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When working to improve your social presence, it can be easy to get bogged down in the sheer number of social channels audiences frequent today. The reality is, however, that knowing what to post on each social platform is half the battle when it comes to developing an effective social media strategy.
The key is to take the time to understand what your audience on each channel is looking for, then adapt your messaging and content to meet those varying needs.
To do this effectively, start by getting familiar with each social platform using the following chart developed by small business loan company, Accion.
As you can see, each channel has a very specific purpose and core audience demographic. Always make sure to adapt the social content you create with these factors in mind.
For some brands, adapting content can be as simple as sharing the same message in various formats, including updating image sizes and leveraging any platform-specific features. More sophisticated brands, however, should try to develop a social strategy that aligns the content itself with the specific social media channel at hand.
Below, we offer three prime examples of well-known brands that effectively adapted their social strategy to fit the format, audience need, and functions of various social media channels.
As you can see, each channel has a very specific purpose and core audience demographic. Always make sure to adapt the social content you create with these factors in mind.
For some brands, adapting content can be as simple as sharing the same message in various formats, including updating image sizes and leveraging any platform-specific features. More sophisticated brands, however, should try to develop a social strategy that aligns the content itself with the specific social media channel at hand.
Below, we offer three prime examples of well-known brands that effectively adapted their social strategy to fit the format, audience need, and functions of various social media channels.
3 Examples of Brands That Know Exactly What to Post on Each Social Media Platform
1. Oreo
Popular cookie company, Oreo, has an established social media marketing strategy in place—and it shows. Browse through three examples of their content below, observing the different angles the brand takes to share its core messaging on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Oreo on Twitter
Why It Works: Twitter is known for its quick pace and 180-character limit. Oreo has embraced these qualities with a quick, voice-y post that also leans into the popular “timeline trend” often used by individuals on the platform. Here, Oreo is able to successfully share the brand’s core messaging—that Oreos are delicious—in a fun and relatable way.
Oreo on Pinterest
Why It Works: On Pinterest, Oreo has chosen to create a longer post and share a recipe using their cookies as a staple ingredient. This is a creative and strategic way to get audiences excited about the product, while leveraging the longer word count and high-quality image capabilities of the platform.
Oreo has also chosen to create this post and add it to an entire Pinterest Board called “Made with Oreo,” which promotes other great recipes featuring these cookies. All and all, this is a great social media marketing strategy for a platform that revolves around the idea of bookmarking exciting content and saving it for later.
Oreo on Instagram
Why It Works: On Instagram, Oreo has once again adjusted its messaging to strategically speak to that platform’s primarily 18 to 29-year-old audience. The company has also joined other brands in participating in the popular “social distancing bingo” trend on Instagram, and developed their own branded board for audiences to interact with.
While this content could have easily found a home on Twitter or Facebook, Instagram was the most strategic platform on which to share this content, because Instagram Stories allow followers to save this image, fill it out, and then share their results with their own followers. This not only promotes direct engagement with the piece of content, but also provides a chance for people outside of the brand’s direct network to see and possibly engage with their branded post.
2. H&R Block
Some may assume that the reason Oreo brand is successful on social media is because a product like a cookie is the perfect fit for this kind of light and fun marketing channel. While it’s true to a certain extent that some brands lend themselves better to social media marketing than others, any organization can effectively leverage social media to improve their business—if they just know how to do it.
Below, we explore three social posts from tax services company, H&R Block. As you will see, even this brand, which speaks to a primary audience of working professionals, has found a way to create compelling content across its social media channels. Notice specifically how their content ranges in terms of tone, calls to action (CTA’s), and format to fit each platform.
H&R Block on Twitter
Why It Works: On Twitter, H&R Block uses the text-heavy format to provide a serious warning to customers about potential scammers. As Twitter allows a brand to speak directly to audiences in the most stripped-down way possible, it is often leveraged to share these kinds of announcements or other information that requires a more serious tone.
H&R Block on Instagram
Why It Works: Instagram is all about the imagery, and H&R block has done a great job of sharing a call to action that is relevant to their brand—in this case, a push to get your taxes filed—in an engaging way fitting of the platform at hand. It’s also important to note the clever use of perpetual calendar in the image. Rather than represent the date with just numbers, H&R Block’s marketing experts chose to represent the information on an item most often found on the desks of professionals as a way of further relating to their specific audience.
Why It Works: H&R Block has the opportunity to most directly reach its primary audience of working professionals on a platform like LinkedIn. On this channel, posts tend to lean more informative than actionable; they are often used to provide context about a brand’s reputation, share company updates and opportunities, and drive leads only in the most subtle of ways.
The above post is an example of one which shares a positive update about the brand’s ranking among “America’s Top Recommended Tax and Accounting Firms 2020.” Here, H&R Block is not directly driving leads or asking for engagement, but is instead using the post as an opportunity to build positive brand awareness.
3. American Red Cross
Where brands like H&R Block or Oreo might primarily use social media as a means of driving sales, organizations like the American Red Cross often use these platforms an avenue for spreading awareness about what they do and how people can join the cause.
The following three pieces of social content developed by the American Red Cross all center around the same messaging of “How we’re helping during COVID-19.” Yet, as you will see, the brand has strategically altered its approach in telling this story from one social media channel to the next in order to best drive engagement on each platform.
American Red Cross on Facebook
Why It Works: The goal of this post is to drive readers to the article about “How we’re helping during COVID-19” on the American Red Cross website. To stand out among the very pandemic-heavy newsfeeds today, the brand has effectively utilized a colorful and eye-catching photo along with enticing copy. It has also leveraged Facebook’s CTA Button feature by adding in a “Learn More” link for those who want to directly click through and explore this article on their blog.
American Red Cross on Twitter
Why It Works: Though the content of this post is very similar to the Facebook post promoting the same messaging, there are a few key changes the brand has made in order to differentiate the content for a Twitter audience. First, the language is slightly more conversational, as is typical on Twitter. Secondly, the post utilizes a hashtag so that when people on Twitter search the phrase “COVID19” this content will populate among other related posts. This effectively expands the reach of this post to all of those who search for this phrase—a very strategic move from a potential engagement perspective.
American Red Cross on Instagram
Why It Works: Though this content very clearly is telling the same story about how American Red Cross is helping during the pandemic, it takes a very different angle than the Facebook and Twitter posts. Instead of offering very broad examples and directing audiences to the blog for more information, the brand chose to use this image-driven platform to actually share a photo and personal story of an individual that supports their cause. By offering this personal example, American Red Cross is able to humanize the work they’re doing and engage more customers with the power of the personal narrative.
Interested in learning more about how to effectively adapt your content for each of your social media channels? Download our free guide to social media marketing at the link below.
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