How to Create “Pause-ability”

When it comes down to it, what makes a good social media post?

Is it tons of bells and whistles and flashing lights? Transformative, life-changing copy? Thought-provoking imagery?

It’s the fundamental question separating great content from mediocre – brands who succeed on social and brands who inflict more damage than good to their reputation and bottom line.

In a series of blogs, I’m going to breakdown the key traits all top social media posts share, regardless of platform. Today’s trait – “Pause-ability.”

Weird term, right? “Pause-ability” is my word for how capable posts are at forcing social audiences to “pause” what they’re doing and consume content. A post’s ability to tap the brakes on social users’ million-per-mile scrolls down their newsfeed and command attention.

A number of factors play into generating pause-ability – by far the #1 is eye-grabbing imagery. What exactly does great imagery constitute?

Lots of things. It could mean great design (a Tribu speciality), excellent photography, videos, local recognition (think seeing The Alamo if you’re a San Antonio resident), colorful user generated content, emotion-evoking subject matters (think seeing Martin Luther King giving the “I Have a Dream” speech), interesting/curiosity inducing focuses (a majestic old house), pictures that tell a story of the human condition (happiness, sadness, pain, rejection, etc), or incredible beauty (Big Bend National Park) – it’s all about eye-catching imagery that’s presented well – (eg – cropped correctly, no unnecessary space, fits, etc).

What makes pause-ability so important is its role in not only organic (non-paid posts), but also social ads. Whereas the importance of other post factors (like copy) can vary depending on circumstance, pause-ability is always important.

Here’s a few examples of Tribu-client posts with great pause-ability. Note – these posts have all sorts of different imagery types – professional, raw, graphic-based, curiosity-inducing, etc. The key thing to remember – great pause-ability imagery comes in all shapes and forms.

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I hope this piece helps guide you in your efforts to generate quality “pause-ability” content. At Tribu, we pride ourselves in generating tons and tons of it each and everyday.

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