by Rob Salmon, Director of Digital Marketing, Torchbox,
Did you watch any of the ski cross in the Winter Olympics? The one where four top class skiers line-up before racing down a rocking and a rolling rollercoaster of a track over bumps and jumps at blistering speeds in a quest to beat the rest and make it to the bottom first. Like a James Bond ski chase where you don’t know whose going to triumph. It was incredibly compelling content.
I made a point of watching as much as I could. I told my family. My friends. My workmates. Maybe they too went and watched and then told their circles.
So what relevance does this have to social media?
Well, if you want people to become a fan of your Facebook page, follow you on Twitter or share your iPhone app, I reckon you had better make sure it has a compelling content offer.
Otherwise, you’ll end up with a Winter Olympic discipline akin to watching paint dry. And I don’t think watching paint dry is ever going to command a large or highly engaged audience (although maybe this YouTube link which has been watched 33k time proves that wrong!?).
Take Facebook, all too often it seems to me, brands will get something up around an ad campaign but then not nurture and develop it once the campaign is over. It looks pretty (highly attractive custom designed tabs). But is there anything to do? Anything to play with? No. There’s nothing there. Nothing to do. Nothing to talk about. And as King Lear so rightly pointed out: ‘nothing can come of nothing’.
Yet Facebook gives you the opportunity to offer something sooooooo much better than this. Now it goes without saying that not everyone can deliver something quite as cool as live ski cross action. But I believe that most brands or organisations have a brand territory or two that can make for a compelling content offering.
One Facebook page I worked on whilst at Molson Coors that I love – because I love curry – is Cobra’s . It is a place where curry lovers can come and find out the latest news from the curry world. Watch videos of keen amateur curry chefs cooking up a treat – as well as a true pro in Anjum Anand. Take part in curry conversations facilitated by the Cobra brand. Enter a Naan That Tune competition. Or start their own curry debate. Cobra is at the heart of a vibrant community of curry lovers. Perfect.
On Twitter, brands have a definite place in the list of those I follow if they provide me with cool content rather than boring stuff. Derby’s arts centre () keeps me up to date with what’s happening there as well as other cool stuff from the film world or around Derby. Opta Sports ( – one of the team at the football stats people) give me top quality stats that I can bore my friends with…for example: ‘2 – in the last 5 Champs Lge seasons only 2 of 40 1st leg games at the last 16 stage have been won by more than a single goal margin. Cagy.’ I like this stuff – and I like Derby Quad (I reckon I’ve been there more since following them on Twitter. That’ll be a social media content generated ROI then!) and Opta better as a result of the content they provide.
When planning social media campaigns there are many things to take into account from objectives to brand values to ROI. I just hope more and more folk ensure that delivering great content is high up their list…
Are there any Facebook / Twitter offerings that you’d recommend? Any apps that are so good that you’ve shared with mates? Would love to hear your thoughts…
I’ll get another blog post up in the next couple of week on another area I’m really passionate – amplification. Making the content famous.
On Twitter? Drop me a line at
PS Just typing this up on a train and bumped into an old work colleague – hello Sarah! – she asked me if I had seen any of the ski cross!! Power of compelling content hey?!
