How did World Pie Month grow so fast?

March 2014 is 3/14. Get it?

A movement started by Spencer Taggart at LDS Business College in Salt Lake City has been spreading. Let’s take a look at the Facebook stats to understand how it’s grown.

Their latest post got 351,000 organic reach and also 351,000 viral reach.

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The 916 shares are the main reason for the viral impressions, which are views caused from the actions that other users have taken on the post.

The screenshot above shows 352,000 total reach, which is likely a bug. Reach is a measure of unique impressions, so it would mean that nearly everyone who had a viral impression also had an organic impression. Typically, when a post gets hot, the viral is a multiple of the organic, which is the initial reach.

The cause has been gaining momentum.
Here is daily impressions since the page started just 10 days ago.

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The page has only 717 fans and 1,068 “talking about this”.
Some would say that fan count is, therefore, unnecessary– an obsolete metric.

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But the “secret” about Facebook page growth is that you need some type of fuel to get it going. It’s almost never going to be organic engagement on the page itself.

Here are the likely suspects– paid Facebook reach, marketing promotion outside of Facebook (TV, print, Google AdWords, website, email, etc..), or another page promoting you.

In this case, World Pie Month got the help of a network of pages to help it launch. And that’s why it shows up as organic.

The web follows the same dynamic. I’ve been privy to the data behind the largest of sites and can confirm that “if you build it, they will come” just isn’t true. Most sites grew because a network of other already large sites gave them a boost.

How can you leverage this strategy for your business?

Dennis Yu
Dennis Yu
Dennis Yu is a former search engine engineer who has spent a billion dollars on Google and Facebook ads for Nike, Quiznos, Ashley Furniture, Red Bull, State Farm, and other organizations that have many locations. He has achieved 25% of his goal of creating a million digital marketing jobs because of his partnership with universities, professional organizations, and agencies. Companies like GoDaddy, Fiverr, onlinejobs.ph, 7 Figure Agency, and Vendasta partner with him to create training and certifications. Dennis created the Dollar a Day Strategy for local service businesses to enhance their existing local reputation and make the phone ring. He's coaching young adult agency owners who serve plumbers, AC technicians, landscapers, roofers, electricians in conjunction with leaders in these industries. Mr. Yu believes that there should be a standard in measuring local marketing efforts, much like doctors and plumbers need to be certified and licensed. His Content Factory training and dashboards are used by thousands of practitioners.