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The Science of Sharing The need for “contagious content,” how to create highly shareable video ads, and an analysis of which brands are doing this well An Unruly White Paper, July 2013
1.0 Executive Summary Unruly Labs help brands to understand, measure and increase the ROI of their online video ad campaigns. Unruly’s exclusive data, cutting-edge technologies and insight into viewers’ emotional responses, sharing motivators, user engagement and more, help brands formulate their entire campaign strategy. This paper uses content and sharing analysis from Unruly ShareRank™, which is powered by a proprietary algorithm containing 100+ variables, trained from a data set of over 329 billion video views and 10,000+ consumer responses to predict the social impact of video content. Unruly ShareRank identifies which parts of the video provoke the strongest viewer responses – which in turn drive sharing – so brands can: • C reate highly shareable content • Improve the shareability of existing content • P lan a distribution strategy to maximize sharing and account for earned media
The paper examines 12 television commercials from Super Bowl XLVII, which aired on February 3, 2013 to uncover why top shared ads performed well online and others didn’t. Super Bowl ads were selected in order to provide a group norm from which to benchmark other ads, as well as to provide as level a playing field as possible (all ads aired in the same event on the same day). The 12 ads we tested were selected from the 94 Super Bowl ads that aired in total with a view to providing a representative sample of sharing performance and industry sector.
Unruly ShareRank includes 100+ viral variables that affect shareability; two of the most significant drivers of sharing are psychological responses to an ad and social motivations to share it. Videos that score highly across these two dimensions are likely to share strongly. The Super Bowl study revealed that: • T he majority of brands aim to create funny content. But this is dangerous. The psychological response of hilarity can be incredibly effective when done well or combined with another trigger. But, ads need to be extremely funny to impress consumers worn down by having been subjected to a glut of humorous ads. • A ds must also give viewers a strong reason to share (what we call social motivations), and ideally more than one, to generate earned shares and views. Ads that offered weak social motivations, even when paired with strong psychological responses from viewers, had very low share rates. • A spot does not need to appeal to mass audiences in order to succeed. A strong response from a brand’s target audience can lift a spot to higher sharing levels. • T he average Super Bowl 2013 ShareRank score was a 4.8 (out of 10 available points and versus the 4.7 average ShareRank for branded content). Brands that scored higher than this saw greatly improved sharing.
Table of Contents 1.0 Executive Summary
page 2
1.1 Challenges Faced by Brand Marketers
page 4
1.2 The Impact of Social Video: Sharing and Brand Lift
page 5
2.0 Recipe for Creating Shareable, “Contagious” Content
page 6
2.1 Insights on Why the Most Shared Ads Work – and Why Others Don’t
page 8
2.2 Overview of Ads
page 10
2.3 Case Studies – the Top Shared Ads of Super Bowl XLVII
page 14
3.0 Conclusion
page 16
3.1 What to do if Your Content Earns a Low Unruly ShareRank Score?
page 19
3
1.1 Challenges Faced by Brand Marketers Just over a decade into the new millennium, marketers are in a bind. Brands and agencies are caught in a “perfect storm” of increased competition in the battle for consumers’ share of mind and share of wallet. Not only are there a greater number of products, each with its own marketing and advertising messages, but also a greater number of media vehicles across a growing number of platforms and channels. The global recession has put pressure on consumers’ spend levels. Corporate budgets are also under pressure, and marketers continue to seek out increased efficiencies and prove that advertising converts viewers to action.
Consumers’ trust in traditional advertising (radio, newspapers, magazines and TV) is waning, down 23% between 2009 and 20121. Marketers’ inability to reliably measure the effectiveness of campaigns that run in traditional media is high on the list of challenges2. Meanwhile, recommendations from peers are trusted by 95% of consumers3. Word of mouth generates advocacy, which has been demonstrated to be up to 50 times more likely to trigger a purchase than a passively-viewed message4. As a result, advertisers are dedicating resources to content marketing in order to generate positive advocacy (aka word of mouth or passalong) among their target audiences. This competitive climate also offers new opportunities. Consumers are now more connected and able to immediately act on an advertiser’s message at home and on the go. Device proliferation offers new opportunities to reinforce brands’ messages and build a connection with consumers anytime and anywhere.
