If you’re in the video production industry, then you’re probably very familiar with the concept of a viral video. Most video production companies aspire to have their videos go viral. However, the viral videos that you encounter online is a product of a combination of excellent video planning, and luck.

It’s quite difficult to have a video go viral, as a large factor of its viral success relies on the fickleness of the online world. While it’s not easy to go viral, it is possible to look into different viral videos and try to pinpoint the characteristics that they share.

This information may lend a hand in determining how a video can go viral online, and can be utilized in your own video production. Here are some common characteristics that viral videos share.

Tug at the heartstrings

One of the biggest keys to creating a viral video is creating a video that manages to evoke emotion in viewers. Humorous or happy videos tend to do much better in terms of going viral online. However, sad videos, or videos that make you feel something for the people in it do have some success in terms of virality.

For example, right around the holidays when families tend to spend more time together, you see more videos about family members who aren’t able to make it home for the holidays, so they try to bring the holidays to them. Strong emotions in viewers are one of the biggest factors in helping a video go viral.

Keep it short

Everybody knows that the attention span of online users tend to be a little limited. If you want users to share your videos to their friends, then they have to be able to watch it to the very end. Because of this very reason, it’s important that you keep your videos short and simple. You should be able to convey your video’s message in less than three minutes if you want to hold viewers’ attention.

Relatable

In line with evoking strong emotions in viewers, you have to make your video production content relatable to the viewers, otherwise, they won’t be interested in viewing or sharing the video. Your video content has to be something that viewers will care about, and something that they know their friends will care about too. Whether it’s something funny, sad, or silly, it has to be something that viewers can relate to.

Make it interesting

Above all, a common characteristic in a viral video production is the element of being interesting. Viewers will share something if they find it interesting, and they’re more likely to share it with their friends as well. You can’t expect a video production to go viral if there is no interesting features in it.