Remember in 2019 when that photo of an egg went viral?

You know the one, and if you don’t, welcome to the internet. A place where a simple photo of an egg can get 54 million likes, shattering the world record for the most number likes on a single image.

Of course, it wasn’t entirely about an egg.

If you don’t know, the egg was trying to break the record previously set by Kylie Jenner. She’s famous, I guess, or something. To be honest, I don’t personally keep up with the Kardashians. If you are like me and don’t know why she is famous, it’s because she’s an American socialite, model, and owns a makeup company.

Her fame certainly had a role in this, which we’ll explore later.

So, what can we learn from an egg?

A lot apparently, but here are the 5 biggest lessons.

1. Virality is Temporary.

When is the last time you thought about the record-breaking egg? It’s been about 2 years for me. That’s when, like many of you, I liked the image of an egg and laughed at the idea of it breaking a world record.

While today the page does have almost 5 million followers, it’s safe to say that when it comes to the mainstream media, most of us have moved on.

For marketers, this is important to keep in mind because if your “goal” is to go viral — you’re approaching marketing all wrong.  Virality is a nice bonus, but it’s not helpful in the long term. Building up an audience takes much more than a single, popular post online.

The Takeaway: You can have the most-liked image in the world, but eventually, your 15 minutes of fame will be up.

2. Big celebrities aren’t that important.

And to be completely honest, a lot of people actively dislike them. That’s one of the key drivers that pushed people to like the egg.

Kylie Jenner is a socialite, model, and business owner who came from a rich family. Sure, she had to work to get there, but she also had a lot of privilege. That’s not exactly relatable.

For marketers, this means you should consider approaching your influencer marketing strategies a bit differently. Instead of working with those who have millions of followers, small-time influencers can spread your message just as well — if not better.

The Takeaway: Working with celebrities is a double-edged sword. Sure, you get your brand in front of their audience, but you also put it in front of their haters.

3. Humour is vital to stand out.

Another reason the egg when viral is because it’s fucking hilarious. You’re telling me to like a photo of an egg? Just an egg? It wasn’t even wearing glasses or doing anything at all! Oh, we’re breaking a world record? You know what, hell yeah. I want in on the joke too.

When working with brands, I’ve written everything from sassy headlines to memes. You want to get people’s attention? Well, making them laugh is a good way to get it.

If it works with your brand’s voice, try adding more humour to your marketing materials. Whether it’s silly memes on your Facebook page or a funny comment hidden in your product packaging.

The Takeaway: Don’t be so serious all the time. Lighten up the mood by infusing your marketing strategy with a dash of humour.

4. Simplicity works — sometimes.

Now, this is always the case; there are certainly some amazing ads I’ve seen that were complex. RedBull’s many different PR stunts come to mind. That aside, simplicity can still go a long way.

When you keep things simple, you also make your ads more clear. As marketer and copywriting queen, Alex Cattoni, regularly says, “Confusion is the biggest conversion killer.” Simple as that.

As a marketer, we can fall into the trap of trying to do the biggest things to get more eyes on our content. We write “Ultimate Guides” and make our graphics way more complicated than they sometimes need to be.

The Takeaway: On social media channels especially, you don’t need to bring out all the stops and make everything so flashy. Keep it simple.

5. A little bit of mystery goes a long way.

Who owned the egg account? What inspired the idea? What kind of chicken laid the egg? I have so many questions.

Because the egg image was so simple, it left the door open for a lot of questions. The mystery surrounding this simple picture of an egg piqued the curiosity of people around the world.

When you give the answer right away, then there is no reason for people to hang around. Leaving some things unanswered invites the person in further, and they’ll interact more to find the answers to their questions.

The Takeaway: Sometimes, you need to let the viewer fill in the blanks.

As marketers, these events provide opportunities for us to learn from. They also act as a good reminder that the internet is one big joke, and if we take it too seriously… well, we probably don’t get very far.

About the Author

Victoria Fraser is a freelance writer from Vancouver, Canada who works with clients doing all things copywriting & content marketing. You can learn more at her website to work with her or say hello on Twitter!