Forget Going Viral

Consistency Matters WAY More

Going viral has become the most overrated goal in modern communications. We’ve convinced ourselves that millions of impressions equal success — even when they leave nothing behind.

Nothing seems to validate a post or an ad more than the promise of massive reach. But isn’t that just a cheap win — a quick rush of validation?

For those of us who’ve spent our careers chasing earned media, we know it’s impossible to truly quantify the reach of a news article. The rise of digital metrics created an artificial sense of success — one that can be especially seductive for clients seeking public affairs counsel.

Sure, the likes and shares inject a burst of dopamine into the veins of a brand or executive. But like most shortcuts, they rarely build anything that lasts. Consistency — as boring as it may seem — is still what builds trust.

I’m often hesitant to talk about audience size, because it’s a misleading metric. I remind clients that fifty people is a packed room. Two hundred subscribers is an auditorium full of people who opted in. A few thousand readers who show up consistently? That’s not “small” — that’s meaningful.

Photo by Wan San Yip on Unsplash

We’ve let the internet convince us that anything short of massive reach doesn’t count. But influence doesn’t come from volume alone. It comes from resonance. From being heard by the right people, at the right moment — often more quietly than the word viral suggests.

The communicators who endure — whether they’re corporate leaders, advocates, or institutions — are rarely the ones chasing that rush. They’re the ones who show up with the same voice, values, and point of view over time. Their audience not only recognizes them; they understand them.

Consistency allows a narrative to compound. A single viral moment may bring attention, but repeated clarity builds credibility. Over time, those repetitions create familiarity — and familiarity earns permission. Permission to be heard. Permission to influence. Permission to lead.

Going viral often rewards exaggeration or novelty. Consistency rewards discipline. It requires resisting the urge to contort your message for every new platform or trend. It means trusting that a grounded message, delivered repeatedly, will outlast the fleeting satisfaction of a viral moment.

This matters most in an era of fractured attention and deep skepticism. Think about the issue that dominated our feeds last week — it’s almost certainly not what we’re focused on today. People may forget individual posts, but they remember who felt steady, credible and real over time.

Going viral can deliver a moment, but consistency builds a brand.