Cats Are Over: Social Media in the Post Cat Economy

Transcript

1. in the Post-Cat 24 brands thriving on Economy social media RETURN TO SENDER p r e s e n t s
2. first We have combed recent Webby history to discover which Winners are approaching social in a particularly notable, original, and interesting way. Here, The Webby Awards present a selection of our findings coupled with industry facts and insights from Webby judges and the people behind the brands. The Webby Awards is the leading international organization honoring excellence on the Internet. For 18 years, we have honored the best of the Web. We receive entries from over 60 countries each year, and it is with this unique perspective that we present these insights on best practices online. It used to be that you could post cute cat pictures, and your follower count would sky rocket. These days, brands not only compete against each other for attention, but also against the Internet-famous cats themselves. So if you’re still posting about cats, in a world this cat-centric, your message is going to get lost. The brands that are doing truly innovative, interesting online marketing are coming up with fresh and original concepts. No longer can your brand grow and thrive if it’s leaning on stale tactics and tired strategies appropriated from yesteryear. first things first things
3. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s first first Making the most out of social media is hard work. Balancing the right mix of networks, tactics, and posts is tricky. In an industry where trends begin and end in three hours, it’s easy to get caught up in what others are doing, without being especially mindful of your brand’s special characteristics and strengths. Creating a successful social media strategy begins with some rigorous questioning and introspection. Because no matter how big and successful a brand may be, it’s crucial to create an environment within which people will want to engage. impressions stay FRESH go on, humblebrag Canvas Opportunities the right look stay FRESH go on, humblebrag Canvas Opportunities the right look 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4
4. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s Facebook posts that contain photos get 7x more comments than the average post. 7 A huge swath of the country gets their news from USA Today (Webby Nominee - Best Navigation / Structure). One smart way this daily stays relevant is by updating their Facebook cover photo with a noteworthy news item every morning. It’s a savvy touch to customize their digital brand and invest time and energy to craft a unique image for their “dot”' logo – further reinforcing their digital presence. stay FRESH stay FRESH 1 1 7x FA C T Changing our cover photo is a key way for us to reflect the national dialogue each day. The daily logos are often a fun wink at what people are talking about that morning, and Facebook is a great place for us to continue that discussion. MARK W. SMITH @MARKDUBYA SENIOR MANAGER, SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING AT USA TODAY
5. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s go on, humblebrag go on, humblebrag 2 2 Chefs Feed (Webby Winner - Guides) peppers its Facebook and Twitter profiles with awards and recognition, bolstering the brand’s legitimacy. There’s a delicate balance to be struck between letting people know about your notable accolades and coming across as a shameless self-promoter, so it’s important to choose wisely and somewhat sparingly. But ultimately, social media is a great way to take pride in letting people know how your work has been honored. Number of hours after which engagement with a link on Facebook or Twitter will begin to die o . 3 FA C T Ever since we added the awards badges to our social profiles, our engagement has jumped, and so have our downloads. It's such a simple thing to do and has had a big return for us. JARED RIVERA @CHEFSFEED COFOUNDER AT CHEFS FEED
6. c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s Canvas Opportunities Canvas Opportunities 3 3 On Twitter, profile backgrounds are often addressed as an afterthought, but they shouldn’t necessarily take a back seat. Your profile might be viewed on a tiny netbook or a large desktop monitor. One way to design for all these options is to employ an easy Photoshop trick, as used by Delish (Webby Nominee - Food & Drink) and Red Bull (Webby Winner - Branded Entertainment). Save your background image as a PNG file with edges that fade into transparency. Then choose a complementary background color that will blend in with the uploaded image nicely. These link flags encourage tra c to Delish’s other social presences. Don’t forget that the videos and images you share will be featured on your page. SoundCloud (Webby Nominee - Social Media) has also invested time in their background using a di erent sort of image that uses gradients to great advantage, which helps the background look as intended on a variety of screen sizes. webbyawards.com
7. c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s c h a p t e r 1 : f i r s t i m p r e s s i o n s the right look the right look 4 4 Each social network has di erent design attributes, so it’s important to pay attention and make the most of what’s available. Google+, for instance, allows surprisingly tall cover photos, and yet only a sliver of each of the image will show when the page loads. Epicurious (Webby People’s Voice Winner - Food & Drink), ESPN (Webby Winner - Documentary), and National Geographic (Webby Nominee - Travel) all approach this in di erent but e ective ways. National Geographic changes their cover photos often, but always makes sure that the visible sliver piques enough interest to make you scroll up. Animated GIFs are the most engaging format posted on Google+. 1 FA C T webbyawards.com Epicurious uses a short cover photo that’s bright and appetizing. ESPN goes long, but makes sure to include a lot of movement in the lower area.
