11 Social Media Content Types And Examples

Social media has been astatine nan forefront of integer trading for rather immoderate time, and it’s improbable this will alteration successful nan adjacent future.

In fact, we are still seeing caller social media channels and platforms look – alongside a wide assortment of contented types, features, and formats.

This article will screen nan apical social media content types and which channels they are champion suited for.

We will besides item immoderate of our favourite examples of really brands person excelled successful each type of content.

Let’s dive in.

1. Short-Form Video

If you’ve spent immoderate clip connected societal media successful nan past fewer years, you cognize that short-form video has go 1 of nan astir communal – and celebrated – types of societal content.

Short-form video could beryllium defined arsenic immoderate portion of video contented that is nether 10 minutes long, but typically, nan shorter, nan better. When I deliberation of short-form video, I deliberation of video contented astir 0-3 minutes long.

From Reels to TikTok to YouTube Shorts, short-form video has proven to beryllium an incredibly effective format for reaching audiences connected societal media.

Why? Because, erstwhile done right, it packages compelling ocular storytelling into a bite-sized, digestible portion of contented – which is precisely what today’s progressively distracted and engaged users are looking for.

Short-form video is besides versatile. You tin usage it to execute different objectives, whether showcasing soul thought leadership, highlighting a customer lawsuit study, aliases featuring your product.

The Best Social Media Channels For Short-Form Video

Given nan request for short-form video, it useful good crossed astir societal media platforms, from TikTok to LinkedIn. However, nan pursuing guidelines retired arsenic nan champion fit:

• TikTok – This 1 should beryllium obvious. As nan most popular societal media level worldwide, TikTok is nan leader successful short-form video.
• Instagram – With nan preamble of Instagram Reels successful 2020, nan level has leaned into short-form videos. If you create short videos connected Instagram, nan algorithm will apt reward you.
• YouTube – While YouTube is amended known for long-form videos, which we’ll dive into below, nan level has besides been branching into short-form videos. It launched YouTube Shorts successful 2020, which now has complete 1.5 billion monthly users.
• Snapchat – The pioneer of nan ephemeral video story, Snapchat has somewhat faded into nan inheritance successful position of societal media chatter. But don’t beryllium fooled; it has complete 530 million monthly active users.

Brand Example: Short-Form Video

Mediterranean accelerated casual nutrient brand, CAVA, is simply a awesome illustration of a institution that leverages short-form video connected societal media.

The marque has amassed complete 87,000 TikTok followers by making fun, snappy video contented that features CAVA’s products and often employs trending TikTok sounds aliases formats.

Here is an illustration of a video wherever CAVA utilized a remark by a customer to create video content.

@cava

Jeffrey stamp of support ☝️ #CAVA #foodreaction #saladrecipe #foodreview

♬ Rich Flex Carter Walsh Remix – CarterWalsh

2. Long-Form Video

Long-form video is video contented that is 10 minutes agelong aliases longer.

And while you whitethorn not spot arsenic overmuch of it successful your day-to-day societal media activities, it decidedly plays an important domiciled successful marque marketing.

Long-form video tin beryllium a powerful instrumentality for much in-depth marque storytelling and content.

Some examples of long-form video contented you whitethorn want to leverage for trading purposes are documentaries, branded series, video profiles, interviews, and more.

The Best Social Media Channels For Long-Form Video

If you’re willing successful distributing long-form video contented connected societal media, YouTube is wherever you want to be.

YouTube is nan leader erstwhile it comes to long-form videos, and you’re astir apt to find your assemblage there.

While you tin – and should – stock shorter clips and cutdowns from your video connected apps for illustration Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok, galore of these platforms won’t moreover let you to upload longer videos.

Brand Example: Long-Form Video

The squad down BuzzFeed’s Tasty knows what it takes to make awesome societal videos, including long-form content.

Tasty’s YouTube transmission features tons of video content, ranging from speedy recipes and tips to bid for illustration “I Draw, You Cook” – an section of which is featured below.

3. User-Generated Content (UGC)

User-generated content, aliases UGC, is contented created by individuals unaffiliated pinch your marque astir your marque – and it’s cleanable impervious of what makes societal media contented truthful powerful.

Over nan past decade aliases so, UGC has go 1 of nan astir pervasive types of marque contented connected societal media, and for bully reason.

UGC leverages word-of-mouth trading to build spot and organization pinch your target audience. This is because group are much apt to spot a proposal from their peers than judge successful trading straight from a brand.

UGC tin travel successful galore forms, from image aliases carousel posts to short videos, Instagram Stories, etc.

The Best Social Media Channels For UGC

Instagram is nan evident prime for sharing UGC.

It’s ocular by nature, has a hyper-engaged personification base, and provides different avenues and formats depending connected nan contented itself – from Stories to Reels aliases posts connected your grid.

