Want your Facebook post to go viral?
Get Facebook shares!
Likes and comments are great, but the most valuable Facebook engagement you can get is a share.
When your Facebook Page post is shared, it appears on the sharer’s Timeline so their friends see it.
Now you can go viral, as shares multiply from friend to friend!
In this article, you’ll learn:
- The Facebook content most likely to go viral.
- The benefits of going viral.
- Why people share on Facebook.
- How to increase your Facebook shares so you can go viral.
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links to products I’ve used with great success. If you make a purchase through my link, I’ll receive a referral fee, at no cost to you.
Which Facebook posts go viral?
A study conducted by BuzzSumo analyzed more than 1 billion Facebook posts and learned…
The most-shared Facebook Page content is Photo and Video.
Not a photographer? How can you get Facebook shares with photos?
Before you decide it’s too expensive or complicated – remember that “Photos” on Facebook means any kind of image.
I’ve had terrific results using Stencil to create quote images in seconds. The simple one below was shared by almost 20% of my Fans!
The Pro version of Stencil allows many customizations for a monthly cost under $10US (if paid annually). Or you can use the basic version free!
And there are over 100,000 quotes right in the app 🙂 Free photos too!
There are lots of EASY ways to make picture quotes online.
As well as iPhone apps to add text to photos.
Pick one of these tools and have all your design needs covered! Or make it easy…
• • • Click here to try Stencil for FREE • • •
What words should I make into a graphic to go viral?
Ask a question your audience would love to answer! This can help you with market research, and boost your reach at the same time.
A question made into a graphic is quite powerful for engagement with your audience. Any of my recommended tools can help you make one!
However, in most niches, a question is unlikely to get shared and actually go viral.
But popular quotes work well! As I noted, there are more than you could ever use in Stencil.
Of course, you want to use quotes that align with your business. So consider these:
- Showcase your brand culture to build community.
- Quote from your own blog or book to build authority.
- Educate with surprising stats or useful tips in your niche.*
- Entertain, express, or emote (more on this in the motivation section below).
Stats and tips go viral especially when they’re surprising. If people are surprised by your information, they’ll want to share this unexpected information with others.
Which images go viral?
As you browse photos that are safe for commercial use, note which ones stand out. That’s always a great place to start!
BuzzSumo found that cats and dogs are among the most popular topics to share. There are plenty of social media holidays about pets to inspire content that will entertain your followers.
Besides quotes and pets, other topics proven to increase engagement:
- Coffee
- Flowers
- Food
- Recipes
- Nostalgia
Facebook users love to comment and share posts on these topics! If any can be adapted to your niche, use liberally.
If it fits with your business brand, photos with shock value can be quite popular. Try being a bit “outside the box” and see how that goes.
Funny memes are a great choice, and even better when you post one that ties into your business.
More time consuming but worth considering: creating infographics. If your business is about educating through stats or tutorials, charts and infographics are a great option for you as people love to share fascinating data presented well visually.
These help people visualize important or shocking statistics, making them more meaningful, interesting, and shareable.
The Benefits of Facebook Shares that Go Viral
If you have the skill to combine a quote and a photo – you’re golden! My favorite design tools make it easy.
I posted this quote graphic one evening to my Yoga Fan Page, and it was immediately shared to a Fan Page with a huge fan base.
Result? In 4 days: a total of 143 shares, visibility to a large audience (5x as large as my Page’s fan base), and – I gained 62 new Fans!
The huge thing is I had 693 “People Talking About This” – and at that time, I only had 107 Fans! What a way to increase your Facebook reach.
I can’t guarantee you dozens of new Fans, but I do believe the visibility for your Page is worth the effort to make shareable images.
Why Do People Share on Facebook?
When deciding what to post on Facebook, it’s wise to take a moment to consider what makes people share.
Fractl conducted a survey of 2,000 people and asked them about what they share on Facebook and why. They asked specifically about sharing third-party content – i.e., clicking the share button on someone else’s Facebook content, or posting a link from a website.
