These days, it’s not just about creating content that people take a little time out of their day to view, it’s about creating content that drives people to share. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that shareable content is the Holy Grail for the content marketer – if your audience regularly shares your posts with their networks, your brand will gain greater exposure, an increase in referral traffic and, potentially, a substantial collection of new followers.
Incorporating video into your content marketing efforts is an excellent way to boost those shares. Whether it’s via YouTube, Instagram or integrated content, video has become one of the most impactful ways to communicate with your audience. In 2015, Entrepreneur.com reported that consumers were 39% more likely to share content if it’s delivered via video, 36% were more likely to comment and 56% were more likely to give a video a ‘like’.
With video consumption growing exponentially – eMarketer reported that the digital video audience will grow 8.2% this year – it’s time to strike with your video content. But what tactics can you employ to ramp the ‘share factor’ up to the max?
1. Make people feel
Emotion is the magic ingredient when it comes to encouraging consumers to share. Make someone laugh, cry or moved to take action, and you’re all but guaranteed a share. In fact, most viral videos evoke some kind of strong emotive reaction from people. Research from Hubspot revealed that, whilst negative emotions like reproach and resentment can still boost those shares, the top viral emotions tend to be extremely positive. In fact, the Content Marketing Institute identified ‘inspiration’ as the feeling that appears to gain the most traction. So, focus on making your audience feel good.
2. Tailor to suit each channel
A common mistake amongst those trying video content on for size, is assuming that they can adopt a one-size-fits-all approach. They’ve poured their heart into their video and are ready to debut it across all their social channels… then wonder why something that gained a lot of engagement on Instagram was completely ignored on Facebook or vice versa. Some content is better suited to certain platforms over others – be sure to optimise correctly, adjust the length or add subtitles. Plus, once you do start seeing engagement, pay attention to the metrics to work out what people like and want to share more of in future.
3. Put thought into your narrative
Yes, visuals are highly important and one of the reasons video is so popular, but without a strong narrative, you might struggle to hold people’s attention and nail down those shares. An audience that has been sucked into your video and invested their time into seeing how it unfolds will be very likely to share – we’re all suckers for a good story at heart.
4. Consider promoting your posts
In order to maximise the opportunity of shares, it figures that you need to get your video in front of people. It might be worth considering investing in some targeted, paid promotion to extend your reach. As long as you do your research when it comes to creating video content, a little promotion could be just what’s needed to gain those extra shares. However, as the Content Marketing Institute advises, you can’t waste too much time producing or promoting online content – instead, you need to focus on creating a steady stream of content that will engage your audience over time.
5. Give people a reason to share
Whilst your audience will make up their own minds whether your video is share-worthy or not, you can definitely give them a helping hand with a call to action. Whether it’s in the video itself or in the description or caption, ask people to share if they agree or perhaps create a campaign where customers can enter a competition or score an exclusive discount if they share your content. The more engaged your followers are, the more likely they will be to respond – not just for their own benefit but for yours too. And that’s why they call it a community.
For help getting your video marketing ship-shape, give M2 Bespoke a call.