X (previously known arsenic Twitter) tin besides beryllium a bully level for sharing UGC, depending connected your manufacture and nan assemblage you’re trying to reach.

Brand Example: UGC

Adobe features plentifulness of UGC made by customers connected its various products. Here’s an example from nan Adobe Creative Cloud Instagram account.

4. Live Streams

Live streaming has been connected nan emergence successful caller years, and brands are progressively getting involved.

It’s go truthful celebrated that platforms for illustration Instagram, YouTube, and moreover TikTok now person dedicated unrecorded video products.

Beyond this, caller platforms built wholly astir unrecorded streaming person popped up to cater to fans of this contented format.

For brands, unrecorded streams supply an opportunity to prosecute successful real-time pinch your organization and connection a much authentic, “behind nan scenes” look astatine your marque than produced contented can.

The Best Social Media Channels For Live Streaming

As mentioned above, Instagram Live, YouTube Live, and TikTok Live are each awesome avenues for your live-stream content.

Where you take to play will dangle connected wherever your target assemblage spends nan astir clip and what shape your contented will take.

Depending connected this, Twitch is different powerful level for unrecorded streaming.

This unrecorded streaming work was initially built astir video gaming contented but now houses a assortment of unrecorded contented – and could beryllium nan champion spot to big your adjacent unrecorded stream!

5. Polls & Questions

The champion benignant of societal media contented engages your assemblage and encourages them to interact pinch you.

Enter: assemblage polls and questions.

Whether you’re utilizing a canvass characteristic successful a circumstantial societal platform, aliases asking an open-ended question, posing questions to your assemblage tin beryllium a elemental measurement to thrust engagement and cod adjuvant data.

Questions tin screen things specified arsenic your brand, your product/s, manufacture trends, aliases moreover what benignant of contented your assemblage would for illustration to spot from you.

The Best Social Media Channels For Polls & Questions

Here are nan champion platforms erstwhile it comes to canvass and mobility content:

• Instagram – You tin usage Instagram Stories to create some polls and questions, arsenic it has abstracted devices for each. You tin besides create an image asking your assemblage a mobility and upload that to your grid, and past group tin reply successful nan comments section.
• LinkedIn – LinkedIn besides has a dedicated canvass characteristic and lends itself good to posing questions wherever your assemblage mightiness want to stock their acquisition aliases sentiment successful a comment.
• Twitter – Another level pinch a canvass feature, Twitter is simply a awesome spot for immoderate benignant of question-related contented owed to its text-based nature.
• Facebook – You tin canvass group successful Facebook Groups aliases airs questions successful immoderate of your Facebook content.
• Reddit – If your marque is progressive connected Reddit, you should see utilizing nan platform’s canvass usability aliases asking your assemblage questions.

Brand Example: Polls & Questions

Fortune is 1 illustration of a marque that often uses polls to prosecute its audience.

On LinkedIn, nan institution often leverages canvass contented to quiz followers connected a circumstantial taxable earlier linking retired to a related article for them to study more.

6. Influencer Collaborations

By now, I’d conjecture there’s a decent chance that erstwhile you perceive nan words “social media,” you deliberation of influencers.

Influencers really person “taken over” societal media by building loyal communities that look to them for intermezo and inspiration, arsenic good arsenic recommendations and advice.

Partnering pinch influencers tin boost your brand’s scope and springiness it vulnerability successful beforehand of an engaged audience.

Influencer collaborations tin return galore forms, but nan cardinal to doing it correct is to find an authentic and earthy relationship betwixt nan influencer and your brand.

The Best Social Media Channels For Influencer Partnerships

If you’re looking to partner pinch an influencer, see 1 of these channels:

• Instagram – Given really connected Instagram creators are to their followers, it’s a apical prime for influencer collaborations. It besides provides different possibilities for really your business will travel to life, e.g., an Instagram Live interview, a Stories feature, a carousel featuring a creator’s apical 5 products from your brand, etc.
• TikTok – As brands commencement to drawback up to nan TikTok hype, much and much are partnering pinch trending creators to get their institution successful beforehand of nan Gen Z consumer.
• YouTube – Home to immoderate of nan world’s astir beloved video creators and profoundly engaged users, it’s nary astonishment that YouTube is simply a celebrated avenue for influencer partnerships.
• Twitch – If your marque has immoderate relationship to gaming aliases wants to link pinch that audience, Twitch is your platform. Twitch creators are amassing immense fanbases, and their unrecorded streams let you to scope streamers astatine nan correct moment.

Brand Example: Influencer Collaborations

Dunkin’ is simply a marque good known for its influencer partnerships.

Perhaps 1 of its much well-known collaborations was pinch TikTok creator Charli D’Amelio – not conscionable 1 of nan platform’s astir followed influencers but a known Dunkin’ fan.

@charlidamelio

the champion portion of immoderate time @Dunkin’ dunkinpartner

♬ original sound – charli d’amelio

7. Infographics And Charts  

The champion societal media contented tin show a communicative utilizing only visuals.

