In this era of online information-swapping, you are what you share. This is true of both individuals and corporate brands, and many marketers have embraced this I share, therefore I am mentality head on.

But there is an incentive for marketers to dig beneath the surface and analyze not only what people share, but why they share it: marketers who understand consumers’ motivations for engaging with content have a better shot at maximizing their content’s long-term impact.

To help marketers go the extra mile and engage in a little audience head-shrinking, here’s a research-based guide to understanding the psychology of social sharing:

The Archetypes Of Online Sharing

According to an extensive study from The New York Times on the psychology of sharing, consumers have 5 basic motivations for sharing content online:

1. To bring valuable and entertaining content to others:

Half of consumers (49%) said sharing content “allows them to inform others of products they care about and potentially change opinions or encourage action.”

2. To define ourselves to others:

68% of respondents believe they define themselves through social sharing, saying they “share to give people a better sense of who they are and what they care about.

3. To grow and nourish relationships:

3 out of 4 respondents share content online to “stay connected to people they may not otherwise stay in touch with” (78%) or “connect with others who share their interests” (73%).

4. For self-fulfillment (i.e. feeling more involved and connected to others):

A total of 69% consumers reported that sharing information online “allows them to feel more involved in the world.”

5. To get the word out about causes or brands:

And finally, a whopping 84% of respondents said they share content to “support causes or issues they care about.”

These motivations echo the upper tiers of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, namely our motivational needs for self-actualization, esteem, and social love and belonging. From a marketing perspective, however, perhaps the most notable results is this: 94% of consumers report carefully considering how the information they share will be useful to others.

If nearly every consumer is considering the utility of the content they share before they share it, then marketers should apply the same approach to their own content strategy before they create it.

This finding echoes the advice of social selling expert Jill Rowley, who urges salespeople and marketers to live by the maxim “Those who serve more, sell more.” (More from Jill Rowley on the benefits of a didactic approach to sales and marketing here.)

The Power Of Positive Posting

In an interview with TechRadar, Bret Taylor — former Facebook CTO and inventor of the “Like” button — explained the careful deliberation that went into the decision not to create a “Dislike” button on the platform.

Unlike social networks like Reddit, which encourages users to downvote comments that don’t contribute to a conversation, Taylor explained that Facebook chose to forgo the “Dislike” button because “in the context of the social network, the negativity of that button has a lot of unfortunate consequences.”

According to research from Jonah Berger and Katherine L. Milkman, negativity could also have unfortunate consequences on the impact of your marketing content as well.

Based on an analysis of 7,000 New York Times articles, Berger, and Milkman found that “while more positive or more negative content is more viral than content that does not evoke emotion, positive content is more viral than negative content.”

Overall, content that is triggers “positive and negative emotions characterized by activation or arousal (i.e. awe, anxiety, and anger)” is more more viral than deactivating, or “sadness-inducing content” content. However, along the spectrum of provocation, positive or awe-inspiring content is more appealing and shareable.

In other words, if you have a choice between being neutral or provocative, be provocative — but positivity trumps negativity.

When In Doubt, Turn To The 5 W’s

To better answer the Big Content Marketing Question — How can I maximize the ROI of my content? — start with the basics. Ask yourself the Five W’s: Who, What, Where, When, and Why.

1. Who?

Who is engaging with your content? (Or perhaps more telling, who isn’t engaging with your content?)

2. What?

What types of content motivate engagement from your audience? Do images, reports, case studies, infographics, etc. perform best with specific audiences?

3. When?

Which days of the week, times of day, seasons, etc. does your audience engage with your content?

4. Where?

Where can you find your audience? Which channels are they active on?

5. Why?

Why does my audience share what they share?

The Why we’ve covered from a bird’s-eye-view here — although there is certainly a benefit to tackling it for your specific industry and audience.

By understanding who, what, when, where, and why your audience engages with your content (or that of your competitors), you have more insight into how to create more impactful content. Coupled with the findings on the psychology of social sharing outlined above, answers to the 5 W’s can help marketers answer that elusive question — How can I maximize the impact of my content marketing? — in a more efficient way.

If you like this post, you might like The Economics (and Psychology) of Effective Digital Marketing or Barry Feldman On The Opportunity Cost of Poorly-Created Content.