Entertain friends
The most popular reason for sharing, at 48 percent, was to entertain friends.
“I share things that my friends will find interesting.”
If we experience something fun or different, we naturally tell our friends, because we want them to have the same experience. This also applies to sharing content online.
What experience can you convey in your content that others people will want to share to entertain their Facebook friends?
Express issues
A smaller group of respondents, at 17 percent, wanted to express the issues they cared about.
“I share things that inform my friends of the things I care about.”
Evoke emotions
Evoking an emotional response came in third place, at 13 percent.
“I share things that will make my friends feel something (happiness, sadness, anger, etc).”
Content that gets shared appeals to emotion. When you excite people, whether in a good or a shocking way, people are going to take notice.
This is actually the biggest reason people share content, even if they don’t identify it as such.
Think about what you can do within your industry that will excite emotions. Some common ways to do this are to post funny videos or inspirational content.
You can get a big emotional impact with a controversial post that expresses issues at the same time. As a business, you’ll want to be careful with this one so you don’t alienate part of your audience.
Educate
In fourth is providing useful information, at 11 percent.
“I share things that my friends will find useful.”
Although only 11 percent share on Facebook primarily to educate, it’s still a worthwhile content category to pursue. 55% of users polled said they do like to share content that’s useful.
When you give out great information and help someone get results, then they’ll naturally want to tell people about you. They might even feel a little obligated to do something for you, because you helped them out!
What content can you create that will help someone get a specific result?
Consider a mix of the content types appropriate to your business.
Also of note is that 52% of sharers said they share things to present a certain image of themselves.
Similarly, this New York Times study found that 68% of people want to give other people a sense of who they are and what they value/care about. The content they share is designed to reinforce the image they want to project to other people, e.g., as person who is thoughtful, caring, interesting, etc.
Quizzes work fantastically for this. I’m sure you see your Facebook friends sharing their quiz results often!
How do your Fans see themselves, and want others to see them?
Get this right, and you’re sure to go viral.
How to Increase Shares on Facebook
Now that you’ve got your shareable image, try these tips to increase the chance of going viral!
Share your own Fan Page posts
All shares of shares are attributed to the original source – so start by posting on your Fan Page to get the visibility.
Then share from your Page to your personal profile to get your friends involved – when it’s relevant.
Don’t share from your profile to your Page, or you’ll kill your Page post reach.
“Shares” do get less visibility in the Facebook news feed, as FB seems to consider them lukewarm news. So if you post first to your personal profile, you’re shooting your Fan Page reach in the foot, before you even get the post out of the gate.
Page first, then profile!
Encourage sharing
Should you ask for shares on Facebook?
Sometimes! It’s not an easy yes-or-no.
Facebook has said they’ll penalize Pages that are asking fans to share spammy posts. These posts might link to ad-filled sites. Facebook has promised to decrease the reach on such posts.
Most Facebook gurus, including Mari Smith, believe it’s OK to ask for a share of a quality post – occasionally.
Pages running contests ask fans to share, and it works for them!
So the caveat is: create Facebook posts that people want to share. Then it’s fine to suggest they share, from time to time.
Mari posts important Facebook news on her page, and often closes by suggesting Fans share if it’s of interest to their audience. I’ve done the same.
Even if Facebook frowns on using a call-to-action with the words Like, Comment, or Share, you could try something like, “Spread the encouragement!”
Here are more great ideas from Mannix Marketing:
To get more shares, say…
Spread the word.
Tell a friend.
Tell your friends.
Don’t keep this to yourself.
Tell the world.
Thank sharers
Clicking on the number of shares brings up a window with all Public or friend shares. If available, click Like or comment on their post via your personal profile.
If shared by a Page, you can Like and comment as your Page.
By increasing their engagement, you’ll help the share get more visibility, and encourage them to share again in the future.
