By: Paree Desai
Have you ever seen a product go viral on TikTok one week, and then never see it again the next? It could be anything from a new water bottle that everyone seems to be carrying or a skincare product that promised clear skin for “just 1 week!” One day, your peers are buzzing about it, and the next, they don’t seem interested at all. It can be really hard to understand what makes a product go from a niche market to a viral sensation overnight.
Luck and other circumstances could play a role.
But there are many other elements that contribute to the rising attention and popularity of a given product, and most of these elements could be used by entrepreneurs to acquire new customers. While sudden attention is great for any business owner, it is important to acknowledge that it may not necessarily indicate long term growth or a sustainable income.
The Power of Attention
The first thing any business needs to gain customers is attention. If your business does not gain people’s interest, then it does not matter how incredible your product is, it will not get sold. This is why social media is such a powerful tool. A business that may only be able to advertise their product locally can instead use an online based social media platform to promote it to a much larger audience.
In fact, some platforms have features that help your content be recommended to more people.
Therefore, small businesses with little to no following can gain views just by simply making content. A simple creator might only get a few hundred views on their videos a day, but after a day of filming a particularly interesting product, they might get hundreds of thousands of views on just one video! As previously mentioned, any sudden attention is great for businesses as it helps them get their product in front of new eyes. However, it is important to note that a high amount of views or impressions does not equal a high amount of sales.
While views are essential to spreading awareness of your product, the ultimate goal is to get people not only to see your product, but to want to buy it.
How Social Media Algorithms Help Trends Grow
Another element that contributes to the sudden popularity of products is algorithm curation.
In simple terms, this means that the social media apps that we use every day have a complex system that recommends certain videos and posts to users based on their interests and what they watch. The beauty of this system is that it helps a lot of small businesses gain exposure. It is not necessary for every potential customer to find your product, just for it to reach enough people that it can start to sell.
To put this into perspective, think about if a student made a video that showed a really creative way to make an organizer out of everyday school supplies. This student does not have a huge social media following, but they are really passionate and creative, so they decide to make a video about it. Their content gets picked up on social media, and suddenly, every person who has seen the video is sharing it with their friends and family.
If the student continues making similar videos and products, then they have found a perfect way to sell their goods at a steady rate.
Of course, this system is not foolproof,
as no entrepreneur would want their hard work to depend on chance alone.
Algorithms change constantly, and it can be incredibly difficult to produce the exact necessary conditions to “go viral.” Successful business owners understand this, and they try to provide value to people regardless of whether or not they have views.
While it is important to work on attracting new customers, it is not sustainable to solely rely on random acts of kindness from algorithms
Why Everyone Suddenly Wants the Same Thing
Have you ever wanted something simply because other people seem to want it? This is the basis of social influence in business.
Essentially, businesses try to use certain elements of popularity to entice customers into buying their products. If a certain item or experience is seen as a must have by many people, then an individual is likely to buy it as well. This is exactly what businesses try to accomplish by getting their product on social media. Trends are a powerful tool because people tend to believe that just because everyone is doing it, that it must be good. This is also known as social proof, which is a marketing tactic where companies take advantage of people’s tendency to follow what others are doing.
As an example, think about a sudden wave of popularity of a given collectible. Many TikTokers may start talking about it and showing off their collections, and because of this, many other people will see it and be inclined to buy it themselves, simply because it is seen as cool by a large group of people. As mentioned earlier, one of the biggest advantages to social media marketing is that any given customer has the ability to spread information about your product to their own friends and family. This can be incredibly useful to small businesses because their customers can essentially spread their marketing for free.
However, while it is important for word of mouth and social proof, it cannot be the sole strategy for generating sales.
If a company relies solely on views and trends, then it is essentially relying on luck, which is not a sustainable way to run any kind of business.
Scarcity: Why Limited Products Create Excitement
Another popular method of marketing is scarcity, or making a product seem more desirable by limiting how many of them there are.
Think about collectible cards, or seasonal merchandise. Both are examples of products that cause customers to feel as though they need to buy them before they are gone. This method is extremely useful when applied to an already popular product, as it can create a sudden rush to buy.
To put this into perspective, let’s return to our entrepreneur example. This time, however, say that our entrepreneur has produced a limited quantity of a certain design phone case. A few TikTokers have showcased their products, thus creating a small amount of interest, and their followers are all excited to try it out. Because there is a limited amount of product, some customers may begin to limit their purchases. Once again, there is an influx of new customers thanks to an algorithm. The creator has a steady stream of income, but some customers may begin to complain about having to wait for their order, or the fact that the designs sold out so fast that they could not buy any. While this method can certainly be useful, it is only as useful as your actual product.
Limiting your products is a great way to build excitement, but it can also turn customers away if they do not feel as though their purchase is worth it.
As mentioned previously, a sudden increase in views is great, but it is vital that any business actually has something worth selling.
