Going Viral is not a Strategy..

Going viral is not a strategy - but how you react to it is!

We live in a world where popularity on social media is an indication of success, and many of us would love for one of our nutrition and health posts to reach thousands of people. But what should we consider if one of our posts suddenly went viral?

In this article I'm sharing a case study of a recently qualified nutritionist who went viral after sharing a reel on Instagram. In a coaching session we reflected on the positives and the negatives, the mindset challenges, and the strategy for how to get the most from 'going viral'.

Newly qualified nutritionist Sophie Brockway posted a reel on Instagram on how to make bone broth and the benefits

It was a simple step by step ‘how to' post with a background track, and she used her own voice as a voice over (great approach for those who aren't ready to get visible on social media!)

You can see Sophies post here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C3OCRn3NzZu/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

At the time of posting, Sophie had 50 followers (it’s a new account as Sophie is newly qualified) and her followers shot up to over 20000 followers within days

The numbers:

50 followers > 20238 followers

1.3m plays

1.8m reach

42k Saved

Chatting to Sophie on a coaching call we reflected on the Pro’s of Cons of when a post goes viral and what strategy to apply moving forward

Pros

It feels amazing that your content has reached so many people

Your Instagram page looks instantly credible at a glance 

Some paid advertising/paid sponsorship opportunities may come your way

Cons

Enquiries from people that are time wasters or overseas and potentially difficult to work with

Some negative comments from people who post negative comments as a hobby

Followers may be hoping for a food blog page and unfollow shortly after

7 days after posting, 200 have people unsubscribed (not necessarily a bad thing)

Mindset

Stay grounded

These are followers, not clients

Study the analytics, where are they, who are they

Don’t let negative comments affect you - delete and block the trolls or ignore (no response, is still response, and is often louder than a reply) - it’s worth mentioning Sophie did an amazing job of handling this - take a look in the comments!

Strategy:

MOVE the genuine followers onto your mailing list asap

Repost this exact post again in the future if your page feels like it’s ground to halt

Replicate this post but for other topics, using similar music, hashtags, and voice over.

Continue to reflect and review what worked and apply it to other posts

Agree to paid sponsorships and advertising offers - but only if they are aligned with your values and your brand, don’t sell out to a brand that you would never recommend. 

Here are the hashtags Sophie used: 

 #healthyfood #healthylifestyle #food #healthy

 #foodie #instafood #foodphotography #healthyeating 

#yummy #foodblogger #foodstagram #health #foodlover 

#delicious #homemade #nutrition #healthyliving #instagood 

#dinner #healthyrecipes #lunch #immunity #immuneboostingfoods 

#reproductiveimmunology #immunehealth #antiinflammatoryfood 

#bonebroth #fertility #fertilityfriendly #fertilityfood

What do you think?

Does the idea of one of your posts going viral scare you or excite you?

Will you try this style of posting reels on your social media?