There’s no telling what goes viral – it could be cat videos, music videos, make up tips, regular ads, short films from brands…the list goes on. The only common factor seems to be entertainment. In this context, a film for Similac (a baby formula brand from Abbot) has raked up almost 3mn views in about week, but it is not a regular ad. In fact, there’s no mention of the brand name, the category or the context of infant food in the ad – the name just appears in the last frame.
The video holds attention (I guess that’s the key for viral hits) right through because it strikes a chord among many parents. Parents of have infants, toddlers or little children are constantly sizing each other up on many parameters – from what is being fed to them to how they are disciplined or looked after. There usually is a ‘my way is a better way’ feeling when it comes to parenting methods.
I think it takes a bold, confident client to invest behind just creative elements where there is no hard-sell: no product story, no claim, no reason-to-believe or call for action. I think such a strategy understands how video content works, how sharing happens and why minimal or no branding maybe a good thing after all.
