We’ve all heard the social media advice: Post often. Post regularly. Be engaging. These can be tough practices to follow, especially if you’re a marketer managing multiple priorities and platforms or lack the resources to create original posts on a regular basis.
There are many methods by which you can curate your social media feeds. One formula is known as the rule of thirds, and it provides an important formula that allows you to balance your time between creating content about your business and engaging with your community. The rule generally states that one-third of your content should focus on promoting business, one-third on sharing other posts and one-third on interacting with others.
So, to commemorate Social Media Day (June 30), here’s our take on the rule and some helpful tips to consider when pulling together your editorial calendar.
Talking about your products, market opportunities or strategy often comes easiest. It can also become the part that fails to inspire and engage, particularly if it consists of repetitive, one-way conversations.
TIP: Boast about business, personally: When sharing company successes, don’t forget to profile the human side of your business by telling stories about staff achievements and milestones, new personnel or your involvement in the community. Promote culture while inviting dialogue. Showcase your thought leadership and financial expertise thoughtfully and creatively, including through short quotes and videos. Remember to keep content focused on client needs.
1/3: Share other posts, with a broad lens
Curating third-party content is essential because it helps you to build community and engagement. It also shows you’re in touch with your industry and issues beyond your brand.
TIP:Use sources you support: When sharing industry-related posts, news or events, make sure you’re using content from brands you feel align well with your own. Sharing surveys or reports on financial trends or developments relevant to your clients is a great way to engage in meaningful conversations. When reposting, it’s good practice to tag the owner or provide attribution in a caption. And when sharing original content (photos/videos) created by someone else, be sure to obtain permission and to provide the creator with credit.
1/3: Reach out and interact
The final rule of thirds is about being as social as possible. In fact, it intersects all parts of your curation plan because every post is a chance to interact and foster further peer-to-peer engagement.
TIP: Work the room often: One of the simplest ways to connect with your followers on social media is to like and share their posts and respond when they reach out to you. Talking directly to followers, answering their questions and saying thank you allows you to expand your reach in new and exciting ways.
While we believe the rule of thirds is a great guide, these tips aren’t written in stone. Every business is different. You’ll benefit from a little tinkering and looking back at your analytics to see what worked best – ultimately helping you develop a content calendar that consistently engages and inspires.
Looking to boost your social media profile? Ext. can help you develop a targeted social media strategy and content plan to enhance your presence. Contact us today at 1.844.243.1830 or info@ext-marketing.com.
Generally speaking, social media accounts want to abide by the rules of thirds: 1/3 promoting your product or services, 1/3 interacting with others, and 1/3 sharing industry news and tips you believe your followers could benefit from. It sounds simple, because that's exactly how it should be.
Old-fashioned TV buyers also used a rule of three: TV campaigns are most effective when you aim for your audience to see the ad three times. Any fewer and they might not remember it; any more and they'll not remember it more.
This means you'll spend 30% of your content talking about yourself, 30% talking about others and 30% posting fun and engaging info. This also gives you room to post real-time messaging and responses with the other 10% of your content.
It suggests that for every 10 posts you make on social media, you should aim for: 5 posts that educate or inform your audience (e.g., industry news, tips, behind-the-scenes content) 3 posts that engage your audience (e.g., asking for feedback, running a poll, sharing user-generated content)
For example, a portrait photo would put one of the eyes on a crash point. This helps keep things a little off center and allows the viewer to take in the face in the photo, along with other background elements. The intersecting points on a Rule of Thirds grid are known as crash points.
The rule of thirds involves mentally creating equally spaced vertical and horizontal lines on a potential shot or image, then placing points of interest on this grid's lines and intersection points. The theory is that the filming style will create more pleasing visuals to the viewer's eye.
In storytelling: “The Three Little Pigs,” “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” and “Three Billy Goats Gruff” are all classic examples of stories that use the rule of three. In speeches: “I came, I saw, I conquered” is a famous example of the rule of three used by Julius Caesar.
What is the rule of thirds? The rule of thirds is a composition guideline that places your subject in the left or right third of an image, leaving the other two thirds more open. While there are other forms of composition, the rule of thirds generally leads to compelling and well-composed shots.
70% of content should be proven content that supports building your brand or attracting visitors to your site. 20% of content should be premier content which may be more costly or risky but has a bigger potential new audience, for example 'viral videos' or infographics. 10% of content should be more experimental.
The idea is pretty simple, of all your social media content, 80% of it should give value to your client and only 20% should ask for something from them. That might sound counterintuitive at first glance, but trust us, it works!
When posting across social media, follow our 70/30 rule, in which 70% of your posts should be about interesting news/information that is taking place within your industry and the remaining 30% of posts should be content that you have produced and is more focused on your business and it's work.
The three second rule is crucial for those wanting to maximise the organic reach of their social media video content and increase the engagement with their customer. According to the rule, the first three seconds of your video needs to have the hook to keep your audience interested.
The rule states that for every 10 updates you post to a social media channel: 5 should be content from others, relevant to your audience. 3 should be content from you, relevant to your audience—and not a sales pitch. 2 should be personal, non-work related content that helps humanise your brand.
The rule generally states that one-third of your content should focus on promoting business, one-third on sharing other posts and one-third on interacting with others.
Introduction: My name is Dean Jakubowski Ret, I am a enthusiastic, friendly, homely, handsome, zealous, brainy, elegant person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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