Analysis of Viral Communication Characteristics in Social Media Platforms: Taking KFC’s ‘Crazy Thursday’ Marketing Videos on Chinese Video-sharing Platform Bilibili.com as an Example

Zhenglang Wang

doi:10.54691/fhss.v3i10.5692

Authors

Zhenglang Wang

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54691/fhss.v3i10.5692

Keywords:

Communication Studies; Viral Communication; Viral Marketing; Marketing Strategies; Social Media; Chinese Internet; Marketing Studies; Advertising Studies; KFC.

Abstract

The article mainly adopts the case study approach with a specific focus on the ‘Crazy Thursday’ marketing campaign conducted by the fast-food brand KFC, which gained significant popularity on various Chinese social media platforms by the end of 2021. This study analyses the viral communication phenomenon of the ‘Crazy Thursday’ related video content on Bilibili.com, one of the most popular video-sharing platforms on the Chinese Internet. It also examines new features of “viral marketing” within the context of participatory Internet from the perspective of communication strategies and highlights several significant factors that require attention in implementing viral marketing, aiming to offer guidelines to advertising researchers.

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