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A social media hub also referred to as a social hub, has the capability to collect images, videos, and information from various social networks and present them all in one place. So how can you leverage hubs to your advantage? Follow on for everything you need to know.
With brands often being active on multiple platforms all at once, coupled with the fact that there can be a wealth of User Generated Content on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter and so on – consistency and content can be difficult to manage. Sometimes a neat snapshot of all of the brand’s network activities is an effective way to consolidate everything – that’s where social media hubs come in!
Social media hubs display content in real-time from multiple different social platforms in one space. They are an especially relevant tool for brands that have an engaged follower base or are frequently active on their channels.
The content featured on these hubs is not just limited to images, but can also come in the form of ratings and reviews, videos, comment sections, customer or influencer testimonials, conversations with customers, and much much more!
Social hubs can lead to gathering followers across platforms, with viewers able to like, follow or join each of the networks by finding them on the hub – everything is easily accessible from one simple space. Posts on the hub are clickable which means that users can be led directly to the source post with one click of their mouse.
Social hubs often contain User Generated Content, which can be an excellent way to present a brand as honest and authentic. They can be found at events, on websites, blogs, as digital signage, or theoretically, anywhere a brand would like it to be placed.
The simplest way for social hubs to be built is via a specialized tool, although they can also be created by those who are talented coders. The precise process varies depending on which brand of tool you opt for but much like with UGC tools like Flowbox social hub tools collect content and populate your website with it for you.
Virtual events can benefit from a social media hub, in much the same way as they do from social media walls. They are perfect for live events as people post pictures that can be instantly displayed on big screens, which inspires attendees to post their pictures too. Hubs can be just as useful for virtual events, keeping viewers engaged and helping them to feel involved, mimicking the sense of participation attendees get from a live event.
Hubs constantly gather new content as they go which allows for users to interact with content in real-time. Visitors see what the brand is presenting in a live format and this encourages them to react immediately in a natural way.
Hubs make it easier for users to engage with content because they don’t need to visit multiple platforms at once and can consume content from multiple platforms in one place. This makes it more likely that they will engage with content from some of the platforms and helps to lower bounce rates, keeping users on the page for longer.
If the social media hub contains User Generated Content then engagement levels can skyrocket again as users tend to find this form of content more relatable to them. The fact that hubs are a one-stop-shop for viewing the best content a brand has to offer means that potential customers can get a clear overview of a brand’s products and message all in one place – something that could otherwise take multiple visits to instill in those customers.
Needless to say, conversion rates are absolutely crucial for brands and hubs can lead to a boost in these rates. So how do hubs do this? Well, hubs can lead to higher degrees of consumer trust via UGC, as well as showcasing customer advocacy, and creating enticing visual displays that customers are drawn to.
Social media is rife with inappropriate and hateful commentary but thankfully hubs offer brands the capability to moderate their content, choosing what to display and what not to. Having control over the content posted means that brands can safeguard their reputation and integrity.
Human beings are visual creatures and as anyone that specializes in visual marketing will tell you, creating an aesthetically pleasing digital landscape can be one of the most effective ways for brands to market themselves. Hubs synthesize a myriad of different content into one visually pleasing and orderly display – drawing in the eye of the user.
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Brands also benefit from the level of control they have over the overall aesthetics of their social media hubs. The plus side of having this degree of functionality is that companies can choose the content they feel best reflects their image. They can also ask users creating the content to stick to guidelines, dictating particular image styles, settings, or hashtags for example.
The concept of anchoring your social media presence can refer to the process of getting users to anchor their attention to the first source of information they see about a brand. Companies can anchor their social media presence in a hub by creating a centralized setting through which users can base their estimation of a brand. Sometimes a piece of key content is pinned to the top of the hub that users can focus their attention to.
Social media is like a living organism, constantly changing and evolving, and new formats and features of social media are created fairly often. The 6 main types of social media are:
Media hubs, also known as social media hubs are used to display content collected from various different social platforms all in one convenient location. They are usually located on websites but can also be used as digital signage, on blogs, at live or virtual events, and more.
Some argue that blogs make an ideal social media hub as they are a simple location to place social media efforts that don’t have to contain all of the other distracting information that corporate sites do. It is also argued that blogs are a more social setting that can encourage community engagement. The ideal place to place a social media hub will really depend on the places your brand is getting the most traffic, among other factors.
