Brand Communication on Social Media (these tips are cringy)

Unless you’re walking around with your eyes closed in the world of business, the benefits of brand communication on social media are obvious.

From visibility, outreach, organic marketing, and community engagement, we’d all be stupid not to leverage the communication benefits of social media. 

And because of how valuable brand communication on social media is to the modern entrepreneur, there is a never-ending avalanche of tips and tricks available to you. 

After decades of combined experience in the world of marketing and branding, the Wild Womn Haus team thought it would be fun to compile all of the cringe-worthy “expert advice” we’ve heard over the years. 

Because hey, you live and you learn! And then you laugh about all the dumb shit you attempted to grow your brand. With no further ado, here is “Brand Communication on Social Media – The Worst Tips We’ve Ever Heard (and what to do differently)”. 

Bad Advice #1 – Do Whatever it Takes to Get Engagement.

No, no, no, just…no. All engagement is not the same. Let us remind you that you are a business owner! At the end of the day making sales is the bottom line.

Do you know what type of customer doesn’t buy? One that’s confused about who you are, what you do, and how you can be of value to them.

Engagement means nothing if they are not coming from people who are interested in investing. 

What to do instead

Find your social media sweet spot by:

• doing more market research
• investing in creating better content
• paying attention to what organically performs well

Bad Advice #2 – Start an Instagram Account, and Figure the Brand Out Later.

The purpose of your social media (on any platform, not just IG) is to establish a presence. How you utilize your brand presence can range from:

• creating awareness
• incresaing visibility
• impriving outreach
• increasing engagement
• and if well-planned, growing revenue for your brand 

But it ALL needs to be based on your brand strategy.

When starting a business, most people immediately flood to social media. Unfortunately, most of these people don’t know how to actually benefit from the social presence they are creating.

Most of the time, newer entrepreneurs dive right into creating content without a strong sense of:

• who they are
• what they want their brand to represent
• or how they are going to accomplish their business goals

Read – a colossal waste of your time.

What to do instead

Before you get on social media (and even before you file as a business entity) start with your brand strategy. Brand strategy determines what names you use, what you do, who you do it for, and so much more.

Don’t put the cart before the horse. 

If you have already started on social before establishing your brand strategy, check out the 5 Lies You’ve Been Told About Brand Strategy Development to make sure you aren’t breaking any other cardinal rules of building a strong brand!

Bad Advice #3  – Prioritize Your Following Size in Order to Monetize.

We don’t care how many followers that engagement pod, social media growth service, or that random person in your DMs promises to get you. 

If your followers aren’t:

• a) your target audience
• b) organically engaging with you
• c) regularly investing in your offerings

…then your following size doesn’t do shit for the financial success of your business. 

Don’t be fooled by the illusion of a large following. Just because someone has hundreds of thousands of followers doesn’t mean they are making hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

What to do instead

Diversify your marketing so you’re selling on multiple platforms instead of relying solely on your social following to monetize.  

Not sure if you need a marketing strategy or a content strategy? Check out 3 Signs You Should Invest in Marketing Strategy vs Content Strategy.

Bad Advice #4 – Only Create Content for Brand Communication on Social Media When You’re Feeling Inspired.

Here’s the thing about inspiration, it’s a beautiful and spontaneous phenomenon that is out of your control. It’s like the unicorn of creation, it comes in quick and can leave just as fast. 

With something so unpredictable as inspiration, how can you possibly hang the success of your content on something so unreliable? 

Plain and simple: businesses run on content as fuel. If you wait around for inspiration to strike, you’ll be waiting just as long to accomplish your business goals.

What to do instead:

• establish a content strategy that lays out the purpose of your content
• become comfortable with batching your content
• create a content calendar that allows you to plug and play with ease

Bad Advice #5 – Grow Your Social Media Account(s) First, Worry About Email Lists Later.

It seems like every day, you see a horror story of entrepreneurs, influencers, and content creators getting their accounts blocked or deactivated for infuriating reasons.

