Social Media | Casey.Lynn

I recently read Contagious – Why Things Catch On. Did you know that 7% of word of mouth happens online? Just think about that for a minute. 7%. With the right frame work, something shared could go viral. We have all seen the overnight posts that just run rapid.

There are 6 Principles of Contagiousness (Likeliness to Spread) or better known as STEPPS. These six things cause things to be talked about, shared, and imitated.

Social Currency – People like to share things that make them look good to others. What people talk about also affects what people think of them. Ideally, companies need to give people a way to make themselves look good while also promoting the company’s products. Scarcity and exclusivity of products also helps products catch on by making them seem more desirable. If something is difficult to obtain, people assume that it must be worth the effort.

Triggers – Stimuli that prompt people to think about related things. When hearing peanut butter it reminds us of jelly. Products and ideas need to take advantage of existing triggers. Sights, smells, and sounds can trigger related thoughts and ideas, making them more top of mind. By acting as reminders, triggers not only get people talking, they keep them talking.

Emotion – When we care, we share. People want to be moved. Be sure to select high arousal emotions that drive people to action; awe, excitement, and amusement.

Public – Making products and ideas more public. Making things more observable makes them easier to share, which makes them more likely to become popular. The more public a product or service is, the more it triggers people to take action. For small companies or organizations, try designing products that advertise themselves, this cuts down on spending resources

Practical Value – People like to help others (normally), if you can show them how your product or idea will save time, improve health, or save money, the word will spread. People use the price they expect to pay for something as their reference point. When it comes to having things on sale, for low priced items, be sure to use a % off. For high priced items, use the dollar off option. An easy way to remember this is the Rule of 100 – if the product is less than $100 use the % off option.

Stories – People don’t just share information, they tell stories. People have gotten so used to telling stories, that they create narratives even when they don’t need too. The key, when telling stories, make sure the narrative connects back to you.

This was a really good read with tons of examples and explanations for reach step. If you are creating content or sharing content, I highly recommend reading this book.

As always share some love, we could all use a little more love
XOXOXOXO
Casey

Do you ever find yourself aimless scrolling through social media? Whether that be Facebook or the Gram? It could even be Twitter or one of the newer platforms. This weekend I found myself scrolling a lot more than normal.

Side note here, most of my work includes social media posting, scheduling, and reviewing. I have found that there is a huge difference in getting on to work and just scrolling. Okay, continue on below.

The more time that I spent on my phone the more I could feel myself start to fall into the “feel sorry for yourself” category. With every engagement post, wedding post, baby post, people killing it at life post, the more I wondered what was wrong with me! Now, don’t get me wrong, I am happy for all the people that are out there killing it at life. I am happy for all the couples getting married and having babies. However, when you are constantly seeing and being reminded of the things that are going right for everyone else and not exactly going right for you like you thought they would, you begin to wonder.

Where did I go wrong?

If this isn’t you, props to you. If this is you, know that you aren’t alone. As I got home from a long weekend, I was tired, I was drained, I was confused, and I was sad. All of my time consuming other people wins led me to feel/think that there had to be something I was doing wrong.

Well, I was wrong and so are you!

You are exactly where you are supposed to be right now. All the trials and tribulations have led you to where you are. You have overcome more things than you know and while things may not be exactly like you want them, that doesn’t mean they aren’t already in works.

Remember that no one is perfect. While their social life may seem perfect, know that they are facing trials just like you and I. Everyone is human and no one is exempt from hard times or “life”.

You are amazing! Keep shining and don’t ever stop

So how do you not get on social media, especially when it may be your job?

A few things I am trying. I really dislike seeing notifications, when I see them, I constantly want to check them. To combat this, I have moved my apps from the first screen on my phone, all the way to the back page. When I get on for work, I schedule my posts for work and then immediately get off and close the tab. For some of my pages, I need to comment back to people, check messages etc. When it comes to this, I am scheduling a time in the morning and in the afternoon/evening to look over this stuff. When I do get on during this time, I am really conscious about how I am spending the time and making sure I am just not scrolling to scroll. Different things work for different people. What tips or tricks have you tried?

Whatever you do, know that You are Amazing and don’t forget it!

As always share some love, we could all use a little more love!

XOXO

Casey