Category: Social Blog

Finding Community in Corners: Exploring Your Brand’s Potential on Lesser-known Platforms

It’s second nature by now. You’re setting up your brand in the digital space (or just checking in and reassessing) and your first thought is “okay so we’ll need Instagram, Facebook, TikTok…” And you’re probably right, but let’s not make assumptions. We’ve all heard what that does. Let’s also take a giant step back. The digital space is diverse and multi-dimensional, and it’s easy to get tunnel vision. The reality is that in 2026 there are all kinds of little corners where community can be found, especially using lesser-known social media platforms. And unbeknownst to you, your audience might just exist on platforms you haven’t thought about. Let’s unpack three of these platforms and talk about why you might want to check ’em out.

1. Substack

What is it?

Growing by leaps and bounds, Substack is a subscription-based newsletter platform or ecosystem that has grown into a hybrid social media platform. As a creator/author (which anyone can be), you send out longer form communication as well as little “notes” that show up on a feed to stay in touch with your audience and/or community. 

Who is there?

When you’re thinking about showing up to a party, your first question is probably “who all is going?” Unlike the big three (Facebook, Instagram & TikTok), Substack is filled with highly intentional people who are really, truly looking forward to what their trusted voices have to say. And unlike traditional email, people aren’t so flippant at signing up to receive messaging. At its best, Substack is a thought leadership platform, which makes engagement levels skyrocket across the board. People are coming here to be part of a community and to engage their brains. It’s not just a scroll fest. 

Why & how should my brand show up?

While showing up to any social network without a game plan is ill-advised, it’s especially unwise on a platform like Substack. Packed with 8.4 million subscribers,1 most of whom are Gen Z and Millennials,2 Substack is a place where your brand shows up with real thoughts and ideas. It should be clear that a living, breathing individual wrote your brand’s newsletter and notes. Substack’s open rate is 45%, a sharp contrast to regular email’s typical 21%.3 

The best brands to make this leap are community-first, have something to say, and often sell high-
consideration products. This audience is willing to read long-form pieces without feeling the urge to scroll. The hook is still important, but you have more time to make a thought-out impression on these folks. Some examples to check out are Hinge, American Eagle, and Rare Beauty.

2. Bluesky

What is it?

As a kind of decentralized platform nostalgic of an older Twitter, Bluesky is a fast-paced platform built on what social media gurus call the “AT Protocol.”4 This means your Bluesky experience is more influenced by you as a user rather than the hand of the platform (X’s vibe). Bluesky, like X, is also all about super short form content. You can post videos and photos, but it’s all about that concise 300 character caption.

Who is there?

Bluesky has become the host of a small but mighty community of folks (about 43.5 million5) seeking out a decentralized social media experience. Bluesky allows you as a user to customize what you see and don’t see, preventing what some might call a more “intrusive” experience. As a brand on Bluesky, you have a leg up on connecting with your desired community—as long as you are thoughtful and respectful in doing so. In terms of who you’ll find there, it’s about 56% made up of folks 18-34, with an emphasis on the 18-24 year olds.6 You can count on reaching these folks with this platform.

Why & how should my brand show up?

Again, an audience-focused approach is key. Like Substack (and other platforms that also host communities in corners), Bluesky isn’t for every brand. It’s a delicate, highly engaged ecosystem that people are protective of because it exists largely in response to another, bigger platform (X). Bluesky engagement rates are 3-5 times higher than X or Meta’s Threads7. This means there’s no time for messing around. Be concise, be clear about what you want to get out of it, and be respectful of the reasons why folks are on the platform in the first place. If you do all this, you’re bound to get a type of attention you haven’t gotten anywhere else.

3. Discord

What is it?

What began as a chat platform for gamers and fandoms alike has grown explosively into a semi-private community infrastructure that has next level potential for building a loyal community around your brand, making your brand more interactive, and ultimately using that community as a retention tool. Discord is organized into different “servers” which basically divide up forums/feeds into various topics. For example, you might break your brand’s Discord presence into “product announcements,” “share-the-love” and more. And on top of all this, it lacks cookies, meaning users willingly share the nuanced data that you’re craving.

Who is there?

Boasting an active platform population of 259 million, Discord is the home of many Gen Z and Millennial users across the globe. A whopping 73% of its users are aged 16-34 and as of 2025 only 22% of users are using it for gaming alone.8 That signals a big shift. It’s especially wild to think about this demographic when you consider a platform like Facebook in comparison (very Millennial heavy with a growing 65+ user base).9 Discord users are highly engaged when they’re in the space rather than passively scrolling. Being on Discord requires participation and attention that users want to give.

Why & how should my brand show up?

Discord is the prime destination for a brand to cultivate feelings of exclusivity and connection. From sharing an exciting new product (and opportunity to engage) with your most loyal fans to addressing concerns with fans directly, this is the ultimate retention tool for a brand when used correctly. When you use Discord intentionally and with gusto, you humanize your brand in a way you simply wouldn’t be able to in the same way on one of the Meta platforms or even on TikTok (which is known for its authenticity). 

Whether you decide to take the plunge into one or more than one new platform, doing a little exploration certainly won’t hurt. You know your brand best and you hopefully know your audience pretty well too. And there’s something to be said about a brand publicly getting out of its comfort zone. When done right, it adds a level of intrigue no PR team can buy. Here’s to exploring more corners.

