SMS Marketing

Do you know what marketing type will get you a 98% open rate and a 90% engagement rate? Yep, that’s right. SMS marketing. Otherwise known as text messages. This style of marketing is one that often gets overlooked yet has powerful results. This is a great way to personalize promotions, offer discounts specific to SMS participants, purchase reminders and conduct surveys. There are a couple of things that a brand must know before getting started. 

1. Get permission. Your brand MUST HAVE permission to get numbers and send out text messages. 

2. Set up short code. This is a number that is 5 to 6 digits to send messages at scale. This is easier to remember than normal numbers and can send more messages per minute. 

3. Create a great welcome message. Identify yourself first and foremost. Include the customer’s name. You MUST let them know how to opt out, what types of messages they’ll be getting and how often they’ll be sent. 

4. Know your character count. Most max out at 160 words. You should be able to get the message across without going over. 

SMS marketing is a great addition to your marketing efforts. I mean, think about it. Most people have their phones with them at all times. It makes sense that they would respond faster and more often to text messages than emails. This list should help you get started but there is much more to consider when adding SMS marketing into your marketing strategy so make sure to do your research.

Increasing Social Media Engagement

Having a large audience is great but that’s not all that is important on social media. Engagement with your followers will measure more success than just the number of people that follow you. What does engagement from your followers look like? It’s shares, comments, saves, likes, mentions and even branded hashtag usage. Here are a few quick ways to increase your engagement on your social media channels. 

1. Know your audience. This will help you dictate when it is best for your brand to post, what type of content to post and help you find your brand’s voice.

2. Spark up conversations. 

   1. Ask questions in your posts or stories. On the flip side of this, have them ask you questions with the “ask me anything.”. This can add value to your brand as helpful or knowledgeable. 

   2. Take polls or quiz them. This is another great way to mix it up and engage your audience. 

   3. Contests. Everyone loves free things. Offer something from your brand as a prize for a contest. 

3. Promote others in your field. This is a way to keep content diverse but can also be used in situations where you may not have the exact information they need so you send them to where they can get it. Your audience will appreciate that you care that they receive the information they’re looking for whether they get it from you or not. In turn, promoting others in your field will make them more apt to promote you as well should it be necessary. Cross promotion is a powerful thing. And supporting others is cool too! 

4. Create influencer relationships. Using influencers who believe in your brand to help promote it. Typically, a post for a freebie or discount is standard. This helps consumers trust your brand more and this type of marketing is expected to keep increasing in 2022.

5. Personalize engagement and be timely. Answer direct messages in a timely manner. Show that there is human behind the brand. 

Having high engagement will get your brand a higher ranking on social media platforms. The algorithm shows that people find it relevant and valuable. This means it puts even more eyes on it in the field getting your brand even more followers and so on and on it goes.

How to Develop Good KPI’s for Ad Campaigns

Measuring your ad campaign metrics are crucial for your campaigns in order to see what is working and what may need to be adjusted. There is no one size fits all to determine what KPI’s your brand should be using. It will depend on the overall goals of the brand and what the goal is for the campaign. Here are some steps to take when determining what KPI’s to use for your campaign efforts.

1. Look at business goals and objectives. Is your business goal to increase brand awareness or is it to market a new product or service?

2. Set SMART marketing goals for the campaign. 

   1. Specific

   2. Measurable

   3. Achievable 

   4. Realistic 

   5. Timely

3. Write out your KPI’s. Once the SMART goals have been set up, create your list and write it down. Make it clear and concise for your employees to understand. 

4.  Decide how you will measure. This will also depend on what your goals are. Let’s say you want to increase leads. Therefore, to measure the effectiveness of this campaign you would measure new subscriptions. 

You can see why a brand can’t use industry standard KPI’s due to the personalized nature of business goals. Using KPI’s will assist your brand in tracking the progress of marketing campaigns. Just a few common KPI’s that are tracked would be ROI, cost per acquisition, customer lifetime value and conversion rates. These are only just a few of many. Focus on crucial metrics between 2-4 KPI’s per campaign as to not get overwhelmed with too much data.

