Thought Leader: How to build intrinsically social, shareable brand experiences 

In this blog, co-authored by Anton Jerges and Tracy Sorgiovanni, We Are Collider, the experiential pair look at shareable moments

Brand experiences, when done right, should be emotional.

What emotions do you want to instil in people to make them feel compelled to share something? What is it that makes an experience shareable?

Behavioural science is the study of human behaviour and decision-making processes. At We Are Collider, we place its principles at the heart of all we create. We design experiences that tap into the cognitive and emotional drivers that influence people’s actions. We’ve coined our unique behavioural levers ‘MARVELS’, these are Magic, Adequacy, Relevance, Value, Exchange, Labelling and Sociality. In this article we’ll touch on Magic, Value, Labelling and Sociality and explore how behavioural science can play a crucial role in creating experiences that light the social sharing fire. 

Trigger emotions which call for sharing

Emotions play a significant role in shaping our behaviour, including the decision to share our own experiences. Activating the Magic behavioural science lever creates emotions which form lasting impressions within your brand experiences. Connect emotionally with your audience. Generate feelings of awe, surprise, joy and nostalgia and increase the chances that they’ll want to post about their experience, share it with their followers and amplify your reach. Whether it’s an instagram story, a tweet or a whatsapp video call to their mum, if you make your audience feel something hard enough, they’ll share it in a heartbeat. 

Include elements of gamification, make your brand experiences valuable

Make your brand experience Valuable through Gamification. At We Are Collider, we recognise the power of play and swear by the application of game elements and mechanics both in and out of game contexts. Apply the Value lever by, including challenges, rewards, and competition within your experience, which encourages participation and triggers social sharing. By tapping into people’s inner desire for achievement and recognition, you create an environment that pushes participants to share their accomplishments with others. Who doesn’t want the chance to feel that gold medal around their neck? Let your audience believe it’s sports day, even if only for a short while. 

Design for viral moments & make sharing a piece of cake

In our digital age, designing experiences with viral moments in mind can improve their shareability. Activate the Labelling lever and create moments that are photogenic, share-worthy and couldn’t belong to any other brand. Use bold colours, eye-catching branding, hashtags, share buttons,  or interactive elements that encourage participants to capture and share their encounters, making sure that the brand’s trademarks are recognisable. Incentives for sharing get people hyped to do so, think exclusive content, discounts, or the chance to win prizes. By making the sharing process as attractive and effortless as possible and offering tangible benefits, you increase the chances that your audiences will want to spread the word about their experience. 

Encourage sociality and collaboration

Humans are inherently social beings who thrive on collaboration and the desire to connect with others. People also share stuff with their peers because they want to look cool. (P.S. You’re lying to yourself if you say you don’t.) No better than magpies, we crave shiny experiences we think will generate likes, comments and clout. Capitalise on this by designing experiences that encourage social interaction and collaboration among participants. Encourage people to share their experiences as a group, collaborate on challenges, and create collective memories. As our Sociality lever recognises, if you form a sense of belonging and create an environment that promotes social bonding – or peacocking, (if we’re being really honest with ourselves) – you increase the potential for organic social sharing.

Conclusion

Building intrinsically social shareable experiences requires a deep understanding of human behaviour and decision-making processes. Use our levers and ground your brand experiences in behavioural science. Harness social proof, emotional triggers, gamification, and seamless sharing mechanisms, to create experiences that inspire your audience to share with others. Remember, the power of social sharing lies in designing experiences that resonate with people on a fundamental level, feeding our innate human desire to connect, express, and share with others.