Social Media Success - the Bus and the Bus Stop

A couple of days ago I published a post (rather than an article) on LinkedIn to say, "Thank You!" for an insight that has served me well. The thanks went to Richard Mack - as a gift for sharing the following concept with me years ago.

The post also had a lot of support on Facebook, and for that reason I thought I would expand the idea and include a comment from Marketing Guru, Andrew Parker.

But first, the image that captured the attention...

Repeat, Repeat, Repeat

Richard's message to me was about the need to repeat well-received tweets, a relevant point for all Social Media posts, not just Twitter. More than this, it was his analogy that really captured my imagination.

He explained Tweets (as with any other Social Media posts) are like adverts on a bus. If you don't notice the bus as it passes, you miss the message...

...but buses with the consistent message can travel round the same route over and over again, all day long.

The message is in the moment but you can replicate those moments time and time again.

This was his secret, he confided, in being a success on Twitter.

This weekend I saw all my grandchildren for my grandson's birthday. My two eldest granddaughters, with impeccable manners, said, "Grumpapa, would you please chase us again?" I have no resistance to good manners from a couple of six year old princesses! They were enjoying the same content over and over again because it made them feel great.

If you've created great content, play it again!

I say this because I've resisted Richard's wisdom since I don't want to overwhelm those who've already noticed the message on the bus. But who am I to judge? I think your audience and my audience can make their own decisions on how much attention they want to give our posts. Our job is to broadcast good content, and repeat some of the shows!

Andrew Parker responded to the original post with these wise words.

"All adverts are different. It depends on the strength of the creative treatment, and the frequency of seeing the message. Plus, of course, some media are more intrusive (we "notice" cinema advertising more than Yellow Pages, for example). But...when it is all averaged out, we typically need to see the message SEVEN times before the brain acknowledges we have seen it. Obviously, this is not the same as saying that if someone sees an ad seven times they will act upon it."

What if you and I were to let go of any concern about repetition, and, instead embraced Andrew's statistics and Richard's strategy?

My original ACTION thought was,

"I wonder what content you've created would benefit from another few trips around the block?"

And, today, I'd like to add to that with the content relevant to the header image - with the image repeated below for your convenience.

I've pinched the images off Richard's website for a proud bit of promotion of a company worth promoting! https://www.rtpromotions.co.uk

This second image got me thinking about a 'both-and' strategy. Can we have our cake and eat it? Yes we can!

Choice and Chance - the Bus Shelter and the Bus

Some of our Social Media can be static, like a bus shelter. This is a partial truth, so stay with me. Richard's website could be low maintenance. His LinkedIn profile could be low maintenance too. Once you have a world-class LinkedIn profile, you can leave it as a place where people have a point of contact to proverbially seek you out to catch the bus. Websites can be the same. Build them well, and then it's low maintenance.

[This is not true in Richard's case since there is a constant flow of new products, but it could be true of a brochure site.]

People choose to check out your profile and your website.

[My caveat here is that all websites benefit from regular attention, as does your LinkedIn profile. If your goal is to raise your profile, you'd better be active! If your additional goal is to make your website SEO friendly, it will need fresh content. The point is that your website and your LinkedIn profile can get away with less attention compared with the high maintenance demanded by other platforms. Even a static bus shelter is maintained and gets fresh adverts regularly!]

Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook are all the bus, not the bus shelter! They are moving all the time, and if you don't move with them, you miss the bus!

Investing in the high-maintenance relationships that these platforms reward, really does pay off. And it doesn't have to be hard work.

• You can republish content like Richard does - create it once, publish it time and time again (especially that content that existing connections have given their vote of confidence to)
• You can repurpose content. I do a blog and a podcast and a vlog on YouTube and IGTV - all covering the same territory but with subtle differences - especially the length. For example, a very brief video can serve me well on Instagram and IGTV and even Twitter. YouTube demands longer content (the average successful YouTube post is just under 15 minutes!) A LinkedIn 'post' can be short and punchy, and an 'article' like this can explore more thoroughly. Colin Rose, the Accelerated Learning author, put it succinctly when he said, "The more ways you teach, the more people you reach." One message, multiple media.
• You can collaborate! Retweet other people's content - those who are in alignment with you. I'm forever sharing content from Strategic Coach on LinkedIn because it's great material for entrepreneurs.

You haven't got to be the content creator - you can excel by being a content curator.

I know for a fact that YouTube rewards collaboration - and I'm pretty sure the other platforms do too. This is 'Social' Media, not 'Selfish' Media, or 'Sales' Media, or 'Self-centred' Media!!!

Catch the Bus - Catch the Business

I conclude with an even bigger, "Thank You!" to Richard and to Andrew for moving this message forward and giving it some more momentum. Let your marketing strategy include multiple bus stops - points of contact where people can 'catch' you and your message. Then make certain that your moving messages increase the number of buses that run!

Refresh, Repeat, Re-run!

On this last point, there are so many automation tools now to help you ease and accelerate this process. Buffer and HootSuite jump to mind, and there are so many to choose from that I'm certain you'll find one that suits your motivational and personality profiles.

Do connect with Richard Mack and Andrew Parker - I'm proud to have them as connections.

Thank YOU for your attention to this article, and I'd actively solicit your comments on what strategies, automation tools, and techniques are serving you best.