The Art of Creating Shareable Content
In the world of digital marketing, creating content that resonates with your audience is crucial. But it’s not enough for your content to simply be engaging, it needs to be shareable. Shareable content is the golden ticket for increasing reach, driving traffic, and expanding brand awareness.
The more people share your content, the greater your chances of going viral. But how do you craft content that people will want to share? In this blog, we will dive deep into the psychology behind shareable content, how to create it, and strategies to increase your chances of going viral.
The Psychology of Shareable Content
To truly understand what makes content shareable, we must first explore the psychology behind it. The act of sharing content isn’t just about passing information along; it’s about emotional connections, social validation, and a sense of self-expression. A study shows one significant motivator is the desire for social validation. When individuals share content that aligns with their beliefs, interests, or sense of humour, they seek affirmation and recognition from their peers. This behaviour reinforces a sense of belonging and connection within their social circles. When people share content, they often do so to:
- Make a Social Statement: People share content that aligns with their values, beliefs, and personality. This helps them project a certain image to their social circle. Whether it’s a meme, a touching story, or a funny video, the content people choose to share says something about who they are.
- Elicit Emotional Reactions: Emotions are a key driver of content virality. Content that sparks strong emotional reactions, whether it’s laughter, surprise, joy, or even anger, has a much higher chance of being shared. Humans are wired to seek out and spread emotional experiences. Therefore, emotional engagement is one of the most powerful tools in creating shareable content.
- Add Value to Their Social Circles: People also share content because they feel it will be valuable to their network. Whether it’s educational, inspiring, or simply entertaining, content that brings value is more likely to be shared. If someone believes that the content will enhance someone else’s day or provide useful insights, they’re more likely to share it.
- FOMO (Fear of Missing Out): When content taps into the fear of missing out or plays into trends, people are more inclined to share it. Think about viral challenges or trending hashtags, people want to be part of the conversation and share what others are talking about.
Understanding these psychological factors is the first step to crafting content that is inherently shareable. With these insights in mind, let’s now turn our attention to how you can create content that taps into these motivations.
Tips for Creating Shareable Content
Know Your Audience
The foundation of any great content strategy is a deep understanding of your audience. Before you can create shareable content, you need to know what resonates with your target demographic. What are their pain points, desires, and challenges? What kind of content do they consume, and what motivates them to hit that “share” button?
To get a better grasp on what your audience wants, consider conducting surveys, looking at social media trends, and engaging with your community. The more data you have about your audience, the more tailored and shareable your content will be.
Craft Attention-Grabbing Headlines
The first impression matters, especially in the digital world where people scroll quickly. Your headline or title is what convinces people to stop and engage with your content. A compelling headline should promise value, evoke curiosity, or appeal to an emotion.
Use actionable language and avoid clickbait. For instance, instead of “Check Out These Tips,” use something more specific like, “5 Surprising Tips That Will Make Your Content Go Viral.” This makes it clear to the reader that there is real value behind the headline, increasing the chances of them sharing the content.
Keep It Short and Sweet
People’s attention spans are shorter than ever, especially in a fast-paced online environment. Content that is concise and to the point is more likely to be shared than lengthy, convoluted articles or videos. Whether it’s a blog post, infographic, or video, make sure your content gets to the point quickly and delivers its message clearly.
However, this doesn’t mean your content has to be lacking in depth. The key is to convey your message efficiently while still providing enough substance to make it worth sharing. Infographics and bite-sized videos are particularly popular for this reason, they can deliver valuable insights in a visually appealing and easily digestible format.
Create Visually Engaging Content
Visual content is more engaging and shareable than text-heavy content. Incorporate images, videos, infographics, and other visuals that support your message. Studies show that content with visuals gets 94% more views than text-based content. Whether it’s a beautifully designed graphic, a meme, or a tutorial video, visual content has a higher chance of being shared.
When creating visual content, make sure it aligns with your brand’s aesthetic and message. Consistent, well-designed visuals help your content stand out, making it more shareable.
