5 Ways to Feed the Content Beast
TikTok, Instagram & Twitter are VERY hungry....
👋, I’m Kimberly. I’ve been creating obsession-worthy brands for the past fifteen years. And now, I’m giving away my secrets every week in this newsletter.
Stories here, stories there, stories stories everywhere…
Between TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snap, and Twitter—the demands on brands to create more and more content are getting bigger and broader by the minute.
I call it “The Constant Content Problem,” and it can be crazy difficult for both big and small businesses to not only keep up—but to keep up in ways that feels authentic and genuine to the brand.
Here are five fresh ways to think about creating content (in volume!) and feed those hungry-hungry platforms.
1. Always Be Filming
One of the best and simplest ways to create your Constant Content is to give people behind-the-scenes looks at what you’re doing on the daily as you make and market your product.
You can film the fun stuff—like this awesomely over-the-top photoshoot involving multiple pink poodles my team at Bartlett Brands did for ipsy a few years ago. Or regular stuff, like shipping out a big batch of products.
⚡️Your Action Step⚡
People love seeing what goes into making the brands they buy. It gives them a story to follow along with.
So, take them along on every stage:
Testing out new product ideas, reviewing packaging concepts, or looking at the latest website designs
Watching your production line in-action
(seeing bottles get filled can be fascinating—and oddly calming!)Shooting an ad campaign
(show us the details—like how you had to superglue a stack of products together to balance them just-so, or a time-lapse of the model getting her makeup done)Anything else you’re doing to make or market your product!
And don’t get too caught up in the need for all your photos and videos to look super professional. If you have a phone with a good camera, that’s more than enough for this type of content—people expect it to feel real and raw.
2. Use Q&A in a Clever Way
Everlane was first out of the gate on the ethical fashion movement with their focus on “radical transparency”—meaning they're as honest as possible about everything from the price of products to the conditions in their factories. And when it comes to serving up Constant Content, they’re a leading presence on social.
One of the many things they do in a smart way is engage their audience in the content they’re creating.
Every Tuesday, Everlane adds to a series called “Transparency Tuesday.” They share a post on Instagram asking people to submit their questions. Questions can be about anything, from product development to job openings at the company.
Then their social team takes to the camera, answering the questions in quick and interesting snippets of content. It’s a simple win-win for everyone: Everlane gets plenty of Constant Content. Their fans get answers about what matters to them in the moment.
⚡️Your Action Step⚡
To create Constant Content that’s both timely and relevant, use your audience as an asset. It’s a super positive + super symbiotic relationship that keeps the convo and the content super fresh.
The customer questions can come from anywhere. Look for what people want to know:
In your DMs
In the reviews of your product
In the questions your customer service team receives
And when you’re answering the question, make sure people know it came from a real customer.
Showing the name/age/location of your customer makes it seem more personal.
Bonus points if they let you show a photo!
Tremendous bonus points if you can get the customer film a quick video of themselves asking the question that they submit to you… and you can stitch into your video.
3. Get Inspired by the Full Customer Journey
Whether you have a baby or not, you’ve likely heard of The Honest Company. Driven by a mission to build a non-toxic world for the next generation, they make safe+effective essentials for families.
Beyond good-for-you products, they've mastered the art of creating good-for-everyone Constant Content by focusing in on all of the life stages of millennial mothers and the authentic moments they encounter.
From showing real customers (not just influencers) to giving fitness tips for new moms to highlighting “honest moments” around childbirth to posting a photo like the one above and following it up with an Instagram story showcasing babies playing in their boxes—they both get personal AND get inspired by their audience.
And whether it’s a story, a video or a photo, The Honest Company is educating, empathizing and laughing along with parents as they and their children grow.
⚡️Your Action Step⚡
Think about all the things that happen in the lives of your potential and current customers:
What’s going on for them before they discover your brand?
Once they purchase your product—how, when, and where are they using it?
In what ways have their lives changed for the better after choosing to engage with your brand?
Any single moment, place or feeling could provide an inspiration for your content—and another chance to connect with a story.
4. Make UGC the Building Blocks of Great Stories
Everyone can agree that AirBNB kills it when it comes to inspiring content. And being in the travel space, it’s true that they have a LOT to work with. Who doesn’t love gorgeous photos of the world’s most unique destinations (like this house built of Legos, what!?!) streaming through their feeds?
But it’s what they do with their stories that makes them so engaging.
Airbnb doesn’t simply repost the photos of their users. They create different types of themes—like business trips or mini vacays or locations. Then they string the photos together to express something unique.
Each piece is structured like a true narrative, with a beginning-middle-end.
And when they put this content into Stories, they engage users even more—having them guess the destination, give answers in simple polls and participate in contests.
⚡️Your Action Step⚡
Simply reposting UGC isn’t enough to create engaging Constant Content.
Step back and look at the things your audience is sharing with a wide view—then look for themes that emerge.
How can you use this to structure your stories? See what clicks into place.
5. Take Behind-the-Scenes to the Next Level
Alice+Olivia founder Stacey Bendet, a self described “designer, mommy, wife, occasional haiku-ist and lover of all things colorful,” injects her mega-bold personality into every facet of her brand.
She acts as a true founder face—featured in photos and illustrations sporting her signature round sunglasses.
But Stacy goes beyond being the classic idea of the face of a brand to truly invite customers into her over-the-top life.
Alice+Olivia’s stories and photos go much farther than typical “behind the scenes” at photoshoots: you see Stacey going to events, Stacey on vacation in Miami, Stacey’s children (who she calls her influencers) posing in clothes, even Stacey doing yoga at home while her little influencers run around in the background.
⚡️Your Action Step⚡
Whether your brand has a founder face or not, think about all the ways you can invite your audience into your brand to create Constant Content that connects.
Events you attend, interesting things happening in your workspace (office dogs, anyone?), a vacation where your brand’s product personally came in handy—anything and everything that’s aligned with the values of your brand could bloom into fresh content.
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About Me
I help early stage founders create the kind of brands that get customers so obsessed, they’ll do your advertising for you.
Based on my experience founding my own consumer brand, I developed The Branding Sprint—a uniquely collaborative, streamlined, and agile approach to brand creation.
Click here to learn more about The Branding Sprint, or schedule a call with me.