Well here we are then , long time no see.
Yep back in the saddle after ten months, two earthquakes, my boy starting school and just the hint of work. Nothing big really.
Are you keen on getting your intranet videos to go viral ?
Surely you jest I hear readers from intranet land ask. But no I'm serious.
I've been listening to a pod cast since starting my new job at a local university, the 45 minute commute each way pushed me over the edge. IT conversations has a terrible website, so don't bother thinking it might lead the way to cool intranet innovation, which does exist. What IT conversations has in spades is serendipity and liberal interpretation of what IT is.
If any of you have read Carmine Gallo's the innovation secrets of Steve Jobs, or heard his interview on IT conversations, you'll know why serendipity and broadening your horizon's can be valuable. Suffice to say looking over the fence into other IT areas, or out the window and into another person's world can work wonders for your intranet.
[Tip if you're after a great book resource, free shipping to New Zealand, and exceptional prices I'd recommend http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/ a friend of my partner's put us on to them and we haven't been able to justify buying anywhere else, other than our local London Street books]
But hang on what about Viral video on my intranet !
You said! you promised!
OK so here it is, a viral video case study and how it applies to your intranet.
Executive summary for those in a hurry:
What about that that viral video case study ? I want the real oil, it want detail I hear you cry.
Well here I have to come clean, while many intranets use video I've never heard of one where there was even an attempt to make one go viral. Not documented publicly anyway. What I do have is how a video, that I have some knowledge of, went viral and how that experience informed my executive summary above. If you've got an intranet case study that you're willing to share guest blog it here, or send me the link and I'll get the word out.
CASE Study - Mels hidden talent
By 18 April 8:46pm NZ time this video had :
Time line
How does this compare with other viral videos ?
No matter the size of your organisation, or even if most people have speakers on their PCs you can make use of what we've learnt here:
First - make sure you've spent time on a video that puts a dent in your organisation's universe. By this I mean make sure it serves a purpose which furthers the goals of your organisation, or at least the key staff within it.
Second - the topic may be dull, but the delivery should be fun and or intriguing to get the viral buzz.
Third - spread your sights. If no one in your organisation has speakers, do a silent video (21 million views can't be wrong. . . . or is it ?)
Fourth - get the word out to the people who are the influencers, gossips and leaders in your organisation. With them onboard the viral bit begins.
References not otherwise linked to:
http://techcrunch.com/2007/11/22/the-secret-strategies-behind-many-viral-videos/
http://techcrunch.com/2007/11/24/follow-up-to-the-viral-video-post-dan-wants-another-word/
http://www.dan.ag/
http://www.sharethrough.com/
Yep back in the saddle after ten months, two earthquakes, my boy starting school and just the hint of work. Nothing big really.
Are you keen on getting your intranet videos to go viral ?
Surely you jest I hear readers from intranet land ask. But no I'm serious.
I've been listening to a pod cast since starting my new job at a local university, the 45 minute commute each way pushed me over the edge. IT conversations has a terrible website, so don't bother thinking it might lead the way to cool intranet innovation, which does exist. What IT conversations has in spades is serendipity and liberal interpretation of what IT is.
If any of you have read Carmine Gallo's the innovation secrets of Steve Jobs, or heard his interview on IT conversations, you'll know why serendipity and broadening your horizon's can be valuable. Suffice to say looking over the fence into other IT areas, or out the window and into another person's world can work wonders for your intranet.
[Tip if you're after a great book resource, free shipping to New Zealand, and exceptional prices I'd recommend http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/ a friend of my partner's put us on to them and we haven't been able to justify buying anywhere else, other than our local London Street books]
But hang on what about Viral video on my intranet !
You said! you promised!
OK so here it is, a viral video case study and how it applies to your intranet.
Executive summary for those in a hurry:
- it needs to be SHORT
- vary the image that you use to advertise it, to appeal to all the audiences you care about using your intranet
- make it visible, this may even heaven forbid, mean printing it out and putting it up in the tea room with a suitably cryptic title.
[ if you're lucky enough to have a smart phone toting staff demographic put up a QR code and see what happens. The flattr guys talk about blurring the real and virtual using QR codes.] - make it easy to share . . . . .
