Should you have a separate content creation strategy for each social channel?
Social media channels are not all created equally. Each one has somewhat of a different appeal and different channels intended to cater to different audiences. If marketers are so concerned with reaching their audience, then why do so many of them take the easy road and share the same content across all social channels?
According to the IMN 2013 Content Marketing Survey Report, “only 22% of respondents stated that they have a separate content marketing strategy in place for each channel.” That means that an astounding 78% of organizations are taking the same approach to content strategy for every channel.
Of course, there’s an element of having your content reach as many eyes as possible at play here. Organizations are (hopefully) proud of the content they’ve created and would like for everyone to see it. However, forcing content down the throats of audience members that are largely uninterested will only condition the audience to gloss over your posts in the future.
Simply, some posts just don’t belong on some channels. As Business2Community asks bluntly, “Do you think it’s okay to post links to zombie memes on your LinkedIn account?”
This isn’t to shoot down carefully crafted content that speaks to the company’s ideals and is intended to be viewed by a single audience en masse. If and when such a scenario is applicable to your content, project it across the landscape. For the majority of instances, when developing social channel distribution strategies, keep this advice in mind to ensure your content is put to the best use for doing what it’s intended to be doing: engage your audience.
Stop Rehashing Tired Content
If you promote well, you will find yourself gaining followers on your social media accounts across different platforms. Perhaps, some of those audience members will even follow you on multiple accounts of their own. Is it any way to thank them for this by promoting the exact same content across all of their social media accounts? Why not keep that loyal audience engaged by tailoring the content in more unique ways that better capture the essence of each social medium?
Content Creation: One Size Does Not Fit All
Content comes in many forms; not every form is ideally suited for every platform. It’s generally not as beneficial to promote whitepapers on Facebook as it might be to do so on LinkedIn. Twitter can be a great way to communicate with your audience. Still, the character limit restricts posting entire excerpts of your content in a fashion that may better whet the appetites of potential readers on other platforms. Also, while it’s easy to recognize that a blog post doesn’t belong on YouTube or Instagram, that doesn’t mean that corresponding media can’t help to complement the blog post from the more-visual mediums.
Be Timely; Be Relevant
Timeliness is important on two accounts. Primarily, know when to stop promoting content that has become outdated. References to current events are a great way to engage your audience and attract curious new minds. But understand that once you’ve reached the following autumn, it’s probably time to scrap the promotion on your blog post comparing your company’s offerings to last winter’s Olympics. Secondly, understand the more opportune times for reaching your audience on different platforms. Suppose you post a clever tweet posted at 4:30 pm on Friday. It may not reach the same audience as on Tuesday at 2:00 pm.
Content Creation: Understand What Doesn’t Belong
Once again, there are different connotations that associate with different social media channels for a reason. Content that serves a purpose on one platform may have little or no value on another. Understand that a social media strategy should take into account an individualized approach to enriching your account in each channel. Those who are ‘social media-savvy’ are likely keenly aware of the scope and limitations of different social platforms. Consider the established voice of your company and the tone in each channel before posting something with no appeal.
