In the past, people relied on daily papers and evening news broadcasts to absorb content and learn about intriguing stories from around the world. For Generations Y and Z, those traditional options have been largely supplanted by the internet where news stories and interesting content is posted more frequently, often in real-time. The prevalent use of smartphones makes it even easier for people to gain instant access to content, which is why effective mobile content marketing is critical for organizations to remain engaged with audiences.
Our social media channels are populated with updates and announcements published by friends, influencers, and brands that we choose to follow so that we are provided the stories that matter to us on an ongoing basis. We choose who and what to follow and access interesting content in real-time.
While it is easy for us to follow influencers and find engaging content, it is also easy for us to ignore or miss updates in our social streams. The challenge for marketers is to be heard and create socially stimulating content that entices us to click through.
Newsworthy Content is Notable
Think about the types of updates in social streams that grab our attention. When we see a post captioned “BREAKING NEWS” in bold capitalized letters, we automatically assume that an important story has been published. If the topic is interesting (and if the post appears in our personal social stream, it likely is), our minds instinctively tell us to click on the update and learn more information.
The official Twitter account of Stoke City F.C. in the UK’s Premier League used the bold term to announce that one of their players was assigned to a new club. This is just one example of how marketing teams use bold statements to encourage us as social users, specifically sports and soccer fans in this case, to click through and learn more about an announcement.
With our smartphones and tablets in hand, the platforms we use to view new content have changed in the last 10 years. When the evening news was our primary option to follow current events, we would sit on our couches watching the headlines for 30 minutes or up to an hour.
However, today’s fast-paced environment leaves little time to stop and absorb the latest headlines. We’re more likely to use our smartphones and social media accounts to search for content when we have a spare moment - during our commute, on our lunch break, or on the way to the gym.
These micro-moments are what we have come to expect from content - instantaneous access to quality, credible, and interesting information that provides answers to our queries and adds value to our lives. If we like what we see, many of us will likely hit the share button to Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn and promote the content to our networks of followers.
