The elusive scroll stop – How do you actually create content that captures people’s attention in a crowded online world in seconds? We’re going to dive into this in todays blog and give you some tips that you can put into place with your next content, so that you grab people’s attention with your posts.
In order to create attention grabbing content, you first have to stop creating generic content. Long gone are the days that corporate graphics grab people’s attention, unless they’re a bit different, or humanised. We are all drawn to things that look different, and we’re all drawn to other people.
When you start creating content that is unique, different, quirky, authentic or visually appealing, you’ll stop the scroll by standing out from the crowd.
But standing out can take guts!
It’s easy to create safe, generic content that everyone else is creating. It’s safe to post content that doesn’t share your personal voice and views. It’s safe blending in, you definitely won’t ruffle any feathers. But maybe it’s time to stop playing safe and start ruffling some, especially if you want your personal brand to stand out.
Show The Personality Behind The Account:
The accounts that are gaining traction at the moment, are the accounts that show their personality off. They are the accounts who aren’t afraid to say it how it is, showcasing their own opinions. They don’t have the perfect grammar, but they talk like they would in real life. They have a laugh and are a bit cheeky in their content. They connect with their audiences on a deeper level because their audiences get to know them and what they’re actually like in real life.
How could you show more of your personality in your content?
Humanise Your Content:
Even big brands now are sharing more human images and video content, even in their corporate marketing, not just their personal brands. They’re showing their face! They’re showing their teams and the people who work within their organisation. They share the struggles as well as the wins, they know there is power in showing the reality not just perfection, no one resonates with perfection.
How can you humanise your content more?
Using Emotional Triggers:
The best personal brands are evoking emotions in their audiences. Utilising the power of storytelling, they want to connect with their viewers on a deeper level. Whats the quote “facts tell, stories sell.” You just have to look at the John Lewis or Marks and Spencer adverts that will soon be hitting our screens in time for Christmas, these evoke feelings and emotions in people, they go deeper than surface level old sales tactics, come into our store we have a discount, just won’t cut it anymore.
How could you evoke feelings or emotions in your audience, what stories or visuals could you share that do this?
Think About Visual Hierarchy:
What do we mean by visual hierarchy? Well every image we share can either visually tantalise us, or make our brains switch off to it by how it’s laid out, the font thats used and where it’s placed etc. Paying attention to things like layouts, font choices, and text placement can guide the viewer’s eyes and make content flow naturally, or the opposite, it can put people off your images. Even thinking about where you place yourself in an image, is it central, off to the side, is the background neutral or distracting etc.
What do your current images and graphics look like to you? Are they appealing, or do they look a bit naff?
Make Your Images Pop:
While we’re on the subject of images, why not think about how your images pop to people. We have a split second when scrolling to grab someones attention, if our images are plain, boring, or dull, we’re less likely to stop the scroll in it’s tracks. If our images are well lit, have bright colours in them, look interesting, are a bit different to all the others, this will make us stop to take a further look.
How can you jazz up your images so they pop more?
Incorporate Video Content Into The Mix:
Videos are gaining popularity on many social platforms right now and we can understand why. The online space is full of content and standing out can be tough. When you use video content correctly you can stand out against others who aren’t sharing videos and you can get your point across quicker and gain people’s trust faster too. But many people are still quite scared of creating video content. If you struggle with doing this then think about other scroll stopping alternatives like subtle animations or GIFs which can catch attention in a crowded feed, but make sure you still keep things on-brand if you use these.
What kind of video or animation content could you create and blend into your feed every now and again to stand out more?
Craft Compelling Headlines:
I personally have a bit of a bug bear when it comes to headlines that grab my attention, but then lead to nothing of use in the content itself. When creating compelling headlines makes sure you do think about grabbing people’s attention with them, but that you then deliver some great value in the content also. A powerful, curiosity-provoking headline can make viewers stop and want to know more.
What headlines could you use on your posts that would intrigue people to want to jump into your content and learn/read more?
As with all your personal branded content, creating scroll stopping content will be a process of experimenting. Seeing what works for your individual brand, what your audience likes, and what you can actually create will take some time to figure out. Sometimes you just have to give things a go and see what works and what doesn’t.
Not all content will stop people’s scroll, it’s competitive out there and people have very little attention spans because everyone is so busy. Don’t be so hard on yourself if you create what you think is scroll stopping content and it flops. Keep going and try again.
As always, if you need help creating scroll stopping content the Quirq Squad are here. Contact our team today to talk about how we could help you create scroll stopping personal brand content for you, or give you the ideas and content plan so you can create it yourself with clarity.
