Create Equality With Education
By Dani Reyes-Acosta
Stories powerfully influence not just how we experience the world, but also the decisions we make. For some brands, though, sharing stories can feel tricky: Where, exactly, should one start? The bridge to narrative-driven content marketing feels daunting when product minimums loom and new innovations need to be announced. Instead of another budget spend on influencer marketing or reworking your campaign pillars, though, start with how you share knowledge. Integrate an ethos of education to create powerful, impactful, and supportive content that meets your audience where they are.
RULE 1: BE A NICE HUMAN
The first step to creating engaging (i.e. interesting content that audiences want to save and share)social posts starts with identifying several different areas where your brand (and its partners) can share expertise. Dispense information to create access to the knowledge you hold.
“That’s what we did with the Slay at Home [digital speaker] Series,” says Sean Eno, marketing director at Weston Backcountry. “We provided free weekly knowledge to help our community stay safe and overcome barriers.” Each winter, Weston holds a weekly session with its guide partners in a “a more human approach to business,” noting that “when you help others to succeed, they reciprocate.”
Sometimes that reciprocation looks like a share or a save (both more powerful metrics than likes), but, over time, as your audience grows with your brand, it can be much more. Educational content, in many ways, opens the door to bigger conversations that invite the uninitiated.
“By providing interesting and challenging educational content, I’ve grown a curious, thoughtful, and highly engaged digital community on my Instagram page, @laura.edmond-son,” says digital educator Laura Edmondson. Her page boasts not just a constantly growing follower count (28K), but also a highly engaged audience focused on growth and social change.
Laura recommends working with hiring experts to develop audience resources, and content should be attention-grabbing, entertaining, and informative, she says. As an extension of your brand’s story, social media content that emphasizes learning and growth shows audiences you care—while also extending your brand’s audience to new groups.
RULE 2: RECIPROCATE
Remember: “If you expect users to give their time and attention to your brand through engagement, brand loyalty, and purchases, you have to give a little in return,” says Iris Matulevich of Wheelie Creative Team, based in Whitefish, Montana. Moving beyond just educational content, reciprocity “can mean free product, swag, and stickers—or even just likes, messages, and comments on that person’s feed.”
Show up for audiences, and the result could be great. “Loyalty and engagement may be the result of our education efforts,” says Sean Eno. “[But this is really about]…our passion in helping people get out there and overcome the barriers.”
This investment in each other means a lotto potential customers. “If customers see a brand is invested in them and has real people behind it who support their growth, they’ll be much more likely to interact with your content and to become brand evangelists to their own audiences,” says Matulevich.
Storytelling initiatives succeed because each engaged individual feels as if they have a personal frame of reference. Particularly, uninitiated and new-to-the-outdoors groups can benefit from education.
Whether you’re well-versed in storytelling or just getting started on different elements of your content marketing strategy, include educational themes to expand the different ways you connect with audiences.
Ultimately, your brand can open the door to equity—and get a coveted share-save-like combination—with educational social media content.
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