Latest Updated Tricks for Viral Blogging

Getting your content to go viral is an art in and of itself. Trends and interests change at the blink of an eye, and what worked once, might not work anymore.

Internet users are becoming increasingly aware of the tactics some people use to get their content to go viral, so updating your bag of tricks is an absolute must if you want to stay ahead of your competition.

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Share Your Work. Don’t Brute Force It

Content becomes viral once it reaches a very large number of people. Conventional wisdom suggested that the best way to do that is to advertise it yourself as much as possible.

First, you’ll have to pour in all your inspiration and create that magical content you want to be shared.

Have you thought about all the small things you can write about? Does your day job inspire you?

Have you ever thought about studying in a different country? There are plenty study abroad programs you can check out and use the adventure as your blog inspiration.

Making your work known is the only way you can hope to grab attention. If you keep it to yourself, not only is it not going to become viral, it’s not going to be seen at all.

But being too aggressive about it can have the exact opposite effect. People are going to notice that you’re trying much too hard, and they can find that off-putting. Even if your stuff is brilliant, they might end up avoiding it, just because they find you annoying.

Viral content springs out organically. Consider the fact that an average person will have about 150 real Facebook friends (in this case, friends who are likely to engage with the things they post and share).

If your content reaches at least 20 people, you get the chance to be seen, and shared by 3000 people. And if they have at least 100 unique friends, that aren’t shared among them, well, you can tell where this is going.

Make It Shareable

It may seem fairly obvious, but viral content needs to spread in order to work effectively. Writing well-researched, good pieces is not going to be enough, though.

The first thing you need is a catchy headline, to get your audience hooked. It has to be something fun, but at the same time relevant, so when your readers share it, others can get an idea of what the piece is about instantly.

The content itself has to be informative, but also leave room for debate. It has to be a conversation starter, rather than a simple, direct statement. Viral blogging has a ripple effect, and a good blogger just has to give the conversation a slight nudge for it to kick off.

Then all they have to do is sit back and see how their content grows and expands with the audience’s input.

Big topics that can garner a powerful reaction from your audience are preferable. New takes on old issues can also have a similar effect. The point here is to get your audience to react and encourage them to state their own opinions.

Lead with a Powerful Social Message

Often times, people who wanted to get positive attention on the internet avoid hotly debated topics. It made sense, especially when it came to social issues because rarely are there any clear cut answers and solutions.

But nowadays internet users are quite interested in social issues. Playing it safe might get you some modest attention, but if you really want to gain a large audience, you need to show your public you are truly passionate about the same things they are.

Having a powerful personal statement work regardless of the topic of your blog. Even if you’re writing on a relatively neutral, like beauty or lifestyle, you can still give your audience an idea of who you are, and what you stand for in the way in which you construct your content, and the things you focus on.

Use Every Tool at Your Disposal

Image Source: Pixabay

As blogging is increasingly popular and easy to do, the number of tools designed to help content creators in their endeavors has increased as well.

It should be obvious that an in-depth knowledge of the most popular social network platforms is an absolute must. You need to know what each platform’s strengths and weak points are, and use them accordingly. You can’t expect that one the same piece is going to be just as well suited for Instagram as it is for Twitter.

Apart from these platforms, you should also spend some time to find out more about content creation tools as well. Any viral campaign starts with quality content. These tools can help you save time, and focus more research for new topics.

The more diverse your stuff is, the more likely it is to hit its mark. A lot of the success of a blog depends on your audience, and people can be very unpredictable when it comes to what they like.

The more time you save on technical details, the more well-thought content you can put out there. This is going to give a much greater chance at viral success.

Don’t Fake It

As a blogger, you’ll want to develop an online persona. You probably don’t bring everything about your personality, or daily life into the mix. You’re going to have good days, and bad days, and times when you don’t really feel like writing anything. You don’t have to show all of these things to your readers.

Think of yourself as an actor. When you go online, you’re playing a role. But any great actor still keeps a part of themselves when they go on stage. That’s what makes their interpretation special.

An internet persona that’s there only to get views, likes and shares, is going to be immediately noticed by users. There have been plenty of internet celebrities that have come and gone, and users are pretty much aware of the things they do.

If you fake your internet personality, audiences are going to feel like you’re trying to trick them into liking you. And that’s definitely going to make an overall bad impression.

People need to know there’s a real person behind your blog. So whatever you decide to do, do it with honesty. Your personal input is going to make your content special, and even if you set a barrier between yourself and the character you play, it’s not going to feel forced.

The more honest you are, the greater chance you have to empathize with people. And that’s one of the key elements in getting your blogging to go viral.

