Last month, we decided to switch things up by focusing on social media and marketing trends you can implement to help grow your brand and gift card reach. Given the popularity of the instalment, we figured we’d follow up with some March trends before returning to our regularly scheduled #HighlightReel content. We’re always inspired by our clients’ creativity and relish in analysing market trends, so this is our bread and butter. We’ll often reserve diving into social media trends, data analytics, and in-depth market research for face-to-face meetings and client calls. However, in celebration of spring, we figured, “Why not give our readers a little taste of the kinds of varied marketing and brand tactics we discuss with our gift card clients?” So, let’s talk trends!
A quick word to the wise before we hop in: When it comes to viral sounds, images, and short form video content, it’s so important to exercise discretion and consider what’s best for your brand and established audience / customer base. Hopping on a trend can be very tempting, especially when it cultivates millions of clicks and enormous engagement for competitors. However, there’s nothing worthwhile to be earned by creating content that feels alien or contrary to your pre-existing brand identity. Some trends can even feel a little inappropriate depending on the markets in which you operate. Remember to be discerning and only recreate social media moments that feel true to your corporate identity! Anything else could end up being disorientating or potentially off-putting to your long-time followers.
1. Show, Don’t Tell: You’ve likely seen the “So, what do you do?” trend popping up across your TikTok feed and Instagram Reels. They begin with an employee indicating their job title, for instance, “I’m a Social Media Manager”, followed by the question, “So, what do you do?”. This is followed by a series of snappy, exciting, high-speed clips indicating the ins-and-outs of their day-to-day role with particular company. There is no voice-over or text explanations, but rather an array of short videos, seamlessly cut together illustrating key aspects of their role. The employee might be on a plane, attending a photoshoot, finalising a design, attending an industry event, or packing high-end merchandise. Overall, it leans into the “Show, Don’t Tell” element of storytelling, while glamourising their role and highlighting its perks. This kind of content is very attractive when targeting potential new hires, of course, but when it comes to gift card sales, it has the power to illustrate just how many spectacular experiences are available at your property. Think, “So, what do your gift vouchers do?”, followed by quick, luxurious videos of your restaurant, spa, rooms, on-site activities, and local amenities. It screams, “adventure”, “excitement”, and “variety”, tempting the customer to get in on the action with a voucher. Don’t forget to link directly to your gifting platform to keep the user journey as seamless as possible.
2. Meet the Team… as Kids: This trend has been popular for months and for good reason! It employs images of staff as children, fitted with information about their modern-day role and professional responsibilities. They will often pair an adorable or funny photograph from an employee’s childhood with a caption like, “This kid manages your social media budget.” Not only does it increase engagement as there are often multiple images in a carousel through which the reader is prompted to click / scroll, it also makes use of humour while reminding customers that your team consists of real people, rather than faceless individuals at the receiving end of an email. Then, of course, there’s the wholesome element to the trend, whereby everyone, including the reader, is reminded just how far they’ve come.
3. Horizontal frames and split screens: These two are are seemingly super simple, but can have an unexpectedly enormous impact on engagement rates. Social media users are accustomed to their feed’s standard appearance. Videos that fit comfortably on their screen, filmed in portrait mode, with a clear subject or focus. This formula is recycled on such a regular basis that many scroll relentlessly, bypassing a considerable percentage of well-executed and meticulously planned content. Why? Because it doesn’t grab their interest in a split second. There are billions of options fighting for their attention, so why settle? When this is the attitude, being a little disruptive can lead to jaw-dropping results.
Draw the user’s eye by giving them something rarely seen. Film in landscape mode or use split screen where two similar, but disparate events are being filmed in tandem. Challenge how the viewer normally perceives motion and framing and they’ll naturally recognise something is “amiss” or “outside of the norm”, piquing their curiosity and inviting them to linger on your content. What you feature is up to you, but sometimes, the tiniest stylistic tweaks makes the biggest difference.
Not already utilising the In1 Solutions gift card system? To set up your very own bespoke gifting platform, contact us on sales@in1solutions.com. Our gifting platform is the perfect fit for accommodation providers, hotel groups, restaurants, retailers, large shopping malls, furniture stores, adventure experience outlets, and more.