Social Media Tips: Creating An Emotional Connection
Whilst I type these words the highly emotive music from the most recent video by The Piano Guys is playing on repeat. This video is also, incidentally, the focus of this post. I first saw the Scottish cover of This is Your Fight Song/Amazing Grace when it was shared on Facebook by Eilean Donan Castle (where it was filmed) and it then popped again and again in my feed as a number of my friends shared it. I couldn’t get the music out of my head and upon first viewing I felt the emotion catch in my throat, goosebumps skating down my spine. I actually wasn’t at all prepared for its effect on me. The combination of the videography, with sweeping aerial shots of the castle and loch, and the hauntingly beautiful music is extremely emotive. Quite simply, the video tugged at the very sleeves of my heart.
I completely agree with Lara in her post on common social media mistakes that people are attracted to posts that have ‘some real human emotion behind them’. Indeed there has been lots written recently on the importance of emotional connection in consumer behaviour. So in this post I wanted to show you why it’s important not just to reach your customers but to truly connect with them.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOO5qRjVFLw]
Of course I am not the only one who has been moved by the video – it has been watched over 3 million times since it was uploaded to YouTube almost three weeks ago. Since Eilean Donan Castle first shared it on their Facebook page it has been liked 3,047 times and shared 3,025 times. As well as the vast numbers of likes and shares on the Eilean Donan Facebook page, it is in the comments (450 on the first post) where you can see that fans have connected emotionally with the video. Indeed for me, the video captures not just the beauty of the castle and the atmosphere of the area but the allure of Scotland as a destination.
When it comes to tourism, we know that people are looking for something special. They want a story; make sure that your social media channels are telling yours and showing how it’s unique. Although the content was created by The Piano Guys, Eilean Donan Castle has used the video to showcase the beauty and appeal of the castle and, most importantly, engage with their audience. It’s a good example of using content that is already out there – there’s nothing wrong with some of your most popular posts being shared content. Although the video itself is sure to generate conversation, I liked that Eilean Donan encouraged their fans to respond to it: ‘I’ll let you describe it rather than attempt to strive to find the words myself’. And describe it the fans most certainly did.
Other than this moving video, Eilean Donan Castle is a good example of an attraction that creates and shares emotive content. The photographs below are an example of that. (I have been a fan on Facebook for a while now as I love seeing the beautiful images of the castle). The castle is said to be the most photographed in Scotland and they do make the most of this user generated content.
Source: https://twitter.com/1EileanDonan
Eilean Donan Castle clearly knows its audience, that they are on Facebook and that they want to see lots of lovely photos of the castle and the surrounding area. What I really like is that they post short videos – one of the videos posted at the end of October shows the castle lit up at dusk and a very still loch. It is simple and very short; just showing the castle in its stunning loch setting (uploaded straight to their Facebook page). This video clip has had 71,000 views, over 6,000 likes and has been shared 1,258 times.
For me the fact that The Piano Guys’ video has been viewed, liked and shared so many times on the Eilean Donan Facebook page highlights social media at its best – the creation and distribution of content that you feel compelled to comment on and share. And when you can connect emotionally – and get into the very hearts of your audience – it is extremely powerful stuff indeed.
