THE SLOT MACHINE THEORY: YOUR PHYSICAL RELATIONSHIP WITH SOCIAL MEDIA
Tik Tok’s recent (and explosive) popularity is no accident—in fact, you’re subconsciously responsible for the addiction you’ve formed to 30-second dance challenges and reaction videos. The cleverly designed “For You” page, which opens by default when launching the app, offers the same random-pull design popularized decades ago by the Las Vegas slot machine industry, in which any push of a “SPIN” button offers the potential to win you big. This correlation, as it relates to social media, is known amongst strategists as the “slot machine theory.”
Why is this important? Because you likely haven’t thought about utilizing the random nature of social media’s newsfeeds in your own marketing habits as an artist. Have you felt a drop-off in engagement lately, or a slowed follower growth? It’s possible that you’ve lost a bit of your spark with experimentation, which focuses on expanding outside of your content comfort zone into sharing posts that may not guarantee a smooth landing. Risky, indeed, but in that risk lies the potential of a jackpot.
Intrigued? Here’s how you can explore the benefits of this theory for your next campaign.
Image courtesy of Steven Hoober.¹
THE 3 P’s: PHYSICALITY, PREDICTABILITY + POTENTIAL PAYOFF
PHYSICALITY + The Rule of Thumb
Let’s try an experiment. Pick up your phone in your dominant hand. Open up Instagram, and start scrolling through using only that hand. Chances are, your thumb is covering part of each image as you swipe. No biggie, right? That’s what captions are for.
Now try this same exercise in Instastories—you’ll likely start to notice how much more of a chance you have of covering a “Swipe up” action sticker, or even important text on a vertical poster.
This might seem trivial, but for many artists, Instagram Stories is a tool to promote new shows or products, almost always utilizing a “Swipe up” feature or button whenever possible. If 9 times out of 10, your followers are covering the action request to check out your website, you are losing potential engagement and clicks.
The reality is that 94% of smartphone users are now holding their phones and consuming content vertically², which spans across all elements of a campaign, including ads, videos, and more. That’s because brands recognize that the more space content takes up on your screen, the less likely you are to scroll past it. Abiding by this new landscape is actually a lot simpler than you think—here are a few things you can try for your next round of promo:
PROMOTE YOUR NEW HORIZONTAL VIDEO VERTICALLY: It’s actually fairly quick and easy to take a horizontal video and make it vertical to fit the 9:16 ratio of most Smartphones—Michael Kinney’s tutorial shows you how to use free software like iMovie to do it.
RULE OF THUMB: Before hitting “share” on your next show poster or announcement in Instagram Stories, use the trick mentioned above to check that you haven’t placed the “Swipe up” action in a spot that may end up blocked by the all-mighty thumb. Instagram now offers a pinch-and-zoom feature that allows you to re-size and drag your content direct in Stories to better position it on the frame—try it next time you post.
PREDICTABILITY + The Element of Surprise
Let’s head back to the slot machines for a second. Part of what makes a gamble intriguing is the sheer scope of what you may earn at every pull—a $1 bet may win you $5, or it could make you a millionaire. Though the chances are slim, there’s always a possibility getting EXACTLY what you’re dreaming of.
Bringing this back to social media, let’s consider a “$5 payout” to be a major sale at your favorite online store, and a “million dollar jackpot” the equivalent of Rage Against The Machine reuniting for a headlining tour with a stop in your hometown (seriously hoping that still happens somehow). While scrolling in your newsfeed, you subconsciously submit to the idea that any of these outcomes are possible.
Have you ever thought about your own feed in this way? When was the last time you genuinely surprised your audience? Are they used to seeing the same type of content from you, or have you found ways to shake up your own storyline, both visually and in your content calendar?
This doesn’t have to be as drastic—think instead about the format in which you deliver your art. Next time you want to make an announcement, maybe try a surprise live stream, instead of just a photo with text, to raise a few more eyebrows? Or if you’re more of a mysterious persona, could a sudden face reveal provide enough buzz to boost stream counts on your next album release?
The answer is up to you, and your audience—something to keep in mind when planning your next campaign.
Tank and the Bangas’ 2017 NPR Tiny Desk audition tape earned them 1.2 million+ views on YouTube.³
POTENTIAL PAYOFF + The Art of Getting Lucky
Now that you’re equipped with a few creative ways to shake up your content output, you’re likely still feeling like a fish in a sea of, well, a billion other fish. Here’s one more checklist you can complete when considering how to boost yourself above the competition:
Have you properly hashtagged your posts? Take the time to make sure each post you share has at least ten hashtags, and that each of those hashtags is referencing a category of content in which your post fits well. (Think #undergroundhiphop instead of #music)
Have you taken advantage of any trending hashtags? Ever heard of Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road”? The success of the single’s astronomical rise is largely due to the successful #oldtownroadchallenge that swept TikTok in early 2019. Anytime you discover a challenge that might suit your personality or message, take advantage of the trend. And if you haven’t found one to suit you—make one.
Is there an online competition you can take part in? Being selected as a finalist for NPR’s Tiny Desk may seem like a slim chance, but participating in their virtual submission process is totally free, and typically met with a ton of supporting buzz (just make sure your hashtag game is on point). Take the “contest=content” approach next time you find something of interest, utilizing this strategy to hype up your already-existing content.
Sources:
Social media copies gambling methods 'to create psychological cravings'
¹ https://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2017/03/design-for-fingers-touch-and-people-part-1.php
² https://breadnbeyond.com/articles/vertical-videos-marketing/