1 2 3 4 5
Nielsen Global Trust in Advertising Survey, April 2012 IBM’s State of Marketing Survey, 2012 Nielsen Global Trust in Advertising Survey, April 2012 McKinsey Quarterly, 2010 ZenithOptimedia, December 2012
Online video is now the fastest growing advertising channel, up 30% in 20125. The most talked about brands have discovered that social video leverages the best attributes of the media it harnesses – the emotional power of video and the targeted interactivity of the internet – and are using this non-interruptive, userinitiated ad format to bring their brand messages into the social space. But, with 100 hours of content uploaded to YouTube every minute and four billion items shared on Facebook every day, even the social space is getting cluttered, and brands are finding they need top-notch content and a smart distribution strategy to guarantee viewership and stimulate pass-along.
1.2 The Impact of Social Video: Sharing and Brand Lift Unruly’s research has established that when viewers feel something–strongly–as a result of watching videos they are compelled to share them with people in their network, amplifying the awareness of these branded messages. Brands benefit from people sharing their content. Third party research has shown that social viewers (people who watch content shared with them vs. those who find the videos themselves by browsing or watching pre-roll) are far more likely to act after watching branded content.
A recent study measuring the effectiveness of social video advertising across CPG/ FMCG brands found that after viewing a branded video: • 4 9% of respondents claimed to have purchased the product • 3 8% claimed to have spoken with someone about the product • 1 3% claimed to have visited the product’s home page • 9 % claimed to have searched for the advertised product on a search engine • S ocial recommendations increased brand recall and association by +7% • V ideo enjoyment increased by +14%6 .
Video enjoyment is also the key to driving ROI: viewers who enjoy a video demonstrate +97% higher purchase intent over people who watched the video but did not enjoy the content. But how can brands repeatedly and consistently create enjoyable content that viewers want to share?
6 Decipher Research Study 2011
5
2.0 Recipe for Creating Shareable, “Contagious” Content Videos that garner millions of shares have been seen as rare, unrepeatable outliers.
However, using data from the Unruly Viral Video Chart (www.viralvideochart.com) and thousands of responses from consumer panels, Unruly has discovered that the success of “water cooler” content can both be predicted and repeated.
Unruly ShareRank predicts the shareability of branded content prior to a launch and provides actionable suggestions advertisers can implement to make their videos more shareable.
Predicting a social video hit is no longer about luck. Videos that elicit high intensity, positive emotions are three times more likely to be shared than videos that elicit low intensity, negative emotions. It means CMOs can now confidently predict the effectiveness of their content marketing investment.” Dr. Karen Nelson-Field Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science
The following Unruly ShareRank Score Card shows some of the key psychological responses and social motivations that affect shareability.
Our data shows that brands need to elicit a strong viewer response against at least one psychological trigger and multiple social motivations to achieve a high share rate.
Figure 1: S core Card 7
2.1 Insights on Why the Most Shared Ads Work and Why Others Don’t This report reveals why the winners were so successful, and what the underperformers could have done differently to increase their videos’ social currency. The Super Bowl is the year’s greatest ad sharing event. Year-over-year sharing grew by 118% from 2012 to 20137, with Super Bowl teasers and ads generating 7,739,917 shares in 2013, up from 3,546,560 shares in 2012.
High
Extremely Sociable
Chase Lifeguard 11
12
Unruly Viral Video Chart Topper 4
5
Asking Amy
6
9
2
Party
1
Brotherhood Farmer
3
Get In. Get Happy.
Space Babies
10
Test Track
Fast and Furious 6
8
Made for TV Low
The most shared ads in our study evoked intense emotional responses, including warmth, happiness, awe and pride. These ads also successfully leveraged key social motivations, such as attention grabbing, shared emotional response and zeitgeist. The top shared ads had markedly stronger Unruly ShareRank scores, over and above the Super Bowl norm of 4.8 (out of 10 possible points). With one exception – which we’ll cover below.