8. Maintaining a healthy, ongoing relationship with your audience takes care, consideration, and craft. Nothing will result in unfriends and unfollows faster than going o -brand or being thoughtless. Setting the stage for posts is key, as is delivering content that’s relevant, interesting, and in line with expectations. content first webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t keep it bite-sized the virtue of categorization but seriously, folks: templates fidelity is beauty it takes a community shack up keep it bite-sized the virtue of categorization but seriously, folks: templates fidelity is beauty it takes a community shack up 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 Mittens McPaws @MittensMcPaws The clean laundry pile 47,800 TWEETS 934 FOLLOWING 0 FOLLOWERS Follow Hey, where did everybody go? :( 3 days ago
9. c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t The sheer amount of online content posted every day is mind boggling, so how information is contextualized and organized greatly a ects readership. Be mindful to keep your post copy tight and not bury the lead. National Geographic makes content more digestible for its 16 million Facebook fans through titling like “Photo of the Day”, “Friday Fact,” and “Photo Tip.” Immediately, fans know what they’re getting into. Keep It Bite-Sized Keep It Bite-Sized 1 1 webbyawards.com Long Facebook posts get less readership. Posts between 100 - 119 characters tend to perform the best. 3 100- 119 FA C T For their part, GOOD Magazine (Webby Nominee - Best Use of Motion Graphics) takes a similar approach by placing hashtags at the beginning of each Google+ post, which helps to categorize the content for their followers. And visually, it also keeps posts looking clean and organized.
10. c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t The Virtue of Categorization The Virtue of Categorization 2 2 Just as organized copy is important, so are organized visuals. Categories don’t just make for a clearer, more organized content landscape, they can also help bring to light less obvious commonalities and traits. Mashable (Webby Winner - Blog) has enjoyed success on Pinterest by doing just that, with deft categorization helping them and their 1.4 million-strong community box and share an otherwise unwieldy content pool. Percentage of Pinterest users that are female. 1 FA C T 69% webbyawards.com
11. c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t But Seriously, Folks: Templates But Seriously, Folks: Templates 3 3 Team Coco (Webby Winner - Celebrity) posts a smart mix of behind-the-scenes shots and photo-quote overlays designed to get a laugh and be shared. It’s a good example of how to seed content. It works on its own because it’s not contingent on whether you watched live, but it very well may compel followers to go back and check out that episode, or serve as a reminder to catch tonight’s show. Fan-created CONAN memes were landing on the front page of Reddit.com, so we started experimenting with producing them ourselves. They're successful on multiple levels. They're like a jolt of instant entertainment—they take only seconds to consume and share, and if you're interested in diving deeper, the footage is readily available on our website. JOHN WOODEN @JOHNWOODEN GM/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER AT TEAM COCO DIGITAL Number of photos uploaded on Instagram every day - 1.2 billion are liked. 2 FA C T 55M webbyawards.com
12. webbyawards.com America’s Finest News Source, The Onion (Webby Winner - Humor), consistently uses a template of a photo and headline, with the call-to-action “Full Report at theonion.com” to drive tra c to their comedy hub. This template ensures brand fidelity and familiarity among its followers. It’s a good example of a brand using content to tease its community on a platform that doesn’t support links. Both Team Coco and The Onion make use of a subtle watermark as well, so that the brands are apparent via re-grams. Everybody tries to goose tra c by being deliberately unclear and overselling what's on the other side of a click. We're simultaneously parodying and partaking in this form. What we try to keep in mind is the overall experience for our followers. We'll leave disappointing readers to other publishers; when we use misdirection, we want the payo to be a positive one. JORDAN DAVID @JMDAVID WEB PRODUCER AT THE ONION "We've found such success with this layout that we've even adapted it for advertising campaigns. BOB MARSHALL @BOBMARSHALL MARKETING MANAGER AT THE ONION