Going Viral Is Not the Same as Building a Business
It is easy to think that a business model is successful simply because its products are appearing everywhere all at once. While this is certainly a part of marketing, it is important to acknowledge that popularity is not the sole indicator of a profitable business.
A business may have millions of views, but if the product is simply too expensive, or it may not be able to keep up with the sudden demand, and the company is unable to supply enough product, their views will not do them any good.
In addition, trends are a part of any business, but if a company’s primary source of income is reliant on a fad, then any change in customer preference can crash their business overnight.
This does not mean that fads are bad for business, however.
Trends are great, because they can be used to find potential customers or even test a product. However, it is important to ensure that you have a plan for when that trend passes.
Some businesses will choose to pivot, or change to a new product, simply because the previous one is no longer seen as trendy.
Other businesses will choose to build upon it, using the attention to build a stronger brand or better customer base.
It is important to understand the difference between these strategies, as both can create an increase in sales, but only one can create long term value.
For example, if an entrepreneur makes a really popular product, they might choose to use the attention to increase sales for a limited time, and then move on to a new product when the previous one is no longer seen as interesting. While this could be a good strategy for some, if the entrepreneur chooses to instead build upon the popularity by creating a better quality product, or a product with better customer service, this could potentially provide much more value to both themselves and their customers.
Word of Mouth: Why Satisfied Customers Are Just as Important as Social Media
While social media is a great way to spread awareness of products and services, there is one much more powerful form of marketing: word of mouth. Word of mouth is essentially what many people choose to do when they really like a product and want others to like it as well. Customers share their experiences with their friends and family, and this can either be incredibly beneficial, or incredibly harmful to a business. Unlike social media, which usually requires some sort of payment or promotion, word of mouth marketing is essentially free exposure for a business.
This is the reason why some people try to create products that are so good, that the customers themselves want to spread the word and gain new customers for the business. Think about how many products have “go viral” campaigns, or try to get influencers to promote their products. Influencers are useful because they can bring a lot of attention to a brand in a very short period of time, but if the customer experience is not up to par, this can also damage a business much faster, as people are much less likely to spread negative experiences. Of course, word of mouth marketing cannot always be controlled.
This is one reason why a good customer experience is so important.
At the end of the day, a business needs to provide value and an overall positive experience if they want to maintain a steady income.
Why Word of Mouth Can Matter More Than One Viral Video
While a viral video can introduce a product to a new audience, it is unlikely to do much more than this. One of the most important things that any business should focus on is providing value to the customer. Creating a good customer experience will provide a business with repeat buyers, who can then spread word of mouth marketing to their friends and family. This is essential for any small business, as it increases sales and overall brand awareness. As previously mentioned, there are many people who purchase goods solely based on the recommendation of another person. A good customer experience will encourage customers to recommend your product, and a bad one will discourage them.
At the end of the day, a business should not rely purely on views to generate sales, since the customers that come from views are unlikely to become repeat buyers. Instead, look toward the potential for word of mouth marketing, which can help your business steadily gain customers over time.
What Young Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Viral Trends
As teenagers, we understand the importance of both trends, and social media. We see products and services that go viral, and we are inspired to make something similar ourselves. Instead of focusing purely on how to gain views, however, it is important to think about how these views helped the business sell their product. It is easy to acknowledge that many products have gone viral on social media, but unless the product itself is good, it will not continue to sell. This is why views and popularity are not an indicator of a successful business, just an indicator that the business gained attention. It is important to realize that while some businesses make their products look good, the only way a business can really succeed is if the product is good as well. There are many questions that young entrepreneurs should ask themselves when they see a viral product,
Why did this product get so much attention?
Were they entertaining, or was it the product itself that got people’s attention? Did people purchase based on their interest, or based on a feeling of necessity? How did they gain popularity in the first place? How did they build trust with the consumer? What made people want to continue purchasing?
These are all questions that can be asked in order to better understand how certain businesses operate and how they affect the overall market. Additionally, these questions can help a young business owner understand their own business and how they can improve it.
In short, young entrepreneurs should not be discouraged if their content does not immediately gain hundreds of thousands of views. Instead, they should focus on learning from the bigger businesses and realizing what they could do differently in order to improve. On the flip side, if a young entrepreneur does happen to go viral, they should not rely on this as a long term strategy, as they likely have a much bigger income goal that this will not suffice for. They should instead focus on how to utilize this new attention in order to reach new customers or gain brand recognition. The ultimate takeaway from this is that while going viral is great, it is not a sustainable source of income.
Attention is great, algorithms are helpful, trends can be used to your advantage. Views provide a way for everyone to see your product, and word of mouth can help you gain repeat buyers. All of these elements can help, but ultimately, a business is only as good as its product and its ability to provide a good customer experience. The ultimate goal is not to gain the interest of everyone, but everyone who is truly interested in what you have to offer.