You can also upload the image to your website and Pin it to Pinterest from there. Include the link for people to repin in a comment on your Facebook post.
Tag someone for an extra boost on Facebook!
If you use one of my recommended tools, you can easily find free photos right in the app.
However, if you’re a Photoshop user, you may be using free photo sites. Here’s an extra tip for you:
Many of these sites require you to notify the artists / photographers when you use their work. When using the images on Facebook, this can actually increase your shares!
Alert the artist by tagging them in your Facebook post.
On some free photo sites, you can also leave a comment with a link showing how you used their image. Do it!
The image below – a Memorial Day cover photo – got a great number of shares on a quiet holiday weekend! The artist shared with his friends and fans, and so on…
Don’t know the artist? You could tag a few people you know would be interested in your post.
Don’t overuse this though, as it could get annoying. That’s the last thing you want to happen!
Consider contests
One more thing to consider is encouraging shares through a Facebook contest.
This is definitely more time-consuming to set up than the other ideas above, and you’ll want to be sure to follow Facebook’s contest rules.
Share others’ content
An easy way to jump right in and get others to share your content is to share theirs!
This can be informal, where you share another blog or social media account’s content, and hope they’ll return the favor. Or it can be more organized, like Facebook networking groups.
This post was originally published on June 7, 2012, and last updated on June 9, 2021.
Conclusion: How to go viral on Facebook
How about you – what has worked well for you on Facebook? What catches your eye in the News Feed and gets you to share? Comment below.
If this has helped you learn how to get Facebook shares that go viral, take your next step!
Try Stencil to make your own viral images easily.
Sheeroh says
Super tips for beginning and intermediate bloggers. Since Facebook started looking down on the ‘like or share’ this, I prefer to use ‘spread the word and help someone.’ I think that works since people want to add value to other people’s lives, as it is added to them.
Louise Myers says
Yes, that sounds great!
Tracey says
I know this is coming years later, please forgive me!! I have a newly launched Online Boutique x 1 month. I post several times a day with funny memes, inspirational quotes, bright colorful sale notices and nothing seems to be working. I’m not getting shares on post, not getting any results from running ads or boosting post on facebook!!! I attempted to tag some friends in a comment on one of my post and got a warning from facebook and the comment was removed!! If all possible please help this small town southern girl succeed in her childhood dream!! (P.S. I absolutely LOVE reading your Blogs!! They are so inspiring!!)
Louise Myers says
Over the years Facebook has made it harder and harder to get traction with your posts. If you’ve only been online 1 month you need to be patient and expect that it will take a LOT of work. There’s loads of info on my blog about types of content to post.
It’s important that the majority of your content is original. Memes and quotes that have made the rounds won’t get exposure. You probably need to post less while you build your following. And be wary of asking friends to follow your page (or tagging them) unless you’re certain they’re interested. If they ignore your posts, or worse hide them, FB will throttle your reach even more.
Best of luck!
Dee Foster says
Hello Louise,
is sharing quote graphics on facebook and other social sites a good way to get traffic back to your personal website.
I have collected quotes over the years and knew that some day they would come in handy. I have several web properties that market different products.. could sharing good quotes that relate be a good way to drive traffic to those sites? for example i have quotes on health and I also sell health related products. do you think this strategy would work?
Louise Myers says
Hi Dee!
Yes, you can get traffic back to your site via quote graphics, however I believe it’s better thought of as building awareness of your business. On Facebook especially, it’s essential to post things that people want to share, like and comment on – posting links rarely gets much engagement. Due to Facebook Edgerank, you need those highly engaged posts so Facebook will show your link posts to more of your fans. And, the engagement also lets friends of your Fans see your post, become aware of your business, and become a Fan if they wish.
Dian Kurnia A. says
Hello Louse,
I know that this comment is very late. But I would like to introduce my web app that will help creating Quotes for social media, wallpaper, or even prints easily but with great output. Please have a look at : quotescover.com
Thankyou,
Dian
Louise Myers says
Dian,
Very cool! I’ll add you to my list of “easy ways to make picture quotes.”
