7 Tips for Eye-Catching Social Media Posts
June 21st, 2018 by
For years, social media has been the most cost-effective place to advertise your business, but it takes planning to stand out from the competition. In the up-to-the-minute marketplace of memes, it pays to use eye-catching colors, animated images, and consistent, compelling branding. Fortunately, once you develop a digital marketing strategy that reflects the strengths of your company, you’ll be able to create and share content with a minimal investment of time and effort.
1. A “Social Media Strategy” is Key.
Every month, 30 percent of millennials interact with a brand on social media platforms like Facebook. Consumers expect to find information about your business on social media, and they want to be able to reference your company’s page when bragging about their positive experience at your establishment. Pictures of meals have been some of the most popular content on Instagram, and a lot of those pictures are copied to other social media platforms. When the friends of your customers ask where they can get that ice cream fudge volcano, wouldn’t it be great if your business page was suggested as a hyperlink? Customers are already talking about your business online, but your business has to be on social media to join that conversation.
2. Source High-Quality Images.
We’ve all learned to spot them: bland stock photos show smiling employees or hands at a keyboard, but they don’t inspire trust in the business. Instead of using generic, one-size-fits-all images, consider hiring a photographer to take real photos of your business and products. Alternatively, grab your iPhone and take a few pictures yourself. DIY photos convey relatable authenticity, and they can work as short-term images on social media, but a professional photographer will take lighting and composition into account, digitally adjusting images as needed. Whenever you can afford the expense, make quality images a priority, especially for the long-term images that become profiles and header images on your social media pages.
3. Pay Attention to Color Schemes.
Does your branding consistently utilize a couple of key colors? Great! But consider using slightly different (but still complementary) colors for different lines of products and services. Spotify is a great example of a brand that makes use of dynamic color schemes but still manages to keep it consistent. In the image from Venngage above, you can see how they’re easy to recognize but hard to forget.
Colors convey a personality and warmth, and it’s worth a little time to evaluate whether to choose bright and bold colors or something more subdued and approachable. Rather than defaulting to flat reds and blues, use light and dark gradients to achieve something more unique than the local high school’s color scheme. Choose unconventional colors to make your posts more recognizable on social media. Spotify makes use of dynamic color schemes throughout all of their branding designs. This creates a stronger visual for their brand and allows visitors to instantly recognize their graphics and associate them with their company.
4. Make Your Own Custom Branded GIFs.
A step beyond quality still images, GIFs are animated bitmap images. While its pronunciation is debatable, the acronym stands for graphics interchange format. Clips from TV shows and other videos are popular fodder for GIF images, where a gesture or a moment of action is captured and repeated in a short loop. Moving images naturally stand out in the newsfeeds of customers, and humorous GIFs inspire a lot of organic engagement. GIFs are recirculated for free online, but creating your own has distinct advantages. First, when you create your own content, it’s easier to avoid potential copyright issues. Second, when your custom GIFs are fun and compelling, those GIFs can lead people back to your website, helping you build authority online.
5. Leverage Cinemagraphs.
Cinemagraphs can be made in video or GIF format, so there’s naturally some confusion and overlap. Still, GIFs tend to be loops of a video where the beginning and end are clear, not unlike an instant replay from a sporting event. Cinemagraphs, on the other hand, tend to be artistically made in a way in which it’s hard to tell when the image begins to repeat, giving the effect of a live picture or streaming video. A steaming cup of coffee, a waterfall, and a drink being poured are examples of subject matter for cinemagraphs. Naturally captivating, this type of media is harder to DIY, but it can make a crucial difference at the moment when users decide whether to stop or keep scrolling.
6. Keep It Consistent But Exciting!
While experimenting with different types of media and formats, remember to keep your messaging on track. Don’t get bogged down with details, either in perfecting a single post or cramming as much information as possible. With the short attention spans on social media, clarity and brevity are essential.
– Bullet points and clear headers are helpful with any text. If you haven’t hired a professional graphic designer, then avoid the temptation to use artistic (but hard to read) fonts.
– Big, clear lettering is safest, especially when your target audience includes older demographics.
– Numbers, percentages, and impressive statistics can help catch the reader’s eye.
– Don’t be afraid to try different techniques and learn what works best for your audience, but stay close to home base while you develop your image as a reliable, professional authority.
Alternatively, a broader presence in the community can make your business a topic of conversation, but that type of campaign can have a more gradual impact on walk-in clients and leads.
7. Always Keep Your Marketing Goals in Mind
Especially when you’re first getting started, it’s a good idea to check out the social media presence of others in the same industry. You may find businesses in the same industry that have a different service area, and therefore they aren’t direct competition. Take a look at how different types of posts inspire different amounts of engagement, and you may find ideas for developing content of your own. As with any type of marketing, it’s also important to clearly define your goals at the outset. Is your objective to build a following and make your brand more recognizable in the community? Or are you mainly looking to generate leads for potential clients? Depending on your industry, dominating local search may be the most effective way to get clients to call your company.
If you don’t have the time to juggle business operations with digital marketing, then you can always outsource your social media management to professionals. The experienced team at Search Influence can provide a digital marketing and SEO consultation, identifying opportunities to strengthen your online presence. Follow our blog for the latest tips on GIFs and marketing trends.
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Great guidelines. I agree with all steps and think that each of them is necessary.
It is a very nice information. Hi, I am Umesh and it’s a very essential topic you discuss in this article. Thank you so much for giving this valuable information on Eye-Catching Social Media Posts. I will really implement in my business posts.