Be Self-Aware

Even if you’re a super expert in the topic you’ve chosen to discuss on your blog, there are still going to be some things you don’t know. Acting like you know everything is definitely going to drive your audience away.

Because there are so many bloggers out there, posing as an expert doesn’t really work anymore. It probably never did, but when there weren’t that many people to choose from, when you saw someone that was extremely confident in what they said, many users trusted their opinion by default.

But nowadays, readers have access to a lot of information, and if you make mistakes in your statements, they will find out. So, the best way to keep yourself safe from most negative comments is to show your readers that you are aware of your limitations.

A humble internet persona can make you very likable. Readers are much more likely to trust the things you say if you point out the things you’re unsure of, because they’ll know you are aware of your limitations.

A few years back there was a growing trend of spoofing overly arrogant content makers who made how-to guides. In a way, the content these so-called experts provided did become viral, but it was probably not the way in which they intended.

You should really try to avoid becoming the subject of internet parodies if that’s not your intention. It can be extremely difficult, if not impossible to gain back your credibility afterward.

Know Your Audience

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There are over 1.59 billion active users on Facebook alone. Naturally, it would be any bloggers dream to reach at least a quarter of those billions of users. You’d think that reaching an extremely wide audience is easy. But unfortunately, that can’t be done. Just putting out as much content as possible is not going to do the trick anymore.

People differ quite a lot when it comes to things they like, and the stuff they get enthusiastic about. Trying to reach as many people as possible might get a broad audience, but that audience is not going to be very passionate about your content.

Instead, you should try to understand what your niche is all about. Try to cater to your audience as best as possible, and even if you might alienate some, you’re sure to get some really loyal followers in return.

Because people need to feel like they’re part of a group. And that means not only creating a community that appeals to their sensibilities. It also means defining what that groups are, as opposed to another.

So, for example, if you want to reach the online gamer community, you’re probably going to have a lot of tech related content, maybe something related to media and arts in general. You’re probably not going to post cooking recipes, and that’s going leave out a good portion of possible readers.

But if you start posting housekeeping tricks, and dessert recipes on your blog, your loyal gamer followers are going to feel utterly confused at best, or at worse, they’re going to feel like you no longer care about them.

There are so many online blogs to choose from, readers need to know what each of them offers, and where to go when they need specific information.

If your blog ends up looking like a collection of miscellaneous, unrelated pieces, your readers are going to feel like it’s worth their time sifting through all of your content to find the things they’re interested in. They can just go somewhere else, to a blog that truly appeals to them.

Have a Consistent Tone and Personality

The content of your blog is not the only thing that has to stay consistent, and geared towards your audience. Your internet voice has to be consistent as well.

As we’ve mentioned already, there are way more resources online now than there were a decade ago. As such, you need to offer your audience something extra, to make them keep coming back, and helping your content go viral.

The personality of your blog can help you a lot when it comes to reaching a wide audience. Just think of some of your favorite internet celebrities. The content some of them provide might be very similar, but they will differ quite a lot when it comes to how they deliver that content. Their personal brand makes all the difference.

So after you’ve carefully considered your audience, and the topics that might appeal to them, think about how you’re going to get that message across. You can choose a very casual, laid back tone, or go for something slightly soberer. Whatever you choose, it has to stay the same throughout, and it has to match the content of your blog.

If you’re unsure about what would work best for you, consider starting multiple blogs, in a variety of tones. It’s important that you feel comfortable as well when using a specific voice. Otherwise, you’re not going to be able to keep it up for long.

Be Bold

Think of your blog as a conversation. When you talk to someone, a pleasant conversation about the weather and the nice movie you saw last night might be very relaxing, but it won’t really go much beyond that.

If you want your content to have viral success, you’ll need to be brave and state your opinions clearly. Make sure you frame them as opinions, though, and not as right or wrong facts. It’s very likely that not everyone is going to resonate with them all of the time, so you don’t want to scare off your audience.

But the fact that they won’t always agree is the beauty of it. It’s going to get your readers to talk, share and debate. And ultimately, that’s the goal of any successful blog.

As the digital landscape changes, so will internet trends. Tips need to be constantly updated, so if you’ve found something that works, you should share it with the rest of the community.

Only by sharing can we hope to understand one another better, for the benefit of all.

As you can see, blogging is not for the “fainted hearted”. It’s something you seemingly grow into if you don’t lack passion and learn a bit of discipline. But this might just be our opinion. What’s your take?

Tags: audience engagement blogging topics consistency in writing content creation tools motivational advice