Humans are emotional creatures.
That means that you, as a business owner, must find a unique way to tap into your customers’ full range of emotions…and use these emotions to inspire people to make empowered buying decisions for themselves. Make people feel ALIVE!
Marketing makes the masses feel dead inside…that’s why people tune out and ignore most ads. Most ads are repeatedly pushing junk products that people don’t want or need, while spurring fear and anxiety if they don’t “buy now.”
Meanwhile, anti-marketing makes people come alive…and instills a sense of excitement and inspiration to better one’s own life.
Don’t be a marketer who deadens the human spirit.
Instead, be an anti-marketer — inspiring life and passion everywhere you go!
Here are 3 viral videos to study, to give you some ideas for tapping into emotions.
Each vid pertains to farming. Each one went viral. Each one capitalizes on different human emotions, and thus, has strong effects on viewers.
Vid #1 – God Made a Farmer
This video is an ad for Dodge Ram trucks, disguised as a compelling reminder that farmers are a rare breed of humans, who are ever-soooo-important to our collective lives. The phrase, “God made a farmer,” is repeated several times throughout the video. This commercial aired during a Super Bowl.
The emotions it taps into are: humility, unity, love, spirituality. Total view: 17.5 million as of Feb 1, 2015.
Vid #2 – God Made a FACTORY Farmer
The comedy site “Funny or Die” created a parody video that mimicked the original “God Made a Farmer” video. It intended to poke fun of the idea of “factory farmers,” which are notorious for butchering our food supply, animals’ health, people’s health, and our overall environment.
No specific product was plugged in this video; it’s more of a commentary on the ugly fruits of factory farming.
The emotions it taps into: humor, sarcasm, disgust. Total views: 43,000 as of Feb 1, 2015.
The intended outcome of this video was to make factory farms look ridiculous.
But because the parody videos lumps ALL farmers in the same category – without making a clear distinction between organic and conventional farms – many good farmers (i.e., truly organic ones) were offended.
Vid #3 – “I’m Farming and I Grow It” (Parody Song)
Created by three Kansas farmer brothers, this video positions farming as “fun”!
Complete with rap lyrics describing daily life working on a farm, and a catchy beat, it’s easy to see why this went viral. It’s not something you see every day. It’s unique and leverages the brothers’ personalities.
The Peterson Farm Bros YouTube channel has over 90,000 subscribers. Greg Peterson is a journalism student who originally wanted to spread the word about agriculture.
No specific product was plugged…just the idea that farming is fun.
The emotions this video taps into: fun, enthusiasm, happiness, work ethic. Total views: 9.2 million as of Feb 1, 2015.
Warning: Just Because a Video Goes Viral Doesn’t Mean It Will Lead to Sales in Your Business
Although each of the videos above tapped into emotions, went viral, and had “anti-marketing” characteristics to them, copying this strategy won’t instantly guarantee that you’ll make money off of a similar video.
To maximum the ROI of a video (or any piece of content you broadcast), I always advise my clients to weave in a “call to action” (CTA) somewhere in the content. This is where you plug a specific product for people to buy, and give them a clear way to buy it.
The best “formula” is: tapping into emotions, plugging a specific product, and including a CTA with a clear way to buy (usually a short link to an order form online).
Sources:
“God Made a Farmer” commercial strikes a chord – Mar 29, 2013 – http://newhope360.com/blog/god-made-farmer-commercial-strikes-chord
“Farmers go viral with ‘I’m Farming and I Grow It’ video” – Jun 28, 2012 – http://newhope360.com/blog/farmers-go-viral-im-farming-and-i-grow-it-video
“Saline County brothers’ parody video ‘I’m Farming and I Grow It’ goes viral” – Jun 27, 2012 – http://www.kansas.com/news/article1094663.html#storylink=cpy
Michelle Lopez Boggs is a copywriter, copywriting mentor, and author of "The Anti-Marketing Manifesto: How to Sell Without Being a Sellout." She's helped her clients sell millions of dollars' worth of products and services online by using the MEI(S) principle — motivate, educate, and inspire, and sell. 