GUEST POST: Why These Comedians Went Viral in April

An analytical breakdown of some recent, viral comedy videos.

Hello! I’m David Zucker, a former data analyst at TikTok that now helps comedians grow their audience. I incorporate data-driven analysis to make my global roster of clients go viral with purpose. I also run a mailing list of my own, where I rant about digital marketing, break down viral videos. and recently conducted an audit of Matt Rife’s social media profiles.

Today, I’m continuing a monthly round-up segment called “Virality Bites”, where we’ll go under the hood of a few recent hits from a variety of comedians and comedic styles.

The first section of today’s analysis will be available for all subscribers, but the rest will be for paid subscribers only.

Syd and Olivia: “when dating app bios are unnecessarily hostile”

@sydandoliviaIm not here for a long-term relationship, im here for a short-term enemy! #datingapps #comedy #sketchcomedy

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Quick Stats (at time of writing):

• 599.9K Views, 98.7K Likes, 807 Comments, 6,709 Shares, 14.5K Saves

• Like PCT: 16.4% | Comment PCT: 0.1% | Share PCT: 1.1% | Save PCT: 2.4%

• Video Length: 1 min 2 seconds

• Text Hook: “when dating app bios are unnecessarily hostile”

• Hashtags: #datingapps #comedy #sketchcomedy

This is a wonderfully executed, well-written, well-shot video. It’s over a minute long (AKA, monetizable), has an early first laugh, and the compelling text hook is written in white text with a red background, something I’ve recommended for a while now.

The LA-based duo posted the same video on Instagram, where it also performed well:

sydandolivia

A post shared by @sydandolivia

Quick Stats (at time of writing):

• 361K Views, 21.1K Likes, 310 Comments, 12.7K Shares

• Like PCT: 5.8% | Comment PCT: 0.08% | Share PCT: 3.5%

• Hashtags: #datingapps #comedy #sketchcomedy

To increase the reach on Instagram, I would have included relevant, popular hashtags such as #dating, #relationships, #hinge, #tinder, etc.

Another factor I would adjust is the in-video captions.

I think they could add significantly more personality, in a way that still aligns with their voice. You could do this a few ways here, namely by adding proper punctuation / ironic emojis, alternating the font color based on who is talking, and closely aligning the text with their speech, so as not to spoil any jokes for the speed readers out there.

I’d also explore tinkering with the text color, font, and size.

It’s important to remember that in-video captions became popular due to an earnest effort by popular creators to make their videos accessible for users with disabilities.

Before TikTok created sufficient built-in accessibility features, creators took it upon themselves to manually add in their own captions, in an attempt to accommodate their fans with visual impairments, auditory processing issues, or any additional complications that might otherwise affect their ability to enjoy a video.

Since then, the practice of incorporating in-video captions has been largely corrupted into a cheap retention tactic.

But as someone with a severe visual impairment – and who typically browses my iPhone with a modified text size of 190-275% larger than the average person – the caption placement here renders them effectively ineligible, since the handles and description are enlarged on my end:

This is something to always be mindful of on these vertical video apps.

The right-hand side will be partially obscured by the metrics display (# of Likes, Comments, Shares, etc.), and the bottom will get cut off by the account handle, any accounts that collaborated on the post, and the copy from the video caption:

Another thing I would adjust is their Instagram bio. It’s currently funneling towards a LinkTree, where 3 of the 5 links lead to a podcast that hasn’t been active since October 2022. The other two link to their YouTube and TikTok profiles:

There’s also 8 social icons at the bottom, linking to everything from Cameo to Venmo.

Longtime readers likely know I am not the biggest fan of LinkTree, to say the least.

They are tedious to maintain, require frequent upkeep, and tend to pinball your digital audience back and forth from one platform to another. Instead, I recommend my clients funnel each digital channel towards the same, analog action.

Whether that’s buying tickets to your upcoming live show, joining your mailing list, or linking to your recent special.

For Syd and Olivia, I’d probably recommend the same link they have in their TikTok bio, which is a link to join them on their upcoming trip to Greece.