7
The Lone Ranger
Low
Strength of Primary Social Motivation
The Super Bowl is a showcase for some of the best TV commercials of the year. The ads receive as much coverage as the game itself – and many fans tune in simply to watch the commercials. One might think the world-class creatives that air in the Super Bowl would all have high social currency across the web. Not so! Our sample of 12 ads includes content with strong, average and low video share rates (shares as a % of views) from the Automotive, CPG, Entertainment and Technology sectors.
Perfect Match
Emotional Wringer
Intensity of Primary Psychological Response
High
Figure 2: W ill it share? quadrant chart Unruly Viral Video Chart Topper This content’s going to trend. It elicits powerful emotions in viewers and gives them a reason to share. With the right distribution strategy, this video will very likely soar to the top of the Unruly Viral Video Chart and trend on multiple platforms.
Extremely Sociable This content gives viewers a strong social motivation to share, but it doesn’t elicit a strong enough emotion in viewers to be an Unruly Viral Video Chart topper.
7 Date range is from the Super Bowl broadcast + 2 months
Made for TV This content isn’t made for sharing online. Either it’s been designed for TV, not designed for sharing, or doesn’t elicit strong enough emotions in the viewer or give them a reason to share.
Emotional Wringer This content provokes a strong emotional response. Unfortunately, it doesn’t give people a reason to share or they don’t want to be seen to be sharing it.
The least shared ads triggered low levels of hilarity and surprise, and didn’t resonate with audiences. These ads also caused viewer confusion as an unintentional outcome.
The 12 Super Bowl ads in our study are presented in the following pages. Figure 2, Unruly’s Will It Share? chart, illustrates the intensity of the psychological responses and social motivations factors that affect the shareability of these ads. The two strongest ads “Brotherhood” and “Farmer” both elicited intense psychological responses with strong social motivations to share, with great effect.
Since many of these ads already provoked a strong motivation to share, adjusting the creative to intensify viewers’ emotional reactions would shift many of the “extremely sociable” ads over to “chart topper” status.
“Perfect Match” from GoDaddy sits alone in “emotional wringer” territory at the bottom of the Will It Share? chart and real-life share rankings. It elicited a strong psychological response in the panel, but only weak motivations to share which held back its performance.
Fast and Furious 6
Chase
Brotherhood
Test Track
Party
The Lone Ranger
Asking Amy
Lifeguard
Perfect Match
Space Babies
Get In. Get Happy.
Low
High
Hilarity Happiness Awe Exhiliration Warmth Pride Nostalgia Sadness Pain Disgust Contempt Knowledge Surprise Shock Confusion Fear (Flight) Anger (Flight) Sexual Arousal Farmer
Intensity of Primary psychological response
Traditionally, the Automotive sector emerges as the strongest vertical in terms of Super Bowl sharing, producing the most successful ads of 2011 (VW’s “The Force”) and 2012 (Chevrolet’s “Ok Go Needing Getting”). However, in 2013 Autos conceded the number one spot to the CPG sector and Budweiser’s “Brotherhood.”
Figure 2 shows a scatter chart of the 12 ads tested in our study. Although we selected an even number of ads from high-, middle-, and poorly-shared rankings, you can see that the majority of the sample ads fell into the “extremely sociable” category. The majority of Super Bowl ads researched in our study tried to raise a laugh, but were not funny enough to elicit sharing.
Bubble size represents the proportion of respondents for whom the response was primary.
Figure 3: K ey psychological responses evoked by ads, this chart illustrates the factors that drove sharing activity for the 12 ads studied. The chart shows an abundance of red circles indicating attempts to provoke hilarity in viewers. With 10 of the 12 ads sampled leaning on hilarity to get a reaction from viewers, the response loses its potency. 9
2.2 Overview of Ads
35%
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ShareRank™ US norm Figure 4: U nruly ShareRank chart with ads sampled
