The Importance Of Audio For Your Social Media Strategy

Nowadays every article you read on digital marketing tends to circulate around the explosion in demand for video content and how it will continue to rise into the future. 

Whilst that is evidently true as statistics show that video content on social media generates up to 1200% more shares than texts and images combined. These gurus are often overlooking a crucial but forgotten feature in the social media world: audio. 

However, this seems to be making a recent resurgence in demand.

Therefore, this begs the question…

Why Is Audio Important To Your Social Media Strategy?

The short answer is because the way we consume content has changed. What I mean by this is that people are more often opting to consume content passively whilst doing something active such as walking through the park, performing household chores, going shopping or travelling in a vehicle. This means that many people aren’t even watching the video. 

This growth in passive audio consumption can be evidenced by the rapid expansion in popularity of podcasts over the last few years, as reports show that 32% of US residents listen to a podcast monthly (up 26% from the previous year). Demonsttrationg the importance of audio in your social media strategy. 

A few reasons for this growth in audio demand include:

Increased Intimacy: Audio is a more intimate type of content than regular video content. This is because audio content is usually consumed through the use of headphones which forms a deeper connection to the creator than a video could. 

The theory is that this would increase the listener’s trust and preference with the creator, which is why people are more likely to spread ‘positive messages’ about the podcast with their friends than they would do so with videos.

Greater Attention Span: Audio content has the ability to capture a person’s attention span for much longer than a regular video would. For example, the average attention span for video content is about 8 seconds, whilst this average increases to over 30 minutes for podcasts. 

Therefore, this provides a fantastic opportunity for a company looking to put across their message without losing their consumer’s attention.

Audio isn’t just limited to podcasting formats either as more social networks are introducing new audio features onto their platforms. For example, Facebook will allow users to share a voice message to their stories if they don’t want to turn the camera on, and Instagram has given their users the ability to share their favourite songs to their story. 

This shorter form of audio content isn’t just restricted to everyday users, it’s something that your business should be taking advantage of as it provides a way to reach people that prefer this sort of content.

After reading that, you might be thinking…

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Just like a lot of things, the effectiveness and relevance of audio to your business’s social media strategy depends on the market you’re in. 

For example, if you’re primarily B2C and Facebook is your go to platform, then it’s worth noting that 85% of Facebook videos are watched with the sound off. Whereas 96% of YouTube viewers will watch with the sound on. Therefore, you’d need to ensure that any content you create is repurposed with that specific platform’s usage tendencies in mind. 

This means that you need to include subtitles, annotations and enhanced visuals for platforms that often use silent videos, but ensure to spend the time stripping the audio off to redistribute it on platforms that take advantage of audio such as Spotify.

Ultimately, it’s a case of trial and error to eventually see what your audience (and your eventual clients) prefer. So it’s worth taking the time to incorporate at least some form of audio into your social media strategy, whether that’s a podcast or in long-form YouTube content. 

If you’re looking for a social media marketing agency that can help take your business to the next level, find out more about our social media management services or get in touch today. We can also design and develop a professional website tailored to the needs of your small business, contact us today.

Resources:

 – https://guides.deepsync.co/en/articles/6391381-making-use-of-ai-audio-in-content-marketing 

Written By Alex Lever

I have a focus on providing digital marketing services to small businesses to help them get online and grow their brand.

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