social media hashtags, test newer platforms such as TikTok, cross-link content, and try out any tools at your disposal.

Here are 10 tips to help you go viral:

1. Create shareable, visually appealing content: Use eye-catching images, videos, and infographics to make your content more engaging and shareable.
2. Use viral-worthy headlines: Write headlines that are attention-grabbing, informative, and make people want to click through to read more.
3. Leverage influencers: Partner with influencers in your niche. They will promote your content. They can help you reach a larger and different audience.
4. Optimize for SEO: Use keywords in your content, meta tags, and headlines to make it easier for search engines to find your content.
5. Create listicles and how-to guides: Lists and guides are highly shareable. They perform well on social media.
6. Use storytelling: Use storytelling techniques to create an emotional connection with your audience. Make them more likely to share your content.
7. Use social media: Share your content on social media platforms. Engage with your followers to increase visibility.
8. Host a contest or giveaway: Hosting a contest or giveaway can be a great way to generate buzz and encourage people to share your content.
9. Use humor: Incorporating humor into your content can make it more relatable and shareable.
10. Keep it timely: Stay on top of trending topics and create content that is relevant and timely to increase the chances of it going viral.

We used to care about now obsolete metrics such as words per minute, stories published per month, and time spent on each story. We now measure success in terms of engagement and views, hoping for virality. The pressure is on creators to always deliver fresh new content. Hopefully, you will start a viral phenomenon that gets clicked through and shared repeatedly.

I hope these tips help you in your content creation journey. If you liked this story, I have a few more on writing:

What happens when you follow those simple tips? Well, you put more chances on your side to generate traffic and views. Creating high-quality and SEO-optimized content are the 2 best ways for you to create viral content this year.

Hopefully, it triggered some new ideas for you. Maybe you learned something. Share your thoughts or questions in the comments. Best of luck with going viral this year!

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Max Dufour lives in Boston, MA with his family and writes about various topics on Medium. Connect at [email protected], on LinkedIn, Twitter, or visit Harmeda. Any links to external sites can be affiliate links. They can generate compensation through the Amazon Associates Program or similar programs.