Super Bowl norm
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1 Budweiser Brotherhood
2 Universal The Fast and the Furious
3 Ram The Farmer
4 Volkswagen Get in. Get Happy.
5 Best Buy Asking Amy
6 Kia Space Babies
7.8 ShareRank Score
4.2
7 Disney The Lone Ranger
ShareRank Score
7.3 ShareRank Score
5.3 ShareRank Score
4.7 ShareRank Score
4.6 ShareRank Score
8 GoDaddy Perfect Match
9 Coca-Cola Coke Chase
10 Fiat Test Track
11 Axe Lifeguard
12 Pepsi Party
5.6 ShareRank Score
3.1 ShareRank Score
3.9 ShareRank Score
4.2 ShareRank Score
3.1 ShareRank Score
3.2 ShareRank Score
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1
Budweiser Brotherhood
Unruly ShareRank score 7.8 (+78.9% Super Bowl avg) Shares 2,096,560 Psychological Responses evoked Happiness (8.7) Warmth (8.3) Sadness (8.0) Social Motivations evoked Overall 3.4 (+29.4% Super Bowl avg) Shared Emotional Experience Reaction-Seeking Social Utility “Brotherhood” performed strongly because it told a moving story of loss and redemption. Sadness scored highly early in the ad, which served to intensify viewers’ feelings of happiness experienced later on in the video. The video also benefitted from the use of Fleetwood Mac’s emotive “Landslide” and gave viewers multiple reasons to share.
4
Volkswagen Get in. Get Happy.
2
Universal The Fast and the Furious
Unruly ShareRank score 4.2 (-12.5% Super Bowl avg) Shares 1,501,129 Psychological Responses evoked Exhilaration (7.6) Hilarity (7.0) Social Motivations evoked Overall 3.1 (+17.2% Super Bowl avg) Zeitgeist Reaction-Seeking Tested against the general population, the Fast and the Furious trailer didn’t resonate strongly. Yet, it had an excellent share rate due to the trailer’s strong appeal to young men. Shared passion, social utility, reaction-seeking and selfexpression are all elicited in this demo.
5
Best Buy Asking Amy
Unruly ShareRank score 5.3 (+10.4% Super Bowl avg) Shares 346,006 Psychological Responses evoked Happiness (8.6) Confusion (7.3) Hilarity (7.1) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.9 (+8.2% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking Self Expression
Unruly ShareRank score 4.7 (-2.1% Super Bowl avg) Shares 43,512 Psychological Responses evoked Knowledge (7.4) Hilarity (7.0) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.9 (+7.6% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking Social Utility Zeitgeist
VW’s ad evoked hilarity and happiness in the nationally representative panel. However, hilarity is a commonly-used trigger and needs to be experienced extremely intensely to generate high sharing. Unfortunately the ad was not funny enough to cut through the slew of other Super Bowl ads also trying to be funny. More viewers’ primary response to the ad was confusion.
“Asking Amy” used a not-so-tech-savvy consumer asking a host of questions to a dialled-in Best Buy staffer, played by comedian Amy Poehler. The ad is light-hearted, with high scores for hilarity and knowledge in a large proportion of viewers. It effectively informs viewers of the products Best Buy sells and the expertise of their staff in an amusing way.
Unruly ShareRank score is out of 10 possible points Psychological Response intensity is out of 10 possible points Social Motivations score is out of 5 possible points
3
Ram The Farmer
Unruly ShareRank score 7.3 (+52.1% Super Bowl avg) Shares 823,691 Psychological Responses evoked Pride (9.0) Warmth (8.6) Happiness (8.6) Social Motivations evoked Overall 3.3 (+22.4% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking “Farmer” was the top Autos ad of the Super Bowl, scoring highest for both social motivation and psychological response. It stood out with its serious approach, re-interpreting the image of the noble American farmer for the 21st century, and in doing so evoked feelings of national pride, warmth and happiness.
6
Kia Space Babies
Unruly ShareRank score 4.6 (-4.2% Super Bowl avg) Shares 140,690 Psychological Responses evoked Hilarity (7.4) Warmth (6.9) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.7 (-0.4% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience Hilarity and warmth were the strongest panel reactions to Kia’s cute spot. The content ranked below the Super Bowl sample’s norms for both ShareRank score and Social Motivations, pushing it to the border of “extremely sociable” and “Made for TV” sectors of the Will It Share? chart (Figure 2).
