With Australians now spending almost a day each week on social media, its little wonder brands are seeking social as one of the best ways to activate their sponsorships.
Almost 13 million Australians use social media each month with the average time being 21 hours of screen time each week. This is almost a full day every week that is spent on social platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr.
A new report just out – Social Norms: The Status of Social in 2015 from Tumblr reveals the growing trend for people to actively seek out and engage with brands on social. This is exciting news for brands looking to further leverage their sponsorship agreements with social media engagement. It means we no longer need to fear turning away our potential target market with our messaging on social – as long as our posts are carefully crafted, creative and entertaining.
Over half of all Australians in the survey either follow a brand's social page or regularly visit a brand's page for inspiration. What's even more encouraging is that the report (by Tumblr) claims 29 per cent of its users are more likely to purchase from brands that provide online entertainment. In terms of category, entertainment names were the most popular brands on social, followed by retail, travel, food, electronics and FMCG.
Just don't be fooled into thinking though that Australians aren't savvy online. It's actually the opposite. Australians are more selective than ever online with users making their online presence a reflection of their own personality. It's less about creating social connections and more about portraying the best version of themselves. This carefully curated reflection is of course extremely narcissistic and I'm not a fan of it. But narcissism aside, it's a golden opportunity for brands to be carried along on the wave of online influence.
Supporting this claim, 91 per cent of Australians reveal their main online priority is finding and sharing content that aligns with their personality. More than 75 per cent of users share content with their networks in a bid to express their creative identity. It seems the more we can offer up content that aligns our brand with creative, thought-provoking images and ideals, the more likely we'll be shared amongst users.
We're now so conscious of our online image that we carefully select each like, comment or share. We're very particular about what our online presence says about ourselves with more than half of all social media users engaging only in content they truly love. What this means is we as sponsors need to be just as selective in what we post online. We need to excite, engage, entertain and inspire. Most of all, we need to recognize that online is social is a highly influential platform that has the potential to introduce our brand to legions of new fans. It's a necessary component of any marketing mix and can greatly enhance any sponsorship activation.
Want to know more? Email me at caroline@eventsponsors.com.au or phone 0408 734 709. I provide the full range of sponsorship management solutions from sponsorship strategy to identifying the right event and sponsor opportunities to leveraging, measurement and proposal writing.
*Source: Tumblr Social Norms
