Part 2 - how to go viral, survive and build loyalty: lessons from a media wave in NYC, SF, LA

Five Saturdays ago I read a cool tweet. Now I have access to top talent and plan to move to the states.

This viral adventure taught me a lot.

At the top, sits a single key learning about our highly connected world:

Communication channels and context meaningfully shape brand equity.

A message and its messenger are perceived differently depending on the chosen medium of transmission.

In other words, the software we choose to send a message through shapes how the same content makes the reader feel.

This may be trivial, but nonetheless surprising to witness in real life.

I’ll give you an example:

Write something interesting and share it with friends.
Then share it on social media.
Then cold email it to 100 people you don’t know.

Your message will land differently every time.

However, most likely you’ll be an innovator in the first two mediums and a snake oil salesman in the last.

The reasons why are obvious (habits are formed, popularity sells and we are tired of promotional emails), but the degree to which the medium influences a reader’s perception really surprised me during these 30 days.

(Brooklyn and NYC in April are pretty perfect - sunny, not too hot nor cold)

When you think about the implications of this for the marketing world, the outcome is clear - startups need to master the channels with the highest natural upside, where they are likely to generate more brand equity, and run from those where they can lose it.

So what should you actually do if you go ridiculously viral in a short period of time?