Unlocking the secrets of social media can be difficult; trends change all the time, and what was on everybody’s lips last time you checked your Twitter feed is yesterday’s news half an hour later. How you package your posts is key to success; it doesn’t matter how lovingly crafted your content is, if you want to net more likes, shares and comments you need to grab your audience’s attention. To give you an idea of what compels people to click the share button, we’re taking a look at what type of posts net high levels of interaction and positive engagement.
Question time
While curiosity may have curtailed the career of many a cat, it’s a key weapon in any social marketer’s arsenal. Statistics show that posts with a question in their headline on Facebook receive more clicks than any other. That doesn’t mean you can just slap a question mark on the end a headline and call it a day, though; you need to evoke your reader’s curiosity and aim for something more compelling than cryptic.
Always look on the bright side
A study conducted by author Jonah Berger, who put almost 7,000 New York Times articles under the microscope in order to discover which received the most shares, showed that positive news was much more likely to go viral. We all love to be the bearer of good news, and writing content that fires up the happy centres of your readers’ brains is a good to gain shares. With that in mind, try and write content that will put a smile on your readers’ faces; if you brighten their day, they’ll pass it along in the hopes of brightening someone else’s.
Look the part
Aesthetic are everything, especially when it comes to your content. A post with a picture is twice as likely to get clicked as one without, so try and make sure all your posts include an eye-pleasing graphic. You also need to organise your content so it’s easy to read. Be clear, concise and pay special attention to your combination of colour, typography and pictures, ensuring all elements works together.