And as always, we suggest using some User-Generated Content! The ROI is always much higher. Real people trust real people!

Email Marketing Stats 2022

We recently did an article on The Power of Email Marketing. We thought it only fitting to follow up with some recent statistics for 2022 to back it up. We like to talk the talk and walk the walk. Here is a list of some of what we consider to be most important. 

1. 77% of marketers have seen an increase in email engagement over the last 12 months (Not Another State of Marketing, 2021)

2. Nearly 55% of global website traffic is generated from mobile devices (Statista, 2022)

3. 59% of people say that marketing emails have influenced their purchases (Salecycle, 2022)

4. 99% of people who have email check their inbox every day, some doing so 20x’s daily. Of those people, 58% check their email first thing in the morning (OptinMonster, 2020)

5. Audiences will reward brands with higher open and CTR if there are no. more than 5 newsletters send per week (GetResponse, 2020). And honestly, who is sending more than 5 newsletters per week?!?! That’s insane! 

6. Nearly 1 in 5 email campaigns is not optimized for mobile devices (SuperOffice, 2020). Don’t be that guy. Seriously… we’re living in the 21st Century. 

7. That being said, 41% of emails are viewed on mobile devices (HubSpot Research, 2021). 

8. 64% of B2B marketers said that their email marketing strategy was effective for meeting business goals in 2021 (HubSpot Research, 2021). 

9. 37% of brands are increasing their email budget and just 1.3% are making cuts (Litmus, 2021)

Well there you have it folks. Email marketing trends in a nut shell. There are millions of email users. Millions of opportunities to connect with your brand’s audience. Finding that sweet spot for your business will take some trial and error. You don’t want to bombard them with unnecessary email marketing if you want to keep your CTR’s high but you want to have them see your logo just enough to purchase your product or service. 

Friday Feature 10/14/22

This week we’re going in a different direction and showcasing a content creator that is obsessed with books! We love to read here at Locomotive so we wanted to feature someone who shares that love. Heather Yates worked with us a while back when we sourced a great video of kids having a water balloon fight in their back yard for one of our campaigns. Although she’s a mother of 4, her Instagram now focuses on all the romance novels that she recommends. So, if you ever need some reading material ideas give her page a look because there is no shortage of them there. 

Tips for Writing a Good Blog

There are so many different types of blogs out there from how-to guides, news article reviews, interviews, explanatory and even personal.  If you’re a vet or just getting started there are a few things to consider when trying to write a great blog. Here are some of our tips to writing something that grabs your audience’s attention and keeps it.

1.     Trim the nonsense. Make sure your writing is concise. This isn’t a college paper where you’re trying to make it to 7 pages of information and adding unnecessary sentences and words. People want something that is easy to read and clear!

2.     “The hook brings them back.” Blues Traveler wasn’t wrong. A good hook will grab your reader’s attention. There are so many ways to do this. Start with something startling, form an emotional connection, ask a question… you get the idea. Do some research on how to write great hooks.

3.     Use the senses. Taste, smell, audio, touch and even taste. Be descriptive with your writing to make the reader’s imagination go wild.

4.     Connect your sentences. A powerful sentence is connected to the ones around it but make sure to vary your words and say the same things in different ways.

5.     Proofread! I’ll be honest here. I’m the run-on sentence queen. I always have someone double check my writing for errors and mistakes.

6.     Keep it conversational. Write as if you’re talking to a good friend on a Sunday evening sitting on the couch. They should be fun to read as well as informative. I speak directly to the reader sometimes. I love being able to do this coming from an academic science background of formal writing. Use it to your advantage and have fun with it.