13. c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t Fidelity is Beauty Fidelity is Beauty 4 4 Our pins are chosen and produced by the journalists who work in the Fashion, Dining and Home sections at The Times, so as much as possible our followers are benefitting from their direct expertise. We even give each pin a visual "byline" by having our reporters and editors create pins under their own name in their own Pinterest accounts, and then we reshare them to the New York Times boards. LEXI MAINLAND @LEXINYT SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR AT THE NEW YORK TIMES webbyawards.com The New York Times (Webby Winner - Social News & Information) are experts at providing “All the News that’s Fit to Print,” so it’s no wonder that they understand what makes for shareable, evergreen content. Rather than linkbaiting with boards like “25 Images That Shocked the World,” they instead opt for impactful images with positive connotations—a sort of photo tour through the Times archives. “Food” is the top category on Pinterest, with 57% of users discussing food- related content. 1 FA C T 57%
14. c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t It Takes a Community It Takes a Community 5 5 Sometimes, a brand’s voice is best represented by the individuals who make up its community. Greatist (Webby Nominee - Health) is a website dedicated to inspiring readers to make healthier choices in everyday life. One way they encourage their audience is by connecting the individuals to one another on Instagram, in the hopes that one person’s healthy choices will inspire another’s. Greatist’s followers use the hashtag #imagreatist (I’m a Greatist) proudly. Not only do they tag their photos, but they also create content for the community, foster engagement, and improve discovery for the Greatist Instagram account. webbyawards.com
15. webbyawards.com Whereas many media companies only broadcast original tweets about their own articles, The Atlantic (Webby Nominee - Best Writing) is far more participatory. They often retweet their contributors, keeping their output fresh and varied, while strengthening their readership bonds. The optimal time for retweets in the U.S. is 5 pm E.T., but the peak time for click-throughs is at noon and at 6 pm E.T. 5 FA C T 5PM
16. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t c h a p t e r 2 : c o n t e n t f i r s t Percentage of Instagram users who live outside of the U.S. 2 FA C T 60% Shake Shack (Webby Winner - Food & Drink) is the master of the Instagram re-gram. They track people who use certain hashtags related to their brand and then re-gram images, crediting the follower’s handle, taking the heavy lifting o content creation. (Not to mention that it’s a nice touch for the re-grammed Shake Shack followers.) Shack up Shack up 6 6 ShackBurgers were made for Instagram! We watch our feed closely and regularly re-gram Shack-related photos that look especially delicious or have an artistic edge. Our fans love to be featured, we love to feature them, and we end up with a stream of visual snacking that drives engagement. GREG WATERS @SHAKESHACK SENIOR MANAGER, MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS AT SHAKE SHACK
17. webbyawards.com @THEWEBBYAWARDS
18. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t Achieving a sound social strategy and publishing the best content for your brand paves the way for success. But like any platform or canvas, it can pay dividends to innovate. O ering new perspectives, delivering unexpected content, and seizing creative ideas and techniques can launch your brand to new heights. Don't be afraid to explore ways to engage your community beyond just brand messaging. Remember that social media is a place to share what your brand believes in, not just what it does. Help your community discover relevant and engaging information, images, videos, and people. When all the elements come together, that’s what makes a social experience a memorable one—something that people want to be part of again and again. build to last Y ou Are What Y ou T weet (or post or share) Break New Ground enlist a curator Don’t be a Robot, even if you are Y ou Are What Y ou T weet (or post or share) Break New Ground enlist a curator Don’t be a Robot, even if you are 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4
19. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t It’s smart to think big picture. Don’t just focus on selling your product or service — sell an idea, attitude, lifestyle. Rather than deal alerts alone, KAYAK (Webby Winner - Travel) instead romances the idea of getting away by sharing good listicles, #tips, and inspirational quotes about travel. You Are What You Tweet (or post or share) You Are What You Tweet (or post or share) 1 1 Content needs to help our users travel smarter, travel better, or make them say “I’m glad I clicked/read/watched that.” If it doesn’t meet that criteria we don’t post it. We utilize insight from data analysis of hundreds of millions of travel search queries on KAYAK's site and mobile applications each month to share timely and useful travel tips. ALLIE MACPHERSON @ALLIEMAC01 TEXT 100 DIGITAL CONSULTANT FOR KAYAK CareerBliss (Webby Nominee - Employment) is an employment site that provides job listings and salary information, but lives up to its name through playful Pinterest content. CareerBliss’s Pinterest boards focus beyond the job hunt and feature workplace humor, caricatures of co-workers, infographics, and reference materials. Our Pinterest boards draw inspiration from the foundation of the CareerBliss brand, which is to empower people to find happier careers. As our audience grew, we added Pinterest boards based on what our followers enjoyed. Pinterest is a great way for CareerBliss to engage with our community and give them fun and informative posts to improve their career happiness. HEIDI GOLLEDGE @HEIDIGOLLEDGE CHIEF HAPPINESS OFFICER AT CAREERBLISS
