Eyeballs are not action.
Engagement is a funny concept. In the tech space, this term refers to the level of interaction that a particular post, tweet or picture experiences. How that is measured, exactly, is not quite as cut-and-dry.
In the physical world, observation and measurement of utilization is pretty straightforward. You pick up a product, use it to accomplish a task (or consume it). If it worked (or was delicious), you do it again.
Voilà; that’s engagement in its most literal form. Easy peasy.
But how do you accurately measure something as fleeting and esoteric as digital content? Especially when you are just one tiny bee in the massive swarm trying to differentiate your buzz.
Most look to metrics including number of followers, likes, thumbs up, hearts and the equivalent. (Or, if you are Twitter, whether someone just happened to mindlessly scroll by. While labeled as an ‘impression’, that is about as misguided as our passing silently on the street and me suddenly declaring us besties and showing up at your wedding.)
Get a bunch of these whatevers, and you are killing it. Well, relative to everyone else going through the same hollow motions, that is. But what does that really mean? And does it even matter?
What we really need is action.
If the content is intended to sell a product or service, it only counts when a transaction is closed and the check clears. A heaping pile of likes does not move the needle in any tangible way. You cannot put those in the bank. A clicked upon heart-shaped arrangement of pixels does not feed the family.
Don’t get me wrong. Building a brand or telling a story as part of a greater, over-arching dialogue is fine; it is an important part of marketing a product or a service, for sure. But if all you ever do is say, “Gather round kids, it’s story time”, and fail to nudge your target customer towards a desired outcome, then you are just part of the noise.
Content needs a call to action. And, better yet, an easy way to act on it to seal the deal.
While not set in motion by the ALS Association itself, the Ice Bucket Challenge is a great example of how a silly internet stunt went on to raise $115 million to fight Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. This eye-popping amount was made possible by the clear set of guidelines: complete the challenge, capture it on video and then call out the next target. By name. They then had a choice: make a video or make a donation. Many did both.
That, my friends, is how you win digital marketing – and absolutely crush the fundraising goal for your non-profit.
So, before you hit ‘submit’ on your next Insta, tweet or (for the ten of you still actually using it) Facebook post, pause a beat to ponder if you are doing it just for the digital validation (“I got a 100 likes! I matter!”) or if you want to actually get something done.
Let’s get ‘er done.
MUSIC BOX
Starz In Their Eyes by Just Jack
This song and Just Jack, in general, are guilty pleasures. Normally, I am not fond of those that add a ‘z’ to pluralize words. (But, in all fairness, this song came out in 2007, so maybe he was ahead of the curve and not part of a played out trend.) This song covers the pumped-up rise and inevitable, shoulder-shrugging fall of a pop star. It seemed only fitting to take the same red-hot-then-fizzle storyline and arc it over to digital marketing. Plus, the catchy tune will have you bouncing in your seat.