What Makes a TV Ad a Viral Video?

Ad agencies still searching their navals for the “holy grail” of viral video are missing the point of what makes media viral. This article on Brandweek shows they are still using old measurement tools to determine success! It’s kind of like using 8-Track sales to track the success of the new Mariah Carey cd (please don’t make me ever listen to any more of her music!)

But I digress… These companies are still attempting to package and present brands the same way they always have…

“Milward Brown has crafted 10 tips for making a TV spot viral, few of which come as a surprise. They include great creativity, wide dissemination, good search optimization and, perhaps most important, the need to “cross your fingers.”

REALLY!!?! “Cross your fingers?!” That’s the best they can come up with after spending millions to try to tap into the “viral” market? Sometimes, it’s great to be a small business that can’t afford to take itself so seriously as to hire one of these genius firms!

In my humble opinion, the “it” factor that makes a video about a product or brand go “viral” is that the message is usually from the consumer’s point of view of it. Many of these are videos made by consumers of the products. The essential element in these videos doesn’t concern itself so much with the features or buzz or any other self stroking. Today’s savvy consumers can research the features on their own when they’re ready to buy… Media guru’s talking to us like kindergartners are about as effective as big haired televangelists!

A great example of a company that has tapped into the element of what their consumers want to see on their ads is Geico. I mean really, Warren Buffet dressed up as Axl Rose?! Come on, I’m switching to Geico as soon as I can! That’s AWESOME!

Seriously, check out the video! Warren Buffet as Axl Rose