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It’s Still Need to Do Day, Reader... Do any of us need this pressure in our lives?

In today’s edition:

• Today's Tip of the Day is for Instagram

• Marketing to decision-makers

• Snapchat's Instant Streaks

• 🗞️ Additional industry news from Facebook and YouTube

Is coming up with Instagram content keeping you from running your business? Looking for a simplified strategy that doesn’t rely on questionable tactics, ads, or posting every day?

An Organic Instagram Strategy That Saves Time and Delivers Results

First, get to know your new content pillars, the 4 Hs.

• Make Your Audience Feel Heard: Give them pep talks, share empathetic client stories, and deliver gentle reminders.

• Be Helpful: Take a stand with hot takes, share bite-sized tips, and post tutorials people can follow along with

• Show Your Sense of Humor: Post relatable memes and funny trends.

• Talk About What’s Happening: Alert your followers to upcoming launches and update them on your business and life. 

Now, you can quickly post to the feed 4 to 5 times per week and to Stories as little as 3 times per day. Follow that up with at least 30 minutes of daily engagement, and you can get back to business.

Today's tip was inspired by Shannon McKinstrie, a featured speaker at Social Media Marketing World.

It’ll Be Here Before You Know It!

Just a quick reminder...Social Media Marketing World is just around the corner, Reader. It takes place March 30-April 1 in Sunny San Diego.  

Attending live is the best way to experience the conference. But if you can't get there in person, a Virtual ticket is the next best option. 

With a Virtual ticket you get access to ALL of the content from the conference including the sessions, keynotes, AND the extra day of workshops—all from the comfort of your home or office! Plus, if you get your Virtual ticket today you’ll save 60%. But hurry. This offer ends tomorrow. 

Yes, I want ALL the great content!

Building Better Launches: How to Create Campaigns that Serve All Decision-Makers

A few weeks ago, we gave you a 5-week content plan to naturally create demand and a sense of urgency for your next launch without relying on pushy tactics. 

The basis of that proven content plan centers on anticipation marketing. Today, we explain how to do the groundwork to get started and give you the background to help convince others that this strategy is worth the time and effort.

Anticipation Marketing: A Proven Use Case

In an environment where trust in marketing can be low, and people are hesitant to spend, anticipation marketing provides a framework for building genuine connections and creating a natural desire for your offers.

Hollywood's approach to film promotion provides a master class in building anticipation. Studios don't simply announce a movie's release date—they begin creating excitement up to 120 days in advance through carefully orchestrated trailers and teasers.

This strategy works because it leverages two fundamental psychological principles. 

First, humans naturally want what they can't immediately have. When something is just out of reach but attainable, it creates a stronger desire than if it were immediately available. Research shows that people who anticipate something experience levels of dopamine release similar to those when they actually receive it.

Second, movie marketing expertly creates open loops – unresolved narratives that keep people engaged and curious. Watching a movie trailer gives you enough information to become interested but not enough to feel satisfied. This experience creates a psychological need for closure that can only be fulfilled by seeing the movie.

When watching trailers, people often decide, "I want to see that movie." They make a mental commitment to purchase tickets long before the release date and become buyers before they spend any money.

This psychological positioning also works for launch marketing.

How Anticipation Marketing Addresses 2 Consumer Decision-Making Processes

Anticipation marketing is effective because it addresses a crucial aspect of consumer behavior that many marketing strategies overlook. 

According to DISC personality assessments, approximately half of all people are slow decision-makers. Traditional marketing and sales tactics typically cater to fast decision-makers, those who make quick purchasing decisions.

However, slower decision-makers go through multiple steps of consideration, discussion with others, and potential mind changes. They often need more time and information before committing.

By creating a longer runway, you accommodate both quick and deliberate decision-makers. This inclusive strategy ensures you're not leaving money on the table by failing to engage with a significant portion of your potential market. The result is higher conversion rates and better-qualified leads who have had time to understand your offer fully and are ready to buy into it.

3 Ways to Prepare for Anticipation Marketing Campaigns

Before implementing anticipation marketing, you need to conduct thorough market research to understand your industry's buyer beliefs. 

While this might seem like an unsexy starting point, it's essential for understanding your audience's actual needs, fears, and desires. 

Pro Tip: When conducting customer research, ask open-ended questions that allow respondents to express themselves freely. This way, you capture your audience's exact language and phrasing when describing their challenges and desires. You can use this natural language to create marketing messages that resonate with your target audience.

Voice of Customer (VOC) Research

Voice of customer research should be done through two distinct types of interviews:

1. Conversations with current customers who have already purchased and experienced your solution

2. Discussions with prospects who haven't yet bought but are in your target market

These conversations can happen through various channels. While traditional Zoom calls work well, the people you're talking with may feel pressured to give you an immediate answer if they're looking at you on-screen in real time. 

The asynchronous nature of tools like Voxe, a walkie-talkie app, often leads to more thoughtful, honest responses.

Social Media Research

Social media platforms offer valuable opportunities for gathering customer insights. To learn what your customers talk about and how they describe their experiences and situations, you can:

• Engage with Instagram story responses

• Have conversations through direct messages

• Monitor comments on posts

• Analyze frequently asked questions in your community

Leveraging AI for Research

Rather than letting AI pull random information from its learning, try giving it direction based on your initial findings from interviews and social media. Here are four ways AI can help you expand upon and verify the insights gained from those direct customer interactions.

• Ask AI to generate dialogue that reveals the internal thought processes of your target audience

• Request analysis of hidden objections in your market

• Use AI to identify patterns in customer feedback

• Have AI generate various scenarios of how customers might describe their challenges

Today's advice is provided with insights from Brenna McGowan, a featured guest on the Social Media Marketing Podcast.

Feeling Out of Your Element, Reader? 

Are you super creative, but not great at getting things done? Or are you an operational ninja, but the idea of promoting makes you feel queasy? 

Attending Social Media Marketing World can help.

👉️ Dive deep into learning from really smart marketers and walk away with a solid plan. 

👉️ Find your next employee or agency to help you get where you cannot go alone.

👉️ Connect with people just like you, dealing with similar struggles.

Grab your All-Access ticket today and lock in your plans for 2025 and beyond. 

Yes… I’m in!

Facebook Business Page Phishing Campaign: Kaspersky's security experts have discovered a new phishing scam that targets businesses with Facebook pages. The scam begins with emails falsely claiming to be from Meta for Business, telling recipients their page contains prohibited content and requesting explanations to unblock their account and page. Source: Kaspersky

Snapchat Instant Streaks: Snapchat+ subscribers can activate Instant Streaks to begin a streak immediately after exchanging snaps with a friend rather than waiting three days. This feature only works for new streaks or reset streaks, not existing ones. If a streak is eligible for restoration, users must wait until it's no longer restorable before starting an Instant Streak. Users can manage this feature through their Snapchat+ membership settings page by toggling the Instant Streaks option. Source: Snapchat

YouTube Tests Play Something Experience for Android: When the floating action button (FAB) is activated, it launches a video in the Shorts player format, though it can play both Shorts and regular videos using this vertical viewing interface. The interface includes large interaction buttons on the right side for likes, dislikes, comments, and sharing, along with a timeline scrubber at the bottom of the screen. The Play Something button automatically hides when the mini player is active. This feature has been in testing since last year, with the latest iteration appearing in Android version 19.50. Source: 9to5Google

Did You Know?

Wi-Fi doesn't actually stand for anything. It's not an abbreviation for "Wireless Fidelity" or anything else. The branding company Interbrand created the name, which was chosen because it sounded catchy and memorable.