Shareable social media content is a must for your brand or business. Any social media content you post can have the opportunity to reach beyond your business’s current following, increase engagement, generate brand awareness and strengthen brand loyalty.
Shareable content is exactly what it sounds like: it’s social media content that is easy to share and engage with. Shares are an important form of engagement on all social media platforms. If a piece of your content gets shared, that means that not only your followers are benefitting from the piece, but now all of their followers get exposure to your band and what you offer.
If you’ve ever been stumped on how to create shareable social media content, check out this list of rules to follow when crafting social media content.
Quick breakdown…
Did you know that self-promotional social media content is disincentivized by the algorithms on social media platforms? This doesn’t mean that you can never post promotions for your business, it just means that that kind of content should be the least kind of content posted on your profiles. In addition to the algorithms disincentivizing these posts, your followers don’t want every piece of content they see from you to be salesy.
Whatever kind of content you’re sharing on social media, make sure it’s immediately useful to your audience’s needs. Making sure your content is customer-centric will always increase the likelihood of it being shared. Doing research on your ideal customer is vital for creating content that resonates with them and that they feel proud to share with their followers!
Some ideas for immediately useful content are:
When one follower views your content as useful to them and their circumstance, they will be more likely to share that post with their friends.
Creating original content that’s unique to your business and your message is a tried and true method of making shareable content. Original doesn’t mean that it has to be a topic no one is talking about or a piece of digital art that's groundbreaking in the creative space. You can achieve an original piece of social media content by offering a slightly different perspective on a hot topic.
For example, if you’re seeing competitors or your audience buzzing about efficient spring cleaning methods, you could create a piece that talks about things not to do when spring cleaning or the most inefficient ways to spring clean. That different perspective will be enough to draw attention and get shares!
Blog articles with images, gifs or memes every 75-100 words outperform articles that are only text. Visual elements draw readers in and keep their attention longer than walls of text.
Using visuals within your content will not only increase your time on page stats, but can also increase shares. Users will feel more confident sharing your piece because they themselves found it engaging and interesting.
If your business or brand writes blogs, records a podcast or films educational videos that go on your site, make sure viewers can easily share them on their social media platforms! Including one-click sharing social media icons on the content can increase the likelihood of a share.
If your business has an ecommerce element, consider making the individual products and product pages easily shareable. Additionally, don’t be afraid to ask for follows, likes, subscribes, and shares! Frequent social media users are accustomed to these asks, and it lets them know how they can access more of your content if they enjoyed it.
Creating trending content is a great way to get your content shared. However, trends can be tricky to ride. Before jumping on every trend you see, make sure it’s on brand and something that has a positive social experience attached to it.
Trends are rising and falling constantly, some only lasting a couple of weeks! It can be overwhelming to think about trying to keep up. Remember that not every trend will serve your brand and sometimes they spiral into something that you don’t want your business to be associated with.
Humorous or inspiring trends are generous and can leave a lot of room for brand expression and audience connection. Trends involving celebrities, politics, or other global happenings are more of a gamble since those topics can have a mix of charged emotions attached to them.
Before jumping on any and every trend, do your research so that you craft something tasteful and positive for your brand!
Infographics are shared 3 times more often than other kinds of content on social media. They are the perfect mix of what sells on social media: heavy visuals, useful and short text, and a creative aesthetic make infographics the king of shareable content.
Here’s an example of an infographic:
If you don’t have access to a graphic designer, don’t worry! Even if you don’t consider yourself artistic or creative, there are plenty of tools and templates out there to help you easily create an infographic that expresses your brand and adds value to your audience.
Creating shareable social media content is an excellent investment in your business. All it takes is some research and intentional creativity to nail your social media content! We’re confident, as you follow these tips, that your social media engagement and brand awareness will skyrocket.
If you found this blog useful, check out our other resources here. If you want to know more about what it’s like to have RevLocal handle your business’s digital marketing, contact us today to speak with one of our experts!
Taylor Rice, Blog Contributor
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