If anyone of you have ever been in or eavesdropped on a conversation between me, Temple Lentz, Jim Mains, you know that it can be fast and furious. We have so much to say in a short period of time, because we are all so busy, that our conversational rapport is rapid-fire. This goes well with our business, High Five Media.
When it comes to developing short, micro-burst campaigns for local businesses, nonprofit organizations, political campaigns and community events, there are many ways to do it. Today, I want to focus on getting your business’s message out as quickly as possible on digital media.
The ease, speed and reach of using social media and digital marketing communication channels gives your business a direct line to your current and potential customers. It is vital. But, if you saturate it with nonsensical content or sporadically post messages without a plan, then you might be doing more harm than good.
As with any plan for your business, to be successful you need to answer the “who” (customer), “what” (type of content) and “why” (why are you doing this?) questions. The “when” (optimal post times) and “how” (technique) are pieces of the puzzle that can be learned. Master your content piece first, then teach yourself or hire consultants to do the delivery.
Next, ask yourself: is your content entertaining, relevant, or memorable? Textually you should inspire, incentivize and involve your audience to join the movement. Visually, you should solve problems, appeal to emotions and intellect, and instill a sense of purpose and belonging to create a connection. You don’t have to bundle all of this into one message. Develop it in the context of your campaign so your audience knows your story.
Once you’ve created it, one way to boost your content quickly is “pay to play” social/digital advertising. The micro-campaigns we run span three to seven months. Depending on the customer’s goals and objectives, we advertise on various digital media platforms across Clark County. We strategically use Facebook ads to target audiences for maximum reach. WARNING: Do not use Facebook advertising if your Facebook page lacks enthusiasm. Cookie crumbs may lead potential customers to your Facebook page, but a filthy house will scare them away.
Finally, speed is imperative when running short campaigns. You have to react and respond to your audience when messages are posted on your Facebook wall, when tweets come to you on Twitter, or emails arrive in response to your email marketing campaign. Use your network of friends and family for feedback. If things are not working, pivot immediately.
Political campaigns are my favorite type to work on because they are short, sometimes sweet, with an ROI (return on investment) on Election Day. We then take a short break, and do it all again in the spring.
So, the next time you see the High Five Media team in conversation, it’s not chaos but great ideas being tossed around in a short period of time. It’s social. It’s digital, It’s simply magical.
Noland Hoshino is a partner and director of creative and digital at Vancouver-based High Five Media. He can be reached at noland@highfivemedia.us.
