How do you gain a large online following/presence?

[Kevin]

Look at what other successful 'internet sensations' do and copy them.

Do your research.

One of the most recent YouTube smash hits was Gangnam Style by musician Psy. I think the key here - apart from a very catch dance tune - was a unique dance style and silly video that went viral. Viral is what you want.

Psy was huge in South Korea before his international success, but in the YouTube hit Psy was extremely entertaining - so much so that people who did not even understand Korean were sharing it on Facebook. Think about that: it was not just the song itself, but the presentation of the song that made it go viral

I believe video will be the key to your success. Find (or write) your catchiest song. See which video was the most successful in your school. Then brainstorm with friends about how to present it in a catchy video. You do not need to spend many thousands of dollars like Psy did on video production. A clever idea shot on an iPhone will take you just as far - and evidence for that can be seen on a YouTube video by the band Atomic Tom singing Take Me Out (on the New York subway) with 5.3 million hits.