Writing blog aren’t only fun, they’re good for your business! They improve your SEO on your website if you have one. We’re gonna’ assume that if you’re reading this, that you do. It will also help drive traffic to your website and reinforce your brand. In turn, it can help increase sales. Hopefully this added some tools to your writing tool box that may have not been there before. Happy writing 

Small Business Advantage

In our world today, we likely think of big conglomerates owning markets. However, in the U.S., small businesses comprise of 99.9% of all firms according to the SBA. Strategies between large and small brands are going to be different, due to their specific marketing niches. While larger companies can offer more to a wider variety of consumers, small businesses do have their advantages. As a small business ourselves we pride ourselves on these unique traits that make us stand out in our area of expertise. Here are some ways that small businesses have an upper hand from large firms.  

1. Specific niches. Just as we are here at Locomotive most small businesses focus on a very concise skill set. This means that people will know where to go when they need specific products or services. For us, it’s our expertise in the area of sourced content for advertising campaigns. Big brands may not even know what their particular niches are. 

2. Faster decision making and flexibility. While large companies focus on consistency, it will take longer for approvals for just about anything they do. Small business has more flexibility to make their own decisions and less chain of command when it comes to thinking on their feet. This makes for quick decisions and changes when sometimes going with the flow can help your clients and consumers. 

3. Personalized service. Small brands can offer more personalization and treats each client or customer as a human. They can take time to get to know their audience or clients to develop a real relationship with them. people inherently want to connect with others. You will understand what they want and need from you. This will also ensure loyalty and word of mouth recommendations. 

4. Innovation. The innovative aspect of small business can be due in part to lack of this service or product from larger companies. This already makes you a stand out company. Make sure to highlight what it is that makes your brand innovative. 

5. Adaptability. Because of the personalized experiences and flexibility that your small business can offer adaptability is the result. Since they know their audience personally, they can adapt to any changes in their needs quickly. 

These are only some of the benefits of owning a small business. There are so many reasons that your small brand has advantages over the “Big Guys.” Highlight your uniqueness and share your passions for what you do with confidence. Others will see this spark and be drawn to your brand.

Key Performance Indicators

What is a KPI and why do they matter? We keep seeing this thrown around the advertising and marketing world so we thought it would be good to touch base on what they are exactly and why they are important. KPI’s are quantifiable measures of performance in order to gauge progress and insights in particular areas of your business. KPI’s are target that should be tracked because they support the overall goals of the brand through keeping the team aligned, checks on the organization to spot problems, helps allot for adjustments that need to be made if something isn’t working by analyzing patterns and it will hold the whole company accountable. KPI’s are found in every area of a business from finance to advertising campaigns. There are literally so many to list we couldn’t do it all in one article. However, we will list a few for example that pertain to marketing.

1.     Qualified leads. This can be done as marketing qualified leads or sales qualified leads. Either way, it shows the marketing team how many leads are coming in and how many are talking to the sales team.

2.     ROI. You’ve heard this one a lot in our articles. It’s insanely important. This is the amount of revenue in versus how much is spent.

3.     Funnel conversion rates. This is the percentage of visitors who complete some desired action. Examples would be signing up for a newsletter or purchasing a product.

4.     Customer acquisition costs. This is a measure of the amount of money to convert a lead into a customer.

5.     Customer engagement. This can be tracked very well in social media through likes, shares, saves, mentions and comments.

6.     Customer retention. Helps you better understand your audience. Your “turnover” rate for your customers can give your brand insight into what may or may not be working.

KPI’s can help your brand make more informed and better decisions within the company. Choose the KPI’s that will matter most in your marketing department and that will align with the brand’s overall vision. Tracking your progress is the best way to secure a well-founded marketing strategy for your brand!

Developing a Solid Business Strategy

Having a successful business is a marathon, not a sprint. A solid business strategy will help your brand succeed over the long haul. Think of it as a road map. You have goals that you want to get to and your strategy will help you get there. There are a few components to a good business plan.

1.     Objectives and a clear vision. Why did you start this company? What is its mission? Where do you see your brand going in the future? These are all questions that wil help you find your brands vision. Once this is established, it’s important to set clear and decisive goals. Start with the destination goal and work your way backward to see how you can achieve it.

2.     Know your target audience. Defining your niche will help determine who you should be marketing to. People who need what you have to offer will help you gain customer retention.

