How Challenge Videos Became A Viral Trend

Challenge videos have become something of a phenomenon. From the cinnamon challenge to the ice bucket challenge, YouTubers have been trying out the weirdest and wackiest challenges for years, all in the name of a great video. Sometimes, content creators add their own personal twist. They often challenge other YouTubers and the YouTube community.

Challenge videos are extremely relevant in the YouTube community today. Here are a few tips to help up and coming YouTubers keep up.

1. Take the challenge further.

The “100 Coats” challenge prompted YouTubers, beauty vloggers included, to try applying 100 coats of a product such as nail polish, self-tanner, liquid lipstick, etc. The results were often disastrous and hilarious, which is probably why the challenge circulated on YouTube for a considerable amount of time.

Famous YouTuber Jenna Marbles decided to take the challenge a step further by applying 100 coats of several products, including foundation, liquid lipstick, nail polish, spray tan, hairspray, and false eyelashes. She even dubbed the video, “The Ultimate 100 Coats Of Things Video.”

Never be afraid to go a step further than your fellow YouTubers. The results could be great (like the eleven million views Jenna’s video got).

2. Show support for something that is important to you.

The ALS ice bucket challenge became something of a phenomenon during the summer of 2014 and has resurfaced every summer since. The challenge was created to raise awareness for Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Always take an opportunity to show support for a cause that is important to you or to raise awareness for it.

3. Don’t obsess over trends.

Trends and challenges on YouTube can get out of hand. Sometimes it’s a good idea to take a step back, re-examine the trend or challenge, and perhaps critique it.

Popular YouTuber NigaHiga’s video “The Stop Doing Challenges Challenge” critiques the challenge-obsessed YouTube community. It has almost four million views.

When creating YouTube videos, do not obsess over keeping up with the trends; the YouTube community moves far too quickly for that. Instead, focus on the type of content that you actually want to create and the types of videos that actually interest you.

Challenge videos allow YouTubers to connect with their audiences and each other through the completion of similar tasks. Challenge videos are a great example of the kind of content that goes viral.

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Jana DeGuzman is a Communication Studies major and French Studies minor at the University of San Francisco. She loves Mac DeMarco, Beyonce, and the ocean.

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