7 Ways to Create Share-Worthy Content

In this week’s #EmailChat, we teamed up with Express Writers, a copywriting agency known for creating epic content for their clients, to talk about the ways that modern marketers can optimize their content for maximum shareability.

From getting more likes, shares and retweets to increasing email opens and clicks, read on for your five-minute guide to share-worthy content.

When creating content, aim to engage

You can’t predict when or if a piece of content will go viral, but you can aim to make your content more engaging. And creating actionable, engaging content is a vital part of any marketing strategy.

A1. Shareability is the likelihood of your content getting, well, shared. #EmailChat

— Olivia Dello Buono (@oliviadello) October 6, 2016

Shareable content is – in it’s most simplest terms – content that has a likelihood to be shared. MovableInk calls it content that “makes you feel something.” It’s how you know you’re delivering a great experience to your readers.

A1. Shareable content makes you *feel* something. It's how you know if you're delivering a great experience. #emailchat

— Movable Ink (@movableink) October 6, 2016

A1b: If your content speaks to your audience enough that they want to share it, you know you've done something right. #emailchat

— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 6, 2016

Shareable content is not one-size-fits-all

We asked what the qualities of a share-worthy piece of content were, and we received quite the influx of tweets on the topic! Our guest, Express Writers, said, “Shareable content should provide value to your audience and speak to their interests. Give them what they’re looking for!”

A2: Shareable content should provide value to your audience and speak to their interests. Give them what they're looking for! #emailchat

— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 6, 2016

Others stressed the importance of relevancy.

A2. Shareable content is relevant content. You wouldn't share if you couldn't relate! #emailchat

— Movable Ink (@movableink) October 6, 2016

What is the goal of your content? What kind of feeling are you trying to evoke from your audience? It’s important that you answer these questions as you walk through the content creation process.

A2. If it's authentic, relevant, and evokes feeling in your audience, you've got a share-worthy piece of content! #EmailChat

— Olivia Dello Buono (@oliviadello) October 6, 2016

Some are more shareable than others

The content that sees the highest engagement really depends on your audience, but we have seen some stats that suggest that multimedia content has a higher likelihood of sharing.

Think eye-catching graphics, videos, and GIFs. List-style posts also do really well, as people love their quick and “snackable” format.

@ExpWriters People love listicles because they're quick and easy reads. (We call them "snackable" content.) #EmailChat

— Olivia Dello Buono (@oliviadello) October 6, 2016

Optimize for shares

You guys couldn’t stress it enough: When it comes to creating shareable content, you should make it easy for your readers to share! This means adding social sharing buttons to every post, ‘Pin It’ buttons on images, click-to-tweet links, etc.

We loved what @PamelaHughes shared about promoting her email list:

Oooh, I love Q4. We regularly debate sharing pieces from an e-mail vs. an e-mail in its entirety. (I lean toward the former.) #emailchat

— pamelahughes (@pamelahughes) October 6, 2016

Plus, teasing your email content is a great strategy for giving people incentive to sign up for your newsletter.

A4. Your email list = your biggest fans. Get your content in front of them for more shares! #emailchat

— Movable Ink (@movableink) October 6, 2016

A4. Provide a lot of ways for people to share content, & test different types of images, headlines, etc. to see what works best! #emailchat

— Monica Montesa (@missmontesa) October 6, 2016

Add these words to your email vernacular

When’s the last time you asked your followers to retweet your post? Or your email subscribers to forward your newsletter to a friend?

Sometimes the most obvious answer is something that gets glossed over, but telling people to simply “share” your content can have a big impact.

A5. This is the time when I like being blunt – a simple "Share" will do! #emailchat

— Monica Montesa (@missmontesa) October 6, 2016

A5: It's so obvious, but if you want a share, ASK FOR IT. Don't be afraid to tell people to share your content. #emailchat

— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 6, 2016

Keep an eye on your performance

The numbers don’t lie; if you’re serious about optimizing your content, analyzing your data is a must.

A6. For social, I like to look at reach, engagement % and CPC. If it's a video, duration watched is important, too. #EmailChat

— Olivia Dello Buono (@oliviadello) October 6, 2016

Whether you’re looking to increase your reach on social media or improve your open and click through rates, you need to get down and dirty with your data. Again, remember the goal and make necessary tweaks to continuously improve.

A6: Set goals for what you want your content to achieve. Track engagement, clicks to your website, and conversions. #emailchat

— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 6, 2016

A6. Traffic to the page can be really telling! #emailchat

— Monica Montesa (@missmontesa) October 6, 2016

TL;DR: Your share-worthy content checklist

A7: Make sure you're sharing your content regularly on social media. Include links to content in your email newsletters, too. #emailchat

— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) October 6, 2016

Before you hit ‘send’ (…or post, tweet, pin), be sure to consider the following as you review your content:

Emotion – How does it make your reader feel?
Relevance – Does this piece of content fit your niche?
Design – Are you using the right colors and graphics to optimize for shares?
Targeting – Does your content include the right words, phrases and hashtags to get your audience to interact?

A7. Promote useful, relevant content to your audience. #emailchat

— Movable Ink (@movableink) October 6, 2016

A7. Keep a regular content cadence and keep track of how your content is performing. Use that data to refine your strategy! #EmailChat

— Olivia Dello Buono (@oliviadello) October 6, 2016