Sharable Content on Social Media for Target Audiences

Sharable content is your way into a wider pool of readers or viewers. But how do you create sharable content on social media? And how can you be sure that your target audience is seeing your content on the right social platforms?

Are there certain platforms that are better than others? Certain platforms you should target? Specific posting times or a number of posts you should shoot for?

In short – yes, and no, and sometimes. All of the above.

That’s the beauty (and terror) of social media, digital marketing, and general content creation. There is no ‘one answer’ because there is no ‘one client’ or ‘one way’ that works for every client.

Let’s start off with an example, for a seemingly simple product, a product that everyone uses. Let’s say that product is – a birthday card.

If you celebrate birthdays, then you would seemingly be the main target audience for a birthday card design or manufacturing company. Right?

And since this is the 21st century, it’s likely that this mythical birthday card company would like to use SEO and digital marketing, including social media, to promote its products or create brand awareness.

Still follow?

So, where should they post? What should they post? When and how and to whom?

Hard to answer, isn’t it? Unless you have additional information about the products and company.

Let’s split this example now, to give it some distinction, some direction.

Company A is a heartfelt, word-heavy, traditional greeting card company. And Company B is a funny, picture-heavy, sometimes snarky or teasing greeting card company.

Which one would you want to advertise or sell in a Hallmark-like store? Which one would you want to advertise or sell in a joke-store?

Can you think of the disaster if you tried to sell the raunchy cards in the gift shop of a hospital? Or the sentimental ones in Spencer’s Gifts?

Now you understand what would happen if you try to share content on LinkedIn that should clearly be on Tumblr, or vise versa.

Sharable content not only has to be good but placed on the right platform for optimal sharability. Let’s learn how to create truly sharable content together.

How to Create Sharable Content for Social Media Platforms

As shown above, one of the most important places to start is with your ideal customer profiles. This means you need a clear idea of who you are marketing to.

Once you know the who, the research and data for what to create, and even where to post it, is readily available.

So, like almost every aspect of digital marketing, social media marketing, or content marketing, research must be your starting point.

Are you posting for B2B or B2C?

B2B, or Business to Business, would mean that you are looking to create content for another business, not an individual customer (B2C). This also means you should probably be looking for more educational content to create and share.

You want to build confidence in your audience, or, you want them to know that you are a leader in the industry and that they should look to you for information, education, and expertise.

For B2B, creating and sharing content that gives value to your potential business customers is the best way to build confidence, as well as being direct about the profitability of what you are offering.

For B2C, you need to create content that provides value for them personally, which can come in many more ways than in B2B. Value can be given in emotion, interest, pricing or promotions, education, and more.

Are you targeting a certain demographic, age group, or interest group?

You not only have to know who you are marketing to, but why they are buying your product. Are they looking for beauty, health, knowledge, convenience?

If you want your messaging and content to be targeted, well, you need a target. This means your customer profile needs to have emotions, a backstory, and a reason for buying whatever you are selling.

Are they buying that funny birthday card because they are humorous people and they searched out your card, or because it was the cheapest one on the rack? Are they drawn to the colors or theme chosen, or are they looking for convenience and your cards are always near the checkout?

You need to go in-depth when creating your profiles in order to understand your customers, and therefore, their online habits, platforms frequented, and what content they are more likely to share.

Where to Post Your Sharable Social Media Content

For customer profiles who prefer visuals (younger generations or any products that have strong aesthetics, such as makeup, photography, gym wear, etc.) platforms like Instagram would be best.

For customer profiles who are preoccupied with convenience, then maybe a streamlines advertisement on Facebook, where they are most likely already scrolling, would be best.

For professional individuals, as well as more expensive products or services, LinkedIn is king.

The list, and data goes on and on. But it all starts with who you are marketing to, and why. Then you can begin on where and how often.

Individualization, transparency, and streamlining are good places to start with all customers, but the real advantages come from understanding your target audience, what they want, what they need, and then providing it.

Do You Need Help With Your Customer Profiles, Content Creation, or Social Media Platforms? JSL Marketing & Web Design Can Help!

If all the research seems like a lot to worry about, all while still running your business, you aren’t wrong. And many others feel the same way, which is why SEO and Digital Marketing companies exist.

JSL Marketing & Web Design is happy to help you discover your target audience, their ‘why’, and then create the perfect posting plan and content creation plan to reach them.

Shareability doesn’t have to be hard – it’s just about posting what your audience wants to see and being consistent and valuable.

Let us help you find your digital sweet spot and see your brand grow! Call or fill out a form and we’ll get right back to you!

How To Make A Solid Content Plan

It is possible that creating, planning, and implementing a ‘solid content plan’ is a little daunting for many businesses or website owners.

And that isn’t surprising, as many people’s understanding of content marketing only scratches the surface of what it really is – and what it can do for your online presence, rankings, and overall SEO.

