How best to use social media for your leisure & entertainment brand

Social media is for sharing real experiences with real people, making it a highly effective tool for leisure and attraction brands. With 46% of Britons engaging with a leisure brand’s social according to BDRC Continental’s Social Media Impact ‘Freemium Report’, it’s more vital than ever to get it right. This is where we come in – here are our top Truffle tips for leisure brands…

Traditional brand-building storytelling

If anyone has perfected the art of storytelling, it’s surely Disney. With decades of experience, the company is adept at producing stories brimming with emotion and nostalgia, just like the experiences it offers. Disneyland Paris’ campaign, CLIO nominated The Little Duck, hits all these marks.

Once upon a time, an adorable fluffy duckling was completely immersed in a book of his newly-discovered hero, Donald Duck. This heart-warming tale is so emotionally rousing that side-effects may include light sobbing. The message - Disneyland Paris is where magic exists… for real.

The social impact of the campaign was huge; generating buzzing conversations and droves of responses. We are united by a simple human truth – a shared nostalgia for childhood, and the memory of having a deep attachment to our childhood heroes. Whether it’s a Disney Princess or even Donald Duck, it’s relatable, and when we relate to something that emotionally connects to us, we want to share this feeling with others.

Find new ways to reach new audiences

At Truffle, we believe that listening to and understanding your audience is vital to laying down your foundation. Attractions often have a range of visitors; one size won’t fit all. Remember to reach out to less obvious visitors. You may typically find families on a day trip to a SeaLife center, but don’t neglect the couple who are sharing a special moment.

So, create various customer segmentations and build a message that resonates directly with each. You can do this by considering who might be visiting, what they might do there and why they might want to come. Once you know this information, you can work out the how: how do you entice them to come? Once you have established this you can tailor all of your content by noting which platforms they are using i.e. younger generations on Instagram; older on Facebook.

Attraction centres are actively trying to bring in new target groups which, in turn, could help build a bigger social community. A great example of this is The Lates initiative, run by a few well-known London museums. In addition to the traditional exhibition schedule, The Lates programmes boast an exciting events schedule of late-night lectures, parties, silent discos and workshops, specifically aimed at over 18s.

For example, The Natural History Museum’s exhibition #MuseumOfTheMoon included a six-metre model featuring NASA imagery of the lunar surface hung in its gallery. Launching via Instagram live Q&A with talks from industry professionals, the late night social events that surrounded the exhibition included yoga, sleepovers and professional talks marketed on various platforms.

Museums are perceived as social spaces and most people attend with friends or partners, but socialising doesn’t have to end as soon as you’re out of the premises: campaign hashtags and photo opportunities can help provide consistent on-brand user-generated content and make the message travel beyond the physical space. Search for the #MuseumOfTheMoon hashtag on Instagram, and you’ll find over 29,300 photos.

Influencers are on your doorstep

Attractions do well on social channels due to visitors engaging in shareable moments. With 81% of consumers’ decisions being influenced by their friends’ posts, it’s fundamental to create environments that encourage user-generated content.

At Truffle, we advise all of our clients to think that anyone today is an influencer. Yes, that includes the social personalities with big followings. But also your customers and stakeholders. Your most valuable influencers may even be your nearest: your employees. We believe they should be the most authentic and knowledgeable brand ambassadors.

Let them be as proud of the brand as you are of them. With people placing increased importance on doing a job that doesn’t just pay the bills, but also one that they truly feel passionate about, it’s likely that they’re already sharing about your brand on their own social channels. Encourage them to proudly shout about the brand and take ownership as the experts in the field you operate in.

The staff-influencer approach works across industries, as Benefit Cosmetic’s demonstrates. Using its own employees known as ‘benebabes’ to host make-up tutorials, the company has created trusted content that remains on-brand, is cost-effective and fits perfectly with their customer needs.

Want some serious storytelling that pulls all your heart strings and generate that much sought-after social buzz? Campaigns that push users to generate on-brand content in their droves? We’ve got you covered at Truffle Social!

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