HOW TO CREATE A VIRAL VIDEO. THE SECRET IS FINALLY REVEALED!!!

it’s nice to get noticed for your creations. but it’s even better to have your work actively analyzed by others. it gives you a perspective that’s invaluable.

our penny prank ads for officemax have gotten a lot of scrutiny, and approval, from bloggers who think about viral video a lot. which is great. that’s a tough crowd. our campaign is kind of being held up as sort of a template. which is scary. but we’ll take the implicit praise. because we’re only human. and vain beyond belief.

(the following is an analysis from getelastic.com. a digital marketing blog that has impeccable taste, apparently. thanks guys.)

The Office Max social media marketing machine is back with a new viral Youtube campaign – penny pranks! This ties perfectly to Office Max’s back-to-school penny sale and is getting a lot of 5 star ratings and views on Youtube.

Boasting 4,285 subscribers, pennypranks’ channel is #2 on all of Youtube for new subscribers this month. Great job Office Max!

Here’s what we can learn from this effort:

• A memorable star. The curly-redhead is funny and has that Will-it-Blend-host-character.
• Very short introductions. The shorter and sweeter you can keep your introductions, the better – especially for a series of videos. Office Max gets right to the point so no matter which of the series a viewer watches first – he or she will get the “gist” of the series’ theme, but it’s short enough to not be repetitive and annoying in future installments.
• Relevant humor. The content is funny, entertaining and related to an actual sales promotion that is happening.
• Call to action. The campaign includes products and a URL to buy products after every video. Again, this is short and sweet.

Anyone can do something like this, even on half a shoestring budget.

[UPDATE: our officemax penny pranks channel is now the #1 most subscribed-to channel on youtube for the past month. we love you too guys! kisses! more content is on its way.]