Something as simple as an angry follower reporting your account because you ruffled their feathers could be cause for your account getting shut down. 

At the end of the day, you don’t own the communication rights to your following on social media. The risk of losing permanent access to your community is far too great given the volatility of the social media landscape. Your email list is the only place where you truly “own” the contacts you’ve made. Moral of the story: don’t wait to start building your email list.

What to do instead

From day one of starting a social media account, have a way to capture as many emails as possible. 

Even if you don’t regularly use email marketing, having a list you own is an insurance policy against social media mayhem. 

If you’re making this mistake with social media, then you should probably also read Your Social Media Presence – The 5 Mistakes You’re Making (and how to fix them). You know, just to be on the safe side.

Bad Advice #6 – Be Available for Brand Communication on Social Media Every Single Day, Multiple Times a Day.

We’re exhausted already. Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by social media “gurus” advising you to post new content 3-5 times a day, share on your stories every hour, or our personal favorite, engage with your following every 30 minutes? 

Sorry, but how many hours in a day do these people think there are? Unless everything you share is insanely valuable and out-of-this-world entertaining, people are going to tune out if you overwhelm them with too much content. Be consistent, but find a level of consistency that is both realistic and authentic. You’re a human, not a robot.

What to do instead

Evaluate how much of an asset your social presence is to your business, and commit to a level of engagement that is realistic for you and/or your team.

Bad Advice #7 – Be Transparent with Your Audience Through Your Brand Communication on Social Media 

Yes, you want your audience to know, like, and trust you, but you don’t need to be 100% transparent with your community for this to happen. In fact, being transparent can counteract your efforts to be authentic. 

Why? Because transparency means that there is no filter between your inner world and your outer world. 

When people spew gossip, drama, and chaos, they are being 100% transparent. This is not authenticity, because authenticity is a commitment to being who you choose yourself to be in response to all that happens in your inner and outer world. Transparency is fueled by reactivity, authenticity is fueled by responsibility. 

What to do instead

Ask yourself “who am I committed to being as a leader for my community?” and then develop your brand voice around your answer to this question.

Need some more direction developing your brand voice? Read our article about How to Develop Your Brand Voice Like a Pro (Plus Tips We Give Our Paid Clients).

If you’ve followed any of this bad advice, you’re probably getting the same queasy feeling that the bottle of Malibu Rum you got sick on all those years ago in college. 

Been there, got the passport stamp, don’t need to go there again. Despite all the cringe-worthy moments you’ve had as an entrepreneur, remember that the mistakes not only fill you with invaluable wisdom, but they also exemplify the type of leader you are: a wild womn who is willing to do whatever it takes to bring your big vision to life! In our minds, that’s something to celebrate.      

And just a head’s up, Wild Womn Haus is stacked with a team of branding and marketing experts ready to jump into your brand and help you create a Brand Communication Strategy for not only your social media, but for your website, email list, marketing campaigns, and so much more!

And if getting support with your Brand Communication Strategy is your next step, we invite you to book a Complimentary 30-minute Call with our founder and lead brand strategist, Tristan Thibodeau, who can fill you in on how you can strengthen your brand communication for marketing that makes an impact.

Ready to book a Complimentary 30-minute Call? Click here to schedule!

About the Author

Tristan Thibodeau is the founder of Wild Womn Haus and is the brand strategist for entrepreneurs in the wellness, beauty, and lifestyle brand industries. 

She specializes in helping companies create and maintain their image. She works with market research, industry analysis, and consumer trends to offer strategic insights for brands so that they can enhance their marketing efforts and grow their bottom line. 

Tristan also hosts The Wild Womn Hotline, which is a podcast that features expert-level conversations for growing your brand in bold and strategic ways. Follow her on Instagram @tristan.wildwomnhaus and TikTok @tristan.wildwomnhaus. You can also follow the agency on Instagram @wildwomnhaus.