7
Disney The Lone Ranger
Unruly ShareRank score 5.6 (+16.7% Super Bowl avg) Shares 25,419 Psychological Responses evoked Exhilaration (7.8) Surprise (7.8) Nostalgia (7.4) Hilarity (7.3) Social Motivations evoked Overall 3.2 (+17.2% Super Bowl avg) Zeitgeist Reaction-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience Social Utility Shared Passion Sharing of The Lone Ranger trailer was driven by its high social motivation score and good mix of psychological responses, offering “something for everyone” to appeal to a diverse audience. The ad evoked multiple social motivations (zeitgeist, reaction-seeking, shared emotional experience, social utility and shared passion) giving viewers reasons A, B, C, D and E to share, broadening its potential.
10
Fiat Test Track
Unruly ShareRank score 4.2 (-12.5% Super Bowl avg) Shares 1,372 Psychological Responses evoked Surprise (7.8) Arousal (7.6) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.5 (-7.9% Super Bowl avg) Elicited Reaction-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience Fiat tried to utilize a primal trigger, sexual arousal, but only elicited this response among 10% of its viewers. The chief psychological response that registered was surprise, but viewers were not sufficiently surprised to be compelled to share the ad. While two social motivations registered, they did so too weakly to benefit sharing.
8
GoDaddy Perfect Match
Unruly ShareRank score 3.1 (-35.4% Super Bowl avg) Shares 138,885 Psychological Responses evoked Shock (8.2) Disgust (7.8) Surprise (7.2) Social Motivations evoked Overall 1.7 (-35.2% Super Bowl avg) Attention-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience GoDaddy evoked strong psychological responses (surprise, shock and disgust), but still generated a low ShareRank score and share rate as a result of its very low social motivations (35% below the Super Bowl sample norm). Although viewers felt a strong emotional reaction to this controversial piece of content, the ad alienated the general public, which inhibited sharing.
11
Axe Lifeguard
9
Coca-Cola Coke Chase
Unruly ShareRank score 3.9 (-18.8% Super Bowl avg) Shares 28,380 Psychological Responses evoked Hilarity (7.3) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.6 (-3.8% Super Bowl avg) Attention-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience Like many other ads, “Chase” was made to be funny, but only triggered a mild hilarity response. The content did not elicit any other strong psychological responses from the panel, leaving Coca-Cola without a fall back option to highly engage its audience. The social motivations registered mildly, and “Chase” hovers between “sociable” and “Made for TV” in the Will It Share? chart.
12
Pepsi Party
Unruly ShareRank score 3.1 (-35.4% Super Bowl avg) Shares 9,886 Psychological Responses evoked Surprising (7.1) Hilarity (6.5) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.3(-14.7% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking
Unruly ShareRank score 3.2 (-33.3% Super Bowl avg) Shares 3,089 Psychological Responses evoked Hilarity (7.4) Social Motivations evoked Overall 2.7 (-0.4% Super Bowl avg) Reaction-Seeking Shared Emotional Experience
Axe created an ad filled with bikini-clad beach-goers, but this brand – famous for sexy, attraction-based spots – did not push the envelope far enough to elicit intense psychological responses or social motivations. Many viewers in our study had trouble connecting the astronaut to the beach theme and found the ad confusing. Only one social motivation registered, and it did so too mildly to motivate sharing.
“Party” evoked a mild hilarity response, but needed an intense viewer response along this dimension to break through. Without another psychological response registering with the panel, viewers didn’t feel a strong emotion when watching the video. The ad had a slightly below average social motivation, and fell into the “made for TV” quadrant of the Will It Share? chart.
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2.3 Case Study: the Top Shared Ads of Super Bowl XLVII #1 Shared Ad from the Super Bowl: Budweiser’s “Brotherhood” Budweiser improved upon its 2012 ad (“Flash Fans”) by moving away from the use of hilarity to create a distinctive piece of content that stole the Super Bowl show. “Brotherhood” earned an excellent Unruly ShareRank score of 7.9 and a superb share rate of 18.6%.