Kay says
Hey Louise,
I just stumbled upon your page through google. Im really new to this Fan page thing, im a photographer and need help to spred my work and more people looking at my work each time. And also gain more likes. Can you please give me some tips??
Cheers
Louise Myers says
Hi Kay!
There’s loads to know and do, much more than can be put in a comment – or even a whole blog! I’ve planned a list of the top Facebook gurus to follow – seeing what others are doing successfully on Facebook is always a good place to start.
Best of luck!
Letty says
This article is really effective for me. I am grateful to you. Thank you very much.
Louise Myers says
Awesome, I’m glad it was helpful!
Donna DeVane says
Thank you. I really appreciate the information. I’ve got a fan page for my radio station & we are all looking for ways to increase awareness of our broadcasts. I will put your advice to work today.
Peace,
Donna
Louise Myers says
Terrific! Best of luck to you, Donna.
Chris says
A very useful read, I found this extremely helpful. I am going to subscribe to your blog and look forward to learning more from you. Thank you for your time and effort.
If some Facebook users are unable to share a photo I have posted on my fan page, does this mean their privacy settings need adjusting? Some of my clients can ‘Share’ and some cannot, which does not help my viral campaigns. Thank you again.
Louise Myers says
Chris, I have recently heard from one person that sharing on their Fan Page isn’t working right. Mari Smith was not aware of this issue, so I’m hoping it’s a temporary glitch.
If it persists, all I can suggest is to contact Facebook. Sorry!
Nils Mehlhorn says
I am happy to have found your post . I am going to to try this as i really needs shares for my business.
I hope this work as i am not scared to work it hard, and i will let you know if it work.
I will also share your post on my wall and twitter account.
Thanks a lot
Louise Myers says
I hope it helps! Good luck.
Steven Logreira says
I actually have devised another way that is super easy and works well. I basically open MS Powerpoint and I insert the picture into a new slide. I then open a text box on top of the picture and write the quote. This allows me a lot of flexibility as I can control font, size and color of the text. Once I like what I have, I use a awesome little screen capture utility called jing (http://www.jing.com) and I capture the image and I save it to my hard drive. Now I can upload easily to FB.
You can go to my Fan page
https://www.facebook.com/ManifestingProsperityMarketing
and see some of what I’m talking about You can also like my page 🙂
Louise Myers says
That’s perfect Steven, I appreciate your sharing that tip. I’m a Mac gal and I rarely use MS products!
The web-based editors also allow font control, like Pixlr described in the post linked below.
Jing is great too! Is that easier than just saving thru Powerpoint? I guess it avoids resolution issues!
Thanks again for sharing your method!
tejas says
thanks for all the useful content did try out for my fanpage and it works:))))))
thanks again…. keep doing great work:) cheers 🙂
Louise Myers says
So glad to hear it worked for you! You’re welcome.
Melanie Hayes says
Thanks for this wonderful article Miss Louise Myers
Louise Myers says
You’re welcome Melanie. Thanks for visiting!
F D says
Great stuff, did not know there was a generator out there to make such picture quotes thanks.
PRAKASH PANDEY says
VERY helpful information ABOUT FB GO VIRAL ..THANKS MAM…
Louise Myers says
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Andrew Southard says
Hi Louise, I see so many of these (dare I say trite) quotographics going viral I find it quite astonishing. I’m trying to get the link below to fly with a limited advertising budget – I’ve now got about 1000 shares in all and about 500,000 views but it’s growing steadily rather than rocket powered. I’d be interested to know if you have any suggestions as I’m just a beginner.
Louise Myers says
Hi Andrew!
Unfortunately I couldn’t see the graphic you were referring to.