3.     Know your competition and be innovative. Make your brand’s product or service stand out from the rest. Although wise to choose an undersaturated market for a business, that’s not always going to be the case. So, what makes you better than the next guy?  Being innovative is what will make you stand out and beat your competitors.

4.     Measure your results. This is crucial. You need to see if your plan is working. Check weekly, monthly and annually to assess the data. Check your KPI’s to make sure your hitting the mark.

5.     Always be adaptable. After you measure your result, they may not be performing how you had hoped and that’s ok. What’s not ok it being stubborn and beating your head against a wall when something is falling short. We get it. You really wanted that awesome idea to work but If a strategy isn’t working then change it. What’s more important is finding what works. Look for ideas within your company from others who may have specialties in a particular field of interest.

This is a general overview of what is needed to build a solid business plan and should be considered a starting point. Make sure to do plenty of exhaustive research for your brand in order to customize the business plan that will be right for you.

Friday Feature

This is our first Friday content creator feature. We thought it about time to switch it up a bit from our Friday fun favorite campaigns. If you loved it, don’t worry. It’s not gone. Just taking a break for a while. This week’s creator shout out goes to Vibe Salon in Atlanta. We recently worked with them on one of our campaigns helping source content for an Oreo spot. If you live in the Atlanta area you should check them out! It was a pleasure working with them and it seems they do amazing things with hair! Have a great weekend all!

Social Media Mistakes to Avoid

We’ve all posted that low quality video that got very little love and immediately regretted it. Maybe even taken it down shortly after the fact. We know we’ve done this. There are a few major pitfalls to avoid when attempting to optimize your social media channels. We’re only going to focus on Instagram for the purpose of this article.

1.     Low quality videos. This goes for really any channel. A low-quality video is a sure way to get low engagement.

2.     Missing out on live streaming. This new, powerful tool is a great way to engage your audience in real time. This helps you get feedback immediately.

3.     Uploading videos with TikTok watermark. Don’t recycle your videos. Or anyone else’s for that matter. Always upload the original video without the watermark logo if you decide the video is worthy of a double share.

4.     Skipping out on the bio. This is where you can increase your discoverability. Linktree can help you add multiple links to your bio if needed.

5.     Having a personal or private account. I think the reason for this speaks for itself. If you’re a brand you must have a business account in order to see your metrics.

6.     Buying followers. Although it may be tempting, buying followers is a hollow purchase. These followers are often bot accounts that won’t engage with your content.

7.     Skipping the opportunity of a great caption. Just as when writing a good article, it’s important to have a good caption to hook your user’s attention and can offer more context for your amazing posts.

We love social media and the engagement it creates between brands and consumers. It’s something that brands were unable to do in such a way prior to. With social media, a brand’s audience can connect with them on a deeper level through engaging with their posts, sharing and saving them. It also gives brands an idea of what their audience likes to see versus what they don’t. it’s a great tool for content marketing so making sure that you are doing all the rights things is pivotal. Social media is something that we specialize in when it comes to sourcing user generated content for campaigns so we’ve seen the benefits of it for brands first hand.

Optimizing Your Google Position

Is your business showing up at the top of Google searches for your industry? Here are some quick tips on things to do to improve your SEO on Google searches.

1. Make sure your business information is up to date on the Google Business profile. Are the hours, phone, address correct? What about your website URL alongside your social media profiles?

2. Know the keywords you’re competing for.

3. Continuously update your pages and content. A blog is a good way to do this. Companies that blog get 55% more web traffic, according to HubSpot.

4. Know Google’s ranking factors. There are 4:

   1. Words in the search box

   2. Relevance & usability of your pages

   3. Expertise of source

   4. Location and settings of searcher’s Google account

5. Review analytics often. Find keywords that aren’t working so well and replace them. It will be important to analyze data and see what’s working and what is not.

People run searches on Google to research businesses before they even plan to go visit them in person or an online store. Higher SEO will drive more traffic to your brands website and ultimately, more revenue.

