A simple YouTube video posted by a fan of RB singer Patti LaBelle has emerged as a kind of holy grail of Internet marketing: Social media user independently sees product, makes an online video about it, and sales take off.

While the phenomenon of social media-driven sales is anything but new, rarely does it happen so organically — and unexpectedly — as with LaBelle’s Walmart-distributed sweet potato pie, a tasty juggernaut that is shaking up the social media and bakery worlds this holiday season.

Walmart spokesman John Forrest Ales told HLN that, in mid-November, the landing page for LaBelle’s pies was the most-visited food item webpage on Walmart.com, even eclipsing the much-heralded iPad Pro, a major coup for any product given the interest in electronics around the holiday season. « The iPad Pro is one of our top trending searches and the Patti Pie was being searched 10 times as often, » he said.

While the pie reportedly had modest sales since its September debut, what Walmart is seeing now is the equivalent of (Internet) gold in a bottle, or in this case a pie shell, according to experts in social media and PR.

And it’s largely because of a video uploaded November 12 by James Wright, a charismatic YouTuber who literally sings the praises of the pies.

While Ales declined to divulge sales figures for the pies, he said that business has been brisk and he sees no sign of it stopping during the Black Friday weekend. « We were selling one pie per second in one 72-hour period after James’ video, » Ales said of Walmart.

You can be sure other companies are taking notice, Pallavi Kumar, an assistant professor at American University with more than 20 years in public relations, told HLN.

“Marketers are smart — if they see something take off in one sphere, they will see how many more platforms they can launch the same campaign in to get maximum value and ROI,” Kumar said.

That being said, while Walmart has not released sales figures, what Wright’s viral video was able to do in terms of getting actionable sales quickly — wholly unsolicited by Walmart or Patti LaBelle — is no small feat.

“There are some campaigns that are able to capitalize on social media in that way, but for the most part the influencers are already affiliated with the brand,” said Nikki Usher, assistant professor in the School of Media Affairs at George Washington University.

“It is really rare for a truly unique breakout hit that will completely alter consumer preference,” Usher told HLN.

But that’s exactly what Wright — with his “Why did it end this way” hymn-like singing — was able to do.

Days after his video was posted, people are going to YouTube and uploading videos of themselves in Walmart “hunting for Patti Pies.”

And it hasn’t been a one-way street: Speaking to HLN’s The Daily Share, Wright said that the recent Internet fame has done a lot for him as well: He got to talk to his idol and has become a star, albeit a small one, in his own right. “She called me the next day — and I almost lost it — you know Patti LaBelle don’t call people randomly,” he said.

So can we expect other brands to try for the “Patti Pie effect”? Kumar said companies are already fast at work on the next social media hit and looking for ways to incorporate it into their brand across other platforms.

“The reason why these types of stories i.e., the ‘Patti Pie’ become sensations is because they are all part of an integrated campaign. Traditional TV and print advertising are not going anywhere. Everything is a driver though. Social media drives traditional media. Traditional media sparks social sharing. Print and TV advertising are still important components of the “secret sauce” that create buzz and make things go viral,” she said.

For her part, LaBelle is giving credit to Wright for boosting sales. In an interview with Fox 29 in Philadelphia, the songstress said. « My new friend James Wright did this fierce video and took the pie over the top … I didn’t expect a viral video.”

Kumar said that viral videos and other social media wins are just the beginning to keep a product hot.

“Social media stars exist solely because of the love and adoration they receive from their fans,” Kumar said. “But to keep that level of engagement, they have to deliver to their fans through frequent posts and uploads.”

Wright, a fan himself, now has another claim to fame: He got to eat Thanksgiving dinner with LaBelle — or was it the other way around?