Often, it feels like the world is racing by. A click, tweet or swipe takes mere moments. In that environment, capturing your audience’s attention can be like trying to catch smoke with a fishing net.
As small business owners, the myth of the shrinking attention span is a challenge for every marketing strategy. But what if our audience’s attention isn’t diminishing but simply changing its appearance for the modern age?
Reading an article in The Guardian recently, I was prompted to look back before leaping forward with new content marketing strategies.
The article unfolds a parallel between today’s snippet-style content consumption and the 16th-century practice of ‘commonplacing’, where readers would pick out helpful information from long texts, akin to how we hop from post to post on social media today.
If we take this approach and apply it to small business marketing today, here are three core actions to consider.
1 – Craft snippet-sized content
Instead of fighting the current, consider riding the wave of ‘snackable’ content. Craft your marketing messages to be clear, concise and easily digestible. Your audience might appreciate bite-sized content they can apply instantly to their lives.
2 – Encourage engagement
It’s no longer about how long you can hold your audience’s attention, but how well you engage them. Encourage interactions with every post, ask for opinions, and make your content a conversation. Remember, engagement is the new attention.
3 – Explore different media
The age-old fear that novels would disconnect readers from reality mirrors current concerns around screen time and social media obsession. Similarly, your audience seeks a connection through various mediums. Venture beyond text. Try audio podcasts, videos, or interactive webinars to keep your audience entertained and informed.
When engagement shifts, view it as an opportunity to understand your audience better. Adapting to how attention changes is a fantastic way to steal a march on your competition.
Armed with this fresh perspective, it’s time to reimagine your content marketing strategy. Are you ready to embrace differing attention attitudes and find a way to engage your audience?
Your small business story, told in snippets or series, awaits the modern-day commonplacer. Your next customer might be a click, tweet, or swipe away.
[bctt tweet=”🎯 Are we truly distracted, or just engaging in a manner that’s been around for centuries? Explore the journey from 16th-century ‘commonplacing’ to today’s ‘snackable’ content in our latest blog post! 🔄 #ContentMarketing #SmallBusiness” username=”bearcontentden”]
