Shareable content plays a central role in expanding brand visibility and sparking audience engagement. It spreads organically when crafted with elements that resonate quickly—like concise insights, emotional appeal, or visual clarity.
In fact, a study by Demand Gen found that 83% of users prefer content that includes quick, shareable stats and insights, making it more likely to be shared on social media platforms like LinkedIn.
In this guide, we’ll explore what makes content shareable, the types of content that encourage sharing, strategies for creating shareable content, and how to measure its success.
Creating content that is shareable involves crafting messages that resonate with your target audience and compel them to spread it within their network. By strategically focusing on certain elements, businesses can enhance their content’s potential for viral success, ultimately expanding their reach.
1. Focus on Emotional Appeal
Crafting content that evokes emotions—whether humor, surprise, joy, or empathy—is crucial for increasing its shareability. Emotional content drives engagement because people are naturally inclined to share content that makes them feel something, whether it’s laughter or inspiration.
By tapping into these emotions, businesses can create content that resonates deeply with their audience.
Emotional content helps build a stronger bond between the brand and the consumer, making the message more likely to be shared. When people feel a connection, they are more likely to share the content with their friends, family, and followers.
The emotional resonance makes the content memorable, further encouraging distribution.
Pro Tip: Use storytelling to evoke emotions, as personal stories tend to trigger empathy and make the content more relatable. Keep it concise and impactful to drive sharing.
2. Use Engaging Visuals
Visual content, such as images, infographics, and videos, plays a key role in shareability. Studies show that visual content is more engaging and tends to be shared 40 times more than other types of content on social media.
Incorporating vibrant visuals makes content more eye-catching and increases its potential to be shared across various platforms.
Videos and infographics are particularly effective because they quickly convey information and are easy to digest. Visuals can simplify complex topics and make them more accessible, ensuring your message reaches a wider audience.
Also, well-designed visuals can enhance the overall aesthetic of your content, making it more share-worthy.
Pro Tip: Always ensure your visuals align with your brand’s voice and message. Consistent branding across all content helps build a recognizable and shareable brand identity.
3. Keep Content Easy to Consume
For content to be shareable, it should be easy to consume, meaning it should be quick to read, understand, and engage with. Short-form content, like listicles, bullet points, and short videos, is more likely to be shared because it delivers value in a concise and digestible manner.
The more straightforward and accessible your content, the more likely people will engage with it and share it.
Users have limited time and attention spans, so making content skimmable is key. By breaking content into bite-sized pieces, such as using headers, bold text, and short paragraphs, you make it easier for readers to find what they need.
This approach not only encourages sharing but also boosts content engagement and retention.
Pro Tip: Format your content to be easily scannable by using headers, subheadings, and bullet points. This makes it more shareable, especially for users browsing on mobile devices.
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4. Incorporate Shareable Quotes or Stats
People are naturally drawn to content that includes impactful quotes or surprising statistics, especially when they are easily shareable. These bite-sized, valuable pieces of information are perfect for social media and often become the focal point of shares.
Including powerful stats or quotes within your content increases its chances of being shared widely.
Shareable stats and quotes often summarize key points succinctly, making them easy to reference or quote on other platforms. They also add credibility and can position your brand as an authority in your field.
As a result, these snippets are frequently picked up by users and influencers, expanding your content’s reach.
Pro Tip: Use tools like Canva to create visually engaging quote cards or stat images that users can easily share across platforms. Ensure the quote or stat aligns with your content’s core message.
5. Encourage Social Sharing
Adding social share buttons to your content is an easy yet effective way to encourage sharing. By making it simple for users to share with just one click, you increase the likelihood that they’ll pass the content along to their network.
Including shareable content buttons on multiple pages, such as blog posts, infographics, or videos, ensures that your content is easily accessible to a larger audience.
Beyond just providing social sharing buttons, you can incentivize sharing by running campaigns or contests. For example, ask users to share content for a chance to win a prize or receive a discount.
This kind of call to action drives higher engagement and increases the likelihood of content going viral.
Pro Tip: Place social share buttons in prominent spots (e.g., at the top, bottom, or in pop-ups) to make it easier for users to share content. Consider using tools like Sumo or AddThis for better functionality.
Types of Shareable Content
Shareable content comes in many forms, each with its own unique appeal to different audience segments. Understanding the various types helps you create content that resonates, engages, and encourages sharing across platforms.
Infographics
Infographics are visual representations of data and information, making complex topics easier to understand and more engaging. They are highly shareable because they present information in a concise, visually appealing format.
Infographics simplify the presentation of information, enhancing its accessibility and increasing the likelihood of it being shared.
