9 Ways to Build Virality into your Product: Creating Incentives and Increasing Exposure

9 Ways to Build Virality into your Product: Creating Incentives and Increasing Exposure

In today's digital age, building virality into your product is key to its success. The ability for your product to be shared and spread by users can greatly increase its reach and impact. In this article, we will explore nine ways to build virality into your product and ensure its growth.

• 1. Create an incentive for users to invite their friends and for their friends to accept the invite. Rewarding both sides is crucial for the success of this strategy. LinkedIn, in its early days, implemented a similar tactic by displaying the number of connections on users' profiles, incentivizing them to invite more users to connect. This created a viral loop, where users were motivated to invite others, leading to exponential growth.

• 2. Develop your product in a way that encourages collaboration and communication between users. Apps built for coworker collaboration or communication inherently have viral potential. By enabling multiple people to use your product and providing additional value through collaboration, you increase the likelihood of users recommending it to others. This creates a network effect, where the more users there are, the more valuable the product becomes.

• 3. Allow others to embed your product into their websites. This not only increases exposure but also showcases the expected content and behaviors within your product. When users see your product being used on other websites, they are more likely to be intrigued and want to try it themselves. This strategy leverages the power of social proof, as users trust the recommendations and choices made by others.

• 4. Incorporate social sharing features into your product. If your product generates unique and interesting content, users can be encouraged to share it on their social networks. This spreads knowledge of your product to their network and increases its visibility. One successful example of this is auto-shared content, where users unknowingly share content from your product onto their networks. This strategy, coined by Chris Dixon as "Come for the tool, stay for the network," capitalizes on the appeal of your product and incentivizes users to share it.

• 5. Create artifacts or URLs that are expected to be shared via messaging. When users share these artifacts or URLs, it not only spreads awareness of your product but also provides a rich experience around the information being shared. A classic example of this is Hotmail's signature line at the end of every email, which helped the platform grow exponentially. By incorporating your product into the sharing process, you increase the likelihood of it being recommended to others.

• 6. Focus on the quality of your product. While virality is crucial for growth, it is important to remember that the quality of your product is what ultimately determines conversion and loyalty. Viral loops can help spread awareness and consideration, but users will only stick around if the product meets their needs and expectations. Therefore, it is essential to build virality into the core mechanics of your product from the start, rather than trying to add it as an afterthought.

• 7. Leverage data and analytics to optimize virality. By closely monitoring user behavior and engagement metrics, you can identify areas for improvement and make data-driven decisions to enhance virality. Analyzing user feedback and conducting A/B testing can provide valuable insights into what resonates with your audience and what drives them to share and recommend your product.

• 8. Foster a sense of community around your product. Encourage users to interact with each other, share their experiences, and provide feedback. Building a community creates a network effect, where users feel a sense of belonging and become advocates for your product. This can be achieved through features such as forums, user-generated content, and social media engagement.

• 9. Continuously iterate and adapt. Building virality into your product is an ongoing process. As technology and user behavior evolve, it is essential to stay ahead of the curve and adapt your strategies accordingly. Keep experimenting with new features, incentives, and engagement tactics to maintain and increase virality.

In conclusion, building virality into your product is a multifaceted endeavor that requires careful planning and execution. By incorporating incentives, increasing exposure, focusing on quality, leveraging data, fostering community, and continuously iterating, you can significantly enhance the viral potential of your product. Remember, virality is not something you can simply add on later; it must be built into the core mechanics of your product from the start.

Actionable Advice:

• 1. Develop a referral program that rewards both the inviter and the invitee, creating a viral loop of user acquisition.

• 2. Implement social sharing features that allow users to easily share unique and interesting content from your product on their social networks.

• 3. Continuously analyze user data and feedback to optimize virality, making data-driven decisions to enhance user engagement and sharing.