“Going viral” is an odd phrase when you think about it.
It started as an epidemiological term for the rate at which contagion spreads. That’s why it feels odd that in my field of advertising, we often celebrate virality, even though it often carries a hint of trouble.
In the age of social media, where everything – the good, bad and ugly – is amplified to the entire world in minutes, a viral video can showcase creativity and genius, but a single lapse in judgment can just as quickly spiral into catastrophe.
That hint of trouble became a full-blown scandal for the chief executive officer of American technology company Astronomer when a serendipitous pan of the camera at a Coldplay concert caught him having a romantic moment with a woman.
It was a picture-perfect moment, with one glaring problem: both of them were married – just not to each other. To add fuel to the fire, he was the CEO and she was the company’s director of human resources.
The memes came quickly, but the fallout was serious. Both resigned soon after, leaving the company’s future in jeopardy.
As a business owner, this gives me cold sweats just thinking about it.
If any of my employees were caught on video behaving inappropriately outside of work, the company would need to take swift action to mitigate any collateral damage. In a viral situation, such an incident could define the company’s reputation, which is a frightening thought.
It would be like waking up to a beautiful, sunny morning and seeing a 100m-high tsunami right outside, about to swallow you whole.
