10 simple ways Nigerians can make their videos go viral

1. Don’t be “too good” for marketing

It’s better to try your damnedest and fail than to hold back and always wonder what if.

If you put all this effort into your video, why would you rely on luck for the last leg? Swallow your pride. Give your work a fighting chance. Put together a marketing plan. Then spread and share everywhere, even on Myspace Lol.

Top 10 Viral Videos of All Time

2. Understand how things go viral on the internet

You see videos on YouTube with millions of views and you wonder — where did they all come from?

First, post it to Facebook/Twitter, and submit it to social news sites like Reddit and Hacker News. Ask your friends to share it too, tweet it at well known people and email bloggers who love covering and writing on viral stuffs.

Secondly, send it to bloggers. Blogs drive a ton of traffic. Each blog is a giant marketing engine with millions of readers and twitter followers. It’s in their interest to get the article as many views as possible, because each view is an ad they can serve up.

Thirdly, if it is getting shared, it would make the YouTube frontpage. Because if blogs are sending it so much traffic then YouTube’s algorithms would pick up on it.

Try many things. You only need one of them to pay off in order for your video to go viral. However, your goal is to get major blogs to write you up, because their marketing power is ridiculous.

3. Release on Monday or Tuesday

People watch YouTube videos when they’re at work. They read the news at work. Release your video on Monday or Tuesday to give it the whole week to gain momentum. Weekends are speed bumps.

Chose Tuesday because people are busy catching up with email on Monday. Also, make sure there isn't any major breaking news on that day. Releasing on a slow news day will help you.

Mind your holidays, too. Don’t release when people are not at the office.

THE ORIGINAL Scary 'Mary Poppins' Recut Trailer

4. Figure out who has a stake in your video

If your video takes off, who are all the people and companies who might want a piece of the action? These people can help market you.

If your YouTube description was full of links to possible sponsors  or if you are wearing or eating something owned by an organization. send them the link.

Contact all these companies and asked them to share the video. Some of them may share and some of them wont. Try them all.

5. None of this matters if your video isn’t good

You can get your friends to share. But only the strength of the content can get their friends to share. If you content is poor, News Flash no one would share it.

Why will people share your video? People share things when they feel emotion. What emotion will your viewers feel?

Some emotions spread better than others. Emotions that spread: awe, excitement, amusement, anger, anxiety. Emotions that don’t: contentment, sadness.

Top 10 Viral Videos of All Time

6. Tell a story

Girl Learns to Dance in a Year went viral because it wasn’t just another dance video with cool moves and cool camera angles. It wasn’t about how good the dancing was. It was about how awkward and funny it was.

And it’s not just a story about dancing. It’s about having a dream and not knowing how to get there  but starting anyway.

People want stories. That’s what all TV, movies, and books are. Tell a story.

Charlie bit my Finger

7. Make your video shorter

The first thing people do when they play a video is check to see how long it is. It helps them decide whether to watch it. 10 minutes: forget it. 2 minutes:I’ll give it a shot. 30 seconds: Heck, might as well.

Make your video as short as possible while still keeping the heart of the story.  Short videos go viral.

8. Write a viral title

Here’s a quick test. How would you finish this sentence:

“Hey did you see the video of __________”

Fill in the blank. That’s your title.

Here’s a bad title: My Journey of Dance, a Year of Movement

Better:I Learned to Dance in a Year

Even better:Girl Learns to Dance in a Year

Best:Girl Learns to Dance in a Year (TIME LAPSE)

9. Know what you’re willing to compromise

What are you willing to do for views? Are you willing to compromise on your beliefs? If so, which ones?

You have to decide what you can live with and what you can’t. Figure this out before you release because once you hit publish, you can’t take it back.

10. What to do once you go viral

People will criticize your work. This is good because it gets them talking. People would leave racist and sexist comments. Try not to let all this get to you. Controversy is good.

Viral videos have a short shelf life. You have 15 minutes of fame, and your job is to open as many doors as possible in those 15 minutes. Create as many opportunities as you can.

Make sure the media can get a hold of you, and it’s not hard to find your email address. Media interview requests will start coming in. Accept them. National TV may contact you. Feed the media beast.

Know where you want to direct your traffic. Link to your blog, website and Twitter from the video.

Good Luck and don't forget to send me a link, when you make a viral content.