Posting Popularity - What Messages Get The Most Attention?

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By: Kiandra Florence |

Have you wondered what kind of posts get the most attention from an audience? For most marketing professionals, this is a question that is constantly being asked. In order to find the answer, Fractl and BuzzStream teamed up to do a study to discover which messaging types were the most engaging by breaking content articles into five categories: how-to, lists, what-posts, why-posts, and videos. Upon analyzing the articles they found that "lists", or content about particular topic with points about the topic, and "why-posts", or posts that provide readers with a reason or purpose, garner the most attention.

BuzzStream and Fractl analyzed 220,000 articles from 11 different verticals that were published from June 2014 to November 2014. The results showed that "lists" and “why-posts” averaged around 21,000 shares a month! These particular posts are somewhat similar in that they typically focus on a specific topic or reason and provide details that support a conclusion. Among the rest of the results found during the six-month period were: videos drawing nearly 19% of the total shares and “what-posts” producing the lowest social traction with almost 18% of the total shares.

The study also pointed out what type of posts perform best in different industries. For example, while list-type posts did well in the travel category, they did not perform well in the education category. In addition, the study found that not only does the industry for the post matter, but the season for which the post is made also contributes to the amount of shares. Research showed that with more than 128,000 shares, October is the month with the highest social traction for each of the different content types. Further analysis showed that “why-posts” did best in September and November, “how-to” posts did well in August and November, and September is the best month for videos.

This research done by Fractl and Buzzstream proves to us that there is a clear methodology to making sure you’re getting the most out of your social media posts. It is important to take this research information into consideration when drafting your own social media content to know what kind of messaging to use and where and when you should be posting them. With the right timing and using the type of engaging content explained in this article, there should be an overall increase of social traction to your posts.

Do you think this methodology sounds like it would be effective for engaging an audience? Or do you have a different method that you find to be effective when posting content? Share your comments below!