Social Sharing: Five Ideas For Creating A Clear Compelling Message
Nobody goes to their Facebook feed to be bored by updates. No one reads their email hoping that someone will ask them to do something. So, while our $40,000 contest is enticing, it will take a little elbow grease to snag the grand prize.
In a recent blog, I mentioned harnessing the power of the crowd by creating clear, compelling messages to share. This requires writing something that is unique, specific, urgent, and/or useful. But just how, exactly, do you do that? Let’s break down a few examples.
Unique
I’M *THISCLOSE* TO BEING SCROOGE MCDUCK! I’ve always wanted to swim around in a pool of money, and I may just get my chance. But I need your help. Sign up for StartEngine to help me win $40,000! (I just may let you swim in my pool with me)
This particular post may not be interesting if you’re audience isn’t filled with children born in the 1980s, but it is an eye catcher. The first sentence entices them to keep reading to see just what in world you’re talking about. Once they read the entire message, you leave them wondering: What do you mean “swim in my pool with me”? Are you going to share the prize? I better sign up just in case.
Unique doesn’t have to mean weird, but it does mean out of the ordinary. Think about what you can say that will make people do a double take.
Specific
Help me win $40,000 by signing up for StartEngine! If we win, Bob and I will use the money to pay for our wedding and dream honeymoon next June. As many of you know, weddings can be very expensive, and it would be great to have the weight of it off our shoulders!
The first sentence starts off with all the information that you really need. If I stop there, I understand that I can help you win $40,000 by signing up for StartEngine. The additional information about the wedding lays out what, specifically, you will use the money for, and it tugs a bit at the heartstrings as well.
People like to be helpful. Be specific in how they can help you.
Urgent
URGENT! Sign up for StartEngine today to help me win $40,000! There’s only 5 days left until the contest closes and I need just a few more sign ups to move into first place!
You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Simply stating that something is urgent is enough to create a sense of urgency. A little lazy? Maybe. But when you see urgent written in all caps, you pay attention don’t you? Just remember that while bold font and crying wolf might help this time around, you don’t want to use this tactic all the time. You can consider other options like, “I need your help today” or “Please take a moment right now to sign up for StartEngine. It’ll just take a minute.”
You can also create a sense of urgency by sharing how much time you have left and how close you are to winning. This of course won’t work if there is still a long time to go or if you are really behind in the leaderboard, but there’s nothing better than a photo finish. Use it to your advantage if you can.
Useful
With $40,000, I could pay off my student debt. And you can help me do that by signing up for StartEngine. StartEngine provides investment opportunities for everyone in early stage startups and evolving companies. They are helping to democratize capital, so that everyone has the opportunity to achieve their dreams. It only takes a minute to sign up, just click on this link to get started: [include your unique link]
This post is useful because it answers questions people may have:
- Why should I help you? (Because I am not just using the money to buy fancy cars)
- What are you going to do with the money? (I am going to pay off my student debt)
- What do I need to do? (Sign up for StartEngine)
- What is StartEngine? (A platform that helps entrepreneurs achieve their dreams)
- Is signing up easy? (Yes, it only take a minute)
- How do I do it? (Click the link)
Combination
Would you like to help me change the world? Sign up for StartEngine today. Not only will you be introduced to this great company that is helping to democratize capital, but you’ll also be helping me win up to $40,000.
As many of you know, I’ve been wanting to go back to school, and this prize would help me do that. There are only a few days left in the contest, so it would mean a lot to me if you’d sign up today. It will only take a minute.
While you don’t need to use all four options to create a compelling message, it can help to use a combination of a few of them. You’ll notice that getting all of them in makes the post a little longer. This may be ok for some channels like email, but may not work as well with Twitter. Consider writing everything down and using pieces of it spread out over time.
Good luck!
Over the next few weeks, I’ll take a deeper dive into the best ways to win contests like the StartEngine Challenge. Follow me on medium to catch them all and if you haven’t yet enter the contest and help #FundTheFuture!
