Every business with any social media presence has felt that awful feeling: You create the perfect profile, craft content that’s on-brand, on-message, and accurate, hit send, and… crickets. A share from an employee, a like or two from friends and family, but really, your engagement is minimal and your reach is nil. It’s no fun and it makes you question if this whole “social media thing” is even worthwhile!
Social media is a massively strong marketing force, but it’s not just about regurgitating your ad creative–you have to know how to create content that people want to consume, and importantly, want to share. The more people share, the more traction you get, the more business interest you drum up, and the more easily you recoup the investment of the time you put in to create it. So here are just a few tips for creating shareable social media content:
Keep an eye on trends–and your competitors
If you ask anybody, they’ll tell you they don’t want to be a trend follower. And yet, by definition, a trend will have plenty of followers, which means something about it is working–and you can and should use that to your advantage. The key here is approaching trends with a bit of nuance, though. Nobody wants to engage with a brand that posts nothing but half-hearted attempts at the latest TikTok fad, and not every trend will fit your brand. Whatever you do should be capturing the zeitgeist without giving up on your unique voice and market position.
One of the best ways to figure out what trends will work for you is to take a look at what your most successful competitors are doing. Glance at their social media and see what’s getting engagement, which trends are resonating with your industry and your niche, and picking and choosing the ones that make sense for your business. This doesn’t mean being a copycat, but a little opposition research never hurt your past advertising efforts, so give it a go with social!
Tell a great story–and make it personal
Once again, and we’ll say it louder for the people in the back: social media posts are not just for you to copy/paste ad creative. What works on a billboard, a TV commercial, or a magazine ad won’t necessarily be effective when posted to Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok. Sure, people who see it might be moved, but that assumes they see it at all. The key to social media is virality–the more people who share your content, the more people will see it, which means you need content that people will share.
Social media is by nature social, and social media users respond far more to great storytelling than perfectly massaged ad copy. Someone logging onto Facebook likely isn’t going to care to read the benefits of your newest product, but a story about how it came to be, about how a satisfied customer used the product, or about the people behind the scenes is much more likely to get people to pause, read, comment, and share.
Start positive conversations–and continue them
People love stories because they create conversation. A great story elicits strong emotions and invites people to share those emotions along with their own stories. If you can get people commenting, replying, and sharing the post with their own thoughts and feelings–and respond to them yourself–the algorithmic boost to your post will mean more people are likely to read, respond, and continue the chain of sharing the post themselves. And once you create a conversation like this, then congrats–you’ve gone viral!
Of course, it’s important to be careful. We’ve all seen companies go viral for all the wrong reasons, because they started (intentionally or otherwise) a conversation that wasn’t positive and went completely off the rails. It takes a light touch and a careful mind to craft content that stays positive while not being so banal that the conversations never have a chance to begin, but when you get it right, the payoff is absolutely worth the effort.
Remember the fundamentals–and practice them always
While creating shareable social media content isn’t about crafting the perfect polished advertisement, that doesn’t mean your advertising skills will go to waste! Social media creative isn’t a lawless wasteland where there are no rules and everyone shoots from the hip; there are reliable tools and strategies for creative assets that social media users respond to.
Whether it’s using short-form video content while it’s the hot new format; writing exciting, attention-grabbing, and emotive headlines that stay short and snappy; using strong, simple, and colorful visual assets in every post; or making sure to schedule your posts when your target audience is most active and engaged, strong social media fundamentals are the core that you build off of to create truly shareable content.
Make their lives easier–every way possible
Here’s another tip that old-school advertisers will appreciate as a carry-over–a great way to create shareable social media content is to do something that makes life easier for the customer (or in this case, social media platform user). In terms of content, this means creating media or a message that helps them get through their day more easily in some way, whether that’s a useful infographic to help solve a problem, a funny meme to help brighten their spirits, or an affirmative and inspiration story to help them keep going when the going gets tough.
But this isn’t just about content that makes their lives easier, it’s also about making sure the form makes sharing a breeze: A blog post on your website? Make sure it has social sharing links prominently displayed. A great video? Make sure it’s on any platform your followers want to share it on. The copy in a social post or video script? Include a call to action to put people in a “sharing” state of mind. Anything you can do to help make your content easier to share will make it more likely to be shared.
Of course, you deserve help that makes your life and running your business easier as well. Crafting shareable social content isn’t always easy, and one of the best ways to make it a bit less difficult is to work with a professional, and Skol Marketing’s team is here to help. To get started with a social media audit, one-on-one guidance, or even a complete social media management package, please don’t hesitate to contact the local social media experts at Skol Marketing.
