The Ghost Influence Podcast: How Viral Happens On Reddit

Bobby Edwards just wanted to help his mom poop. Having discovered the extensive benefits of squatting to poop, he set out to create "the stool for better stool". It wasn't until a barrage of awkward Christmas gifts resulted is raving enthusiasm that he truly realized the potential of his poop platform... or as it's famously known today — Squatty Potty.

Brilliant in it's simplicity, much like the product itself, Bobby's initial marketing strategy was to find bloggers in the health space and send them a Squatty Potty. That led to a phone call from The Doctors and later an endorsement from Howard Stern. Bobby eventually took the business to Shark Tank and landed a deal with Lori Grenier who got them prime placement in Ben, Bath, & Beyond. All of that... and they still only had 1.2M customers.

Working with The Harmon Brothers, the marketers behind the viral success of Poo Pourri, the Squatty Potty team produced a three minute promo video titled "This Unicorn Changed The Way I Poop" and drove over 48M views (between Youtube and Facebook) and was submitted to Reddit 42 times within the first 50 days it existed. Bobby shares the details about the creative process and how this viral video catapulted their sales.

Create social leverage with the Ghost Influence community.Music: 'Contact - Somewhere (LIONBLOOD Remix)'

With 29K subscribers on YouTube, 590K fans on Vine, and 2.5M followers on Twitter you might think that someone as prolific as Ali Spagnola wouldn't be impacted by a little content theft — you'd be wrong. Ali shares the brilliance behind her creative process and what it's like when the content you've invested so much of yourself into creating gets stolen. Crucial lessons for anyone building a personal brand.

• Ali's now infamous 'How to make a mimosa' Vine
• Ali's stolen Vine, turned gif, and submitted to /r/unexpected
• Ali's 'I'm The Mimosa Girl Dangit' response video
• Ali's content submitted all across Reddit
• Ali Spagnola's 'Power Hour' drinking game
• Ali Spagnola on Patreon
• Ali's Reddit AMA
• Mention alerts

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Music: ‘PKR - Ignite (Original Mix)'

Anon of the viral t-shirt site 'Shirt Was Cash' shares the origins of the e-commerce apparel website where users from 4chan, Reddit, Imgur and the Internet submit ideas for designs. Having hit the front page of Reddit multiple times, Anon shares how an investment into the community is the only way you can truly generate consistent profits with democratic platforms. Priceless advice to anyone building an e-commerce brand.

• Anon's 'Shirt Was Cash' Reddit AMA
• Snapshot of Sweatshirt Tag, Front Page Post
• Shirt Was Cash submitted to /r/InternetIsBeautiful
• Shirt Was Cash mentioned on Reddit
• /r/ShirtWasCash Banned From Reddit
• Anon's New 'Shirt Posts' Submission Site
• Glitter Bomb Business Sold (Business Insider)
• 15 Best American Streetwear Brands
• Start-up Nation: Israel's Economic Miracle

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Music: 'Maleean - Ransom (Original Mix)'

By the time Bernie Sanders officially announced his candidacy for president in April 2014, Aidan King had already been preparing (and hoping) for five months. Aidan is one of the Co-Founders of the subreddit /r/SandersForPresident, a moderated community on Reddit geared toward political activism and digital grassroots organizing. This community is more than a place to post updates, it's become a powerful network of supporters around the nation working together for a common goal and it's inspiring to see. Regardless of your political interests, Aidan's insights on leading a community are an illuminating education into the human psyche.

EDIT: Shortly after this episode was published, Aidan stepped down as a moderator of the /r/SandersForPresident subreddit and accepted a position as Digital Staff for Bernie 2016. At the age of 22 and with no formal experience in politics, Aidan King was recruited to be a part of a presidential campaign. The creation of the subreddit wasn't a ploy designed to land him a job, it was purely his passion for the cause and the community supporting it — the rest happened naturally. THAT is how you Reddit.

• Bernie Sanders speaking directly to the /r/SandersForPresident community
• /r/SandersForPresident banding together to support his message
• 150,000 subscriber milestone reached in April 2014
• User /u/rawrmaan keeping close watch on Hilary's marketing

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Music: ‘Schyzox - My World'

Richard Littauer was more than a few drinks in when his friend asked for feedback on the user experience of his website. While he warned of his inebriated state, the friend persisted that he wanted to know his thoughts. Hesitantly, Richard began diving in and soon realized that his lack of verbal filter was proving entertaining — yet surprisingly helpful feedback. The idea percolated into the purchase of the domain 'theuserisdrunk.com' which sat dormant until a hackathon where he felt it was time to bring the project to life.

Setting up a simple, one-page website, Richard built his consulting offer whereby he would get drunk and make a video reviewing your website. Within an hour of submission, he was at the top of Hacker News. He had just under 100,000 visitors on the first day and within a week around 300k. He was interviewed by FastCo, Tech.co, Gizmodo, VWO, Hubspot. The project quickly became massive leverage for his consulting work and has been ever since.

• The User Has Sobered Up — Medium Article
• Richard's Massive Portfolio Of Projects
• A Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Guide
• Anti-Nomadic: Mental Cost of Living as a Digital Nomad

Create social leverage with the Ghost Influence community.Music: 'Marko Stc - Apollo 13 (Renan Willian Remix)'