If there is just one rule for creating interesting, must-read social media content, it’s this: You have to focus on the substance — the stuff that makes the content worth sharing.
It sounds simple enough, but a lot of businesses and nonprofits just don’t follow that principle when creating tweets, Facebook status updates etc. Their updates often focus on why the content matters to the business. Our CEO was quoted! Our general manager’s dog is pictured! You know what I mean. This is a good approach if you want your own employees to (maybe) read your stuff, but it’s not so effective if your goal is to position yourself as a valuable source of information for your followers.
The focus should be on the thing that makes you think, oh that’s interesting! Or focus on identifying the most repeatable piece of information from the item you want to share.
Here’s an example. The charity Global Impact got some nice attention in The Washington Post. Great fodder for a tweet! Here is what they wrote:
This isn’t bad. But it could be better (Global Impact, hope you’ll forgive me for picking on you, but we’re all here to learn, right?). The problem with this tweet is unless you know Scott Jackson personally or are already predisposed to care what he thinks, there’s not a whole lot motivating you to click.
Instead pull a nugget from the piece and focus just on that (if people read it they will see that it’s an interview with Scott Jackson). Here is what I tweeted:
By shifting the focus a little, I grab the attention of anyone who wants to be a global health leader or thinks of himself or herself as a leader in that industry. It also makes you want to click to get more context.
So focus on the substance. If you can find some in this post, I hope you’ll use that as a basis for sharing 
Don’t even bother with that last ‘if’. There is absolutely a ton of great substance here!
I especially love that you included an example to illustrate your point. Such a simple technique that it often goes overlooked, but it’s one of the best ways to get people to truly experience the essence of what we’re saying. I experienced it with this post, for sure! [thumbs up]
Thanks Annika! I’m all about “show, don’t tell.”
Thanks for this post. Short and worthwhile.
Loved this. Lots of substance in this short article. Social media, especially Twitter, is something I want to get better at and this article has provided me with plenty of food for thought.