Social media has an undeniable grip on our lives. What began as a tool for connectivity has evolved into a multifaceted platform with opportunities for networking, marketing, and entertainment. We flock to it reflexively, our hands reaching towards our phones first thing in the morning and throughout the day for everything from news updates to family photos, messages from friends to updates from brands.
But what, exactly, is it about social media that keeps us coming back for more?
The answer lies in persuasive design practices, or UI/UX design, that enhance user engagement. Features such as likes, comments, and shares are designed to keep people engaged by gamifying social interactions into a reward system that offers users digital validation and keeps them coming back for the next dopamine hit.
Another tactic keeping us hooked is the design of infinite scrolling — the term for a page that automatically loads more content as you scroll — as well as the use of algorithms that make it easier for people to see the content that interests them. Social media has a digital architecture, including sophisticated social media algorithms, that has been purposefully built to keep us engaged for a long time, so that the more we browse, the more personalised it becomes.
Harness the potential of social media with persuasive design
It’s important to understand that social media is the beating heart of your brand’s digital presence. The biggest mistake brands can make is to only use it for marketing, and not as a platform to connect and engage with their global audience. With social media’s extensive reach to a diverse audience, brands with an excellent track record in content creation, especially user-generated content, are successful in capturing and retaining their audience’s attention. This eventually leads to increased brand visibility, which is a huge driver to boost interest and sales for your business.
As the algorithm works 24/7 to deliver the content users crave, how can brands capture their audience’s attention and cut through the noise? Whether you’re a professional working in social media or a brand seeing dips in your social presence, here are some ways you can use persuasive design to convert screen time into tangible business revenue, while reinforcing your brand-building efforts.
Capitalise on the visual nature of social media
The introduction of infinite scrolling has undoubtedly encouraged user engagement by populating an endless stream of content – but it has also significantly impacted attention spans. To capture and retain the attention of your target audience as they scroll, it is essential to create a content plan with a good mix of formats: videos, interactive elements, images, and more. For example, brands can repurpose an existing report into a carousel post with bite-sized infographics for each image and a video featuring the key findings – a strategy that highlights the importance of social media content services.
Use a content calendar to plan, organise, and strategise your content, then take a big-picture look to ensure that your formats are diversified. By experimenting with a variety of content that appeals to different consumption behaviours and checking performance by A/B testing, you can better understand your audience’s preferences and will have a better idea how to align your content with what grabs their attention.
Gamify brand interactions for community building
Engagement is gold in the social media space, so take a page from the way social media is built and gamify your own content. By implementing a “reward system” for user engagement, you can foster a relationship with your followers and create a brand that is built on collaboration and partnerships, epitomising effective brand-building.
The key to this type of community building is user-generated content – the holy grail of social marketing. Not only is it considered credible brand amplification, it’s also an excellent source of relatable and fun content that helps you get to know your audience better. Start by regularly incorporating interactive elements such as polls and Q&As to encourage user participation. Over time, incentivise these interactions with reposts, giveaways, or contests to make the experience rewarding for your community.
The dopamine effect
Associated with feelings of pleasure, dopamine is what drives our social media behaviour. The chemical is released when we have successful social interactions, such as scoring ‘likes’ from our online friends, and watching entertaining content. This surge of dopamine makes people want to come back to social media time and time again. Similarly, brands can employ a dopamine-inducing content plan to strengthen brand loyalty, an integral part of brand building.
Stay on the lookout for trending content and leverage the topics or formats by incorporating them into your brand’s narrative. For example, you could reference this week’s hot topic to stay relatable to your audience. Go the extra mile to delight your followers by responding to comments – a positive interaction can result in digital validation and foster a sense of belonging, enhancing your social media engagement efforts. If you don’t have enough bandwidth to do this on a regular basis, it may be worth engaging a PR agency for support.
Persuasive design is an effective call-to-action that guides your customers intuitively and influences behaviours by understanding human tendencies, especially from your target audience. It’s possible to dominate the digital landscape by creating a cohesive content plan with a focus on visual appeal, interaction, and relevancy: the core aspects of UI/UX design in social media.
And if all else fails, always remember to prioritise your users by tailoring content to their needs and preferences – after all, they hold the key to your brand’s success. Cultivating an engaged following is a long-term strategy with no shortcuts, but one that is immensely gratifying.
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