Employee Engagement

What is employee engagement? Well, it can be defined as a measure of an employee’s sense of purpose at the workplace, involvement, commitment to the brand, their effectiveness in communicating and lastly, having a collaborative attitude that’s dedicated to quality performance. Engagement of employees is about motivation behind their work and not job satisfaction. It’s surprising to note that only 36% of workers in the United States are highly engaged, according to HubSpot. Employees are the gears that turn the machine within a business. Their engagement is necessary to its success. When the gears are well oiled, the machine runs smoothly and efficiently. Think of it like this. It’s just as within the human body. When one part isn’t working well, the entire thing sees a downturn and it’s like a domino effect. One thing ultimately, affects the whole. Therefore, fostering a good culture in the workplace is crucial. Let’s look at some stats. Gallup studies show that having good employee engagement:

1.     Lowers absenteeism by 81%

2.     Lowers turnover rates by 18%

3.     Lowers defects in quality by 41%

4.     Increases productivity by 18%

5.     Increases customer loyalty and engagement by 10%

6.     Increases profitability by 23%

It is obvious why employee engagement is important looking at these numbers, but how do you foster it within the workplace for your brand? There are 3 key components to doing so. 1.) Leadership. 2.) Rewards and Recognition. 3.) Personal Growth. Within the leadership role, managers and CEO’s must communicate clear expectations for their employees so they understand their tasks, goals and day to day responsibilities. To this, they must also provide the proper tools and knowledge that they need to carry out these tasks while giving them the space to show your trust of them. Autonomy shows them that they are valued. Recognition programs are a great way to show employees they’re valued as well. Reward them with bonuses, gift cards, gift baskets, etc. for their successes. Lastly, there must always be room for growth and a clear path of how to get there. This can help create a sense of purpose with employees. They start at the bottom and work their way up towards a goal.

Now that you have all the tools you need to engage your employees; how do you measure the effectiveness you are having with it? The first is obvious, seek their feedback. Make it anonymous so they don’t feel put on the spot or you can have private, individual conversations. Or both. Survey Monkey is a great survey creator you can use to do this. Next, make sure to keep an eye on your turnover rates and employee absenteeism regularly. If these numbers are up, then unfortunately, engagement is down. Another way to get feedback would be to conduct exit interviews to see what areas can truly be improved. People tend to be more candid when they won’t be working there anymore.

In summary, employee engagement keeps your business running smoothly. Happy employees’ equal happy customers equal thriving businesses. It’s important to keep the gears of your business machine well-oiled in order to run well.

Content Creation

We’re a content agency. We love good, quality content. This is a given. We’ve written about content creation in the past but directed it toward the creators. This article will focus on why quality content is important for brands. First, if the content is helpful and insightful, customers will trust you and begin to view you as an expert in your field, according to Forbes. Second, ROI is very high for quality content. 88% of marketers are happy with their return on investment of content. Third, SEO will increase with the right key words to promote your brands website. Lastly, it helps your brand get new leads, especially if the content has a CTA placement. We could go on with a million reasons why good content marketing helps your business grow but we know you get the point by now. Let’s look at how your brand can go about having a good content marketing strategy.

All the same rules for creators apply for brands, except now you have a specific audience to keep in mind. This is where creating a buyer persona comes in handy. A buyer persona is created through research to make a clear picture of the person you want to market to. Think of them as a created character for a story that represents your whole group of target market audience. Here’s a handy tool to help you get started from HubSpot if you’re unsure of where to start with this. Second, your strategy should include goal setting. Use the SMART method to determine them. Now, you have to keep the buyer’s journey in mind. Where are they in their buying process? Is it awareness of the problem? Are they considering a solution (the consideration stage)? Or… are they in the decision-making stage where they’re aware of the solution and ready to solve? You want to make sure that you have content for each stage of your buyer’s journey. The format of the content must also be considered. Is it easy for your audience to view, read, etc.? This brings us to the last topic: the different types of content.

