Shownotes
(1:59) What is considered “shareable content”
(5:20) Being strategic with shareable content
(7:49) Making content controversial
(13:56) How to create shareable content that is well-designed
Links
11 Proven Shareable Content Recipes & Examples
Quotes
“Creating content to create content is a waste of your time. Really trying to engage your audience really should be your goal, and that’s what shareable content generally is.” (4:21)
“One of the things that you can do when you’re thinking about making shareable content is to really be observant of what’s going on. So what is actually trending, and you have to be careful with this. You don’t want to go overboard. And also know when a trend is dead.” (6:46)
This week, Bryan and Loren tackle the pressure of creating shareable content. What is shareable content? What should I be doing to create shareable content that people actually care about? How do I make my content engaging? How do I design my content? Do not fear, Bryan and Loren have your answers!
What is Shareable Content?
This question can be answered simply; think about what you like to share with your friends. The most common content that gets shared across the internet is entertaining and funny. People love to share memes with their friends. However, not all brands are made for sharing funny memes. Educational and inspiring content is also highly shareable. Infographics and informative posts are great ways to create posts that people want to share. The key is finding the intersection between entertaining and educational for your followers. Edutaining? Entercational? Anyway, you get the point.
The Strategy Behind Shareable Content
One of the keys to making shareable content is making sure it has value to your audience. Ask yourself what the purpose of the content is. Is it helping your audience solve a problem? Are you using it to promote something or someone? By knowing your content’s purpose and understanding the audience it serves, you can shape and mold your content to ensure that it has value in your followers’ eyes.
A second strategy behind shareable content is keeping up with the trends in your industry’s culture. Keeping up with and utilizing popular trends allows you to stay relevant and entertaining to your audience. A couple of important notes with this point are staying true to your brand and knowing when trends are dead. Losing sight of what your brand is to a popular trend surrenders your brand consistency and the audience’s trust that comes with it.
Making Controversial Content
One of Bryan’s favorite strategies for making content shareable and encouraging engagement is to post controversial content. This does not necessarily mean talking about big, serious debates, but it is evoking emotion from your followers. Bringing out their emotions causes them to interact with your post. One of Bryan’s go-to’s is saying that Harry Potter, rather than Ron, should have ended up with Hermoine. This is a controversy that strikes gold in terms of engagement because Harry Potter fans take the story very seriously, and they are often quite opinionated about its canon. It is nearly impossible for Harry Potter fans to scroll past a statement like that and not stop to weigh in.
How to Design Shareable Content
Designing shareable content can nearly be a summary of everything Bryan and Loren talked about in this episode. It is crucial to know your industry. What are people clicking on? What trends are popular and engaging in your specific industry?
On top of this, it needs to match your brand. Stay consistent with your brand’s colors and fonts. If you have a template that you post with, keep it. Do not stray too far to follow a trend, but make the trend fit your template!