But what does a true content plan look like? How do you start it, maintain it and schedule it? These are just a few of the questions our superstar content team will answer in our latest blog post.

Have additional questions? Need clarification or extra tips and tricks? Check out our previous blog posts about a wide range of subjects, or you can always comment, message, or call us for more information.

We would love to help you create the perfect content plan for your business.

Who knows, you might even enjoy it.

What is a Content Plan?

A content plan is fairly basic when you look at the terms used. At its most basic, it is a tool you can use to layout and plan your content.

See? Pretty much just like it sounds.

But, here’s the tricky part – your content isn’t just the great written word. It is anything, any media, that you create for your company.

Pictures, blogging, on-page content, landing pages, social media posts, downloadable content, even videos! All of this should be planned and will, therefore, fall into your content plan for the year (or the quarter – which is often a more manageable timeframe to work within).

JSL Marketing uses quarters for our content plans, meaning we make four content plans a year. One for January through March, April through June, July through September, and finally, October through December.

This is the ideal amount of time for your content plan to run, as it is manageable in smaller chunks and can be adjusted fairly easily based on changing business needs or seasons.

Essentially, your content plan should be a part of your marketing plan and it should show your clients or customer base who you are, what you are doing, and what you know.

Content is king in recent years – so make sure your king deserves the crown.

Create Your Content Plan

Creating a content plan starts with a template or some form of visual organization.

You can use a grid, a chart, or even simple, evenly spaced lines. As long as your content plan is easily understood and able to be followed, then the aesthetic design is up to you.

Here is an example of a simple content plan format.

Let’s pretend it’s for a Yoga Studio in Topeka, Kansas, called Toga Yoga.

  January February March
Newsletter New Year, New Yoga Classes with Toga Yoga
Blog 1 New Year Resolution Yoga Classes with Toga Yoga
Blog 2 Beat the Winter Blues with Hot Yoga in Topeka
Video Topic Toga Yoga: Relaxed Home Yoga Routine
Content Additions *Update schedule & class information for 2019
Facebook Posts about new yoga classes in the new year, healthy resolution help, hot yoga classes, home yoga routine & link newsletter, blogs & video
Twitter
LinkedIn
eBook The Best Yoga Style for You | Toga Yoga
Infographic The Benefits of Yoga in Topeka | Toga Yoga

 

The above chart is easy to make, easy to understand, and easy to follow – three key factors when making a plan that involves many moving pieces or different team members.

Now, of course, I didn’t fill in February or March. But you would simply repeat the process for each month and make sure there was some continuity, without being repetitive and while keeping your keywords and their frequency in mind.

Additionally, you might not make eBooks or infographics for your company. Maybe you don’t post to Twitter but do on Instagram. Or maybe you have emails instead of newsletters. That is all fine, the above is merely an example.

One more difference between a true content plan and my example above is that all content plans need to be rooted in research, all the way down to the keywords you choose to try rank for.

Can you guess what some of my make-believe keywords were?

  • Toga Yoga, Yoga Classes, Yoga in Topeka, Home Yoga Routine, Best Yoga Style, and again, Yoga in Topeka

Now, I didn’t actually do the SEO research for this made-up company and made-up content plan. But you can see the reasoning and see the train of thought I was having for this particular company.

  • They have a local market, so some localized keywords would help get them faster movement on Google.
  • Their keywords are things that individuals looking for those services would easily type and search for.
  • Their name is a keyword, as we want people to easily find them if searching for them directly
  • There is a semi-theme throughout the first quarter – new year, winter, etc.

The exception to the themes mentioned above would be the video, infographic, and eBook. This is because they are more timeless and can be pushed or promoted for the remainder of the year and don’t have to be tied to any singular season as much.

When & Where to Publish

So now you understand what a content plan is. You understand the basics of how to make one, and you know you need to do the research before you put any other pieces in place.

But what do you do now that you have all your ducks in a row?

Research some more, of course!

Did you know there are specific times of the day, and days of the week, that have better open rates for emails? Or did you know that certain social media platforms cater to certain crowds and demographics?

If you did, then great job! You are ready to start publishing your content with confidence. But if you didn’t, perhaps you should consider who you are writing to, how they receive their information, and when.

Making a buyer persona can help here as well, as it can give you a (fictional) customer to try to understand and research.

Check out these helpful hints about social media platforms, content, written voice, and more!

Can JSL Marketing & Web Design Help Your Content Plan Be a Success?

If the research, planning, charting, writing, and implementation of a content plan seems a little over your head, or simply too time-consuming, then you are in luck.

Our content marketing team loves to research, plan, create and write. But what we love even more is seeing your business succeed.

Give us a call today, leave a comment, or message us directly to learn more about how we can help your business thrive in 2019, and how we can make your content king.

We can’t wait to hear from you!