Getting noticed amongst the social clutter can be challenging. While scrolling through our Instagram feed, we pass by hundreds of posts and every so often come across something that makes us stop and engage. What is it that makes these posts unique? Here we share the simple, yet effective anatomy of a great social post. In just five easy steps your next post can be the one that makes your audience stop scrolling.
1) High-Profile
Your profile acts as your digital business card and should provide the answers to who, what, when and where to find you.
Keep in mind that your profile should also contain the key search words that your potential clients/customers will use. Save witty puns for your post captions and save this real-estate for vital information.
2) Make headlines
A great headline should be short, snappy and impactful.
An excellent way to find the proper wording and tone for your headline is to picture the magazines on the coffee table of your customer’s home. Think of the types of publications your target audience would be reading and find inspiration in the headlines on the cover: short, snappy and attention grabbing. There is obviously a huge difference on how to connect with someone who reads Cosmopolitan versus The Wall St. Journal and this exercise will help guide your voice to appeal to your audience.
Lastly, it is important to maintain an authoritative tone, while your audience should feel like you are speaking in their language, they should also be able to look to you as an expert in your field.
3) Visualize
Visuals play a key factor in building engagement and reaching new audiences on social networks.
Posts featuring white space gain a lot of traction on social media. This style of picture provides air and light to your feed and attracts audiences with its minimal, fresh look.
Toned down colours also work well on Instagram feeds and help in creating a cohesive ‘colour story’ for your grid. Using filters and simple editing tools you can take two different images and tweak them to become a well-matched pair.
You don’t have to be a professional photographer to create an attractive page. Whether you take photos with your phone/camera, share images from other feeds (with the appropriate credits), or discover photos on free image-sharing websites, you can create a beautiful image gallery to use for your current and future social posts.
Videos should also be incorporated into your visual library. This area has seen more growth across social networks recently and allows an audience to get a dynamic look at your brand and a glimpse of your personality.
4) Make the call
When creating your social post, ask yourself what is the end goal? Whether you are looking for people to visit your website, sign-up for a newsletter, or respond to a question, include a call to action and guide your audience to take action.
5) #Hashtag
Hashtags are a crucial tool to help reach new audiences and improve engagement on your page.
To find the hashtags that are best for your business, you need to do some research. Examine the hashtags used by relevant industry leaders and competitors. Try to create a set of hashtags focused on your industry that you can use again and again, and then add a few based on the topic of the post. Recently, lists have been compiled of ‘banned’ hashtags for Instagram, so be sure to cross-reference your list and ensure you aren’t using the ones listed.
A great trick for avoiding clutter with hashtags on Instagram is to place them in the comments section. They will have the same effect on searches but allow your caption to take the spotlight.
There you have it, the five-step recipe to creating a great social post! While we can’t control the clutter of content on social media, we can rise to the challenge with exciting and engaging posts! For more information or help in creating your brand’s social media presence, contact us.