Growing up in the 70s and 80s, “Going viral,” had a completely different meaning. Back then, it was to be avoided at all costs. Today, it’s every marketer’s dream.

There are countless articles that can tell you how to “go viral,” but I want to SHOW you.

In January, Unruly, ranked the “Top Most Shared Ads of 2016.”

ALERT: before you go to this article, clear your schedule. The videos are addictive.

I love that Unruly focused on the action of “share,” rather than passive “views.” Being “shareable” will increase your reach immeasurably. And the very act of sharing demonstrates the impact of the spot.

My take on these 20 ads is that the keys to people wanting to share your message is to:

  • Make them feel, tap into an emotion
  • Show them something they’ve never seen before
  • Give them a story worth sharing

To me, the most important element of advertising success is emotion. You must make your audience feel something. It is wired into us … when we feel, we act. And the action is why we do what we do.

Make your audience laugh, like the John Lewis and Doritos ads

     Motivate them, like the We are Superhumans or Nike, Switch spots

Let them know that you understand their pain and challenge like, the Ariel #ShareTheLoad ad

In a world where the human attention span is now less than that of a gold fish, many of these spots are 2-3 minutes long. Some of my favorites where in another language … but they capture an emotion and it holds you.

If you’ve seen my talks to credit unions and banks, you’ve likely heard me say that:

Your brand is nothing more than your company’s personality. Just as we are attracted to or repelled from people for who they are, your customers are attracted to or repelled from you for who you are. The goal of a brand is to make them FEEL good about you. And FEEL good about themselves for using you.

I recommend a quick read in Psychology Today.  Some of the key findings include:

  • Consumers use emotion rather than information.
  • Emotional response has far greater influence than content.
  • Likeability increases sales.
  • Emotions have greater influence than trust and other judgements.

We are emotional creatures who make emotional decisions (and often look for logical information to support those decisions).

As you sit down to create your next ad or campaign, I hope this helps.

List Methodology
“Unruly’s rankings are based on the number of shares – as opposed to views – that ads on Facebook and YouTube attracted across Facebook and the blogosphere. As such, they are a measure of the ad’s online buzz or virality, ranking ads by the volume of active pass-on rather than the passive, paid metric of video viewership.

Data was collected from January 1, 2016 to November 29, 2016. Unruly’s annual Top 20 Global Video Ads Chart only includes official ads that were launched in 2016 and does not include trailers for movies or TV shows.”

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