Today I was, as I do every morning, reading to my children from Wired magazine.
It was an acrticle in January 2012 issue called, “The YouTube Laugh Factory.”
Pretty good. Here are a few take-aways that can apply to any creative crafty cookery, including blogging.:
Rule 1. Make a lot of content.
This is good if you are trying to get a million subscribers on YouTube or trying to rule the blogosphere. Kinda like I’ve always said, “write everyday.” There’s not really a substitue for fresh content. Oh sure, TV has reruns but who watches TV anymore? You gotta bake a lot of cookies.
Rule 2. Target a niche.
Starting to sound familiar? Pick your audience, then narrow it even further. Don’t know who your audience is or who you want it to be? Then better get writing/creating. You won’t know until you slave away for a coulpe years – yes years. Mastering the chocolate chip cookie? How about only dark chocolate chip cookies?
Rule 3. Connect with your fans.
I got a sweet tweet from TLC’s Candy Queen after I tweeted about her…
My Tweet:
Candy Queen’s Tweet:
Am I now a Candy Queen fan for life? Probably not. But if she tweeted me, she probably tweeted a few thousnd other people. That’s how it’s supposed to work. She gets props for engagement. Now she just needs to work on simplifying her candy dioramas. 
I am engaging with my fan base as well. Blendra andComputerface are loyal, rabid fans. Why? Because I pay them. But hey, it’s still engagement. You may think your dark choclate chip cookies taste great until you give away a few thousand of them.
My main take-away? All great, viral YouTube videos have in common is “the delicate balance of comedy and spectacle.” Yes, I can agree this is the secret sauce for any creative endevour. Ok, I’ll add to that. You can exchange “comedy” for “interesting.” You can further define “spectacle” as “unexpectedness.”
Think of some examples and send me a tweet or comment.
So does your product have these two ingredients? If not, add some, just a pinch to start.
