This month’s viral videos are inspirational. The new version of the #LikeAGirl campaign from Always’ was a fast-riser this month, rising quickly to the top of the chart with more than 16 million views. If you recall, the original campaign launched last summer to accolades and earned a Cannes Lion International award. The new campaign, “Unstoppable,” continues the theme of challenges faced by girls and young women.
Every week, Advertising Age publishes a list of the week’s top performing videos. The weekly chart highlights viral video ads that appear on online video sites. Each ad measures viewership of brand-syndicated video clips as well as social video placements that are driven by viewers around the world. True Reach™ quantifies the total audience that has been exposed to a viral video campaign. There are three key factors for viral video success:
- Reaching the tastemakers.
- Building a community of participation.
- Creating unexpectedness in the video.
Regardless of the type of product or service, the country of origin, or the importance of the message, what matters is reaching the audience in a way the both entertains and informs. Check out this week’s top videos and discuss what makes them “go viral.”
Group Activities and Discussion Questions:
- Bring up Ad Age’s weekly Viral Video chart: http://adage.com/article/the-viral-video-chart/viral-video-chart-071315/299466/?utm_source=digital_email&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=adage&ttl=1437493059
- Have students examine how the ads are measured by Visible Measures.
- Divide students into teams. Have each team select an ad on the top video chart and analyze the ad.
- What is unusual?
- Who will it interest?
- What is the key message?
- How effective is the ad at getting the company’s brand and message across to viewers?
- In teams, have students design a viral video for a product of their choosing. What are the elements that are needed to go viral?
Source: Advertising Age, Visible Measures