Berger's 6 STEPPS and Viral Posts Essay Example

The ability of messages to spread to as many users as possible on social media plays a critical role in the success of a cause. Posts on social media go viral due to several factors. Communication scholars have developed six factors that influence the ability of the message to go viral on social media. They include social currency, triggers, emotions, public, practical value, and stories. The choice of social media platform and nature of the post are critical for widespread spread of messages posted on social.

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According to the findings of the of Pressgrove, McKeever, and Jang (2017), social currency, public and positive emotions influence the ability of fundraising messages posted on Twitter to go viral. However, the same response may not be obtained if Facebook or Instagram is used due to the nature of the purpose of the enlisted mediums vis-a-vis Twitter. For one, Twitter is a platform for sharing information that creates value for others hence the expectation that social currency, emotions, practical value, and the public would feature significantly. Although practical value did not feature prominently in the assessed tweets, the nature of the message (fundraising) meant that social currency, emotions, and public were more likely to emerge as the dominant principles determining the spread of the campaign message.

Unlike Twitter, Facebook is mostly used for social networking and often offers the users the platform to share with 'friends' the photos and messages about life experiences such as tours, picnic excursions, weddings, and parties, among other messages that are exclusively social. In other words, it is not a platform majorly used to share information. Therefore, practical value, public, and triggers principles are less likely to feature significantly if the fundraising activity was posted on Facebook. This is because Facebook is not a platform known for messages that tally with the expectations of a funds drive initiative. However, social currency, positive emotions, and stories are more likely to spread most on Facebook than Twitter since the platform offers users opportunities for excitement and interesting stories which are mostly emotional.

Similar outcomes as those of the case of Facebook may also be recorded on Instagram. On Instagram, users share photos and videos. Since the platform is exclusive to photos and videos, principles of social currency, stories and emotions are more likely to inform the sharing of messages of this platform. In contrast, sharing of information based on the public, practical value, triggers are less likely to feature under this platform due to the social nature of the activities that take place there.

Based on the effects of the messages on various platforms, a campaign message that is spreadable is beneficial to any given campaign as it allows the most number of social media users to view it. In a campaign, reaching as many people as possible is critical as it increases the pool of beneficial participants thereby enhancing the potential for success. Thus, a campaign message that is spreadable is more important in running an online campaign than a message that facilitates behavior change. This is because campaign message is well-thought regarding its ability to instigate behavior change before it is crafted into a campaign. Additionally, a message may have the potential to facilitate a change of behavior, but if it cannot reach as many people as possible, its role in the campaign may be diminished since not all users who access a campaign message change their behavior positively no matter the content of the message. As such, ensuring that the message spreads to as many social media users as possible increases the chances of getting more participants into the campaign hence spreadability is paramount in this case.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the social media platform and the nature of the message determine the virality of messages posted on social media. Given this, online campaigners must strive to ensure that most people read the message of the campaign as it would boost the chances of getting more participants, enhancing the potential for success.

References

Pressgrove, G., McKeever, B. W., & Jang, S. M. (2017). What is contagious? Exploring why content goes viral on Twitter: A case study of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, 23(1), e1586. doi:10.1002/nvsm.1586