Infographics and charts are awesome examples of this, which is possibly why they person go a go-to contented type for some individuals and brands alike.

These images let you to synthesize accusation successful a measurement that’s optimized for societal audiences (meaning it’s digestible and clear).

The Best Social Media Channels For Infographics And Charts

If you’ve sewage an infographic, a chart, aliases a data visualization that you want to share, I urge testing it retired connected immoderate of nan pursuing channels:

• Facebook.
• Twitter.
• Instagram.
• Pinterest.
• LinkedIn.

Brand Example: Infographics & Charts

Here is an example of an informative Instagram chart produced by HubSpot.

8. Memes 

What would societal media beryllium if not for memes?

These entertaining and relatable images, videos, and matter catchphrases that iterate connected a trending thought aliases taxable are nan “bread and butter” of societal media content.

While brands should beryllium mindful of which memes they usage (ask yourself if you person thing to adhd to nan conversation), erstwhile leveraged correctly, memes tin execute a home-run trading infinitesimal for you.

The Best Social Media Channels For Memes

Instagram and Twitter are nan go-to spots for each your memes, though LinkedIn is accelerated connected its heels pinch immoderate much professional/work-related meme content.

For video memes, look to Instagram Reel and TikTok.

Brand Example: Memes

If you’re looking for a marque that knows really to usage memes, look nary further than Netflix.

The brand’s Instagram relationship often creates memes utilizing clips from celebrated Netflix shows and movies, for illustration this example.

9. GIFs

Graphics Interchange Format, much commonly known arsenic GIFs, are small, soundless video aliases animation clips that are celebrated pinch societal media users.

GIFs are typically utilized to correspond really 1 feels aliases picture a peculiar business and are often shared arsenic a guidance to a portion of societal content.

For brands, GIFs tin beryllium a nosy and relatable instrumentality erstwhile speaking straight to members of your societal community.

The Best Social Media Channels For GIFs

Want to activity GIFs into your societal strategy? Twitter and Facebook person agelong been nan spot for that, though Instagram precocious launched GIFs successful comments.

If you want to create civilization GIFs for your brand, see creating a floor plan connected GIPHY. Here, you tin create a floor plan for your institution that houses each your uploaded GIFs.

This will let users each complete nan net to usage your GIFs done various GIPHY integrations pinch different platforms.

Brand Example: GIFs

Here is an absorbing example of Salesforce leveraging a GIF to create a social-friendly meme.

10. Webinars & Events

Connecting pinch your assemblage connected societal media is each astir providing them pinch valuable content. And what’s much valuable than an acquisition webinar aliases virtual event?

These types of contented let you to prosecute connected a deeper level pinch your assemblage and scope a world personification base.

While webinars are typically presentations that spell heavy connected a circumstantial taxable – and often characteristic cardinal speakers from outer organizations – different events tin screen thing from a integer convention to a workshop.

And these tin each beryllium unrecorded aliases pre-recorded.

The Best Social Media Channels For Webinars & Events

LinkedIn is nan champion level for promoting and hosting your webinars and events.

Aside from offering each nan functionality you need, it besides has an assemblage that is much apt to beryllium looking for acquisition and master content.

Facebook and YouTube are besides adjuvant platforms for hosting unrecorded video events.

Brand Example: Webinars & Events

Bizzabo is simply a marque that comes to mind erstwhile I deliberation of webinars.

It often promotes and hosts informative virtual events for its followers connected LinkedIn – which makes cleanable sense, fixed that Bizzabo is an events company.

11. Contests And Giveaways

If you’re looking to get your followers excited and engaged, see trying a title aliases giveaway connected societal media.

This involves offering a typical prize – whether that beryllium a free product, money, aliases a travel – successful speech for circumstantial interactions from your users (e.g., remark below, tag a friend, travel this account, for illustration and stock this post, etc.)

The Best Social Media Channels For Contests & Giveaways

Instagram is astir apt nan astir commonly utilized societal transmission for contests and giveaways.

However, you tin besides tally them connected Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and moreover TikTok.

Brand Example: Contests & Giveaways

Plenty of brands execute contests and giveaways, particularly astir nan holidays. Here is simply a caller example of a giveaway hosted by Escape Brooklyn.

In Summary

These are conscionable immoderate of nan galore societal media contented types to take from. And pinch truthful galore options, location are besides respective ways to attack societal media marketing.

Understanding which formats activity champion for your marque – and resonate astir pinch your assemblage – usually takes experimentation.

I urge starting pinch a fewer of nan contented types we explored supra based connected your overarching contented strategy, target platforms, and nan resources disposable to you.

Then commencement posting and spot what happens!

More resources: 

• 17 Awesome Examples Of Social Media Marketing 
• 7 Content Types That Gain nan Most Engagement & Links
• How To Create A Social Media Content Plan

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