In the world of content marketing, new and exciting ideas are being developed every day. And if you are working with a content marketing agency, you have likely heard a few terms thrown around the meeting room while you are there (sometimes without much context), however, there is one form of content that is sometimes overlooked is ephemeral content.Â
Now, you are probably wondering what ephemeral content is, but it is simple to understand. Ephemeral content consists of rich media, such as images and videos, that is only available for a short period of time. In modern terms, this can be seen in mobile applications like Snapchat and Instagram’s Stories feature.Â
Short-lived or ephemeral content might not be the first choice for many marketing companies, but it can be highly beneficial to your content marketing strategy. Below we take a look at what ephemeral content is and why you need it.Â
So, What Is Ephemeral Content?
As we mentioned earlier, ephemeral or short-lived content is visual content that is only available for a short period of time. It is most popular on social media, especially now thanks to Instagram Stories and Snapchats numerous (and strange) filters.Â
The popularity of the Stories feature among content marketers is due to the fact that the goal of social media marketing is to be where your audience is, and today’s audience is, now more than ever, on social media platforms. Using short-lived social media content allows you to reach this audience and engage them on a new and unique level.Â
One of the major goals of ephemeral content is to elicit an immediate response from users. The goal could be for those who see an Instagram story about a promotion to make an instant purchase, or to enter a competition and raise brand awareness. It creates a sense of urgency, which can work in your brand’s favour, especially in terms of engagement and emotional responses.Â
And Why Do I Need It?
Now that you understand a little more about ephemeral content and what it means, you are probably wondering why you need it. After all, content that only last for 10 to 24 hours cannot be useful to a content marketing strategy, right? However, with people becoming more and more mobile, you cannot afford to miss out on this phenomenon.
Better Follower Engagement
One of the most important content marketing metrics is audience engagement. It is arguably more important than the number of followers your brand’s account has on social media or the number of likes a post has. Disappearing Stories or other content that is only available for a few hours have proven to reach much higher engagement from users than “always available” content.Â
Short-lived social media content creates a sense of urgency, thanks to the phenomenon known as “FOMO” or fear of missing out, to those not in the know. When consumers realise that there are only 24 hours to react to and share content, they are more likely to do so. For smaller brands, using temporary content can help you to stand out from the crowd, especially if you are in a saturated market.Â
A Much Wider Reach
Ephemeral content has a wider audience reach because this content appears in separate feeds on multiple platforms. For example, you might create an Instagram Story about a new product. This video or image can then be shared to Facebook too, allowing you to reach different audiences at once.Â
Using live video content allows you to send a notification to your audience, which means they can see it instantly, and even if they are not using the app, they will be enticed to engage with your content. If you use hashtags in your ephemeral content, it will also show up in searches by users who may not even follow your account. This will allow you a much wider audience reach and can improve your brand visibility.Â
Build Better Trust
Today’s consumers are bombarded with content on a regular basis, with most of it being a hard sell or overly promotional. By using ephemeral content or short-lived social media posts, you are providing consumers with authentic, personal, and spontaneous content. This makes your brand feel more human, which leads to more trust from consumers.Â
Having spontaneous and authentic content is a sure-fire way to encourage more interaction from your audience and can help to build more trust. Ephemeral content helps to engage more with your followers, widens your reach, and allows you to be seen as a trustworthy brand.Â
If you would like to tap into the powers of ephemeral content, or would like to improve your social media marketing strategy in general, contact NetMechanic today to find out how we can help you.Â