There are many different types of content to consider when creating. There’s content just like the one you are reading: a blog. There are social media posts and stories. Infographics with short bursts of information or GIF’s. Video content is king in today’s world but podcasts are also on the rise. Lastly, there are webinars/seminars for your viewers as well. Which type of content you choose will be brand specific. While all brands will benefit from social media posts and stories, it may not make sense for them to conduct webinars. The type of content that your brand chooses will also determine the style. Blogs and podcasts tend to be conversational whereas webinars and seminars are in more formal setting.

Whatever way you shake it, a quality content creation marketing strategy is key for your brand. Honestly, creating content is super fun, so with the right creative minds behind the work you cannot fail. Collaboration within your company when creating content will ensure its success. Having multiple sets of creative eyes and minds on each piece will make sure that what your team comes up with will be the absolute best through great communication and teamwork.

Evergreen Content

We just wrote about topical content, which touched on evergreen content slightly. So, what is evergreen content? If topical content is on current events or things that are trending, then evergreen content is just the opposite. It’s really stated in the name, evergreen. Like the evergreen trees, evergreen content lives over the long periods of time and is not time sensitive. If topical to evergreen content creation ratio is 1:4, then what are some key reasons to create so much more evergreen content over topical content? Well, first it will continually drive traffic to your sites, it will improve your SEO and position your brand as an industry leader. Some common examples of evergreen content are tips, FAQ’s, tutorials/guides, testimonials/case studies, check lists, common mistakes to avoid, resources for your industry (books, podcasts, experts), definitions of terms and phrases, history of your industry, etc. These things don’t go out of style or change very often. Pretty sure you get the idea by now. So now, let’s get into the nitty gritty with the pros and cons of evergreen content.

PROS:

1.     Brand authority: just as topical content can do, it also will increase your brand’s authority by showing that it cares about your audience through content that lasts over time and isn’t fleeting.

2.     SEO increase: if the evergreen content is on your website it will increase its SEO over time. This is something that topical content cannot do because it is short-lived and although it may also stay on your site, it will not increase traffic once that topic has gone out of style, so to speak. Evergreen content is relevant long after trends come and go and therefore, will improve your SEO in the long run.

3.     Ideal for entry level: evergreen content is fairly easy to produce for how-to guides, resources etc. It can require little time to write, create and get out into the world.

4.     Stands the test of time: like the evergreen tree, hence the name, this type of content stays relevant for long periods of time. You can add small changes to it, if needed over time, to keep it up to date with the newest information periodically.

CONS:

1.     You can run out of ideas: unlike topical content that stays fresh all the time, evergreen content is something that lasts. This can make it difficult to come up with new ideas down the road.

2.     Success will be slower: topical content creates short drives in traffic due to the trending nature of it whereas, evergreen content traffic is slow and steady. But remember, who won the race, the tortious or the hare? This will require a little patience from your brand in the beginning.

3.     Expert content is often too narrow: if writing advanced content, a few things can happen here. 1. It’s perfect for advanced and intermediate. 2. It’s too basic and not advanced enough. 3. It’s too advanced. No one, not even the advanced audience understands. This is a tight window of getting the porridge just right, so to speak. So, content creators must be careful here. While evergreen content is great for beginner audiences, it can be tough to cater to the advanced group.

Now, you can see how evergreen content is crucial to your brand’s success over the long haul. As we said in our previous article on topical content a mix of both is necessary to creating both short- and long-term interests. Both have a place in your marketing and advertising strategies. Very few brands operate solely on one type of content and omit the other, even news channels. If you set a schedule for topical refreshes in your evergreen content strategy and consider doing so every week. No matter what type of content you are creating you now have a quick go to guide on how to mix up your topical and evergreen content strategies. Happy creating!

Topical Content

Fan doing the Megan Rapinoe stance from her celebrating her team's first goal during the 2019 Women's World Cup quarter-final match between France and the U.S.

