The Ten Commandments Of Creating Great Social Content

Thou shalt make something shareable.

1. Ask yourself, “Would anyone share this? And why?”

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

If even your mother wouldn't share it, the answer is "no."

2. Be relevant.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

And not just to today, but be relevant to someone’s life. You already have to be off and running in order to catch the cultural zeitgeist.

3. Your concept needs more than one variable.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

We all like 10 Pizzas, but what about 10 Breakfast Pizzas That Want To Wake Up Next To You? Now that's a story we want to know about.

4. Find the inherent emotional truth of what you’re saying.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

If it isn’t true it’s not going to resonate.

5. Use a human voice.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

Brands are created by people, for people, about people. Honing in on your brand's human values and persona creates + BuzzFeed's voice = advertising people want, and can relate to.

6. Stay authentic.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

Having a message is important, but knowing how to deliver that message to your audience in a way that is organic to your brand is key.

7. Create content that will foster conversation.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

Your concept should leave room for others to jump in and engage in their own dialogue.

8. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

Some of our best ideas come from trying a bunch of things and seeing what works and how to best optimize what's succeeding. By testing different types of formats, including premium content, we can continue to iterate and explore.

9. Don’t be afraid of the conversation.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

When you’re doing it right, the conversation becomes part of the success and is a good indication of it.

10. Don’t only rely on social intelligence OR hard data to make decisions.

Andrea Hickey/BuzzFeed

Because it has to be a combination of art and science, not one or the other.