By Aaron Couch

With some blogs and videos getting hits in the hundreds of thousands, you’re probably wondering, “how can I get in on the action?” To get your content to go viral, all you have to do is create something so unique and earth-shatteringly interesting, that others will be compelled to share it with their friends. Sounds easy, right?

Okay, maybe it’s not that easy. But, there are ways to improve the likelihood your content will get the adoring attention you’d like it to receive.

Viral content tends to be:

Unique. Content you just can’t get anywhere else.

Easy to understand. Contains writing that connects with people by using a conversational tone and real world stories.

Informative. Full of helpful information or breaking news (especially a good scoop).

Below are more specific ways to increase your content’s viral potential.

The forwarding factor

Create content that will make people want to share it with their friends. Word of mouth is incalculably valuable, and can attract thousands of visitors to your blog or article.

Studies have shown asking your readers to pass your page along greatly increases the chances they will. Encourage your readers to forward your link in an e-mail, and give them the option to add it their facebook or twitter accounts.

And don’t forget to tell your friends about your latest work. “Stuff White People Like” creator Christian Lander insists he never did anything to publicize his funny blog, save for sharing the link with 20 friends when he first launched it. In turn, those friends forwarded the link their friends, and so on. The blog blew up from there, and millions of views and a publishing deal later, the rest is history (watch Landers talk about his blog’s success).

Write for your audience

While it might seem like making the most general, wide-appealing blog or article is the best way to attract visitors, it’s actually better to tailor your content to a specific audience. Make your reader feel like an “insider,” and they’ll be more likely to return and pass on your link.

Are you a parent and a musician giving people a look at what it’s like to raise your children in a tour bus? Do you have a blog chronicling the mishaps and mischief of your overweight cat? Whatever your content is about, find your niche, and run with it!

Just look at the popular series of youtube videos, “Hi I Am Marvel…and I’m a DC.” Using action figures and funny voices, its creator parodies the bickering that goes on behind the scenes of superhero films. While perhaps only funny to those who follow the comic book world, these videos have received over 5 million views, real proof that having a niche is a great way to success.

Link to great websites

It might seem counterproductive to send your readers away, but linking to high quality sites will establish you as someone who can point readers to interesting places. Your article or blog could even be just a list of links. For example, how many aspiring writers do you think have consulted lists of places to be published online?

So maybe there’s no guarantee your blog or article will go viral, but don’t lose heart. With a little work and planning, you just might have the next big thing on your hands—or at least something someone will like enough to share with their friends.

References From CopyBlogger:

5 Steps to Going Viral on Twitter

Viral Marketing With Blogs

5 Social Media Lessons I Learned from Working with a Hollywood Actress

Guest Blogger Aaron Couch is a freelance writer and musician from Kansas City.  He has experience writing and designing press releases, as well as planning publicity campaigns. Check out his band at www.myspace.com/anotherholiday