Virality is Not Always a Good Thing

 

All of us share content on social media every day, but many of us don’t stop and take the time to think about where the content comes from. Outside of news stories and media platforms, there is something called a content creator. Ninety percent of marketing companies use content marketing as part of their strategy, but that doesn’t mean all the content they create is top-notching, compelling and valuable content.

In the world of social media, there are people who seek fame through the platform of their choosing including Facebook, Instagram, twitter, snapchat and more. People with successful accounts often make deals with companies in some ways. Some companies send free products to influencers in hopes that they will feature the product in the post. In other situations, a company might pay a social media celeb to wear or use a product in photos and tag the brand.

When it comes to going viral, content creators have gone to great lengths to achieve their viral stature. However, 2018 started off with a horrible example of going viral the wrong way. A popular and reckless Youtuber, Logan Paul, shared a video where he discovered and awkwardly laughed at the sight of a suicide victim in Japan’s Aokigahara forest.
The protocol for the outrage that spiked after the video is something very familiar resulting in an apology video. As outsiders, it would be safe to assume that this stunt killed Logan Paul’s career. Youtube released a statement stating the following: “It’s taken us a long time to respond, but we’ve been listening to everything you’ve been saying. We know that the actions of one creator can affect the entire community, so we’ll have more to share soon on steps we’re taking to ensure a video like this is never circulated again.”

Although it seems that YouTube is planning on taking action against Paul, it is uncertain with their vague statements what exactly will happen. Also, Logan Paul made forty-thousand dollars from the banned video alone. Paul’s video reached six million views before he deleted it and posted an apology on Twitter, in which he said that he didn’t post the shocking footage for views but because he thought it would make a positive ripple on the internet and raise awareness for suicide and suicide prevention.

In the marketing world, campaigns often go viral because of a negative response as well. There is an increase in negative virality on the internet, and it has affected the online reputation of many brands. Although people prefer reading positive stories, it’s the anger that serves as a driving force to make us share a negative story, and this leads to the outrage that we frequently come across on social media.

Here at Velocity, we know good content when we see it. Our experienced social media managers provide, share, and research quality content for all of our clients to build phenomenal social media presences. What makes Velocity Agency special is that we not only share content, we make content through film, sound design, animation and more. If you are looking for the best team to handle your marketing in 2018, Velocity Agency is ready and prepared.

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