THE FOLLOWING IS A SOCIAL MEDIA ANALYSIS OF HALCYON'S SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS AND WEBSITE COMPLETED IN SEPTEMBER 2022 BY MICHELLE SAIYED
HALCYON MISSION
To accelerate the impact-driven future of business.
Here are our three not-so-big bets:
1. In the long run, impact-driven businesses will outperform their traditional counterparts.
2. Impact-driven businesses represent a powerful opportunity to drive equity and inclusivity in the workplace and in society.
3. Impact-driven business is the only viable future for capitalist society, and represents the easiest path forward to solving the problems of the 21st century.
Recommendation:
No clear definition of what "impact-driven" means, though it can be self-explanatory, as a commonly used phrase on the Halcyon website and socials, providing clarity on exactly what that means will add specificity to Halcyon's purpose and the type of businesses and entrepreneurs they are seeking to work with
Rewrite for clarity:
Impact-driven business is the only viable future for capitalist society representing the most straightforward path forward to solving the problems of the 21st century.
HAYCYON VALUES
Nimble
Humble
Risk-tolerant
Nurturing
Optimistic
Recommendation:
Make the typeface larger, so it is not overshadowed by the Mission Statement, granting more equal importance to both the mission and the values.
HALCYON WEBSITE: About
"Impact-driven businesses and the entrepreneurs behind them cannot be allowed to fail while the world is convinced of those three things.
Wording can be improved:
"Three things" refers to the list of "not-so-big" bets; however information in this section does not provide clarity on what the three things are
"...while the world is convinced of those three things."
Is it more accurate to say "when the world is convinced of those three things" or "if the world is convinced of those three things"? The word "while" implies that the world is currently convinced of these things; however, the previous section, "Here are our three not-so-big bets," means that these are Halcyon's predictions and beliefs, not necessarily the world's.
"So Halcyon shows up in that critical moment where viability is proven, and scalability is achievable, but where barriers could limit a business's ability to last – even if that business has the potential to solve a massive global problem."
To provide more clarity, consider the following:
Proven and achievable are different tenses; proven is past tense, while achievable is future tense. Consider editing copy to change tenses or rewrite sentences, so they do not follow each other.
"...where barriers could limit a business's ability to last."
What barriers? Listing a few will help entrepreneurs identify their struggles with Halcyon as a potential solution.
"– even if that business has the potential to solve a massive global problem."
The last sentence makes this seem like an afterthought, despite it reflecting the type of businesses and entrepreneurs Halcyon would like to work with. Consider reformatting the paragraph to include it in the top sentence.
"A Halcyon fellowship or an investment through one of our funding vehicles brings that venture into our community, where it's met not only with resources, but with people who truly understand the entrepreneur's journey – and once a venture is part of the Halcyon family, that lasts a lifetime."
Consider rewriting for clarity:
"A fellowship or investment with Halcyon brings that venture into our community, where it's met with resources and people who truly understand the entrepreneur's journey. Once a venture is part of the Halcyon family, that lasts a lifetime."
"What our community is building over time is a foundation that makes capitalism sustainable in the 21st century."
Consider rewriting for clarity:
"Our community is building a foundation that makes capitalism sustainable in the 21st century."
HALCYON INSTAGRAM: @halcyoninspires, 5.2k followers
Utilizing digital print graphic designs for posts
Presentation style- no human speaking
A lot of information in the bio via Linktr.ee
No hashtags
Reusing the same content across multiple platforms
Captions on videos are good- Accessibility
Content of the different CEOs/Founders features captivating speakers
Snippets from interviews
"Currently accepting fellowship applications"- promoted through Instagram stories
Recommendations:
@Halcyoninspires is the name of the account, so the content should be inspiring and motivational
Easily sharable content: quotes, success/ failure stories, striking photos that get people engaged in reading a longer caption to understand the impact
Reusing the same content across multiple platforms:
The orientation isn't suited for Reels
Reusing the same content from YouTube- can come off as insincere or lazy.
Making content that is specifically for different platforms and not just recycling the same content everywhere doesn't give people an incentive to follow the brand on all platforms, as the same content is posted everywhere
Use simple and inclusive language to bring in new audiences/ younger audiences to join.
Less text-heavy posts include more photos; Instagram is for visual work, and people are more likely to connect to images of people rather than text.
