How-To Create Your First Viral Video in the Yachting Industry
What follows is a guest article written by legendary visual media consultant and CEO, Ira Waldman.
What if I told you there is a science behind going viral on social media? Well, believe it or not, there is. I figured out four simple steps that you can follow to create your first viral social media video in the yachting industry.
There is an incredible opportunity right now in the yachting industry. Attention on social media is undervalued. There is a surplus of consumers and in comparison to other industries, the threshold of good content is quite low.
How do I know this? I tested it. 9 months ago, I began posting on a brand new account to test my strategy. As of writing this (December 2025), I have posted 93 videos that have collectively received over 132 million views and the accounts (across Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok) have gained over 100k followers. If you give me five minutes of your time, I am going to explain exactly how you can see reach and growth like this too.
1. Understanding the Modern Social Media Landscape
Social media has undergone a drastic shift over the past four years. The post-TikTok social media model has completely changed. Before TikTok, the strategy was simple: post as much as you could, gain followers, post what you’re offering and your followers will see it. Then TikTok came online and changed everything. TikTok introduced the idea of “interest media.” No longer was the emphasis on “social.”
Instead of seeing the posts from the people you follow, you see posts based on what the algorithm believes you will enjoy. With the primary form of content consumption being short form video in an endless scroll, every minute you spend on social media gives the algorithm more information about you. In theory, this is best for everyone.
Consumers consume content they are interested in, and creators are rewarded for creating valuable content that people want to view. This transition has left some large accounts baffled at their lack of views and small brand-new accounts overjoyed with the views they’re receiving. For accounts that grew to 100k+ followers pre-2020, if their content strategy has not evolved, they are now struggling to break 10k views. New accounts that have a deep understanding of how the algorithm works can easily get 1m views + while only having a few thousand followers.
2. The Algorithm
The algorithm serves one master, the platform. In attempting to understand the algorithm, I try to understand the goals of the platform. Regardless of what their PR campaigns say, I am pretty confident their goals are to maximize revenue.
So what is the primary way they do this? Selling ads. How can they sell more ads? Getting more people to spend more time on the app. So, now we know what the algorithm wants. The algorithm wants to promote content that will hold people on the app for longer. The beautiful thing about this is that there is an exact metric for this. It is called average-watch-time (AWT).
If you are trying to go viral, this should be your North Star. Your primary goal is to maximize AWT. For example, I have found that if I post a 60 second video that has an AWT above 30 seconds, it is guaranteed to reach at least 250k views and often go over 500k.
3. Video Structure
So we know we need to maximize AWT. Now the question becomes, “how do we do this?” Thankfully this is the simple part. The best content is simple storytelling. Create curiosity, give context and build tension, provide a resolution. All the content I have posted follows this structure.
In the first three to five seconds, you want to create some knowledge gap within the viewers mind. This can be done through a question, a novel piece of information that requires an explanation, or a promise of future value. Now there is curiosity within the viewers mind and they will wait for a resolution.
The next step is to provide context and build tension. Deepen the viewers curiosity and provide more information about the subject of the video. This part of the video can last anywhere from 20 seconds to 60 seconds.
The very last part of the video (final 8-12 seconds) should deliver the resolution/payoff that the viewer has been waiting for.
4. Avoid These Editing Mistakes
If you have a great script and incredible storytelling with bad editing, chances are, no one will want to watch it. Here are some common mistakes I see people making when it comes to editing their content. First, always put captions on your video. Over half of viewers consume content with their volume off. Add captions (easy to do in CapCut or the Edits App) and you’ll double your total addressable market.
Second, cut all gaps and filler words. People are scrolling fast, do not give them a chance to scroll away. If there are any filler words, silences, or sentences that are not essential, remove them. Every second should deliver value.
Third, talk at a 6th grade reading level. People don’t want to be confused. There's a good reason why almost every NYT Best Selling Book since 2000 are written at an 8th grade reading level or below. Your primary audience is probably educated and can understand complex ideas, but your content must make it through the general public first.
Fourth, cut frames quickly. I like to change shots every four to five seconds. People crave novelty and can comprehend images far faster than you can imagine. There is rarely such a thing as too many video clips. If you follow these four steps when editing your video, you will have a much better shot at going viral.
Don't Waste the Opportunity
To conclude, if you can:
1. Recognize how social media functions today,
2. Understand how the algorithm works,
3. Follow a curiosity-context-payoff video structure, and crucially,
4. Avoid simple editing mistakes, you have a solid shot at going viral!
There is an incredible opportunity within the yachting industry for those who want to capture it. I am firm believer that those who understand social media will dominate the industry going forward.
