Today’s guest post is written by Jay Pinkert.

The founder of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud, hypothesized that two conflicting desires motivate human behavior: Eros (the life drive) and Thanatos (the death drive).

Were he alive today, Freud undoubtedly would add a third: Viros (the drive to create viral videos).

Marketers experience Viros more acutely than other people because they have to manage not only their own drive to capture Internet lightning in a bottle, but also their clients’ drive to do the same.

No matter the ROI of viral video is notoriously unpredictable and ephemeral, even if the video is a hit. The heart wants what it wants, and now it wants trending topics on Twitter, YouTube hits, and Facebook shares. (more…)