If only Bradley's arm was longer. Best photo ever. #oscars pic.twitter.com/C9U5NOtGap

— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) March 3, 2014

The 2014 Academy Awards have come and gone. Though there were no real surprises regarding who won and who lost, we were witness to a history making event.

The above “selfie” was tweeted out by host Ellen DeGeneres. In less than an hour, DeGeneres’ photo was already up to 871,000 retweets, with 210,000 favorites. She surpassed the previous record holder, President Obama, with his election night victory photo of him hugging wife Michelle Obama, which was retweeted 777,000 times.

It should also be mentioned that Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria owner, Edgar Martirosyan received a huge promotional boost with his impromptu appearance delivering pizzas to the celebrity crowd (as shown on their website’s home page).

What can small business owners learn from this?

Social media works best when it’s “in the moment.” Other moments come to mind similar to the Oscars tweet. Most notably Oreos, whose tweet during last year’s Super bowl received 10,000 retweets in just one hour. Realtime marketing offers a chance to capture an already captive audience, but it does require an alertness new to marketing. Surfing the trends, setting up alerts and embracing the 24/7 mobile economy reflect elements of the new digital world of marketing.

Not all businesses have the audience that Hollywood entertains, but the concept of realtime marketing applies at all levels. It won’t be easy to go viral like this event, as these moments are few and far between. The key is preparation.

What are you doing to prepare?