There are so many types of content out there nowadays so, what in the world is topical content? Topical content is relevant to current events or timely topics. Think about things that are currently trending. Writing, vlogging, news stories, videos or even advertisements can be done on trending topics. These would all be considered topical content pieces since they focus on current news/trends. So, let’s talk about some of the advantages and disadvantages of writing topical content.

ADVANTAGES:

1.     Authority in your field: by staying current with trends and news in your field you set yourself up as a brand who has authority. It shows your brand researches relevant subjects often. This will help build trust with your B2B and B2C audiences.

2.     Requires less work: all it takes is a quick glance at sites and news stories to give you the ideas you need to produce topical content. This can save time and money when creating content. It can also help with creativity when at a loss for fresh ideas.

3.     Drives seasonal traffic to multiple channels: this can increase your audience reach because your topical content can gain traction over multiple points: social media, website, emails, etc.

DISADVANTAGES:

1.     Others are posting too: your competitors are probably posting on trending topics too, all the while spinning their own take on it. This can make it harder to stand out from the crowd. It can require a lot of time, effort and money to make yourself stand out, so if this is something you can’t commit to, then you may want to shift your strategies.

2.     It doesn’t benefit the long run for SEO: it can get you more traffic to your site in the short game but trust is built over time. This is where evergreen content comes into play, which we will talk about in our next blog.

Topical content has its place in the marketing and advertising world. It can provide relevant information on current affairs and can be a way to switch it up from the mundane. Ultimately, your marketing and advertising strategies should be a mix of topical and evergreen content. How much you choose to create topical content will also depend on what your business goals are and the audiences’ you’re trying to attract. Industry standard states that a mix of 1:4 is the general rule of thumb for the topical to evergreen content ratio. The first being topical content to every four evergreen content posts. Topical content definitely has its place but evergreen content is what’s needed to keep your audience behind your brand in the long haul.

Going Viral

We’ve licensed more videos than we can count that were considered to be “viral.” Think back... Pizza Rat, David at the Dentist, Charlie Bit My Finger are just a few that quickly come to mind. America’s Funniest Home Videos was one of the first viral user generated content video shows out there back when VHS was still a thing. Viral videos are any video that blow up quickly and are considered to have gone “viral” when they hit between 5-8 million views or more. But what is it about certain video content that makes them go viral? Well, there isn’t a one size fits all recipe for this and you can’t know whether a video will go viral or not. That being said, there are some key components to viral videos that make them stand out from the rest.

1.     They connect emotionally

2.     They do the unexpected

3.     They tell a story

4.     They don’t try to sell anything

5.     They’re typically bite sized

Some types of videos tend to go viral more than others. Fail videos, pranks, funny videos and hashtag challenges tend to skyrocket in views. Most viral videos are merely moments caught on camera that are purely organic. They’re unscripted and unexpected yet, catch a really good moment that emotionally connects. According to Harvard Business Review, there are a few reasons why videos go viral. These include timing, social motivations, emotional responses they evoke and super sharing. Super sharers are something we had never heard of, but apparently, this group of people comprised of 9%, share daily, whereas most people only share videos once a week or so. On top of this, timing is everything and Wednesday tends to be the optimal day but Thursday/Friday are also good. So, making sure that your video goes up at the right time will play a part in whether it goes viral or not. We can’t give you a playbook on how to create viral videos but we can look back at the history and give you tidbits on what makes a viral video. The rest is up to you.

First Impressions

Have you ever met someone and they give you a limp handshake? Yea, we have too. It’s awkward and doesn’t leave a good taste in your mouth about that person. What about someone who refuses to look you in the eye when they speak or when you speak? Yep, been there too! Don’t let some of these poor practices hold you back if you’re looking to do an interview for a new position or starting a new one somewhere. There are definitely some rules for do’s and don’ts when making first impressions. The two listed above are big no nos. Here are some more quick tips to making a great first impression wherever you go really, not just in the office.

1.     Be punctual. I was raised in a home where being 15 minutes early was being on time. This gives you some time to get there, get settled and you will be ready by the time the clock strikes on the arrival time.

