On October 23rd, Adele experienced a marketer’s dream: The video for her new song, “Hello,” went viral, skyrocketing to over 10 million views over the span of 24 hours.
Now, if only you could harness some of that viral magic, to make your message reach the masses. You can certainly dream! But you may be able to do more than that.
BuzzFeed shared tips with The Guardian on how it makes content go viral. Their tips are as follows:
- People like to share things about themselves.
- People are more likely to share something if they have a strong, positive emotional response to it.
Fortunately, the health and fitness industry isn’t short on stories that have the potential to elicit a strong, emotional response in its core audience. Just think about all the lives you change on a regular basis. But, how can you capitalize on that?
Below are my tips for turning a member success story into a piece of content that has the potential to be a viral hit, even if it’s just among members.
- Not a writer? I bet someone on your staff is. Ask around to see whom on your staff would be willing to write the piece. Typically, instructors and trainers have their own blogs, so they may be your best bet.
- Don’t just highlight the numbers of the success story, for example, how many pounds the member lost. Highlight the emotional reaction behind those lost pounds. How did losing 50 pounds make the member feel? How did it change their life? Ultimately, the emotional aspect of the story is what your other members/prospects will connect with.
- Share exactly how a member achieved their success story. Provide applicable information that other members can not just take inspiration from, but also follow. This will increase the potential of your content being shared, as people like to share information that will help not just themselves, but others as well.
- Use quality imagery. Be sure to include quality photos of the member with your content. Putting a face to a name helps readers emotionally connect to your writing.
- Think about if you connect with the story personally. If you do, your readers likely will as well.
If you’re new to writing, use this handy chart (above) as a guideline for how to shape your story. And, if your content does go viral, let me know! I’d love to read and share it.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
