There has been a push in recent years towards creating what is called ‘lo-fi’ or ‘low-fidelity’ content. Lo-fi content refers to social media marketing content that feels raw, unpolished, and authentic – and it’s making waves with audiences.
As Drew Ridley, founder of the brand agency We Are Sprout explained about ‘lo-fi’ content, “Lo-fi is the opposite of stylised, glossy, fully edited, high-spec high-fidelity (hi-fi) content. Lo-fi content looks user-generated rather than highly polished.”
Why lo-fi?
Ridley, whose branding agency makes lo-fi content with its food and beverage (F&B) clients, added that lo-fi content is cheaper, quicker, and more real and relatable.
“We have seen a shift in the content audiences want and are engaging with, with relatable, authentic content taking centre stage,” he shared. “[Lo-fi] content is delivering great engagement and results for businesses of all shapes and sizes. For food and beverage brands, the lo-fi revolution provides huge opportunity but is also driving a shift in how brand agencies and marketing arms work.”
Ridley shared a number of reasons as to why lo-fi should be at the forefront of a business’ content strategy.
One of them is audience preference. HubSpot’s 2024 Social Media Marketing Report reported that over 60 per cent of consumers say authentic and relatable content is more important than polished, high-quality content. Another study noted that lo-fi videos receive 40 per cent more views than hi-fi content, which in turn generates high engagement and eventually a wider reach for a brand.
Ridley also explained that producing lo-fi content is cheaper and takes less time to create, allowing brands to create more timely and relevant content that capitalises on what people are talking about and what’s trending now.
In addition, Ridley said that lo-fi stimulates creativity and online brand communities, which is a key element to an F&B business’ success.
“Trialling new ideas and formats is key to a successful lo-fi content strategy, and the lower cost of content reduces budget requirements and allows ‘let’s just try it!’,” he explained. “A lo-fi strategy encourages user-generated content to be shared on your brand social media channels too, harnessing the power of your community to contribute to your content. This tends to foster greater engagement and encourages more users to create their own content featuring your brand.”
What the lo-fi revolution means for marketing
According to We Are Sprout, the lo-fi revolution is shaking up the marketing space by challenging traditional brand playbooks. As a result, marketers are being forced to relax the guardrails and present a brand without the extra wrapping.
Despite this, the agency admits that businesses are still struggling to create effective lo-fi content or find the right content creators or brand agencies who can create such content for them while realigning their resources that have been traditionally geared towards non-lo-fi content.
“It can be tempting to realign internal resources to producing lo-fi content, and this can work well when the in-house team is appropriately skilled and working within an overarching strategic plan,” Ridley said.