Put more emphasis on specific fellows and their work– a small introduction with information and links to learn more.
"Currently accepting fellowship applications"
Create a post or reel that is easy to share and digestible for more people to know about the opportunity, in addition to temporary stories for current followers.
Keeping up with specific trends
Photo dumps for the week/ month with things they have accomplished.
Photo dumps for current fellows and entrepreneurs working with Halcyon to show their progress and how they are growing with the help of Halcyon.
Little Miss Memes
"Little Miss Trying to Save the World"
Rearranging the linktr.ee options so that what you are currently looking for or want more attention to is at the top
Also, there are a lot of links and no photos, which can be overwhelming and confusing for people (multiple different links for applications). Any stopping point or area of confusion can cause a user to exit; I recommend updating the linktr.ee with the most pertinent links and updating the links as needed.
Using pinned posts to clearly show what Halcyon is about, what they value, and what they can offer
Interactive stories
Encourages engagement from followers
Can start conversations between Halcyon and followers that can be reposted to incite further conversation
Debunking "truths" or shedding light on problems that the entrepreneurs are trying to solve or rectify
Creating a post where the first image is an engaging or striking question that will incentive people to check out the rest of the post
HALCYON TWITTER: @HalcyonInspires, 1.3k followers
Many posts have photos
Recommendations
Many posts have photos
Focus on only written content with links to visual content for those interested in learning more.
Photos can disrupt the timeline and aggravate users.
People are looking for tidbits of information, not necessarily to look at a photo, though it can be helpful as it disrupts their feed and garners attention, but if every post is a photo, it can come off as inappropriate use of the platform.
Retweets are the virality here, so something that prioritizes shock-factor:
A fact or discovery that is new
A problem that needs more attention
Depending on the audience you are trying to reach, tweets can be structured similarly to viral tweets; "when blank happens," using colloquial language and internet speak such as "imo" "lmk"
More information can then be added using a thread so that the original tweet may garner interest from a larger population, and then those particularly interested can learn more through the thread.
Other brands have found success on Twitter through engaging with other users' tweets and leaving comments that provide some humorous component or demonstrate brand values.
HALCYON YOUTUBE: Halcyon, 222 subscribers
The introduction video is good: showing what they do, what they value, and the impact they have, showing that there is growth.
Halcyon Incubator Cohort 16 Showcase garnered 2x the views as the next most viewed video.
The title image varies from presentation style graphic to image of people.
Some Instagram Reels were initially made for Youtube.
Recommendations:
Consistent Title images
Consistent title images that 1) illustrate what value the video will provide and 2) feature a human face will aid in bringing professionalism and structure to the account.
Halcyon Incubator Cohort 16 Showcase garnered 2x the views as the next most viewed video.
Consider:
Why?
What made this video more successful than other Incubator Cohort videos?
Using the Halcyon account to comment/ reply to comments versus individual accounts of those associated with Halcyon
Aids in community building
Ideas for future content on this platform:
Interviews
Ted talk type of content
Utilizing YouTube shorts to bring in new audiences, shorter videos (60 seconds)
Longer videos (8-10 minutes)
HALCYON FACEBOOK: @halcyoninspires, 7.4 followers
Long-form posts with links look clean on the Facebook platform.
A good place to post application materials since it is easily sharable
Recommendations:
Using words like "mission" and "goal" to help clarify exactly what the company does
Including success stories
PLATFORMS HALCYON COULD EXPAND INTO
Currently, there is a move towards authenticity online, and younger audiences are moving to BeReal, where users are given a specific time they can post and are notified of that time from the app. You must post to see other people's posts, so engagement is built into the app's structure.
A Halcyon account could help people be engaged and inspiring to other entrepreneurs– showing the grind, the fun, the hardships.
BeReal is not yet popularly utilized by businesses--open market.
The amalgamation of posts can also be used as content on other platforms such as Instagram Reels and Youtube Shorts.
Geneva is a conversation-based app where users can create and join different groups for specific topics.
A social entrepreneurship group where aspiring entrepreneurs can share their stories and struggles while supporting others can help Halcyon build a community, interact with them, and find new entrepreneurs.
Focus on community and building each other up instead of constant competition - share the wealth mentality, sustainable capitalism