A Plus is a publisher of positive journalism. Their content is focused on good news and heartwarming stories. This feel-good focus works well for their social video efforts. Emotional resonance is key to engaging social viewers, and positive emotions garner the biggest response. Ashton Kutcher, one of the founders of A Plus, pushed this video about a father who makes some very special toast creations for his kids. The Wochit-made clip has pulled in 1 million views, 13,000 reactions, nearly 1,000 shares, and hundreds of comments. The people love positivity!

See if you can make it through this piece without saying, “awwwww!”:

A really pleasant slice of social video, wouldn’t you say? Let’s talk about why it works so well.

Since the coverage is of an Instagram account, the bulk of the assets are still photos. While they are high-quality, great photographs, relying solely on still imagery can be a challenge. But A Plus does a near-perfect job.

The toast creations are given the prime real estate of the screen. But each photo is complemented with a substantial piece of text overlay. It tells the story of the father’s toast creations and offers some fun commentary on them. Having a direct interplay between the images and text, as well as always delivering new information, keeps viewers engaged.

Jumping from asset to asset also maintains a steady pace for the video. For viewers with the sound-on, it is backed up by a driving, uplifting soundtrack. But for anyone watching on mute, the video still works perfectly, telling its story through visuals and text.

The unique angle of A Plus’s content is a key draw for viewers. Everywhere we turn, we see the bad news of the day, and it can really darkens a person’s outlook. A publisher specifically focused on positive content is a refreshing change of pace. Their followers know where to turn when they need to see something uplifting. The engagement numbers speak for themselves!