5 golden rules for catchy content

Almost everyone has come around to recognizing social media’s importance for marketing and advertising. It’s no longer a case of whether or not to use social media, it’s a question of 'how’ to use social media effectively.

One of the questions we are most frequently asked is: how do I create content that cuts through? Here we present our 5 Golden Rules:

1.KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

One of the first things to do at the outset of a social media campaign is spend time getting to know your audience. Most companies take a broad approach to audience targeting. But true targeting your desired audience requires a highly granular approach that will vary depending on which platform you use, the amount of attention you can devote to it, your messaging, and your budget.

We recommend building customer personas and working out what they find appealing about your product in order to hone your messaging. You may need to run some surveys, or even in-person interviews to gather these insights.

Once you’ve worked out what really matters to your target audience, it’s time to work out your messaging.

2. START TELLING YOUR STORY

Once you’ve worked out what makes your audience ‘tick,’ it’s time to tell your story. Working out your story involves unpacking your purpose, passion and path to your end goal.

Or, if you’ve developed your story previously, we recommend reviewing it to see which areas of your story are most ‘sticky.’ It’s important to dissect which parts of your story are most conducive for different platforms and how/why your audiences are spending time on each platform.

We love developing our client’s brand stories on social media. Some examples include the IGTV series we recently created for Springfield Jewellers and the Makers series for our client, Craft’d Grounds.

Once you’ve worked out how to tell a story that connects with your audience, you can start to develop your content.

3. BE MEMORABLE

Memorable: adjective. Worth remembering or easily remembered, especially because of being special or unusual.

What makes your brand special or unusual? Is it your good looks, your amazing sense of humour or your unstoppable energy? Or is it your stunning location or sense of style? Whatever that is, consider it your super power. Use it however you can to help people find you and remember you.

We’ve worked with hundreds of different brands over the years, helping them to unpack that special something that makes them sparkle. Sometimes it’s the simple things like their approach to service, or their people. Once we’ve found it, we capture that in their content, and we get it in front of their target audience.

4. BE ENGAGING. IT’S A TWO WAY CONVERSATION

It goes without saying: the best way to create engagement results is to be engaging. Just like having a conversation with a friend, the best way to be engaging is to be conversational. Discuss things that are topical for the time, invite their feedback and be responsive.

5. INVEST IN PROFESSIONALS

Social media is extremely competitive so DIY just isn’t going to cut it. That’s not to say you can’t use borrowed content from sources like your customers or even Pinterest. But, we would suggest that at least 80% of your content should be created in-house.

One big piece of advice when working with creative freelancers: choose carefully, and make sure you brief them well. Find ideas that help to give them a good idea of what you have in mind.

If you’re unsure where to start, we’re here to help!