Value-driven content is paramount for any content marketing strategy. Marketing campaigns live and die on the value they bring, which is why valuable content is so important. When it comes to digital marketing, there are a variety of ways to distribute this content. One way is through your company’s social media platform.
While there are various types of content that can add value, I want to focus on the written word as opposed to content such as infographics and podcasts. As such, I’ll be referring to those social networks that allow you to really focus on written content, such as LinkedIn, as opposed to those that don’t, such as Snapchat.
Digital marketers often talk about value-driven content, but what does that mean in the context of social media? To answer that, it’s important to note that value-driven content does one or more of the following things.
Empathizes
Do you understand your target demographics? Specifically, do you understand their problems and goals? Your social media messaging should talk about how you can solve a problem while helping them attain a goal.
For example, if you make wooden furniture for young families, you could post something like, “Finding a table that will last your family for years can be difficult. We can help. Each of our tables comes with a lifetime warranty, so you know it’s built-to-last.”
Inspires
Making someone smile is certainly a valuable thing. Is there a story you read about that was inspiring to you? Does your company partner with any nonprofits? If so, are there any inspirational stories you can share?
Better yet, if you have an inspirational story within your company, consider writing a blog post about it. Then create social media content that consists of a one-to-two sentence blurb that describes the blog post and include a link to it.
Note: Beware of using inspirational quotes as part of your marketing efforts. Personally, I think using inspirational quotes is an overused practice that typically doesn’t add value. That’s not to say using an inspirational quote will never add value. But I recommend using them sparingly, if at all.
Educates
What have you been learning? Share that knowledge with your audience. This is where a different kind of quote can come in useful: the educational quote. But make sure you’re quoting a reputable source regarding an educational piece of content. There’s a big difference between using an educational quote vs. an inspirational quote when it comes to adding value.
Educating your audience doesn’t have to be complicated. Going back to the wooden furniture company example, you could say something like, “Did you know that walnut (a wood we use for our chairs) was used in WWI to make airplane propellers?”
Entertains
One way to entertain your target audience is through humor. Don’t underestimate its power to benefit a brand. Humor helps us form connections to others (and that includes companies). It’s also a great way to improve your message’s retention rates and to encourage people to take a desired course of action.
The thing about humor is that it’s hit-or-miss. So to aim for more hits than misses, I recommend staying away from humor that demeans others, gets political (for most industries), or capitalizes on sensitive topics (such as 9/11).
And don’t forget about the humor capabilities of creating a well-placed hashtag. #Rememberthatyoucanwritewhateveryouwant
If you succeed at entertaining others through humor, you can boost your company’s reputation, which could help improve your search engine optimization (SEO) rankings.
Wrapping up
Value-driven content helps take your social media strategy and your marketing plan to the next level. Providing useful, engaging content provides a better customer experience with your brand and can appeal to folks at any stage of the customer journey. It’s also great way to improve your social media metrics.