2.     Know the dress code. I mean we’re sure you know better than to show up in jeans and tee shirt but make sure to show up clean and neat. Look up their dress code to get a sense of what to wear but if you’re unsure always err on the side of caution and go slightly more conservative.

3.     Body language and tone. No one likes a slouch. Seriously though, posture is everything. Make sure to have a powerful stance with your shoulders back. Don’t touch your face too often and keep your voice at a steady pace making sure to lean in when others are speaking to you. This is a given, but make sure to speak with confidence.

4.     Be authentic. Don’t show up and try to be who you think they want you to be. They’ll see right through it. It’s always better to just do you. Be yourself. It’s good to be aware of your shortcomings but don’t over emphasize them either.

5.     Follow up. If you went for an interview, you should always follow up. Send an email note with docs or just a simple thank you. They will know that you’re serious about the job.

Whether you’re interviewing or starting a new job, these tips will help you to feel more confident going into a new professional situation. Make sure you do your research on the company and further extensive ways to improve your first impressions. This list is just a starter tip kit. Good luck.

Tips for Taking Great iPhone Photos

Nowadays anyone can be a photographer. It’s become much easier to take great shots with that little device in your pocket. Since we deal with content creators a lot, we thought we would write up a little tip guide for taking great photos on your phone. Here is a list of top practices for those captured moments.

1.     Use the rule of thirds. You can turn on the grid on your phone to help with this. The rule of thirds states that you divide your image into a three-by-three grid. It splits the grid into nine equal parts and will make the image flow with your eyes.

2.     Use natural light. Lighting will determine the brightness and the darkness and will set the mood. Natural light gives the best tone and atmosphere. We’ve all seen what photos look like with the flash on, overexposed and bright. Nobody wants a photo that looks like it was taken in 1995 with a disposable camera.

3.     Use HDR. HDR stands for high dynamic range. It combines multiple shots taken simultaneously to produce a composite image. It gives the image a balanced exposure especially if there are large contrasts between the light and dark areas.

4.     Hold your phone still. I think this one goes without saying. If necessary, you can get yourself a tripod if you find it difficult to keep a steady hand when taking shots.

5.     Use negative space. Two thirds of the photo should be negative space. This will help the focal point stand out more. You can edit in post after in editing software to also achieve this effect.

6.     Focus on one subject. Also, another no brainer. Your photos shouldn’t be oversaturated with objects. This will leave the viewer unable to focus on one part of the photo if it is too busy.

7.     Look at the details. The devil is in the details. Try to find symmetry in your shots and look for repetitive patterns. Symmetry is what our brains like and it can be eye-catching to have unequal elements on each side of the subject. You should also look for leading lines that can divide your photo into distinct parts that will add visual stimulation.

There are a multitude of ways to create professional quality photos with your iPhone. This list is meant to help get you started. Make sure to conduct extensive research in order to create the best possible quality photos. As content experts in the UGC field, we are confident that this will help you increase your skills as a photographer. Happy shooting!

Friday Favorite 9/23/2022

This week’s favorite is a tribute to Serena Williams and her recent retirement. She is a role model for women and athletes all over the world! She leaves behind a legacy of a changed world because she refused to become the status quo. She remained true to herself despite all of the odds. The Nike ad coined with the tagline, “She didn’t change who she was-and that changed everything, for all of us,” was created by advertising company, Wieden+Kennedy Portland. Unfortunately, her final three set tennis matches were losses. However, those that know who she is and what she has done for women in sport will not even remember that ten years from now. What they will remember is how she represented her home city of Compton with pride, even when nay sayers talked down on it. They will remember how she held her head high with pride when people mocked her body physique as she rocked her stellar muscles and curvature. She combated racism early in her childhood career, stared it in the face and never backed down from who she was on and off the court. Her and her sister took a non-traditional path for their tennis careers and she still made it to the top. She has been listed as Forbes highest paid female athlete. She has battled injuries, her own sister on the court, had children and all the while managed to become one of the best female athletes to ever play any sport in the world!