5 ingredients for campaign winning social media

Here’s a recipe for reaching thousands with your message…

I'm running a content creation session for the Sheila McKechnie Foundation where I’ll be sharing my top tips for creating social media. This blog gives you a sneak peak into some of the tips I share with campaigners.

Social media is ever changing. Five years ago TikTok wasn’t something campaigners needed to get to grips with. Today 38% of people in the UK are using it at least once a month. Facebook is still being used by 70% of people once a month. But while videos used to be our best bet on the platform, now simple text posts reach millions.

Yet while we must constantly keep track of changes, some key components of good social media have stayed the same across the years. So here’s a simple recipe with the key ingredients for creating content - a TAACO!

Timely

Every minute there’s something shocking in the news and whichever platform you're on, the conversation is constantly changing. Too often non-profits plan too far in advance and spend far too long on content, meaning it's irrelevant by the time anyone sees it. To get the biggest reach, we need to respond to that day or weeks’ news and trends. The good news is some of the biggest trends are often easy to copy without any money spent, whether it’s Tiktok dances or simple news tweets.

The key, especially for those of us in complex organisations, is having speedy processes and techniques in your toolkit. It could be worth thinking about if you need things like: a clearer sign off procedure, video templates, easy to use content creation tools, a style guide, or Tiktok presenters on speed dial.

Authentic

You only have to look at huge influencers like Zoella who made a fortune off of just being themselves to know that authenticity is king.

One of the highest performing videos of the last few years was seemingly filmed on a phone - 20-Year-Old Female Airman Surprises Mom at Work. Real people have been creating ‘real content’ that reaches millions since Charlie Bit My Finger hit Youtube.

Right winger Bolsonaro used videos of his everyday life to win the Brazilian election. Progressive politicians like AOC do it too. People want organic, relatable and real - big budget videos can work too, but they’re a bigger risk. 

Attention grabbing

I used to train people to only create videos in 30 seconds or 1 minute maximum - now the algorithms have changed - even shorter on Tiktok and sometimes longer form content works on Twitter or Facebook.

But the first few seconds remain the most important in deciding whether they watch the rest - and take any meaningful action with your organisation.

TikTok says that “80% of the awareness impact happens in the first 8 seconds.” Try to use people looking straight to the camera and cut to the action quickly. The same goes for images - make sure they’re emotive, interesting and not over complicated. Like a tabloid writer, use a clear “hook” if you’re using text that tells people what they’re about to see and why they should carry on looking. 65% of people are looking at your video or image on a phone - so keep it simple and exciting and make sure to preview your content on a phone too.

Clear language

When you’ve spent a long time working on an issue close to your heart, many find it hard to imagine knowing nothing about it. Even if you think you’re a clear writer, you’re probably guilty of over complicating things.

Always re-read what you’ve written and think if it can be said simpler, especially if it's going on an image or is the headline on a video.

How would you explain it to your friends in the pub or your parents? When you set out to create your piece of content hopefully you’ll think about your objectives and your target audience - so remember to think about what language is most persuasive to them. 

On-trend

Many forget - or don’t have the time - to keep their finger on the pulse. Many charities still not making the simple switch from Instagram video to reel content, for example.

Watch every day influencers, young campaigners like Mikaela Loach, brands and meme pages (Shadeborough, Dannyfuckingprice, Unilad, Ladbible, Hatezine). Remember that if you aren’t the best people to re-create current trends, you can pay those who can like some of the amazing content creators who already exist. This works particularly well on TikTok for brands that don’t have in house presenters.

To keep up to date with trends subscribe to Social Media Today emails and look at Buffer’s updates.

So that’s the TAACO - Timely, Authentic, Attention Grabbing, Clear, On Trend! I hope that it’s helpful, whether you’re working on climate change or housing — and that it hasn’t made you too hungry to get creating content.

Join one of my content creation sessions to learn how to quickly come up with content ideas that will help you build your movement and win your campaigns. We’ll look at the best performing content right now and work together to come up with ideas that can help us change the world.