How to create viral content using a repeatable formula

Executive overview

Most people assume viral content comes from personality. It doesn't. Virality is a formula — hook, suspense, and payoff — that works regardless of who's on camera. Adley's team runs 40+ pages producing over a billion views a month, and her husband grew a million TikTok followers in 29 videos without speaking. The formula compounds when combined with high volume: quantity generates data faster, and data drives quality.

The viral content formula

• Hook: seven elements; must create an itch in the first three seconds that doesn't pay off until the final three seconds
• Suspense: the bridge between hook and payoff; holding tension is what separates good creators from the best
• Payoff: releasing the tension — do it well or you train your audience not to trust you
• Engagement tactics and raising stakes round out the framework
• Script videos if you want to go predictably and sustainably viral; authenticity can still come through within a structure
• Pitch any video idea by its opening three seconds first — that mimics the viewer's scroll experience

Hook mechanics

• 90% retention on the first six seconds is a strong start
• Create the itch in second one; don't let your voice drop or fully close a sentence — that's an exit window
• "Would you rather" setups, shaving cream in a sleeping person's hand, Karen with chalk paint: all classic itch-without-payoff structures
• 82% of viewers watch without sound — always anchor suspense visually, not just verbally
• Physical props create better suspense than editing cuts alone
• Describe a video by its opening shot, not its educational outcome ("I'm cracking an egg in a Target aisle" beats "here's how to save 30% on taxes")

Suspense and emotional anchoring

• Plant a protagonist and antagonist; viewers will see themselves in one of them
• Karen videos work because viewers either want karma or identify with her position — both reactions hold attention
• Raise the stakes proportionally: the bigger the villain or obstacle, the higher the emotional investment
• In monetisation-optimised videos, hold the unresolved moment for three minutes or more
• Blending two or three familiar formats (e.g. CCTV footage + unboxing) creates novel suspense with low cognitive load
• A story's villain can be the narrator's past self — but only works if you show how bad it was in full

Platform metrics and algorithm signals

• Watch time × percentage completed is the core marriage of metrics
• A three-minute video with high average watch time beats a six-second video with 100% completion
• 99% of views on a large account come from non-followers — optimise for new audiences, not loyal ones
• "Un-niching" is the deliberate expansion beyond your existing audience to find new viewers
• When a video performs, milk it: cut it into parts, extend it across formats, retarget viewers with paid ads
• A penalised page doesn't kill the business — brand-new pages with strong formulas can outperform a 10M-follower page

Building the content business

• Starting with faceless or reluctant-camera creators proves the formula is not personality-dependent
• High volume during COVID produced faster data loops; quantity enabled quality — 80 videos a week vs. one per week removes the emotional weight on any single video
• Staff creators are incentivised by a percentage of video earnings, not flat salary, to maintain psychological investment in performance
• Managed creators are kept in charge of their own editing — watching your own mistakes is the fastest way to improve
• Platform revenue (Facebook, TikTok monetisation) was 90% of revenue before brand deals; brand deals (Viralish X) now add enterprise-level partnerships with Land Rover, HP, and Charmin
• Transactional leadership caps output; attaching team members to outcomes and running a 1-3-1 escalation process buys back founder time

On authenticity and creative permission

• Viral success is not reserved for extroverts — faceless channels and anxiety-prone creators can follow the same formula
• The first viral moment often comes when creators stop performing for external validation and do what makes them happy
• People pleasers burn out trying to satisfy comments; caring about your own creative judgment attracts the right audience
• Every person is one creative project away from being a superstar — the blocker is usually waiting for external permission