The Science of Social Media

This week we’re taking a journey through time and uncovering some of the greatest, yet most unexpected marketing lessons from some of history’s most influential thinkers, philosophers, and leaders. You may not realize it now, but there is so much we can learn from leaders like Socrates and Oprah and Cleopatra. Much of what they would consider their mantra has a ton of implications on marketing tod...

A group of highly engaged fans can have a huge impact on your marketing efforts. Those fans are your brand champions and they're everywhere! One of the most powerful sources of authentic influence and brand advocacy is your very own customer and fan base.  Yet many brands simply aren’t utilizing this untapped resource. We hope to change that today by providing you with a specific brand advoca...

A special episode from the SSM archives! This was one of the most popular episode from 2018 - voted on by our listeners! As a marketer, effective storytelling involves a deep understanding of human emotions, motivations, and psychology. Luckily for us, Pixar openly shares their knowledge for everyone to learn from! In this very special Science of Social Media Select Episode, Hailley and Brian brea...

What you’re trying to do, when you tell a story, is to write about an event in your life that made you feel some particular way. And what you’re trying to do, when you tell a story, is to get the audience to have that same feeling. While we don't typically associate the art of copywriting with social media captions, the two are deeply intertwined. A really good caption informs us about the things...

An incredible 500 million people actively use Instagram and Instagram Stories every day. But it's not just the sheer number of users that's impressive, Instagram is helping businesses grow in a big way.  80% of Instagram users follow a business, 72% of users have been influenced by Instagram to purchase a product, and 65% of the best performing posts contain products.  With Instagram and...

Retargeting, also known as remarketing, is a powerful form of digital advertising in which audiences (potential customers) are targeted with specific ads based on their behavior online. In other words, retargeting campaigns turn internet "window shoppers" into real paying customers for your business. While we as marketers would love to live in a world in which a majority of online visitors became...

Does vertical video really make a difference in your social media results? This week we have some brand new research lined up for you. Over the last three months we teamed up with Animoto and spent more than $6,000 on dozens of experiments to find out how vertical video compares to square and landscape video in terms of engagement, views, clicks, and more. We were shocked by the results! We'll be...

Ever wonder how some of the world's top brands approach Instagram marketing? You're in luck! This week we have a ton of great resources all tied up into one jam-packed episode.  We spent the last few months interviewing marketers from leading brands like Nike, Square, Bustle, Blenders Eyewear (and more) to dig into their specific Instagram strategies.  In episode 134, we cover everything...

Marketers are faced with an ever-growing list of responsibilities. From social media marketing to customer experience and advertising, it's a challenge to stay on top of everything. Luckily for us, there are a plethora of great social media tools on the market to help you succeed in your role and stay productive. This week we’re exploring the top 10 social media tools brands are using to succeed i...

Instagram now has more than 1 billion monthly active users worldwide and 500 million+ people use Instagram Stories on a daily basis. But, did you know that Instagram now makes up 36% of Facebook’s ad revenue? A number that is expected to grow to $9 billion globally by 2020! Instagram advertising is a big deal for Facebook and an even greater opportunity for businesses. We’re exploring Shopping on...

Buffer's annual State of Social report is here! This year we surveyed more than 1,800 marketers from businesses of all sizes (across a range of industries) to get their take on what the future of social media marketing looks like in 2019. The report is fully focused on providing you with the insights you need to fuel your strategy for the year ahead.  We'll be covering the most important tren...

Great campaigns happen at the intersection of marketing and psychology - the sweet spot where your content and messaging connects with your audience on a deep, human level. Understanding the growing field of marketing psychology and the concepts behind cognitive biases can help persuade and influence audiences in powerful ways online. This week we’re exploring six powerful psychological biases and...

Looking to take your professional skills to the next level?  Thinking about YouTube advertising as a new channel for your brand? Wondering about the best-practices for generating tons of Facebook engagement? In episode #129, Brian and Hailley discuss the most in-demand skills of 2019 (according to LinkedIn), why we’re bullish on YouTube advertising, a brand new guide on Facebook engagement, using...

Facebook marketing in 2019 isn’t dead. On the contrary, it’s far from it! Although we continue to see a rise in the usage and effectiveness of Stories content, traditional Facebook posts in the News Feed offer a powerful outlet for brands looking to generate engagement and traffic. Which is why we teamed up with BuzzSumo to analyze more than 777 million Facebook posts from 2018. Here's everything...

2019 is officially here! Gone are the days where generating audience engagement on social media was primarily a passive process. The always-online audiences of today want to be involved, interact, and co-create. The brands that are successful in delivering personalized experiences to their audiences are the brands that are going to thrive with social media in the coming year. Today we’re covering...

A special episode from the SSM archives! This was the most popular episode from 2018 - voted on by our listeners. Content is the golden ticket to social media success. People know, love, and trust your brand on social because of the content you share across each of your channels. But how do we as brands create consistently great content that our audiences love and keep coming back to? 11 content c...

Often the best way to learn about a craft is from someone who has been in your shoes before. That's why we turned to 13 social media experts for their biggest piece of marketing advice. Social media marketing is becoming increasingly pivotal for businesses around the world. More emails are being sent and more blog posts are being published on a daily basis than ever before in history. These social...

Video content is one of the most popular mediums for businesses today, and for good reason. Video is more engaging, more memorable, and more popular among consumers than any other type of content. There’s data, too! For example, did you know that 76% of businesses say it helped them increase sales? Or that 80% of marketers say video has increased time spent on their website? This week we’re lookin...

Social media algorithms play a very important role in the ability for marketers and business owners to make an impact online. Yet they remain a mystery on so many different levels. We're fortunate to have an inside look at the various algorithms that power the world's biggest networks. Today we're covering everything you need to know about decoding social media algorithms in 2019 and what brands c...

We gathered never-before-seen data from more than 15,000 Instagram Stories posted by over 200 of the world’s top accounts and brands. This is one of the largest studies ever conducted on Instagram Stories and this week we're breaking down everything we learned (and what you need to know) from our research. You'll learn the best times to post to Stories, the most effective Stories length, how to in...

More than 400 million people use the Instagram Stories every day - making Stories an amazing opportunity for your business to reach your customers on social media. Today we're sharing tips, hacks, and strategies that you can use to create thumb-stopping Instagram Stories content that will WOW your audience.  Whether you’re using Stories to build awareness, for advertising purposes, or are simply l...

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, an incredible two-thirds of small business owners and entrepreneurs are personally responsible for three or more areas of their business, including marketing. That's where we hope to help! We teamed up with Mailchimp, Square, and WooCommerce to bring you a brand-new small business marketing guide for 2019. Today, we'll be covering specific and a...

Marketing skills and career growth do not come easy in a field that moves at the speed of light. It seems like every single week companies are demanding an evolved skill set out of their marketing team. Brands that can successfully bring a variety of people, marketing skills, and unique perspectives together have a huge advantage in providing value to their customers. We're breaking down 7 invalua...

Great marketing ideas are hard to come by. Which is why many businesses resort to blogging as their go-to marketing strategy. But there are so many great opportunities out there to expand channels and attract customers. But, focus is key when developing new ideas and exploring opportunities. This week, we're diving into 9 effective marketing ideas that don't include blogging such as: podcasting, v...

Looking to catch up on the latest social media news and trends, but short on time? This week we're covering everything you need to know to get caught up on social media: - How to launch your product on Product Hunt like a boss and generate tons of awareness, traffic, and feedback. - Lessons learned from 17.2M impressions on Twitter and the science behind what makes for a good Tweet. - Key Facebook...