Good morning, everyone! I hope everyone is having a great week. I hope your week has been stress free, and free from management telling you to “go viral”. Because I get it…that’s the worst.
Today we’re hitting on a few topics, and I am excited for this one. We’re diving into content lanes - which should help dictate your content pillars, and hopefully set you up for success. I have been using this approach for 5+ years and can personally vouch for it.
In this issue, we will go over the following:
The only two content lanes you need to thrive on social media
What stopped my scroll: On is on a roll
Social Pro Spotlight: Kate Myers Emery speaks the truth on being scrappy as social media pros
5 hot social job opportunities that you should check out
Let’s get to it.
-Sam
There’s a certain thrill you experience as a social media professional when you’re uploading a post that you really don’t know how it’ll perform.
It’s different.
Maybe a little risky.
It’s something your brand doesn’t typically post.
You’re uploading it…and it’s taking a little longer than usual to load. You press ‘publish’…
And you just wait.
You’re anxious. And you’re just praying that it does numbers and “goes viral”.
Better yet, you’re just hoping it generates more likes than the standard content you typically post.
The reality is that yes, this is uncomfortable. But this is where brands thrive. They aren’t afraid to take those swings. They push creative barriers, and they are willing and eager to test. If your brand isn’t testing. You’re not growing. But that’s a story for another day.
As a brand, you should be posting these more and that’s just one of the two content lanes your brand should be exploring on social media. Let’s dive in more on these two content lanes.
Content Lane #1: Tried and True Creative
This can be referred as BAU (business as usual) social content. Your “always on” content. The content your brand typically posts on a normal week.
This is content that is tried and true, proven to be effective. It’s expected from your brand community. It’s backed by data and insights.
Is it safe? Most likely. Will it perform? Definitely. And that’s great.
This is your first content lane.
Content Lane #2: The ‘Haymakers’
This is where it gets interesting - and fun.
I call these the ‘haymakers’ - the content lane where you are eager and willing to test. You're shooting for the stars. You’re throwing a Hail Mary. You’re throwing a haymaker. You’re testing, you’re going big with this one.
The reality is that most brands don’t want to test - they’re afraid.
And I get it.
But from personal experience, I can truly vouch for this content lane. I’ve had countless posts that generated 1M+ views that were just posts I “tested”.
If you’re afraid to test on social media. You’re already setting yourself up for failure.
So dive into the analytics. Understand what’s working. Dive into top brands and creators. What’s working for them? Learn from them. Apply it to your brand. And send it.
I posted this on LinkedIn last week and it felt right to include in today’s issue.
I think the biggest takeaway from that excerpt is that you strategy is just a starting point. Always be strategic, always be rooted in strategy. But stretch your strategy and use it to think bigger and bring new ideas to life. Go and test.
The Takeaways
These are the two content lanes your brand should be implementing into your social media strategy. The tried and true content that is proven to perform. And the ‘haymakers’ - the creative that stretches your strategy and pushes barriers. What I like to do is then have my content pillars or content franchises branch out from these two lanes.
However, these two lanes work together. They are both needed to excel on social media. So the main takeaway is that I want you to be willing to test. If it flops…who cares? Archive it if you have to.
As a starting point, set a goal for your ‘haymakers’. Can you do one a week? One a month? Set a realistic target for you to chase. You got this. I believe in you.
What Stopped my scroll
On made their introduction into football (not American football btw) and the rollout was beautiful and executed to perfection. The creative was astounding, the inclusion of athletes & partnerships was 10/10. The social rollout was phenomenal.
The entire campaign stopped my scroll, grabbed my attention, and I know a lot of other people felt the same. But this one spot hit different for me. Highly shareable, the inclusion of Mpabbe and Celine and truly social-first. Check out the entire rollout if you haven’t already.
Social Pro Shoutout
I truly believe that ‘being scrappy’ is one of the most underrated skills a social media professional can have. Because at the end of the day, creativity doesn’t have to be expensive. Kate hits on this so well in this LinkedIn post. Make sure to go give Kate a follow on LinkedIn!
Social Opps
If you’re on the job hunt and exploring new Social Media Opportunities, here are some roles to check out.
✌️ KBYG (Know Before You Go)
Before you go…here are a few quick hitters for you! We’ve got a new Instagram update and a few reminders.
✍️ View the archive. Learn more about social media topics across strategy development, career development, social insights, and more in the archive. New issues weekly
‼ Forward to a friend! If you do find Stronger Social helpful, be sure to forward to a friend.
🤔 Got a topic that you want to see addressed in a future issue?If so, respond to this email and let me know!
Sam Wells
Thanks for reading and hope you have a great week!
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