More new Facebook data, continuing this series.
The next Facebook sharing data point I analyzed is the presence of numbers (in digit form, 1 through 9) in titles. In a wide range of marketing arenas digits have been shown to perform very well. They tend to help conversion rates in the form of prices and on social news sites like Digg “Top 10″ style posts have always done well.
The difference isn’t huge but according to my data, articles with digits in their titles tend to be shared more on Facebook than stories without digits. I found that most articles in my data set didn’t use numbers in their titles, and you can see the scale of difference in volumes in the gray bars at the bottom of the chart.
For details on my methodology start with this post, then read AKPC_IDS += "2267,";
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March 10th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Yes Dan, I've always heard tips/steps/lists type posts tend to do very well. I've also heard that “How To” posts do great too. Have you tested that before? Can't remember
March 10th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Ok, so If I got this right, what you are saying Dan is that on Facebook, to maximize impressions, we should post on Fridays and Saturdays, while also including numbers and the word Facebook in the title?
Sorry to miss you at SXSW. A bunch of people I know here in NYC are going and it sounds great!
March 10th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
I really do not understand the function of using numbers and the day it should be posted. Well, I will try these. Thanks.
Rennel
Savannah GA Advertising
Albany GA Advertising
March 10th, 2010 at 4:01 pm
It stands to reason that the same behavior should be seen on Twitter. Do tweets with digits get more retweets?
March 10th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
I don't understand. Are you saying that if say, I posted a link that read Peter Combe Art and added a # after Art ie: 'Peter Combe Art 1'?
March 10th, 2010 at 6:04 pm
[...] Data Shows Articles with Digits May be Shared More on Facebook Than Those Without, danzarrella.com [...]
March 11th, 2010 at 10:25 am
[...] Data Shows Articles with Digits May be Shared More on Facebook Than Those Without | Dan Zarrella – Ich denke, dass das auch von vielen ein Reflex ist. Artikel mit Zahlen im Titel weisen in der Regel auf Listen hin und die werden im allgemeinen einfach mal weitergegeben. Auch ohne deren Relevanz zu prüfen. [...]
March 11th, 2010 at 11:56 am
[...] articles dont les titres comprennent des chiffres sont plus partagés sur Facebook que ceux qui n’ont pas de chiffre [...]
March 15th, 2010 at 1:23 am
Thanks for sharing the numbers. Your analysis is no surprise. What is it about number in a title that attract readers so much more than an article without numbers. Perhaps those who are reading the articles are looking for more concrete or black and white answers to their questions. Just a thought.
March 18th, 2010 at 9:12 pm
Interesting observation but not surprising. Copywriters have understood this for decades. Pick up any John Caples book.
March 24th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
[...] They are interested in sharing stories that have numbers in the titles. [...]
April 1st, 2010 at 2:34 am
[...] with numerals in their titles tend to be shared more on Facebook than stories without digits, according to research by viral marketing scientist Dan [...]
April 6th, 2010 at 8:14 am
First let me say that it is great to see some real attempt to measure and research social media. There are way to many non-funded claims floating around on the web regarding social media.
However, I was wondering, do you use any thorough scientific statistical analysis? To investigate that any difference in the means is significant, rather then mere coincidental?
April 26th, 2010 at 1:09 am
[...] with numerals in their titles tend to be shared more on Facebook than stories without digits, according to research by viral marketing scientist Dan [...]
May 16th, 2010 at 8:02 am
I agree you Dia.
I also want to say as you said that there is not any kind of surpriseness in this post.
But nice article.
June 3rd, 2010 at 12:36 pm
[...] Feel free to use digits in headlines—sometimes people are more likely to click on them. [...]
June 12th, 2010 at 7:46 pm
I think strategy of this sharing is also very good.
June 15th, 2010 at 5:14 pm
[...] anyone who has ever stood in a supermarket checkout line can tell you, using numbers in your headline may also drive up traffic and the number of times an article gets shared. There’s a reason [...]
July 7th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
[...] Articles with digits (1,2,3) are shared more than articles without digits. People like specificity. From Dan’s site: “In a wide range of marketing arenas digits have been shown to perform very well. They tend to help conversion rates in the form of prices and on social news sites like Digg “Top 10″ style posts have always done well.” [...]