2013 is recognised by many people as the year for short-form content. It seems that most users nowadays spend less time reading your content than they have in the past. When you consider that most users access their social networks via mobile, this is not hard to believe. We want content which is not only easy to consume, but won’t take us longer than a couple of seconds to read through.

‘Shortify’ your content

1. In your blog.
   Try not to overload your page with text, your readers ought to be able to scan your page and instantly know what the article is about. You can achieve this by sticking to the following points:
   - A catchy headline
   - Interesting sub titles to break up the text
   - Paragraphs of 2-3 sentences
   - One or two images included in the text
2. With Mini-Infographics.
   A shortened version of the regular infographic which is increasing in popularity in the Twitter-sphere. These can also replace your conventional blog posts from time to time. Read more on Mini-Infographics here.
3. Short videos.
   Here we are referring to the 15-second video, a trend inspired by Viddy. Businesses can benefit from this greatly, as you can actually illustrate the manner in which to use products, in the shortest amount of time. These videos can also be used to showcase testimonials or to introduce new products or services on offer.
4. Share images.
   Images and photos get shared the most on Twitter and Facebook because they are easy to consume, which means that the image you share needs to be worth sharing. For example, if De’Longhi, a company well known for their state-of-the-art coffee machines, posts an image of intriguing Latte Art they have come across. The image resonates with most users and will more likely be shared, creating more brand awareness.
5. Status updates.
   Post quotes in place of status updates. This is another piece of content that people enjoy sharing socially. Pick quotes that are relevant to your brand or current events and insert links or hashtags to allow the post to relate back to you, such as ‘ “One cannot think well, love well, and sleep well, if one has not dined well” - Virgina Woolf #kenwood’ for Kenwood, a company which manufactures kitchen appliances.

Theresa Braun of Likeable Media puts it this way: ‘In an age when we are attached to our mobile devices which are themselves constantly inundated with messaging, brands learned to connect with consumers during in-between moments with connections that could break through the clutter.’

Some short-form apps which have increased in popularity include:

1. Snapchat
2. Twitter
3. Vine
4. Instagram video
5. Instagram Ads

Implementing the short-form content trend into your editorial strategy is a relatively easy task. The only trick to it, is simplifying the content you already have, or simplifying the manner in which you present your content. Indulging in the apps mentioned above may also give you some competitive advantage, but for this to be successful, you will have to ensure that a high level of creativity, accompanied by content which is relevant to your users, governs your network updates.

Mari Roelofse is a Digital Journalist & Content Editor for Sound Idea Digital | mari@soundidea.co.za | Sound Idea Digital | www.soundidea.co.za