The past few years saw changes in the way we consume content. This area of content consumption and media impact is divided into three main generations:
The Programmed Age – the time when we would learn almost everything and acquired our knowledge through the traditional media
The Age of Searching – Google has changed the way we absorb content and collect information. Their promise was to provide an answer to our search within 200 milliseconds. People did not have to use media companies to learn about products, services, trends, culture etc.
The Age of Discovery – the current generation. Less pulling of information, more reliance on the social ecosystem – all the content and information we need, reaches us as we move through social networks.
This age of content and information consumption requires brands and companies of every kind to integrate into social and join the new dialog. Thus, businesses should adopt publishers’ way of thinking and specialize in creating and editing content. In other words – provide the digital natives with real value.
To create the best content for social media, it’s important to consider your audience and what they might be interested in. Here are a few tips to help you create engaging content for social media:
- Identify the goal of your content: What do you want to achieve with your content? Do you want to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or improve customer engagement? Having a clear goal will help you create content that resonates with your audience and achieves your desired outcome.
- Understand your audience: Take the time to understand who your audience is and what they care about. What are their interests, values, and pain points? What type of content do they like to see on social media? Understanding your audience will help you create content that they will find relevant and engaging.
- Keep it concise and to the point: Social media users have short attention spans, so it’s important to keep your content concise and to the point. Avoid using long, rambling sentences and try to get your point across as quickly and clearly as possible.
- Use visuals: Visual content, such as images and videos, is more likely to be shared and engage users on social media. Consider using visuals to make your content more eye-catching and engaging.
- Be authentic and transparent: Social media users value authenticity and transparency. Be genuine in your interactions and be open and honest about who you are and what you do. This will help you build trust and credibility with your audience.
- Engage with your audience: Social media is a two-way conversation, so be sure to engage with your audience by responding to comments, asking questions, and starting discussions. This will help you build a community and foster a sense of engagement and connection with your followers.
Here is a short guide about how to do it right :
Types of interactions / activities that generate response and interest:
Discounts and sales
Tips
Competition
Humor
Response generating questions
Utility recommendation
Inspiring quotes
Link to an interesting article
Quiz / Voting
Interesting statistics
The triangle of brand’s posting / activity on social:
Effectiveness:
Maximum 3 lines of text
At least 5 times a week
At relevant hours – based on familiarity with the behavior profile of the users
Attraction:
Friends’ value
Brand positioning as a problem solver
Exclusive information / unique product
Engagement:
Encourage interaction – give users a reason to promote your content
Initiating action
Dissemination of user / followers content
Timing
The best time to post – About 60% of posts are uploaded between 10 AM – 4 PM during business hours. After 4 PM, there is a marked drop in new posts of most brands. However, companies that publish posts outside working hours (early morning and at the end of the business day) have received 20% more interaction from users
Best Post Day – 86% of posts are published between Monday and Friday, with the interaction index rising 18% on Thursdays and Fridays. In general, the best days for interaction depend, of course, on the area of activity or the brand’s category:
Entertainment – The interaction index rises on the weekend, but brands are not active these days, so you should use a pre-made schedule to publish your posts.
Media – Saturday and Sunday are the best days for posting, so avoid advertising on Mondays
Retail – Users’ activity skyrocket on Sundays, yet brands advertise only 5% of their posts at that time. On the other hand, many of the posts are published on Friday when there is a significant decrease in user interaction.
Automotive category – users’ interaction is high on Sundays, yet brands advertise only 8% of posts on that day.
Business and finance – most of the posts are published between Monday and Friday, but the indices only rise on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Fashion –Users’ interaction peaks on Thursday, with Friday showing a marked decline in the indices.
Food & Beverage – of all industries surveyed, the interaction of users here is much higher than average on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Health & Fitness – the interaction index rises on Thursdays.
Sports category – the interaction index rises on the weekend.
Travel and hotels – the lowest interaction index is on Wednesdays, with the highest on Thursdays and Fridays.
How should a brand react to negative user behavior on its social zone / page?
Few basic recommendations regarding negative behavior which appear on your social pages:
- Record – tracking “serial attackers”
- Do not delete – people identify brutal deletions, a phenomenon that may harm the credibility of the brand.
- Do not delay a response – timing is of the essence when it comes to responding. Explain, but don’t apologize.
- Respond responsibly – do not enter into fights, but respond in a way that is based on knowledge and in-depth information on the product / service or the relevant interaction with customers.
- Make sure where the message source is a “kidnapped media” – there are competitors who use your social to attack your brand. In most cases, competitors’ messages appear to look alike so that negative reputations can be identified and so messages can be labeled as undesirable sources (these should be blocked).
In terms of organizing – professional entry into the worlds of content requires the investment of proper and professional manpower – content managers, writers, editors and community managers. This investment will justify itself in the future. A brand should live where its potential customers spend most of their time.