Without a joke in sight, “Brotherhood” performed strongly precisely because it was different from the other ads in the Super Bowl, eliciting complementary responses of warmth and happiness from a large proportion of the audience. The Unruly ShareRank panel asks respondents about the specific content characteristics that led to their emotional responses. “Brotherhood” had three: the storyline, the use of a beloved animal and the ad’s “Landslide” soundtrack. Music has great emotive power, and the right song selection has been demonstrated to significantly amplify viral potential.
Budweiser also evoked many strong social motivations, including emotional experience, reaction seeking and social utility. Budweiser performed so well because the spot inspired viewers to share; they wanted their friends and family to feel the same positivity as they did when watching it.
35%
Percentage of Respondents
30% 25% 20% 15% Storyline
10%
Animal
5%
Singing/Music Warmth
Happiness
Figure 5: B udweiser - Brotherhood, content characteristics driving key psychological responses
#1 Shared Ad from the Automotive Sector: Ram’s Farmer “Farmer” scored highest in its category based on the strength of its social motivation and intense psychological responses. This ad was memorable for shunning the common hilarity trigger and creating a truly unique viewing experience. “Farmer” captures viewers’ attention with its stark visuals and powerful imagery.
Ram retains viewer attention by employing a simple voiceover, devoid of music to highlight the poetry of Paul Harvey’s elegant words. A somber, serious ad, “Farmer” evoked the rare Super Bowl mix of pride (9.0), warmth (8.6) and awe (8.6) very strongly among large numbers of viewers. It reminded viewers that the farmer is the heart of the nation, and the backbone of the country and a struggling hero.
Viewers were primarily inspired to share this visually-striking and powerfully-different ad because they thought it would get a strong reaction from their friends. The panel of viewers highlighted four key characteristics of the video which elicited the primary psychological responses: the powerful script and storyline, followed by the farmers’ personal triumph and the unusual cinematic choice of using still shots with only a little movement.
30%
Percentage of Respondents
25%
20%
15%
Storyline
10%
Script/Dialogue
5%
Personal Triumph Cinematic Awe
Pride
Warmth
Figure 6: R am - Farmer, content characteristics driving key psychological responses 15
3.0 Conclusion Unruly has been dedicated to the science of sharing since 2006, and shares the “science behind the social” to help brands understand why people share (and don’t share) videos. The following are the three items brands should consider when creating content that will motivate viewers to share and gain cutthrough:
Use a different emotional trigger Brands need to stand out from the crowd to get cutthrough and be memorable. Don’t always try to be funny. While hilarity can be a very powerful trigger, this year’s Super Bowl winners were the ads which broke away from the pack and instead focused on triggers which historically have not been used in Big Game ads. Hilarity is a fickle trigger – brands need to be exceptionally funny, or their content falls flat. We recommend brands move away from humor for future media events in order to be remembered and shared. And, to keep tabs on ads so as new responses become the norm, brands can continue to break away from the pack.
Make viewers feel something strongly, and give them reasons to share Research has shown that ads which evoke intense, positive emotions such as hilarity (vs. amusement) and exhilaration (vs. general interest) are 3x more likely to get shared than those with weak arousal emotions8. The ads that scored highest for sharing motivation gave viewers multiple reasons to share. This gives viewers a plan B (and C and D). The greater the number of motivations or the stronger the intent to share, the more likely earned sharing will take place. However, viewers must experience strong psychological responses in order for the content to be memorable and be worth the sharing effort.
The Social Diffusion Curve 14,000,000 12,000,000
The Viral Peak
• 10% shares occur on day 2, the viral peak • 25% of shares occur in the first 3 days • 50% of shares occur in the first 3 weeks
Shares by day
10,000,000 8,000,000
The first days following launch are key to a video’s short term and long term success. There are strong correlations between shares achieved in days 1-3 (R2=0.59) and 1-6 (R2=0.87) and all-time share.
6,000,000 4,000,000 2,000,000 0 Day 1
Day 8
Day 16
Day 24
Day 32
Day 40
Day 48
Day 56
Figure 7: T he social diffusion curve: Unruly studied the day by day shares of the top 200 branded videos of 2012, plotted here in aggregate 8 Dr. Karen Nelson-Field
Get your timing right The “viral peak” in sharing takes place on days 2-3 after a video is launched, affecting both short-term and longterm viewing and sharing.
