Viral marketing strategies, explained
Viral marketing strategies grounded in research: what a study of nearly 7,000 New York Times articles found about why people share, plus the FTC disclosure rules.
Nobody can promise that something will go viral. But research can tell you what makes content more likely to be shared, and that is a much better base for viral marketing strategies than guesswork.
What the research says
In a well-known study, What Makes Online Content Viral?, Jonah Berger and Katherine Milkman analyzed nearly 7,000 New York Times articles, all those published over a three-month period. They found that positive content was more viral than negative content, but the link between emotion and sharing was more complex than positive vs negative.
Content that evoked high-arousal emotions, positive ones like awe or negative ones like anger or anxiety, was more viral. Content that evoked low-arousal emotions such as sadness was less viral.
Turning the findings into shareable content
Our read, translated for a business:
- Awe works. A dramatic before and after, a surprising result, an impressive skill.
- Useful surprise works. A fact or tip that makes the sharer look smart.
- Calm sadness does not travel. Touching but quiet stories get fewer shares.
- Anger travels, but at a cost. Outrage spreads, and it can attach your brand to a fight you did not want.
Five viral marketing strategies that hold up
- Lead with the most surprising true thing. Put it in the first line or first second.
- Make sharing make people look good. Useful, clever, insider knowledge.
- Show, do not tell. Visual proof beats claims.
- Ride real conversations, not every trend.
- Make it easy to pass on: short, self-contained and clear without context.
Influencers and viral marketing
If you give creators money, free products or other perks, the FTC's Disclosures 101 for social media influencers says their posts should make the relationship obvious. Undisclosed paid buzz can backfire badly once people notice.
Measure what matters
Shares and saves show interest. Leads and sales show value. Our read: a modest post that brings ten customers beats a viral one that brings none.
Quick answers
Can you plan for virality? You can raise the odds with high-arousal, useful content. You cannot guarantee it.
Is negative content better for sharing? The study found positive content more viral overall, with high-arousal emotions of either kind driving sharing.
Do I need influencers? No. They can help, with clear disclosure.
The takeaway
Viral marketing strategies work best when they follow the research: surprising, high-arousal, useful content that makes the sharer look good, with every paid relationship disclosed.
Sources
Checked October 3, 2026. Platforms change their guidance. The linked pages are the final word.