Leverage Humour and Entertainment
Humour is one of the most powerful tools for creating shareable content. People love to share content that entertains them, whether it’s a funny meme, a witty tweet, or a humorous video. However, humour should always be in line with your brand’s voice and audience preferences.
The trick to using humour successfully in your content is to keep it relatable and authentic. People share content that makes them laugh, but they’re more likely to share something that resonates with their personal experiences or interests.
Incorporate Social Proof
People are more likely to share content that has already been shared by others. Social proof plays a significant role in determining whether content goes viral. When content garners social engagement, such as likes, shares, or comments, it signals to others that it’s worth checking out and sharing.
Consider adding testimonials, reviews, or user-generated content to your posts to showcase social proof. If your content is already being shared, people will feel more inclined to share it as well.
Tell a Story
Storytelling is one of the most effective ways to connect emotionally with your audience. People love stories because they evoke empathy and help individuals see themselves in the narrative. Whether it’s a personal story, a customer success story, or a brand narrative, storytelling can make your content much more relatable and shareable.
When crafting stories for shareable content, aim for a beginning, middle, and end. Engage the audience’s emotions and always tie the story back to your brand’s message or mission.
Create Interactive Content
Interactive content invites users to engage with your brand in a way that passive content cannot. Quizzes, polls, surveys, and challenges are all great examples of interactive content that people love to share. Interactive content encourages participation and can even lead to virality if it resonates with a wide audience.
For instance, if you create a quiz titled “Which Type of Content Creator Are You?” and it’s shareable and entertaining, your audience is more likely to share their results with friends and followers, thus helping your content go viral.
Strategies to Increase Your Chances of Going Viral
Timing Is Key
Timing plays a crucial role in whether your content will go viral. Pay attention to current trends, events, and hot topics. If you can create content that taps into these trends, you increase your chances of your content being shared. For instance, if a popular meme or challenge is circulating, create content that incorporates it in a way that’s relevant to your brand.
Moreover, consider posting during peak times when your audience is most active on social media. By posting at the right time, you can maximise the visibility and shareability of your content.
Utilise Influencers
Influencers can play a significant role in helping your content go viral. Partnering with influencers who have a large and engaged following can significantly amplify the reach of your shareable content. Whether it’s through sponsored posts or collaborations, influencers can help your content reach a wider audience and increase its chances of being shared.
Make sure the influencers you partner with align with your brand values and target audience for maximum effectiveness.
Use Hashtags and Trends
Hashtags are a powerful way to increase the visibility of your content on social media platforms. By using relevant and trending hashtags, your content has a higher chance of being discovered by a wider audience. Keep an eye on trending topics and integrate them into your content strategy when appropriate.
You can also create a branded hashtag and encourage your audience to use it when sharing content related to your brand. This can help you build a community around your content and increase its viral potential.
Encourage Sharing with CTAs
A simple call to action (CTA) can encourage your audience to share your content. Phrases like “Share this with a friend” or “Tag someone who needs to see this” can help motivate users to spread your content. Don’t be afraid to ask your audience directly to share your content if they find it valuable.
Optimise for Mobile
The majority of social media users access platforms via mobile devices. For your content to be easily shareable, it must be optimised for mobile. Ensure that your content, whether it’s a blog post, video, or image, loads quickly, looks great on mobile screens, and is easy to share across platforms.
4 Day Digital Marketing Course Opportunity
Creating shareable content is both an art and a science. It involves understanding the psychology behind sharing, crafting content that resonates with your audience, and employing strategic tactics to increase your content’s chances of going viral. By focusing on emotional engagement, providing value, utilising visual content, and leveraging trends, you can boost the likelihood of your content being shared and reaching a wider audience.
At Qualia we are offering a 4-day digital marketing course to those in West Yorkshire where you will be taught about content creation alongside other digital skills such as social media, SEO and digital marketing skills.
If you are interested feel free to contact us at [email protected]
For more information about this 4-day course click here