Common Uses:
Visualizing data and statistics
Summarizing research or survey results
Creating step-by-step guides
How-To Guides and Tutorials
How-to guides offer practical, step-by-step instructions for accomplishing tasks. These guides are often shared because they help solve problems or answer questions, providing immediate value to the audience.
They are particularly useful in content marketing for educating customers or users about a product, service, or process.
Common Uses:
Teaching new skills or processes
Offering troubleshooting solutions
Explaining complex procedures in simple terms
Listicles
Listicles are articles presented in a list format, which makes them easy to read and share. They break down information into bite-sized, skimmable sections, making it easier for readers to find what they need.
Listicles are particularly popular because they deliver concise and structured information in an easily digestible format.
Common Uses:
Highlighting top tips, tools, or resources
Summarizing key points or trends
Ranking items or ideas
Quizzes and Interactive Content
Quizzes and other interactive content engage users by inviting them to participate actively. These formats are effective because they offer a personalized experience, which makes users more likely to share their results.
Interactive content is a fun way to increase user involvement, and it often encourages more interaction and engagement.
Common Uses:
Personality quizzes
Knowledge assessments
Interactive polls or challenges
Memes
Memes are short, humorous, or relatable content—usually in the form of images or videos—that is designed to be shared. They are widely used for their entertainment value and their ability to tap into current cultural trends.
Memes have a high potential for virality because they are easily relatable and can be adapted to different contexts.
Common Uses:
Commenting on current events
Expressing shared experiences
Adding humor to everyday situations
User-Generated Content (UGC)
User-generated content (UGC) refers to content created by your audience, such as reviews, photos, or videos. UGC is valuable because it provides authentic, real-life testimonials and feedback, which helps build trust with potential customers.
When shared, it not only boosts brand credibility but also engages a community of loyal followers who feel connected to the brand.
Common Uses:
Sharing customer reviews or testimonials
Reposting user-submitted photos or videos
Hosting contests or challenges that encourage content creation
Short-Form Videos
Short-form videos are quick, engaging clips that convey messages or stories in under a minute. They are highly shareable due to their concise format, which is perfect for social media platforms where attention spans are shorter.
These videos tend to perform well because they capture attention quickly and are easy for viewers to consume and share.
Common Uses:
Demonstrating product features
Sharing quick tips or behind-the-scenes moments
Creating teaser trailers or promotional content
Behind-the-Scenes Content
Behind-the-scenes content offers audiences a look into the inner workings of your brand, making it feel more authentic and humanized. This type of content helps build a personal connection with your audience, showing the effort and creativity that goes into your products or services.
It is especially shareable because it adds transparency and fosters a deeper connection with your audience.
Common Uses:
Showcasing the production process
Introducing team members
Sharing company culture or milestones
Trending Stories
Trending stories involve creating content around current events, hot topics, or viral trends. By tapping into what’s already capturing the audience’s attention, these types of content are highly shareable.
Trending stories are effective because they capitalize on the momentum of ongoing discussions, making your content more likely to be shared and seen by a wider audience.
Common Uses:
Commenting on industry news
Participating in viral challenges or hashtags
Addressing hot topics or controversies
Inspirational Quotes
Inspirational quotes are short, motivational statements that resonate with audiences and encourage them to take action or reflect. They are often shared to express sentiments or inspire others, making them highly shareable.
These types of quotes are particularly effective insocial media, where they can drive engagement through likes, shares, and comments.
Common Uses:
Sharing brand values or philosophies
Motivating the audience
Highlighting industry leaders or influencers
Final Take: Maximizing Reach with Shareable Content
Creating shareable content is an essential strategy for expanding your brand’s visibility and boosting engagement. By crafting content that resonates emotionally, provides value, and taps into current trends, businesses can encourage their audience to share and amplify their message. This not only increases reach but also builds stronger connections with your target market.
By understanding the types of shareable content and implementing effective strategies, businesses can create content that drives consistent traffic, enhances customer loyalty, and establishes their brand as a trusted authority. The ability to create shareable content is key to long-term success in today’s digital landscape.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How can I measure the success of shareable content?
To measure the success of shareable content, track metrics such as social shares, engagement rates, and referral traffic. Tools like Google Analytics and social media insights provide valuable data to gauge content performance and adjust your strategy accordingly.
What type of content is most likely to go viral?
Content that evokes strong emotions, uses humor, or taps into current trends is more likely to go viral. Additionally, interactive content, such as quizzes or polls, tends to generate higher engagement and sharing, boosting the potential for virality.
How often should I create shareable content?
Creating shareable content should be a consistent part of your content strategy. Aim for a balance, producing shareable content regularly, but without compromising quality. Consistency is key to maintaining engagement and staying top of mind with your audience.
