With so much happening in the world right now, lots of people are taking to social media to spread awareness, particularly when it comes to social and political issues. However, it can be difficult to know if, or how, you should respond via your business profiles.
Sharing content directly referencing political topics to your business’ profile is a personal choice, but either way it’s still important to stay informed. This is because they impact marketing trends, and more importantly, your consumers. Sharing content to spread awareness for political and social issues can be a good way to connect with your audience and spread valuable information.
What Should I Share?
Sharing social media posts is a fast and effective way to spread awareness, but you don’t want to risk offending your audience or spreading the wrong message in the process. There are a lot of conflicting sources online and it can be hard to know what is the right information to share to help people in need.
A key thing to consider is knowing why you’re posting, how it relates to your audience and what context and angle you’re posting from. We explore this in depth in a previous blog article, ‘How to Handle Sensitive Topics in Your Social Media’.
Posts that share information and resources tend to be the best method of helping those in need. Resharing infographics and donation links is a simple way to do this, but there are some other ways you can as well.
Tell a Story
Storytelling is a great way to get messages across because it reaches people’s emotions and is memorable, making them want to act. Find impactful stories and share them with permission as a way to inspire people to donate or support a cause.
Use Multiple Platforms
The more platforms you share to, the more people can help. Be consistent with sharing meaningful content and stories to social media, blogs, websites, email campaigns and more.
Stress the “so what?” and the “why”
Have a strong hook and call to action that stresses the importance of the topic and what is at stake. Allowing people to see the broader picture will help make them want to support the cause. You can also relate it back to your business’ mission or your personal story, if relevant.
Real-time Updates
Posting updates on statistics, protests or efforts can help highlight the urgency of acting to support the cause. For example, joining Broadcast Channels on Instagram is a useful way to stay up to date and easily share information.
Success Stories
Showing positive outcomes for individuals because of the efforts of people addressing issues is a credible way to motivate others to act and give hope.
How do I Make my Post Respectful?
If you are sharing sensitive or emotionally triggering content, another thing to consider is making sure it is presented in a respectful way. You can answer this checklist to help you with this:
- Understand the Platform Rules
- Have I reviewed the platform’s guidelines to ensure my post aligns with them?
- Research and Fact-Check
- Is all the information I’m sharing accurate and from reliable sources?
- Tone and Language
- Am I using respectful and inclusive language in my post?
- Inclusivity
- Have I considered and acknowledged diverse perspectives in my post?
- Am I avoiding reinforcing stereotypes or negative generalisations?
- Context and Purpose
- Have I clearly stated the purpose of sharing this topic, so my audience understands its background and significance?
- Feedback and Engagement
- Am I encouraging respectful discussion and feedback?
- Am I prepared to moderate comments to maintain a respectful environment?
- Legal Considerations
- Do I have the right to share any images, quotes, or other materials included in my post?
- Am I being mindful of privacy and avoiding sharing personal information without consent?
- Reflection
- Have I reflected on my motivations for sharing this topic and how it aligns with my values and those of my audience?
By asking yourself these questions, you can ensure your approach to sensitive topics is considerate and well-thought-out, reducing the likelihood of offending your audience. You can also ask for a second opinion for extra clarity.
Trigger Warnings
While they’re less common on social media, including trigger warnings is a way to ensure viewers can choose whether they want to engage with content that could be upsetting for them. With so much easy access to sensitive content online, especially for younger audiences, this is becoming increasingly more important. But what should you be giving trigger warnings for?
It’s a good idea to accommodate for a range of potential triggers. While the most common ones are violence, drug and alcohol use, course language or sexual references, here are some more topics that could potentially be upsetting for some audiences that you can put a warning for:
- Cancer/terminal illness
- Hate speech – e.g. homophobia/transphobia/ableism/racism
- Infertility/miscarriage/abortion
- Flashing lights
- Sudden or loud sounds
- Eating disorders
- Animal cruelty
- Kidnapping/abduction
- Stalking
- Fatphobia/body shaming
This might then pose the question: how am I meant to know when to put a trigger warning if anything could be a trigger? Put simply, a post with a trigger warning is better than not. It’s impossible to know all of your audience’s comfort levels and triggers, but including a quick disclaimer at the start is a simple way to help.
What if I Accidently Share a Post With Incorrect Information?
We are all only human, so this is a normal thing to occur, especially with new information being released everyday. 2024 social media marketing is proving that authenticity is the best way to connect with your audience, and the same goes for these topics.
If you share a post where you later find out that you portrayed incorrect information, the best thing is to simply acknowledge it and apologise where needed. It’s crucial to provide the correct information clearly and accurately, explaining what was incorrect in your original post and why. Briefly outline how the error occurred to show transparency, and support your correction with reliable sources. Encouraging your audience to seek out credible information and fact-check content can foster a culture of informed engagement. By reflecting on the experience and committing to better practices in the future, you can maintain trust and credibility with your audience.
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