Last week we attended #SMWF - Social Media World Forum in London. Read key take-aways on current and emerging trends in digital and social media from world leading and innovative brands.
A panel of experts discussed the importance of storytelling in content creation for social media channels.
CREATIVITY AND EMOTION
“A lot of content and storytelling success comes down to bravery and budget,” said Joe Edwards, Digital and Social Strategy Director at MOI (agency). “Studies have shown that creative marketing is twice as likely to generate social sharing.”
“Often as marketers what we do is quite rational,” said Joe. “Effective story-telling is really about embracing emotion. The great thing about a story is that we personify ourselves in those stories – we can’t help but put ourselves into those stories and that brings us closer to the brand.”
“There are emotional stories and there are rational stories,” said Kenoma Agbamu, Digital Marketing Manager of outdoor outfitter, The North Face. “There is an emotion behind the usage of the products that we have. So rather than say “That’s a jacket. It’s waterproof. You can use it when it rains,” we try to tell an emotional story.”
Former Head of Digital EMEA at The Goodyear Tyre & Rubber Company, Luisella Giani, explained their storytelling was not necessarily about the product – but related to the product. So they would focus on safety or travelling, and then explore the convergence between and offline – the experience of driving a certain type of car with a certain type of tyres.
CONTENT SOURCES
“For us it’s easy to find content,” said Kenoma from The North Face. “A lot of people go hiking and take and share beautiful photos. We find people who like to explore. We have a large group of advocates – we follow their personal channels and use their content generation. And then we think about how we can integrate that into our business.”
Phebe Hunnicutt, Digital Director of ELLE UK said “We are story-tellers by trade but sometimes people within the organisation need to be reminded about collecting content all the time. Spontaneous opportunities like a celebrity dropping in at a fashion photoshoot – people need to remember to record and share this. It’s about educating people within the organisation."
“A lot of the time it’s not about finding the stories, it’s about recognising the stories, because the stories are there,” said Luisella from Goodyear. “People really need to understand how to recognise a story. For example, thinking about driving being a part of your daily life – to work or on holidays – in a way it is easy to make content but it needs to be recognised.”
CONTENT STRATEGY
Kenoma explained that when developing The North Face content strategy they consider upcoming sponsorship and event opportunities, and identify key sources of content generation. The type and format of the content is decided after checking what is working, and what can be optimised. They also analyse which social channels customers are most likely to respond to that content, and choose platforms to push content.
SOCIAL CHANNELS
Kenoma from The North Face highlighted the need for marketers to effectively engage with customers across different digital platforms. For example, the way that people watch a video on Facebook is completely different to viewing the same video on YouTube. A commuter might view a video on Facebook without audio – so the video should be able to work purely visually. Content needs to be customised for each platform. “Dig deep into the data and pay attention to how people are using different social media, as it changes really fast. Make sure that you’re constantly optimising. With new social channels, learn to fail fast. Take baby steps but try new platforms and technologies early to test whether they have potential for your business.”
"One of the biggest challenges is just staying up to date,” said Luisella from Goodyear. “Consumers change faster than companies do – like the adoption of Snapchat. If you have a brand ambassador on the new platform, leverage their influence.”
ORGANIC Vs PAID
“It is important to consider budget from the start,” said Joe from MOI. “If you are planning on creating a great piece of video content, you need to consider how you will drive audience traffic so that they will see it. And then have a plan in place to monitor and optimise.”
A recurring theme at the Social Media World Forum was the need for paid investment in boosting social posts. A purely organic campaign is a thing of the past. Resources to support story-telling content in social media channels should form an essential part of every digital marketer's budget.
To see more information and discussion from the Social Media World Forum, check out #SMWF on twitter.