Improving your social media posts is more than just TEXT appeal
We all know the importance of quality content creation but how much effort do you put into the layout of your social media posts?
Think about it. Every time we pick up a phone, or switch on a computer, we are bombarded with content. And expecting social media followers to stop scrolling through their feeds long enough to read it means a post has to make an impact at the get-go. (Who wants to spend hours crafting a social media message and then have it disregarded, unread, because it didn’t grab enough attention on the screen?)
Of course, there’s nothing new about recognising the value of visual appeal in communication. It’s Marketing 101 but applying that thinking to social media requires exactly the same focus and we’d like to share four simple ways for you to make your posts more appealing. (The best bit? They’re easy to implement and they’re FREE!)
1. The art of spacing
Instead of posting one, continuous body of text, which can sometimes be overwhelming for the reader (and risk them scrolling right on past your perfect prose!), split up your sentences or ideas. We’ve been making things easier to read for years, simply by adding bullet points, separating paragraphs, inserting enter spaces and using a bunch of other techniques to break up the text.
The same goes for blog posts and improving your website copy.
I’ve found this nifty website that allows you to add line breaks to your copy and then paste it to instagram. (Did I mention it’s free)
2. Emojis 🔥
Surprising as it may sound, adding an emoji can have a real impact on your engagement with an audience. (Yes, really!) Not only can they add to the aesthetic appeal of your post but, depending on the demographic you’re reaching, they can make your brand much more human and approachable! This blogpost by the Social Media Examiner sums it up perfectly.
3. Use Images
Did you know, research shows that articles containing graphics are viewed 94% more than those without? It’s all about the art of visual communication. Although platforms like Instagram force you to post with a video or an image, if you’re posting on Facebook using an image can make all the difference.
4. Keep it short
Research on the most effective post length differs but, as a general rule, shorter is better. According to Buffer, 40-character long posts hit the sweet spot on Facebook (with 86% more engagement than longer ones); tweets have a 17% higher rating when they are limited to 71–100 characters; and posts on LinkedIn get the most shares when they are between 16 and 25 words long.
5. Italics and Bold
Italicised and bold typefaces play distinct roles and are great for readability.
Italics are useful whenever you want to make a word or phrase stand out.
Bold typeface is great for highlighting important information.
Remember to use these sparingly, as if used too much it has the opposite effect.
You can use the same website as in the first point to do this too!
So how does that look in practice?
So there you have it.
5 ways you can improve social media posts without losing any sleep or spending a cent.
