CHALLENGE:
Can ‘awe’ engage consumers and make a brand viral? We know that emotions play a major role in brand engagement. Now a study of what makes NY Times’ articles viral may give us an insight. It turns out that readers like to share articles that have a particular quality that went beyond disasters, surprise, practicality, or sex. That quality turned out to be ‘awe-inspiring.” This is an “emotion of self-transcendence, a feeling of admiration and elevation in the face of something greater than the self.” Can a brand be awe-inspiring?
HOW THEY RESEARCHED IT:
Jonah Berger and Katherine Milkman, assistant professors at the University of Pennsylvania, led a study examining the relationship between psychological processes and whether a specific New York Times article makes the newspaper’s most emailed list. Berger and Milkman used a webcrawler to capture data from the Times homepage, which continually reports which 25 of its articles have been emailed most frequently, every 15 minutes over a period spanning six months. The webcrawler recorded the title, full text, author, topic area, and one sentence Times summary, as well as the section, page, and publication date of each article. Of the 7,500 original articles, 3,000 were randomly sampled and coded based on inclusion of practical content, inspired awe, and evoked surprise. The emotion and positivity of a given article were also included and determined by an automated sentiment analysis. Control variables such as placement of articles both in the print and electronic versions of the Times, time spent in prominent positions, gender and fame of the author, page advertising on the homepage, writing complexity, article length, and how interesting each article was were accounted for through various means.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Analysis of article content and frequent emails reveals that content’s ability to inspire awe is strongly associated with its virality. Stories that inspire awe are more likely to make the NYT most emailed list, even when distinguished from other virality causing factors such as practically useful information, surprise, positive valence, and affect laden content. The relationship between awe and virality is robust even controlling for prominent article placement and other external factors. Additional analyses were implemented to verify data, including the General Inquirer’s automated textual analysis software as well as an alternate hand-coded measure of awe.
Previous research on drivers of diffusion focuses on aggregate social structures or the positions of certain individuals within those structures. This research is unique in that evidence reveals the important role played by psychological characteristics of content in determining field virality. Whereas transmissions of practical information suggest a simple motive of value exchange, awe-inspiring virality is about deepening social connections and placing value in knowledge for knowledge’s sake. Awe-inspiring and emotional content are both more likely to make the most emailed list, and consumers are more likely to pass on information that is positively valenced. Surprise influences virality to a lesser extent, however surprising content differs from awe-inspiring content in that it lacks vastness as an elicitor.
WHY MANAGERS SHOULD CARE:
If you have not yet seen Steven Jobs’ launch of the iPad, take a look at this ‘awesome’ 3-minute condensed humorous perspective:
Apple is famous for its ‘awesome’ products. Inspiring brand awe in consumers is not oft heard in the context of management goals such as creating brand awareness, satisfying customers, and targeting new market segments. However, the notion that the ‘awesomeness’ of a brand can lead to viralness and a fanatic following is something worth looking into. Many of the content factors discussed in the New York Times experiment are commonly found in today’s marketing. But how often does a branded message inspire awe? As defined by the study, “stimuli that open the mind to vast and often unconsidered possibilities can inspire awe, a unique human emotion that expands a reader’s frame of reference”.
Managers should strive to force consumers to think outside his or her frame of reference in order to achieve top brand virality. Awe-inducing stimuli are usually entertaining, inspiring, and contain a good deal of information, as well as challenge existing mental structures. The consumer must also experience something vast, be it physically, conceptually, or socially. Examples of the most awe-inspiring articles from the New York Times include “The Promise and Power of RNA” as well as “Fury of Girl’s Fists Lifts Up North Korean Refugee Family”. Reevaluating current strategies to emphasize eliciting positive emotional responses as well as challenging the thinking of consumers may lead to a significant increase in brand awareness, saturation, and virality for managers.
CAN YOU HELP:
Comment back by discussing how your company has attempted to increase brand virality. Have your efforts been rewarded? Do your techniques qualify as awe-inspiring?
From: Jonah Berger and Katherine L. Milkman at the Wharton School, “Social Transmission and Viral Culture.” A copy is available here: http://opimweb.wharton.upenn.edu/documents/research/Virality_Feb_2010.pdf
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