16,000,000
If a brand is to achieve a viral cascade, its content needs to reach a critical mass of viewers within the first 48 hours to create a strong response from the viewing public. Strong content is half of the “viral video” success story. It is equally important to get seen by the right audiences in the social environments already frequented by these targets, within the necessary time frame. Brands can win – or fail – by day 3. Therefore, it’s important to get content trending quickly. Unruly recommends front-loading a distribution campaign to achieve these critical, early views.
+14.1%
Shares per day of the week
14,000,000 12,000,000
-1.7%
+7.5%
Not only are the first three days critical, but an analysis of sharing activity of the 1,000 most shared branded videos demonstrates that days of the week with the most sharing activity are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday9. When comparing cumulative shares based on day of the week, Wednesday remains the optimal day for launch10.
+15.9% Average
+5.2% -15.2%
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-25.8%
8,000,000 6,000,000 4,000,000 2,000,000
Monday
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Figure 8: S haring activity by day of the week 9 Unruly Viral Video Chart, Source: Viral Video Chart – Sharing activity of the 1,000 most shared branded videos 52 weeks to 7th June 2013 10 Unruly Viral Video Chart, Source: Viral Video Chart – Sharing activity of the 1,000 most shared branded videos 52 weeks to 7th June 2013; MEME play data for all campaigns in US, UK, DE and FR - 52 weeks to 7th June 2013
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3 days’ cumulative shares following launch on a given day
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+12.5%
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+5.9% 35,000,000
Average +8.9%
+2.7% -8.4%
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25,000,000 20,000,000 15,000,000 10,000,000 5,000,000
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Figure 9: 3 Days’ cumulative sharing activity following launch day
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3.1 What to do if Your Content Earns a Low Unruly ShareRank Score? An Unruly ShareRank analysis includes actionable steps an advertiser can take to improve the shareability of its content or choose the most shareable content from multiple options. However, if an advertiser has only the single piece of content, and cannot make the recommended improvements, a sound distribution strategy becomes all the more important – and Unruly ShareRank can help to nail that strategy to amplify shareability, even without content edits.
While the content may not generate so many earned views, it can still win with targeted distribution to the right audience, in a player optimized for this audience (e.g. Unruly ShareRank will identify the platforms the target audience is most likely to use for sharing the content), and emphasizing KPIs other than shares such as interaction rate, competitions entered, data captured or time spent with the content.
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ShareRank™
The case studies in this report form a small part of the full Unruly ShareRank reports which typically contain 30-50 pages of detailed data, insight and analysis from our Insight team. To find out more about Unruly ShareRank email
[email protected]
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Find out more
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About Unruly Video technology company Unruly is the leading global platform for social video marketing and works with top brands and their agencies to predict the emotional impact of their videos and get them watched, tracked and shared across paid, owned and earned media. We use our proprietary technology to turn target audiences into engaged viewers and engaged viewers into customers and advocates. Brands use our social analytics dashboard to benchmark their content, outsmart the competition and demonstrate superior ROI. We’re dedicated to finding elegant, data-driven solutions to the social marketing problems that challenge brand advertisers in today’s cluttered and confusing media landscape.
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In a nutshell, brands use Unruly to join the dots on Facebook, YouTube and the social web. The Unruly Viral Video Chart has tracked 329 billion video streams since 2006. With an engaged audience of 978 million consumers, across the full range of mobile, tablet and second screen devices, Unruly has delivered, tracked and audited 2.8 billion video views across 2,500+ social video campaigns for over 400 brands including CocaCola, T-Mobile, Volkswagen, Microsoft, Warner Brothers and adidas. We’ve worked with 60% of Interbrand’s Top 100 Best Global Brands and our mission is to help brands deliver the most awesome social video advertising campaigns on the planet.
Founded in 2006, Unruly has 11 offices and employs over 125 people globally. In 2012, Unruly secured a $25 million Series A investment the largest ever for a private company in the social video space. The company has won over 15 awards including “Best Content Distribution Service” at the Braves Awards; “Digital Innovator of the Year” at the Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Track 100 and #14 on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 EMEA 2012. To find out more visit www.unrulymedia.com
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