When it comes to video marketing, viral video content looks a lot different from fluffy kittens and adorable puppies rolling and bouncing about. A lot of thought and effort are put into those because they require ROI.

For marketing, the views, comments, likes, clicks and shares have to translate to ROI else “viral videos” are meaningless.

How to achieve that? By providing the target audience with real value via quality content.

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• Good Content Appeals to the Heart – What is your why. “At the end of the day people just want to know that you care.” This is where good storytelling comes in.

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• Good Content is Shareable – Why do people share videos? There’s a lot of reasons, but it must serve a purpose. This is where the customer pain point is addressed.

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• Good Content is Native to the Platform on Which it Appears – The video must follow the rules and culture of the platform. The keyword is “user” as in user experience. What works for Facebook might not work for Snapchat. This is where knowing the target audience is key.

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• Good Content Breaks through the Noise – A content that stands out is polarising. So, pick a side and start a discussion. This is the perfect opportunity to engage.

Why did it work?

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• Relatable. The content not just stated but literally demonstrated the most common pain points of customers regarding conference calls. This earned them points in empathy.

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• Funny. It made people laugh about a seemingly hopeless situation, which is a deposit on connection.

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• Professional. That added clip, a CTA, at the end of the video, presents the viewers with a better solution or an alternative solution to their problem. It creates credibility that the product probably doesn’t yet have relative to big players like Skype and Cisco. It’s a masterclass in brand positioning.

Shot way back in 2010, this YouTube video has 8.3 million views, 31k likes, and the 51st CLIO Gold Interactive Award in the bag. Pretty sweet metrics, right?

What story was Coke telling? According to Coke’s Definition 6 Creative Director Paul Iannacchino Jr., “Our strategy was to deliver doses of happiness in an unexpected, innovative way to engage not only the students, but the audience at large. Whether you were present during the shoot or experiencing the event online, our goal was the same – to put a smile on your face and share that emotional connection.”

Would the video be considered “quality” in terms of production? Nope, Coke used hidden cameras to capture real emotions. How much did they spend on promotion? Zero.

Why did it work?

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• Creative. More than money, it was sweat equity that produced this gem. They were able to avoid the hard-hitting in-your-face commercial route by using simplicity and reality.

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• Relevant. There were no actors or models on the set. And even the set is a natural setting. The creative team chose a particular campus teeming with Coke’s demographic. Target hit.

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• Emotional. In a positive way. Who would say no to a refreshingly surprising gift of happiness? Literally? The video captured raw emotions and in the age of disillusionment, people will approve of rare moments of authenticity.

Although this probably falls under experiential marketing and wildlife activism, the presentation wouldn’t have been this effective without the video. The client, Teddy Bear Museum, came up with a massively emotional and highly creative idea to raise awareness and protest against bear farming in South Korea.

Did it work? Definitely! South Korea Takes Landmark Step to End the Cruel Bear Bile Industry

Why did it work?

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• Heart-Hitting – It appeals to people’s emotions and the general notion of ethics and morality. The copy “Don’t turn away, what your indifference trampled” hit people “right in the feels”.

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• Socially Relevant – It’s a campaign for a good cause. Bears suffering for people’s whims won’t sit well with the public. But if they find out they’re part of the problem, immediate action will be taken to pressure lawmakers to make bear farming illegal.

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• Experiential – The campaign made people experience the effect of their indifference to the suffering bears via a poster they unknowingly walked on every day. Over time, the image of the bear reveals the bars that imprison it. The campaign also used a QR code linked to the signature collection campaign site making it easy for people to participate.