No seriously even if it is as little as a MailTo href link or the equivalent of the share button under every YouTube video, that gives users a simple URL they can copy and paste. - leak it don't blast it. Depending on your organisation's culture (which you know because you're the intranet person . . . . right ?) tell the cool folks, the influencers or the gossips a day or two in advance of the home page news item. They'll appreciate the chance to show off an you'll get a BUZZ going prior to go live. Don't forget to mix it up with a different title and image on release day so you get the folks who meant to click on it but just didn't get around to it yet.
- plan for and record metrics, where appropriate make them visible to your users.
This will be one of the corner stones of justifying the time and effort you've put into getting your intranet video to go viral within your organisation.
What about that that viral video case study ? I want the real oil, it want detail I hear you cry.
Well here I have to come clean, while many intranets use video I've never heard of one where there was even an attempt to make one go viral. Not documented publicly anyway. What I do have is how a video, that I have some knowledge of, went viral and how that experience informed my executive summary above. If you've got an intranet case study that you're willing to share guest blog it here, or send me the link and I'll get the word out.
CASE Study - Mels hidden talent
By 18 April 8:46pm NZ time this video had :
- 207 Google links to this video from other sites
- 382 Yahool links to this video from other sites
- On YouTube 1,212,040 views , 13207 likes , 252 dislikes , 13459 ratings, 4251 comments and 6431 favorites in 5 days (13 Apr - 18 Apr 2011)
- Oldest tweet is 14 April. 4 of first 30 tweeters have 7500 followers, the other 26 have approximately 100 each
Time line
- Video posted to YouTube 13 April 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcVFM4X7OSg - It appears on Redditmedia.com (reddit’s distribution website for reddit.com)
then to - joemonster.org (Polish site for boys, polish FHM equivalent) 162 comments 3:30pm NZDT 18/apr
http://www.joemonster.org/filmy/34437/Nasladowanie_glosow_zwierzat
then on to - Mashable Posted on a Thursday
http://mashable.com/2011/04/14/youtube-animal-impression/ (35 comments 3:30pm NZDT 18/apr)
by http://mashable.com/author/brenna-ehrlich/ who is a senior staff member at Mashable.
Then on to the - YouTube home page
http://www.youtube.com/
where even at 3:30pm NZDT 18/apr Mel’s hidden talent is the second link under three of the Recommended for you highlights. - Then Reddit appears, though in the YouTube listing
http://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/gq23x/a_girl_i_went_to_highschool_with_makes_animal/
But when you look at this listing the first of the 993 comments was posted “3 days ago” probably the day after the video went on to YouTube.
Posted by
http://www.reddit.com/user/khinigeetaht 1545 link karma / 129 comment karma
First comment was by
http://www.reddit.com/user/feb192011 7 link karma / 3263 comment karma
Then the next day on to - The HuffingtonPost http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/15/girl-animal-noises-video_n_849711.html at 12:29pm ET on 15 Apr
They have 67 comments on their page
then to YouTube.com/videos - http://www.youtube.com/videos where it is no longer highlighted
then to - A Vietnamese site http://dantri.com.vn/c728/s728-473416/co-gai-lam-nao-loan-youtube-vi-gia-tieng-dong-vat.htm
How does this compare with other viral videos ?
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI
Took off after HuffintonPost mention - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IReU3XaRC5c
Took off after Mashable mention
No matter the size of your organisation, or even if most people have speakers on their PCs you can make use of what we've learnt here:
First - make sure you've spent time on a video that puts a dent in your organisation's universe. By this I mean make sure it serves a purpose which furthers the goals of your organisation, or at least the key staff within it.
Second - the topic may be dull, but the delivery should be fun and or intriguing to get the viral buzz.
Third - spread your sights. If no one in your organisation has speakers, do a silent video (21 million views can't be wrong. . . . or is it ?)
Fourth - get the word out to the people who are the influencers, gossips and leaders in your organisation. With them onboard the viral bit begins.
References not otherwise linked to:
http://techcrunch.com/2007/11/22/the-secret-strategies-behind-many-viral-videos/
http://techcrunch.com/2007/11/24/follow-up-to-the-viral-video-post-dan-wants-another-word/
http://www.dan.ag/
http://www.sharethrough.com/
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