Why videos go viral
Welcome back, incredible BookDuck fans. Do you sometimes wonder how people become superstars in a matter of days through the help of Youtube? Let’s find out about some of the secret ingredients needed for such success by listening to Kevin Alloccat’s TED talk.
In his talk, Alloccat speaks about why video games go viral and why it matters.
He starts his talk by mentioning how we all want to be stars like singers, dancers, or celebrities. Many of us dream about it, and Alloccat says how he also dreamt about it. But when he was young, he saw it as an impossible thing. The difference between then and now is that web videos have made it easy for anyone to become famous. There are over 48 hours of videos uploaded to Youtube every minute. But out of that number, only a tiny percentage goes viral.
So how does this happen?
Well, three things influence it: tastemakers, communities of participation, and unexpectedness.
So let's start with tastemakers. A tastemaker introduces new and exciting things and brings them to a larger audience. Individual tastemakers take a point of view and share it with a larger audience, which helps accelerate the process of fame. Then, communities of people form.
And this leads to the second point, community participation, where people become a part of the phenomenon by spreading it or doing something new with it. Let's speak about the example of "Nyan Cat." It's a looped animation with looped music. It's been viewed nearly 50 million times this year. Literally, everyone, even cats, watched it. But what's important here is that creativity inspired such an outreach. Remixes were being made. Someone even made an old-timey version, and then it went international. And that's where the community participation kicked in because an entire remix community sprouted up, which made the animation from a stupid joke into something we can all be a part of. People don't just enjoy now; they participate.
And the most unique thing about all of this is that it happens unexpectedly. Over two days of videos are uploaded every minute, and only a few of them can stand out. So everything is unexpected, and no one can guarantee the outcomes.
So, what does this all mean?
This means that tastemakers, creative participating communities, and complete unexpectedness are the characteristics of a new kind of media and culture where anyone has access, and the audience defines the popularity.
Let’s end this all by looking at the example of someone we all know, Justin Bieber. He got his start on Youtube. Who would have thought that someone who is making covers to other people's songs, will become one of the most known singers and celebrities of our time. But it happened. Him and his team had the correct strategy which made him into the person he is today.
Therefore, always remember, no one has to green-light your ideas. Feel some ownership in your own pop culture.
To sum up, Alloccat goes over the three main characteristics influencing today's media. If you are starting your path to fame, remember the key ingredients you need: tastemakers, participating communities, and unexpectedness.