As far as going viral, a lot of it is just timing and luck, and sometimes you just strike a chord with people that gets them sharing. Cute animals and little kids often work, as do snarky sayings. The virality can take off when you get shared by someone with 1000s of friends, or a page with a huge number of fans.
I don’t have any specifics on “making” something go viral – wish I did!!
Good luck!
Naj Drakes says
Would love the graphics with photos tutorial! Great post!
Louise Myers says
Hey Naj! Thanks for stopping by.
The quote graphics tutorial is here: https://louisem.com/1655/love-quote-graphics-how-to-make-quote-pictures
Best of luck to you!
Katrina says
Just discovered your site! I’m now subscribed and looking forward to learning from you!
I have been trying to figure out how to make my own quote images/graphics so your post was very helpful.
I purchased the ShareasImage pro version but I’m a little confused as to how to use it best. It looks like the only way to share it is to click on the buttons at the bottom of the “post” page. Is this correct? So I can only use it on FB, Twitter, G+, or Pinterest?
Can I just cut and paste the graphic into my blog or whatever social media I’m using? And if so, do I copy the image or the URL?
Thanks so much!
Louise Myers says
Hi Katrina! You can download the image to your hard drive by right-clicking on it! Then you can put it on your website or wherever you want. Have fun!
Katrina says
Thanks!
And I would love to see more in-depth tutorials on your site about how to create quote graphics using different site software.
Louise Myers says
You’re welcome! That’s something I will get to. The tutorials take a lot of time to put together and I’m trying NOT to work at all hours this summer! 🙂
Katrina says
Enjoy your summer!
Another question, if you don’t mind. I’m still trying to figure out how to use ShareAsImage.
When I download the images to my computer (they’re .png files) and then upload to another site (like FB or my blog), the pictures look blurry or of lower quality.
Am I doing something wrong?
Thank you for your help!
Louise Myers says
FB compresses images to jpegs, so images with flat colors usually end up looking blurry and splotchy. I don’t know why it would look like that on your blog tho. The ShareAsImage at the top of this page looks fine. Unless you’re enlarging them? Or using some blogging system that does the same thing to images as Facebook.
rebecca says
Your blogging is getting better and better. this is very helpful for those wanting to improve their reach on facebook.
Louise Myers says
Thank you Rebecca, best of luck with your Facebook efforts!
Rebekah Radice says
There are so many great ideas in this article Louise! It’s amazing the power images have on Facebook. Using them to own as much real estate as possible is a great way to get seen and get those LIKES and shares! 🙂
Louise Myers says
Loving the new huge images in the Facebook news feed. Thanks for stopping by, commenting, and tweeting, Rebekah!
crystal says
Hi Louise! Again a great post and info! I am excited to try it all! You are a motivator!
I will let you know how it goes and if
Handmade Jewelry News and HJN on FB has the pleasure of more visitors!
Have a great day!
crystal
Louise Myers says
Wonderful! Best of luck with getting Facebook shares, Crystal!
Sharon says
Hi Louise,
Great post. I would love it if you would to come up with a tutorial on how to create quote graphics with pixlr.com and picmonkey.com.
Thanks,
Sharon
Louise Myers says
Thank you Sharon! I’ll work on that quote graphic tutorial for a future post. I think it will be helpful for many.
Nicole says
Yes, i would love to know when you come up with a tutorial on how to create quote graphics with pixlr.com and picmonkey.com. How will i know when this has been made available?
thanks so much!
Louise Myers says
Nicole, here is the tutorial for pixlr.com. Picmonkey should work similarly. https://louisem.com/1655/love-quote-graphics-how-to-make-quote-pictures
Be sure to sign up for my newsletter in the upper right corner of the page so you get alerted by email 😉
Kathy Estadt says
This is such a great post, so full of helpful information, IT should go viral!
Louise Myers says
Thanks so much for your kind comment, Kathy! I’m glad you found the information on how to get Facebook shares helpful.
Amanda says
as allways, fantastic info here Louise, thanks again!