Infographic Highlights Most Noteworthy Viral Activity of 2012

Nothing can convey numbers and statistics in an understandable way quite like an infographic. Seemingly proving that sentiment, the fine folks at The Viral Ad Network have put together a nifty little infographic summarizing the viral activity of 2012—the biggest viral videos, viral brands, and how they were shared among the social networks like Twitter and Facebook. And while the videos themselves should be familiar to you, you might be surprised to learn just how many people saw them. Check out the breakdown after the jump.

It’s not surprising that each year, the number of views and shares of the most popular viral videos increase. After all, more and more individuals are acquiring the means to share and receive them. Still, The Viral Ad Network’s infographic is staggering. Do you remember when a video eventually reaching one million YouTube views by itself was historic? The videos listed in the graphic below, including Kony 2012 and Felix Baumgartner’s freefall from space, gained millions of them in mere hours and days.

While there aren’t any film properties or movie studios on these lists, don’t think for a second advertising agencies aren’t noting what it is about these videos captured the attention of users and motivated them to share with others. I admire the way The Viral Ad Network differentiates between sharing and viewing viral videos, as that uniquely affects the ultimate impact a video has. It’s something to consider this upcoming year, as I imagine we’ll see some of these records broken and viral videos continue to establish itself as an important form of today’s media.