creating content for social change
A renowned content creator Hammad Anwar joined us for a riveting insights session on content creation for social justice. Passionate about societal issues and change, Hammad founded Sukhan, a digital platform that goes the extra mile to highlight the lives of people who have contributed to the development of Pakistan through projects such as their critically claimed web-series Circle of Stories, Sukhan Podcast and The Isolation Central, an informative series developed during quarantine. Similarly, he worked for CFX Comics, an organization that aims to create a sustainable ecosystem to nurture creativity and talent while promoting ideals of peace, tolerance and social justice for all. By listening to people’s lived experiences and collaborating with organizations like Rizq, he was able to create animated videos like Aik Nawala Zindagi and Khamosh Sada that featured in 200 outlets in 40 countries and kick started healthy discussions around food insecurity and trans communities.
With 60% of the world’s population already online and 3.8 billion active social media users, Hammad affirms we’re all content creators, through the posts, pictures and words we put up online. Due to the variation in media, we now have a variety of types of content. Books and reports stay popular as print mediums but also as digital resources in the form of e-books and e-reports. Blogs, vlogs, videos, podcasts, infographics, interviews, webinars, social media and newsletters are invaluable vehicles for the message you want to broadcast.
Hammad goes on to discuss the process of creating content for social justice and his own experience working in the field.
1. He establishes that people should first set goals and refine their ideas regarding the subject matter of their content. Research into your subject matter and into your target audience is essential. It’s pertinent that you know what you’re talking about and consult a professional in that field if needed.
2. Figuring out who’s your primary audience helps you discern not just what to create but how, particularly content format. Different things appeal to different demographics. While all ages may enjoy graphic novels, the designs and plots used for it will vary for older and younger audiences according to the culture and trends they grew up with.
3. Then comes the actual creating! Hammad holds, no matter what content you’ve created or how good you think it is, it’s always good to edit it. He suggests revisiting the content after a bit of time and looking at it from different perspectives. One shouldn’t be shy to get a new pair of eyes to look at it or even a professional’s. This is especially true for content dealing with sensitive topics that require accurate terminology or that might trigger someone’s trauma.
4. Finally one should select the appropriate platform for the type of content they’ve created and should they want to they can give their content an extra marketing push by paying the social site they’re posting on to boost and promote their content.
According to Hammad Anwar you can measure the success of your content in various ways. Quantitatively, you’ll know your content did well if it has increased page views, organic traffic, engagement, audience growth and the number of people who engage with your CTA (call to action). Qualitatively constructive comments and feedback always helps you determine what you did well and what you can improve.
Click here to watch the full insights session with Hammad Anwar on content creation for social change.
