anatomy of a strategy
“Just post this.”
Anyone who’s worked in social media marketing has heard these three words, stated in that order. Though there will be times when you have to do what you have to do, just posting something is not a strategy. Clicking “Publish” does not guarantee that anyone will see your content.
Platform algorithms are extremely sophisticated, and they are what dictates whether your content will be seen. Long gone are the days when your followers would see all your posts. If you want to give your social content a fighting chance, it requires a thoughtful strategy and an understanding of how both the art and science of social media converge to help your brand actually move the needle. So, where to begin?
Before you do anything else, you need a clear, measurable goal. Just like with any other marketing discipline. Determine your KPIs so you can measure success (and failure) and know how best to optimize your content to guarantee future success.
Know your audience. Who are they? What motivates them? Where do they spend their time? Consider which platforms to use (hint: just because a platform exists doesn’t mean you need to use it). What’s your voice? How will you engage with fans? Are you conducting social listening to understand the existing conversation? How often are you analyzing results? Do you understand the narrative the numbers are dictating?
There’s a lot of noise in social, and “going viral” is not a reasonable goal. Setting yourself up for success requires as much a marketing mind as any other promotional discipline.
pbs | #PBSForTheArts
Multiplatform campaign
The Background: PBS has long been a proponent of the arts, providing free programming related to music, theatre, dance, and much more to millions of Americans for decades.
The Goal: Position PBS as your champion for the arts.
The Strategy: We partnered with PBS to create the #PBSForTheArts campaign. The multi-platform initiative spanned broadcast, social, and more, providing fans with a variety of engaging content. Below is a sampling of the social graphic work that excited fans and got them talking and sharing.
The entire campaign was nominated for three Webby Awards, winning two, for Social: Arts & Entertainment (Video) and the People’s Voice award for Social: Arts, Culture & Lifestyle (Campaigns).
paramount+ | at midnight
Social-first video campaign with talent
The Background: Paramount+ International produced one of its first features, At Midnight, a rom-com starring Diego Boneta and Monica Barbaro, which would be available on the streamer in several regions worldwide.
The Goal: Raise awareness of the movie and get fans excited before the premiere.
The Strategy: We gave the movie the red carpet treatment on social by concepting and executing a series of social-first videos featuring Boneta, Barbaro, and the rest of the cast bantering over a collection of social-friendly games, like rom-com trivia and “Never Have I Ever.” This involved setting up a shoot complete with production design and wardrobe that evoked the casual and romantic vibes set on the beachfront resort featured in the film.
I worked with the team in concepting and scripting the games, ensuring the talent had the opportunity to showcase their chemistry and give fans a chance to play along. The content was cut for multiple social platforms and shared with several international regions to be localized and posted on regional Paramount+ social accounts.
understood | making the invisible visible
Facebook Live partnership with Meta
The Background: October is Disabilities Awareness Month. And although Understood.org spends all year advocating for the 1 in 5 kids with learning disabilities and ADHD, we knew that for October we needed to do something big.
The Goal: Spread the word about learning disabilities and debunk the myths associated with them.
The Strategy: Partnering with Meta and competitive ice sculptor John Rodrigues—who, himself, thrives with dyslexia and ADHD—we planned and executed a Facebook Live event held at Meta’s Menlo Park campus in Silicon Valley. Live audiences, both in person and at home, were enthralled by Rodrigues’s icy creation, taking form before their very eyes while he also inspired the audience with his story. Learning disabilities are often called “invisible disabilities,” so our mission was to make the invisible visible and to show the potential and possibilities that already exist within each of us (and a block of ice).
understood | how to (explain) adhd
YouTube influencer partnership
The Background: ADHD can be difficult to describe to people who aren’t affected by it. Empathy and positive change can come from understanding an issue better.
The Goal: Amplify the thoughts of people with ADHD to help others understand what it’s like to live with it.
The Strategy: We asked fans to submit written analogies describing what it’s like to live with ADHD, then leveraged influencer Jessica McCabe and her How to ADHD YouTube channel (over 1.8M subscribers) to do what she does best: create an educational and fun long-form video to bring the analogies to life. With help from an animator on McCabe’s team, she created an explainer that fans could use to show family and friends who might struggle to understand them. This partnership, with the video resulting in over 1.5M views, helped us to reach a new and qualified audience who might benefit from the resources on Understood.org.
usa network | psych: the musical
Event countdown content
The Background: The popular USA Network series Psych was about to begin its eighth and final season, but not before lifting the curtain on its very first movie to its intense fandom, Psych: The Musical (insert jazz hands).
The Goal: Get Psych-Os (the show’s fan community) amped up for the series’ return by kicking off the final season with a (musical) bang!
The Strategy: Countdown posts are a conventional and effective way of eventizing an initiative. They tease fans each day, giving them multiple posts to engage with and share their excitement over time. But this is Psych. And nothing Psych does is conventional. Since this movie is a musical—Psych’s first—we leveraged popular “musical numbers” to dictate when each graphic would post. And don’t worry, we consulted with Legal to ensure our designs were above board (hint: even a subtle change can make all the difference).
usa network | burn notice finale
Redacted final script page
The Background: Burn Notice was one of the highest-rated cable series, and after seven intense seasons it was coming to an explosive end. The show focuses on espionage and edge-of-your-seat excitement.
The Goal: Tease fans with a glimpse into the final episode without revealing major spoilers.
The Strategy: Keeping in line with the show’s CIA theme, we worked closely with Matt Nix, the series creator, to redact a single page from the final script and release it to fans days before the series finale aired. Nix tweeted the script page to his 18K followers. We then posted it on Facebook and asked fans to like or share it 20,000 times to unlock the full, non-redacted page. We reached our goal in three days, giving fans an exclusive peak into how it all ends for Michael Westen. The two posts earned a combined 32,520 engagements and a total reach of over 1.8M. The execution got some earned media, which aided in encouraging tune-in.