Master Social Media Engagement: Co-Founder Jem Shares Strategic Tips

Your brand can become invisible in just 8.25 seconds.

In today’s scroll-and-swipe culture, that’s all it takes for audiences to gloss over generic content. So how do you make audiences pause, feel, and act?

Our team at Make Me Social believe that it is all about creating content that demands immediate attention, telling stories that resonate beyond screens, and developing systems that allow your creativity to scale. And we were thrilled when our Co-Founder, Jem, recently hosted the first of our ‘Make Me Social Sessions’ on ‘Hooked & Booked: Killer Captions, Storytelling, & Content Creation Tips That Work,” to share her expertise on this.

This blog is your exclusive pass to all the insights from that session, where we are sharing Jem’s battle-tested framework as core lessons. So, grab a coffee, open your notes app, and let’s get your brand audience hooked and booked!

Lesson One: The Architecture of a Brilliant Caption

If you though that captions are filler content, then you are wrong! They’re the spine of your content. A well-crafted caption holds attention, sparks interaction, and ultimately drives user behaviour.

Jem’s methodology breaks this down into four key elements:

• An irresistible hook
• Audience-aware language
• Skimmable formatting
• A strong, clear call to action

1. Open With a Hook That Disrupts Your Audience’s Feed

Your opening line must arrest attention immediately. Jem shared five high-performing formats for hooks:

• Stat-based: “78% of users scroll past posts in under 2 seconds.”
• Problem-question: “What if one caption could double your engagement?”
• Bold assertion: “The best content creators break all the rules.”
• Story teaser: “I never believed one line could change my reach, until this happened.”
• Power-word driven: Words like “Secret,” “Revealed,” “Game-changer” add urgency and intrigue.

Each approach leverages curiosity, relatability or challenge to spark interaction from the outset.

2. Speak to the Reader, Not at Them

A strong caption mirrors the language, emotions and experiences of your audience. Shift from brand-centric to user-centric writing. Your audience wants to see themselves in your content. They want to feel understood, to have their problems acknowledged, and to see a path to their desires.

Instead of, “We help businesses increase visibility,” try, “Tired of posting and hearing crickets? Here’s why your captions might be the issue.”

3. Design for the Scan

Let’s be honest, we’re all guilty of skim reading on social media. That’s why formatting is so important.

• Use short paragraphs and line breaks
• Incorporate bullets or emoji lists where relevant
• Highlight key phrases in caps or with symbols

Think visually with breathing room for the reader: every caption should feel accessible at a glance.

4. Close with Purpose: Include a Call-to-Action (CTA)

Every caption should nudge the user somewhere, whether that’s saving the post, commenting, clicking a link or sharing it. CTAs don’t always need to be hard-sell; they can be conversational prompts, reflection questions, or quick actions like “Tag a friend who needs this.”

Jem’s rule of thumb: 90% of your captions should include a CTA. No scroll should end in silence.

5. Platform-Specific Caption Strategy

Your audience behaves differently depending on where they find you. Here’s how you could tailor your tone and format across platforms:

• LinkedIn: Longer-form reflections, story-led business insights, values-driven content. Smart yet personable.
• Instagram: Emotional, story-first captions with a focus on community and conversation. Think medium-length with value upfront.
• TikTok: Minimalist text. The hook matters most – back it up with a strong visual concept or trend alignment.

Lesson Two: Writing Stories That People Feel

Captions can build interest, but stories will instil loyalty. Jem’s approach to emotional storytelling is rooted in authenticity, relevance and structure. Her framework creates space for vulnerability without veering into oversharing, and always circles back to brand intention.

1. Share the Truth, Not Just the Wins

Authenticity drives trust. Share setbacks, realisations, and missteps, as long as you can frame them constructively. People connect with imperfection far more than they do with polished success stories. The key is to find the right level of openness for your audience without oversharing.

2. Anchor Your Story in a Universal Emotion

The goal isn’t to describe your experience but to evoke the reader’s. Focus on emotions that everyone has felt: the fear of failure, imposter syndrome, or even small daily victories.

3. Embrace Conflict and Resolution

Every good story needs tension. What was at stake? What obstacle did you have to overcome? The resolution doesn’t always have to be a fairytale ending, but there should be some kind of insight or growth.

4. Specificity is What Sticks

Instead of saying “Motherhood is hard on business,” tell a specific story: “There I was, standing in Sainsbury’s at 3 pm, still in my pyjamas, with a screaming toddler, questioning every business choice I’d ever made”. Specificity is what creates that powerful emotional resonance.

5. Offer a Takeaway

Your personal moment becomes content when you extract a useful insight. What’s the reader supposed to do, feel or reflect on as a result of your post?

6. Don’t Post and Ghost

Timing matters. If you’re posting something emotionally charged or community-oriented, be available to respond, clarify and connect. Remember that it’s never a monologue, it’s a moment of engagement.

7. Show, Don’t Tell

Instead of writing, “I was overwhelmed,” show the moment: “I stared at the ‘Post’ button for ten minutes, debating if it was too raw to share.” Sensory detail invites readers in.

A Ready-to-Use Story Arc for Social

Jem’s go-to framework for emotionally engaging content:

• Hook: Set the scene or spark curiosity
• Conflict: Introduce the tension or challenge
• Climax: Share the turning point
• Transformation: Explain the shift or learning
• CTA: Encourage reflection, conversation or action

It doesn’t matter whether you’re sharing a founder story, a campaign update or a client win, this structure keeps your audience emotionally engaged and intellectually curious. Here are a couple of rough examples to serve as an inspiration:

TikTok: Cleaning Product

Hook: “I tried this viral cleaning hack…”

Conflict: Showing the messy “before” situation.

Climax/Resolution: Revealing the cleaning method.

Transformation: The stunning “after” transformation.

CTA: “Shop now!”

Instagram: Fitness Brand

Hook: “I couldn’t do a single push-up…”

Conflict: Showing early gym struggles and inconsistent training.

Climax/Resolution: Successfully completing a set of perfect push-ups.

Transformation: “6 months later, now I’m helping others crush their fitness goals” with a transformation reveal.

CTA: “Start your journey today! Link in bio.”

Lesson Three: Creating Content That Scales (Without Losing Soul)

Brilliance needs consistency, and consistency needs systems. Jem’s content workflow is designed to make ideation, planning and publishing more efficient without diluting creativity.

Pre-Publishing Essentials

• Monthly strategy check: What are your goals for the month – awareness, traffic, conversion
• Seasonality: Align content with awareness weeks, holidays, or sector-specific trends
• Templates: Reuse proven post types with new insights (e.g., story > insight > CTA)
• Content Bank: Maintain an evergreen library of ideas, posts and visuals
• Schedule: Use content calendars and schedulers to keep consistency high and panic low

Post-Publishing Checklist

Ask yourself:

1. Does this speak directly to your audience’s experience or desire?
2. Does it educate, entertain or inspire?
3. Is it visually and tonally on-brand?
4. Is the format native to the platform (e.g., Reels for Instagram, text posts for LinkedIn)?
5. Does it open strong and close with direction?
6. Will someone who sees this remember it an hour from now?

Want to know Jem’s simple mantra? If it’s not valuable or memorable, rework it!

Lesson Four: Using AI Without Losing Your Voice

We couldn’t simply stress more on this: AI is a collaborator, not a creator. The ideal way to use AI tools would be to speed up ideation, structure and optimisation, all while ensuring your unique tone remains untouched. Here are some AI tools that we recommend playing around with:

• ChatGPT / Claude.ai: For ideation, outlining, refinement
• Jasper / Wordtune: For polishing tone and grammar
• Midjourney / DALLE: For creating or brainstorming visual concepts
• CapCut / InShot: For mobile-first video editing
• Grammarly / Hemingway: For final proofing
• Riffusion / Waave: For audio and editing

Use AI for what it does best – speed, structure, support. Then overlay your perspective, voice and expertise.

Haven’t Used AI for Your Social Content Yet?

We’ve got you! Here are our top 3 easiest prompts for you to get started for your brand’s social media:

“Suggest 7 reel ideas for a business teaching [niche] skills.”

“Write 5 caption hooks for a story about [theme].”

“Give me 10 post ideas about [insert topic].”

“Create a 4-week content calendar for [goal or niche].”

Why These Lessons Matter!

Exceptional content doesn’t happen by accident. It’s planned, personal, platform-aware and polished. Jem’s insights offers a beginner’s blueprint but for connecting. Here’s a quick recap of the key takeaway from Jem’s webinar:

• Effective caption writing starts with a strong opening hook, but formatting and structure are just as important.
• The length and format of your captions should be tailored to the platform you’re using.
• Emotional storytelling is a powerful way to connect with your audience and make your point resonate.
• Use a storytelling arc to structure your posts and keep your audience engaged.
• AI is a fantastic tool to help you finesse your caption writing and sound like you, but remember to use it as a tool, not a replacement.

Meet Jem Bahaijoub

She brings over two decades of experience in marketing, brand strategy and digital communications across global sectors, from tech to music to purpose-driven organisations. As the Co-Founder of Make Me Social and founder of her own consultancy, she blends deep industry insight with a heartfelt belief in the power of connection.

She’s helped build and grow international campaigns, trained global brands in strategic communication, and mentored countless creators in finding their voice.

Still Have Questions?

Drop us a message on 0800 654 6505 or hello@makemesocial.co.uk for a free consultation. We’re here to help your brand get the visibility it can achieve.