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r/wallstreetbets and the Lesson of Viral Exposure for Startups
Be careful what you wish for, because you might not recover
Before the second week of January, the subReddit r/wallstreetbets was a loosely-knit group of stock traders who mostly posted screenshots of their painful losses on bad stock bets. By the last week of January, it was a market-moving phenomenon. Millions and millions of dollars were made, and even more millions were lost, maybe billions by the time the dust settles.
All it took for that explosion was a story, a hook, a catalyst, and the right viral spark, one that produced thousands of press hits over the span of two weeks. In turn, up to 8 million subscribers latched on to r/wallstreetbets (WSB), many of then with wallets (and life savings accounts and 401Ks) wide open.
By the end of the last week of January, the story had fallen apart, the hook disintegrated, and the catalyst appeared to have already happened on a much smaller scale or wouldn’t be happening at all, depending on who you believe.
This mirrors the rise and fall of nearly every viral-fueled startup I’ve ever been involved with or even tracked leisurely. But I still get the question at least once a week, obviously more so over the last month:
