This document outlines an approach for social media brand strategy called "The Four Districts Approach". It describes four major social media platforms - Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat - as distinct "districts", each with their own unique demographics, challenges, opportunities, and cultural rules that brands must follow to be successful. The document provides examples of brands that effectively follow the cultural rules of each district compared to those that break the rules. It is intended to help brands properly customize their strategies for each individual social media platform.
Digital Marketing in 5G Era - Digital Transformation in 5G Age
Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
1. Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
Social
Media Brand
Strategy: The
Four Districts
Approach
Diamond Whitepaper
Contact:
Graham Candy
DirectorInsights&Strategy
gcandy@experiencediamond.com
2. Welcome
to the Districts
Social media is just over 10 years old yet in the past decade it has
catapulted artists from the fringe to fame, re-invented journalism, toppled
governments, and has become the biggest disruption to the media
paradigm since TV was invented. Those who do it right, win big – but
so many brands continue to miss out on the social media opportunity.
Why are brands failing on social media?
Brands are failing because they have been thinking about social media
as platforms to communicate their brand message and content to
consumers – but they are so much more than that. It is time to see social
media for what it is: distinct cultural districts with their own rules that
determine what users and content become viral, and which are ignored.
Distinct districts mean distinct rules to follow.
No brand would try to produce the same spot for radio, TV, and print.
No brand would create a global ad spot and only use English. Similarly,
each social media district has its own rules that need to be followed
and respected as the base for every social media strategy.
This guide provides the key rules to follow for each district.
Break the rules and your brand will suffer
02 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
3. For VPs and Senior Social
Media Marketers:
For Brand Managers and
Marketing Managers:
As a defensive shield:
- To protect the value of your social media
channels by ensuring that campaigns and
content proposed by senior management
align to the culture of each district.
As a filter for posting content:
- To tweak, modify, or elevate the brand content
to better bolster your overall brand identity.
As a pressure testing tool:
- To determine if your agency is following
these principles.
- To analyze whether your team is posting
content that aligned, maximized and customized
according to the culture of each district.
- To elevate proposed campaigns to best
fit each district.
As a toolkit for developing your presence:
- Apply each rule to envision and design your
brand’s entire image before it ever goes online.
For Individuals and Companies
just Establishing a Social Media
Presence:
How to use this guide
03 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
5. Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
aesthetic
nostalgic
Instagram
District:
05 / 23 /////
6. Instagram
District:
aesthetic
nostalgic
District demographics:
Population:
300M active citizens
Key Age Segments:
52% of youth 13-17
53% of adults 18–29
25% of adults 30–49
11% of adults 50–64
6% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
22% of males online
26% of females online
District currency:
Likes
Followers
The Challenge
Share images with high frequency and ease without
sacrificing consistency of sentiment or distracting
from your brand identity and brand story.
The Opportunity
Craft a gallery with a cohesive visual identity creating
a more tangible brand message that resonates with
consumers and potential clients.
06 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
7. Pizza Hut’s emotional affect is instantly
recognizable. They consistently deliver a
sense of comfort and living in the moment,
through an aesthetically uniform gallery of
images showing people enjoying their
product by themselves and with others.
Domino’s Pizza gallery of disparate images
lacks a consistent theme and tone. Their
mix of unprofessional food photography,
screenshots, and product shots misses
an opportunity to provoke a clear, central
emotion in line with their brand identity.
Following the Rules
Cultural Rule 1: Be aesthetically legible
The citizens of Instagram are concerned with visual identity and work to convey a specific mood through their collection of
carefully selected visuals. To engage, brands must adopt this emotive capacity to consistently inspire and maintain
their affect in every interaction.
Brand Category: Pizza chain restaurant
Breaking the Rules
Pizza Hut’s aesthetically legible brand has earned it 65% more followers per post over Domino’s undefined presence.
- Is your gallery legible to viewers so that they can draw out a distinct message from your visuals?
Pizza Hut’s comforting presence Domino’s Pizza visual jumble
Takeaway:
07 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
8. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 2: Create instant nostalgia
The citizens of Instagram are conscious curators of their immediate past as the ultimate commemoration
of themselves. To engage, brands must similarly use images to write their own histories as it unfolds, creating
instant memorability through directed narrative.
Brand Category: Breakfast chain restaurant
IHOP demonstrates its presence in
consumer’s everyday histories. The brand
showcases imagery that is a mixture of
food and experience; their brand is present
at both the centre and backdrop of a
consumer’s relationships and experiences.
IHOP effectively illustrates its’ significant
role in people’s personal histories and
experiences.
Denny’s Diner posts a variety of unrelated
content. Mixing clips from recent promotions,
random jokes, and product shots, the result
is a feed filled with images without a sense
of nostalgia or connection to the consumer
experience. There is an incoherent brand
experience.
IHOP’s efforts to visually root itself into the daily experiences of the consumer are rewarded with 586% followers per post over Denny’s.
- Does your brand’s use of instant nostalgia align with your brand’s messaging? Is the near-history you are creating relevant to viewers?
IHOP’s warm memories Denny’s content dumping ground
Takeaway:
08 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
9. Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
contemporary
consistent
Twitter
District:
09 / 23 /////
10. Twitter
District:
contemporary
consistent
District demographics:
Population:
244M active citizens
Key Age Segments:
33% of youth 13-17
37% of adults 18-29
25% of adults 30-49
12% of adults 50-64
10% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
24% of males online
21% of females online
District currency:
Retweets
Favourites
The Challenge
Capitalize on open and direct communication and
ultimate accessibility all the time, without devolving into
chatter with everyone.
The Opportunity
Directed and purposeful conversations with events as
they unfold, that fit with your brand identity.
10 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
11. Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 1: Be contemporary
The culture of Twitter is occupied with breaking news, unfolding stories and ongoing events.
To engage, brands must speak to what’s current, emergent, and newsworthy to their
consumer base, as events happen.
Brand Category: Sports apparel
Following the Rules
Nike celebrates the moment of the US win
over Japan in the Women's World Cup Final
with an embedded video of congratulations.
Nike engages with both their sponsored
team and the audience, drawing previous
World Cup wins into the context of their
present victory, furthering conversation
and viewer excitement. Nike’s prepared
video and its execution show their brand’s
commitment to staying current.
Under Armour might have joined in on the
commentary during the World Cup final, but
they failed to connect with the audience in
the game's aftermath. Their congratulations
arrived at 6am the next day and appeared
as an afterthought, losing a sense of
connection it might have had with its'
audience.
Nike’s immediate and passionate reaction to the USA win is acknowledged in the post-game aftermath: the congratulatory tweet earns over 7000 retweets and almost
15,000 favourites. Under Armour’s tweet, which appears the next day, failed to crack 100 favourites. Speed, or lack thereof, significantly impacts consumer response.
- Is your brand boldly initiating conversation as events emerge and leading the response?
Nike’s ‘World Cup’ celebration Under Armour’s time delayed response
Takeaway:
11 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
12. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 2: Practice consistency
The citizens of Twitter look to people and brands for a clear articulation of their stand on current
issues. To engage with consumers, brands must offer a consistent and recognizable opinion at
each and every opportunity.
Brand Category: Banks
TD Bank consistently demonstrates support
for the LGBTQ+ community as part of their
longstanding, ongoing initiatives. Their brand
is marked by continuous engagement with
LGBTQ+ efforts, illustrated partially through
their 6 year-long top scoring on the 2015
Corporate Equality Index (CEI)1
, and their
sponsorship of Pride events across North
America2
. As a result, they are a proven and
reliable influencer in the values they aim to
associate with their brand.
RBC announces their support for the SCOTUS
ruling on gay marriage on June 26, 2015, but
the LGBTQ+ support is fleeting. By lacking
consistent demonstrations of support, they
have failed to develop an image of serious
commitment to LGBTQ+ related causes.
Their brand identity is thus ineffectual in aligning
with a topical conversation due to the lack
of a credible longstanding relationship.
TD Bank emerges as a proven and reliable supporter of LGBTQ+ causes at a time when other brands are just jumping on the bandwagon. RBC, by joining the
conversation that was producing 36 million tweets per minute at its peak, fails to gain many retweets and favourites despite having more followers than TD Bank.
- Is your brand regularly seizing the opportunity to offer a consistent point of view on current events and issues to build loyalty?
*TD is a client of Diamond Integrated Marketing
TD Canada’s ongoing LGBTQ+ pride RBC’s one-off LGBTQ+ support
1 https://mediaroom.tdbank.com/index.php?s=30379&item=135306
2 http://www.td.com/corporate-responsibility/diversity/serving-diverse-needs/lgbta/lgbta.jsp
Takeaway:
12 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
13. Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
continuous
co-created
Facebook
District:
13 / 23 /////
14. 14 / 23 /////
Facebook
District:
continuous
co-created
District demographics:
Population:
1.44B active users
Key Age Segments:
71% of youth 14-17
87% of adults 18-29
73% of adults 30-49
63% of adults 50-64
56% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
66% of males online
77% of females online
District currency:
Likes
Shares
Comments
The Challenge
Leverage the narrative format and connection mentality
without the risk of appearing one-dimensional, or ignoring
the fact that brand identity is built together over time.
The Opportunity
Collaborative content building over time that transforms
fans and followers into friends, for a more meaningful
connection to your evolving brand identity.
Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
15. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 1: Establish continuity
The citizens of Facebook represent the oldest demographic online. Citizens of Facebook have layed down digital roots and cultivated a chronological
(hi)story of themselves and their friends. To engage, brands must also display their roots and future hopes: demonstrating where they came
from, where they’ve been, and where they’re going, creating potential for multiple connection points with citizens over time.
Brand Category: Video game consoles
Nintendo’s Facebook timeline captures its
technological progression over a century,
connecting the brand to fans by providing
opportunities to reminisce. Today, their
story continues to grow with frequent posts
about new games, events, and contests.
Playstation plays a prominent role in the
lives of millions of millennials and Gen-X’ers
around the world, though you wouldn’t know
it from their Facebook timeline. There is no
documentation of historical facts, or milestones
reached in their brand narrative, thus missing
an opportunity to connect their brand history
with their consumers’ lives.
While PlayStation has nearly 10x the page likes, the average post generates far less brand engagement than Nintendo’s fan base, which averages
in the hundreds-thousands of likes and dozens of comments per post.
- Does your brand have a life that resembles a living person, with a past, and growth over time, or does it feel
more like a series of disconnected advertisements and communications?
Nintendo’s Rich Timeline Playstation’s Timeline
Takeaway:
15 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
16. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 2: Embrace co-creation
The citizens of Facebook build the story of who they are, together, through commenting, tagging and posting directly on another
person’s timeline: no person operates alone in crafting his or her story. To engage, brands must champion a collaborative spirit
that facilitates fan engagement while retaining and building a meaningful and legitimate identity.
Brand Category: Automotive
Honda features one of its dedicated fans:
an artist who has hand-engraved his Honda
EG. The reaction from other Honda fans is
positive, and the artist himself even responds
to others’ comments and questions. The
choice to feature a fan’s unique engagement
with the brand results in a truly collaborative
and dynamic timeline post, spurring
discussion and helping to build Honda’s
identity in the eyes of its viewers.
Nissan attempts to engage their fans through
a video promotion which crowdsources
ideas for their “Will it stick?” series. By only
letting fans contribute in through a campaign
mechanic, Nissan’s individual posts do
not garner nearly as many likes, shares, or
comments. Nissan misses the opportunity to
let fans interact and connect with other fans.
Nissan’s timeline posts fail to engage any significant portion of their 13 million followers, while Honda manages to create genuine buzz with a photo
album that compels over 3000 people to like, comment, and share—and with 10 million less followers than Nissan.
- Are you allowing and encouraging fans to actively co-create your brand in a meaningful (and positive way)?
Honda’s Bespoke Fan Content Nissan’s Crowdsourcing
Takeaway:
16 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
17. 17 / 23 /////
disposable
intimate
Snapchat
District:
Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
18. 18 / 23 /////
Snapchat
District:
disposable
intimate
District demographics:
Population:
100M active users
Key Age Segments:
41% of youth 13-17
45% of adults 18-24
26% of adults 25-34
13% of adults 35-44
10% of adults 45-54
6% of adults 55-64
1% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
30% of males online
70% of females online
District currency:
Snap screenshots
Shares
The Challenge
Maximize the value of rapid, disposable, brief,
and intimate communications without defaulting
to throwaway content.
The Opportunity
Purposefully craft communications that allow brands to
get playful with their identity and message, while creating
an avenue for greater intimacy with an existing consumer.
Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
19. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 1: Embrace disposability
The citizens of Snapchat continually share singular and disposable moments of their lives with friends.
To engage, brands must experiment with equally disposable personalities and tones, highlighting
that your brand identity is alive and evolving.
Brand Category: Clothing company
Lacoste brings playfulness to the forefront
of their brand by playing hide-&-seek within
a temporary campaign. Followers were
invited to find the crocodile hidden in their
10 second snaps to win discounts off their
next purchase; as a result, the brand created
a campaign that engaged followers with
brief interactions that create intimate,
disposable moments of engagement
with consumers.
Free People attempts to invoke exclusivity
through the reveal of an upcoming product.
Opting for predictable product shots, Free
People fails to dynamically express their
brand in a way that utilizes a sense of brevity.
While behind the scenes exclusives can be
intriguing, the brand’s snapchats do not
capture a sense of urgency that emerges
from disposability.
Lacoste’s campaign embraces disposability – rooting its campaign in ephemerality as a playful way of engaging users. Alternatively,
Free People’s snapchats plays it safe; the content fails to explore their brand’s identity and take advantage of the ephemeral format.
- Does your brand’s content encourage pro-active engagement from the consumer side, while still
allowing for malleable messages?
Lacoste’s Hide-and-Snap game Free People’s gallery
Takeaway:
19 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
20. Following the Rules Breaking the Rules
Cultural Rule 2: Create intimacy
The citizens of Snapchat use the inherent privacy of their district to share different and
personal ways of expressing themselves. To engage, brands must be equally open and
offer a window into the real brand behind the façade.
Brand Category: Soft drink and N/A
Mountain Dew develops a close relationship
with its followers by sharing playful visuals.
With the story of a freshly liberated thumb
enjoying a day out in NYC following the
removal of the “hold to view” feature on
Snapchat, the brand shares a unique response
to the platform’s updates. Through creative
storytelling and relevant references like
these, they position themselves as a
brand with character.
The permanent channels of Snapchat’s
Discover feature are not only unpopular
amongst users, but also shun originality by
using pre-existing content from the Web.
By embedding themselves amidst calculated
and impersonal content, brands lose the
prospect of casual intimacy and creative
expression that comes with using a Snapchat
account. Brands become distant to viewers
on the very platform created deliberately to
facilitate interpersonal engagements.
Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
Brands embedded in Discover lose their intimate connections by getting lost in regurgitated content, while Mountain Dew’s flexibility and
willingness to play with its brand image in-front of its followers sets itself apart as a leading brand on Snapchat.
- Is your brand creating intimacy with its consumers, coming across as having a real personality behind your
carefully crafted public image presented in above-the-line marketing?
Change unique to uniquely personal Brand advertising embedded in Discover
Takeaway:
20 / 23 /////
21. Instagram
aesthetic
nostalgia
District demographics:
Population:
300M active citizens
Key Age Segments:
52% of youth 13-17
53% of adults 18–29
25% of adults 30–49
11% of adults 50–64
6% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
22% of males online
26% of females online
District currency:
Likes
Followers
Be Aesthetically Legible
- Is your gallery legible to viewers so that they can draw out a distinct message
from your visuals?
Create Instant Nostalgia
- Does your brand’s use of instant nostalgia align with your brand’s messaging?
Is the near-history you are creating relevant to viewers?
Twitter
contemporary
consistent
District demographics:
Population:
244M active citizens
Key Age Segments:
33% of youth 13-17
37% of adults 18–29
25% of adults 30–49
12% of adults 50–64
10% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
24% of males online
21% of females online
District currency:
Retweets
Favourites
Be Contemporary
- Is your brand boldly initiating conversation as events emerge and leading the response?
Practice Consistency
- Is your brand regularly seizing the opportunity to offer a point of view on current events
and issues to build loyalty?
Facebook
continuous
co-created
District demographics:
Population:
1.44B active citizens
Key Age Segments:
71% of youth 14-17
87% of adults 18–29
73% of adults 30–49
63% of adults 50–64
56% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
66% of males online
77% of females online
District currency:
Likes
Shares
Comments
Establish Continuity
- Does your brand have a life that resembles a living person, with a past, and growth
over time, or does it feel more like a series of disconnected advertisements and
communications?
Embrace Co-Creation
- Are you allowing and encouraging fans to actively co-create your brand in a
meaningful (and positive way)?
Snapchat
disposable
intimate
District demographics:
Population:
100M active citizens
Key Age Segments:
41% of youth 13-17
45% of adults 18–24
26% of adults 25-34
13% of adults 35-44
10% of adults 45-54
6% of adults 55-64
1% of adults 65+
Gender Breakdown:
30% of males online
70% of females online
District currency:
Snap screenshots
Shares
Embrace Disposability
- Does your brand’s content encourage pro-active engagement from the consumer
side, while still allowing for malleable messages?
Create Intimacy
- Is your brand creating intimacy with its consumers, coming across as having a real personality,
behind your carefully crafted public image presented in above-the-line marketing?
FriendsFollowers
StoriesNarratives
21 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
22. 22 / 23 ///// Diamond Whitepaper Social Media Brand Strategy: The Four Districts Approach
Diamond Whitepaper
Contact:
Graham Candy
DirectorInsights&Strategy
gcandy@experiencediamond.com