With that out of the way, one of my favourite late night personalities has to be Jimmy Fallon. I make it a habit to catch up on his show using YouTube and other digital channels. I don't like late night television, I couldn't care less about celebrity interviews, and yet I find myself to be a huge fan of Jimmy Fallon and what he does on the show.
The more I think about it, the more I think brands should look to Jimmy Fallon as inspiration for the right way to do social. Here are 5 lessons that I learned from viewing The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon that anyone can use to get ahead and find success in social media.
1. Give Away Your Best Stuff
Television shows have been notoriously fickle about using YouTube and other digital channels for content distribution. Yet, Jimmy Fallon gives away some of his best content for free online using YouTube, Tumblr and other digital platforms. You may not have to go to this extent but you shouldn't be hiding all of your best stuff behind a pay wall. Instead give it away for free and help others and in return don't be surprised to find that your audience is willing to pay to learn more from you.
2. Recognize The Talents You Work With
One thing that I notice about Jimmy Fallon is how often he refers to his band the Roots as the greatest band in the world, or supremely talented or something similar. He regularly throws shout outs to the band even though it's his show. Does your brand or business do this? Do you show others the talent behind your success? Do you prop up outstanding community members?
3. Be Funny
Jimmy Fallon is a funny guy. The skits and songs (such as the hashtag skit with Justin Timberlake) he performs on his show are absolutely hilarious and definitely worthy of multiple viewings on YouTube. Does this mean your brand has to be cracking jokes every time you tweet or send out a post? No, but using a little bit of humour now and then goes a long way to humanizing your brand which makes it easier for your audience to form a connection with you.
4. Be Personable
Watching the show you can see how comfortable guests are around Jimmy and how much they like being there. He displays an insane amount of personality that makes you just want to have a beer with the guy. Your brand can do this as well by showing off behind the scenes content, keeping it light and even entertaining your audience. Not everything has to be stuffy corporate talk, display some personality to make you more likable with your own audience.
5. Don't Make It About You
Every interview I watch Jimmy do, he always makes it the entire segment about his guest. He asks questions about their family, what they're doing, hobbies and the movie they are starring in. Never once does he interrupt to proclaim it's The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon and make it about him. How about your social media activities? Do you share valuable, informative and interesting content with your audience? Or is every post a veiled attempt at driving traffic to a landing page to convert the sale? Stop making it all about you and you will grow your audience.
Final Thoughts
Social media can be a powerful tool that helps you connect with an audience that wants to hear from you, build brand awareness, and yes even increase sales. You just have to remember to go about it in a way that makes your audience want to buy from you not in one that forces them to buy from you. A heavy hand is never the tactic you want to use as it more than likely will drive your audience away from you while being more human, being helpful and being useful will help you achieve further success.
Over To You
What is your favourite late night television show?
The post 5 Things Jimmy Fallon Can Teach Your Brand About Social Media appeared first on Social 360.