March 30, 2012
The Economist gives Facebook fans what they want, and it pays off
The Economist has a million Facebook fans — twice as many as their nearest competitors. How do they do it? By giving Facebook the special attention it deserves.
Their social media team posts material based on an analysis of what is trending and popular — not just whatever is at hand. They also use items, such as infographics, that are easily digested.
Nick Blunden, global publisher of digital editions for The Economist:
“We’ve found that infographics or charts that we produce on a daily basis have huge value in Facebook,” he says. “It’s visual content you can consume relatively quickly and Facebook is a visual medium. We focus on content types we think people will want to engage with specifically while they’re on Facebook, as opposed to what they might want to engage with in our magazine or apps. I think that has helped fuel people’s associations with The Economist.”
Just like Walmart — give the people what they want.