Gangnam Style: How did it go viral?
"Heyyy... sexy lady"
AND
"Op, op, op, op, Oppa Gangnam Style"
Do you guys remember this song phrase being sung everywhere??
I got to say typing this song lyrics right now, got it ringing clearly in my head. I am sure you guys have heard these lines "945984729" times. If not, at least I know I did. :P
There's a saying that if you don't know Gangnam Style, you're living under a rock. Gangnam Style became a world-wide sensation when it was introduced by K-Pop star Psy in 2012.
FACTS: "Do you know Gangnam Style music video has been viewed more than 2,148,483,647 times making it the MOST watched ever YouTube video"
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30288542
When I say the video broke the Internet, it practically did as Gangnam Style exceeded Youtube's videos limit. Not forgetting, a man even died while attempting to dance the Gangnam Style.
Let me get started with some tips on how to create this Oppa Gangnam Style Phenomenon...
#1. You need to identify the MESSENGER that are going to transform your plain ordinary message into a phenomena.
Psy, the star of Gangnam Style is part of a large record label, YG Entertainment in Korea. YG Entertainment has a huge platform with 2.5 million Youtube subscribers and also, a huge fan following on Twitter. With a large dedicated K-pop fan base, it comes to no surprise that Gangnam Style is able to seed a viral marketing campaign.
#2. You need a memorable and interesting MESSAGE
With Gangnam Style, it definitely caught my attention when I first heard it on Youtube. Gangnam Style music is catchy with a simple and repetitive rhythm. Even though the music video was silly, it did had many hilarious scene, which added to the video's overall appeal. Also, I am sure most of you have not forgotten the popular horse riding dance moves. ;) Gangnam Style is a good example of delivering a memorable message among all age groups as the video managed to attract millions of viewers. People all over the world were able to danced the dance and mouthed along to lyrics they don't even understand. A true phenomena!
Do you guys remember the elevator guy???
#3. You have to create a favorable ENVIRONMENT for your message to go viral. People will only pass the message when they have a strong affective response and it's not already something everyone knows about.
The Gangnam Style was able to stand out uniquely and distinctively that it made it 'THE VIDEO" that you would want to pass to your friends. The music video had created a huge ripple effect that has contributed to a high level of engagement among social media users, influencing a huge variety of culture across the world.
After Gangnam Style video was released to the public, its popularity stayed on viral (infectiously). Here are some examples:
- According to infographicjournal.com:
- On Twitter, Gangnam Style video has been tweeted about a total of 1,191,235 times.
- By 2012, the song has topped the music chart of more than 30 countries
- After the video was released, the popular dance became infectious with Gangnam Style flashmob taking over the world by storm. Not forgetting, the signature dances moves were also attempted by many notable political leaders such as, U.S. President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, who praised the global hit as a "force for world peace".
Have a look at the flashmob across the world and you will be surprised!
- Also, the video was easy to replicate that it has also helped contribute to a variety of Gangnam Style humorous parodies, which caught many attention on social media.
- Lastly, in my opinion Gangnam Style also created peer pressure or peer influence, which had contributed to its great success. This peer pressure had encourages people to watch the video in self-defense. For instance, "What? Have you not watched Gangnam Style??" You are Lame!!!"
Let's end this blog post with the Gangnam Style music video. ;) If you are not one of the 2,148,483,647 viewer *click click*
Please leave some comments below, what are your thoughts on viral marketing? :)
Reference List:
Kaplan, A. M. & Haenlein, M. (2011). Two hearts in three-quarter time: How to waltz the social media/ viral marketing dance. Business Horizons, 1(54), 253-263.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30288542
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2012/10/30/case-study-how-gangnam-style-went-viral-campaign-yg-entertainment
http://infographicjournal.com/gangnam-style-the-social-media-impact-of-a-viral-video/
http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/digital-life-news/gangnam-style-gets-un-stamp-of-approval-20121010-27cbq.html
9 comments
Write commentsHey Lilian,
ReplyI absolutely love your post on viral marketing !! Totally agree that viral marketing can help benefit in such a way. For example Justin Bieber's music video " Baby " it went all crazy on youtube! Love or Hate him (Mostly hate ) ! One of the reasons where he is now its because of his music video went viral . Given the right platform and timing, Viral marketing certainly can be used as a powerful tool.
Have a good day !
Yo! I think your post was very informative and interesting. Good job with the contents and visual . Spot on! Keep it up man!
ReplyHey Lilian, Interesting post! as I think Viral marketing work almost only 80% of the time, I agreed with your point that for a video to go viral you need to have an initial number of subscriber or the video will never be shared or even heard. I think the key of success of going viral is the content itself and the person doing it, lets take Nike and Adidas ads for example it goes viral in a short hour just after being uploaded. this is because they use people with influence that is costly to be called. What do you think about viral videos nowadays compared to when Gangnam Style when it was released back in 2012? Btw dont forget to check my blog at http://digitalfeeder.blogspot.com.au/ Cheers!
ReplyThank you for the reply, Calvin! :) I agree with you that viral marketing works only 80% of the time. I believe businesses have to get the 3 elements right. Also it is true, content is very significant for a campaign to go viral. It has to memorable and interesting in the eyes of the consumer. This is because the idea behind your campaign has to inspire people to share the message on their social media platforms. If the message doesn’t appeal to you, it is unlikely that you would share it right? :) In my opinion, campaigns are going viral more frequently nowadays as marketers are able to understand the concept and utilize the elements wisely. Also, I believe with users spending more time on their technology and social media platforms, this also helps to enhance the process and create the buzz for the campaign to go viral. Have you heard about the “Straight Outta Compton” meme campaign recently? It is one of the latest campaigns that went viral in support of the highly anticipated movie. Sure, I will check out your blog! :)
ReplyThank you for the reply, Jensen! :) I got to agree with you. Justin's bieber song, "baby" is definitely a memorable one! :D Do you know, the music video "baby" is the second most watched video after Gangnam Style? It indeed went crazy on youtube!
ReplyThank you Johnny! :)
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Reply6 IDEAS FOR VIRAL MARKETING