At 9/8 Central, we make content creation painless...and worth it. And we want to teach you to do the same. We use our years of experience to teach businesses and creators how to get the most out of their video content across their digital footprint. If you want to learn the best ways to use video in social media, then you need to subscribe to our newsletter!
How to sell on social media
Selling on socialThis statement is one of the trickiest contradictions in marketing today. Here’s why: people don’t want to be sold to on social, but they still want to buy here. Organic social content is an arms race right now. Volume is the goal—can we be everywhere in front of everyone all the time? This extreme thought process isn’t just a poor approach, it’s impossible for most brands to achieve. The result of this posting frenzy is convoluted social channels. A ton of white noise. And most of it has some sort of direct selling language. “Buy this now,” is no longer an enticing CTA. Those words get tuned out, just like most things we hear or see time and time again. So, what’s a marketer to do? A buzzword answer. A cliche. It’s so predictable it hurts. But, you’ve gotta make them feel something. Usually, the best way to do that is with a story. And if your work just isn’t emotional at its core, that’s okay! But people are emotional. And you’ve got a few of those lying around, right? Leverage them. Ask yourself these questions to give your story-telling content a little kickstart:
Sure, sometimes you need to be direct with your messaging. And maybe that works for you—don’t change it, if that’s the case. But all we’re saying is this: audiences know when you’re trying to sell today, and they don’t like it. They get enough ads with selling language. They want to be drawn in. They want to relate to something. Then your brand’s offering isn’t just a commodity—one of several options. It becomes the one that gets them. And that, friends, is the goal. A case study in generating social buzzRemember the Solo Stove thing? You know, the one where they tabbed Snoop to promote a new product in a modern-day bait-and-switch. (Has anyone made a “gone up in smoke” joke yet?) Every marketer had a take on it. Guess it’s our turn. And in typical fashion, we’re thinking something different. We’re thinking this actually was a killer strategy. It was gimmicky, yes, but it seemed like that was the point? They needed to generate buzz and reach, and they had the resources to chase down a crazy idea. From that perspective, it worked. What they missed out on was matching product demand with their reach, and that’s tricky when you’re casting as wide a net as possible. There’s an assumption with this approach that, “Ehhh, our customers are in there somewhere. They’ll reveal themselves eventually.” And that’s an expensive gamble if they decide to keep hiding. So, it failed because it didn’t reach the people it needed to reach. That takes finesse and targeting—to fill your funnel and have your customers move themselves down it. But, man, it was fun to watch. Video metrics that matterChasing vanity stats while you're getting your feet wet? That's gonna let you down. Here's what to track instead 👇 |
9/8 Central
At 9/8 Central, we make content creation painless...and worth it. And we want to teach you to do the same. We use our years of experience to teach businesses and creators how to get the most out of their video content across their digital footprint. If you want to learn the best ways to use video in social media, then you need to subscribe to our newsletter!
Does your audience care about your brand account? Someone sent us this recently and it brings up something really important. And we actually kinda agree, but we have a slightly different take: posting like a brand account is dead. Compare brand accounts to creator accounts (or founder accounts, like the Reel references). Brand accounts are usually (but not always): Stuffy Rigid Sales-oriented Not fun Not entertaining Bleh Creator accounts are usually (but not always): Interesting Personal...
Social media copywriting tips Copywriting on social media is an art, and it’s often overlooked because of everything else that goes into managing social channels. It’s critical but tough—best practices for social media copywriting are surprisingly fluid. Here are a few pieces of advice you can apply today to make your social content shine a little brighter. Know your voice: If you’re managing a brand account, it’s important to differentiate between the brand’s voice and your natural writing...
Do holiday, birthday, and anniversary posts belong on corporate social accounts? Do holiday, birthday, and anniversary posts belong on corporate social accounts? Our opinion: It depends on the purpose. A good purpose is if you’re following a thoughtful strategy. Maybe your company and your team has a lot of face time with current/prospective clients or customers. It’s a good idea to get their names and faces out there, so your audience doesn’t feel like they’re meeting a stranger. Maybe...