20. webbyawards.com Real Simple’s (Webby Nominee - Email Newsletters) Pinterest is deceptively complex. With 133 boards featuring a robust variety of di erent pins, they’ve taken an incredibly expansive approach to representing their brand across a wide variety of subjects that are relevant to their community. We’ve learned how important it is to pin frequently and consistently to truly engage with and attract followers. It's crucial that your boards fit your brand's mission—and try not to overdo it. The more boards you have, the more pins you'll need to keep those boards successful. KATHLEEN HARRIS @NYCMURRAY MANAGING EDITOR AT REAL SIMPLE “Garlic Cheesy Bread” is the most repinned Pinterest Pin. 1 FA C T
21. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t Break New Ground Break New Ground 2 2 Today's top performing brands explore emerging technology and platforms early, along with their most forward thinking users. The question isn't, "Why does this new site/tech matter?" but rather, "Can we make this matter together?” AARON DIGNAN @AARONDIGNAN FOUNDING PARTNER & CEO AT UNDERCURRENT The General Electric (Webby Winner - Technology) #6SecondScience Fair encouraged people to "pack as much science as you can" into a six-second Vine video. Not only did GE succeed in promoting one of its core values by utilizing an emerging social platform, but in the process, they helped their audience learn how to use Vine by providing an assignment to focus on. Car enthusiasts are known for their rabid devotion to their hobby. Mullen (Webby Nominee - Banner Campaigns) created a stir with a Snapchat promotion for their client Acura, which revealed six seconds of an unseen automobile prototype. By catering to hardcore race fans, they could target the audience who were interested in cutting-edge technology and who were likely to be active users of the new social platform.
22. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t Enlist a Curator Enlist a Curator 3 3 Instead of breaking news photos like you might expect, The Guardian (Webby Nominee - Best Writing) has taken a completely di erent approach and handed over their Instagram account to talented photographers who travel the world, sharing photos on a certain topic, theme, or journey. This approach has been a success. Photographers have such unique observations and often encounter their surroundings in a completely di erent way than a writer—but often the reporter’s voice is the only one heard. So besides giving us hundreds of beautiful photos, this humanized our new account. KATIE ROGERS @KATIEROGERS SOCIAL NEWS EDITOR AT THE GUARDIAN
23. webbyawards.com Speaking of curation, Curators of Sweden (Webby Winner - Best Use of Social Media) have taken it to a whole new level. The country is now being represented by its citizens on Twitter, as the @Sweden account is handed over to a new person every seven days so they can share their unique and personal perspectives.
24. webbyawards.com c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t c h a p t e r 3 : b u i l d to l a s t Don’t Be a Robot, even if you are Don’t Be a Robot, even if you are 4 4 The Mars Curiosity (Webby Winner - Overall Social Presence) Twitter account is an excellent example of how even a technical and institutional organization like NASA can still be fun and entertaining. The Mars Curiosity rover’s tweets aren’t stu y or sti , but always informative. It’s why we love this 2013 Webby Winner. Percentage of adult internet users in the U.S. who are now active on Twitter. 4 20 FA C T % News & Social Media Manager at NASA-JPL @VERONICAMCG
25. webbyawards.com @COURTOCONNOR @STEPHIST
26. enter your best work to the 18th annual Webby Awards at webbyawards.com CATs are over. show us what’s next. Early Entry Deadline: November 1st Final Entry Deadline: December 20th Curiosity kills ignorance, encourage science! NASA SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM 5 WORD ACCEPTANCE SPEECH AT THE 17TH ANNUAL WEBBY AWARDS
27. webbyawards.com appendix: fact sources appendix: fact sources 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 Source: Digital Insights http://blog.digitalinsights.in/social-media-facts-and-statistics-2013/0560387.html Source: Instagram http://instagram.com/press/ Source: ClickZ http://www.clickz.com/clickz/column/2154074/120-billion-facebook-impressions-tell Source: All Twitter http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/twitter-growth_b36955 Source: Kissmetrics http://blog.kissmetrics.com/science-of-social-timing-1/ Source: bitly http://blog.bitly.com/post/9887686919/you-just-shared-a-link-how-long-will-people-pay Source: Sotrender http://blog.sotrender.com/2012/05/words-that-engage-thousands-on-facebook/