  1. Best Paid Substack Newsletters 2026: 15 Worth Your Money. Readless. https://www.readless.app/blog/best-paid-substack-newsletters-2026 ↩︎
  2. Social Media Trends 2026. HootSuite. https://www.hootsuite.com/research/social-trends ↩︎
  3. Substack for Digital Marketers: The Complete Channel Guide Every Marketer Needs in 2026. AlmCorp. https://almcorp.com/blog/substack-digital-marketing-guide/#:~:text=But%20when%20a%20publishing%20platform,managing%20a%20brand’s%20digital%20presence ↩︎
  4. Bluesky vs. Twitter (now X): Similarities and Differences in 2026. Metricool. https://metricool.com/bluesky-vs-twitter/ ↩︎
  5. Bluesky Users (2026) – Global Stats & Demographics. Limelight Digital. https://www.limelightdigital.co.uk/bluesky-users/#:~:text=Bluesky%20reached%2043.5%20million%20users,with%2077.47%25%20users%20visiting%20intentionally ↩︎
  6. Bluesky User Age, Gender, & Demographics (2026). Exploding Topics. https://explodingtopics.com/blog/bluesky-users ↩︎
  7. What Is Bluesky How Can Marketers Use It ? III. High-Engagement Thought Leadership. PW Skills. https://pwskills.com/blog/what-is-bluesky-how-can-marketers-use-it/#:~:text=Data%20from%202025%2D2026%20shows,%2C%20and%20sharing%20insights)%20succeeds ↩︎
  8. Discord: What Is It and How Can You Use It For Marketing? ZenMedia. https://zenmedia.com/blog/discord-marketing/#:~:text=Share,and%20no%20ad%20spend%20required ↩︎
  9. 39 Facebook statistics marketers should know in 2026. 14. Users aged 65 and above are the most likely to use Facebook. Sprout Social. https://sproutsocial.com/insights/facebook-stats-for-marketers/#:~:text=Users%2065%2B%20are%20the%20most,15 ↩︎

The AMI Digital Summit: The Flight Crew Heads to Chicago

Our Flight Crew makes penguins fly from the East Coast most days, but that doesn’t mean we don’t love spreading our wings every once in a while–especially when it’s to hone our skills so we can become even smarter, more efficient, and more digitally savvy when it comes to the latest industry happenings.

WHERE DID WE GO?

Recently a few members of the Flight Crew flew to Chicago for the Agency Management Institute (AMI) Digital Summit, an annual event that brings together agency employees in similar roles from across the country into one room to promote growth, sustainability, and connection. 

WHO WAS AT THE DIGITAL CONFERENCE?

After working and attending seminars remotely for two years, physically being in a supportive and collaborative space was refreshing. Capped at 50 participants, the group was intimate enough for conversation and big enough to allow for a variety of perspectives. Everyone from digital producers (content writers, digital art directors, social media managers), digital strategists and account managers to programmers (coders, developers)and digital media managers fluent in SEO and SEM attended.

WHAT WAS THE DISCUSSION FORMAT?

The variety of roles in the group was crucial because everyone sent in questions to be included in our discussion guide, and so the list was quite diverse. Each agency was able to choose one question to ask the group over the course of the entire digital summit. Of course, we scrambled to decide on the best question, but it became a dynamic and fast-paced conversation where we all shared our favorite tools, techniques, and tricks. Here are two of our biggest takeaways.

#1: MAKE TIME FOR MARKETING YOUR AGENCY

Easier said than done yet incredibly important, we discussed the struggle to balance how we prioritize our clients while also recognizing the need to tend to our own brand, communications, and messaging. Drew McLellan, founder of AMI, said it best: “It’s a difficult long-term battle, but those agencies that nail it and protect the time see much smoother ebbs and flows of business.” 

There was a moment of commiseration among the group, but then everyone sprung into action to come up with solutions. First was looking at big picture goals and breaking down these goals quarterly, monthly, and weekly. This keeps things from becoming too overwhelming. Second, revisiting the goals behind the different components of your internal marketing initiative often helps to remind you of why you’re doing it and keeps things feeling fresh. Finally, we discussed the difficult to achieve yet vitally important idea of maintaining a time budget for internal marketing projects. 

This way, the agency gets the attention it deserves without soaking up more energy from the team than it should. The Flight Crew came away from this conversation and set scheduled recurring internal marketing meetings with action items and due dates to instill a sense of purpose and keep big picture strategy in mind.

#2: PUT YOURSELF IN YOUR CLIENT’S SHOES 

One of the biggest topics of conversation throughout the digital summit was, of course, how we can best understand and work to fulfill our clients’ needs. Since every client is unique, the group broke down a strategy that could apply to every agency-client relationship. 

Ask yourself: Who is your client reporting to? What results do they need to represent success? And how can you be the agency that shows up and proves that you get it? First, it’s important to really connect with the client and for them to articulate what they’re looking for as best as possible. Concentrating on what their upper management wants to see and take away from a campaign rather than a few data points will give you a clearer idea of what data is important and what kind of takeaways you should be looking to draw out.

How do you determine which insights are important for not only your client, but for the person they are reporting to? 

  • What is the larger goal? It’s easier to start with what you know and the bigger concept, then widdle it down. Then, think about which data will relate most to this larger goal. This is the data to consider first. 
  • Second, what is the report/data going to be used for? Being aware of this will both inform how you look at the data itself and will show that you understand the client on a deeper level. The third point takes showing your understanding of the client a step further. 

How are we setting our clients up for success? This allows you to show your worth to your clients by being transparent and displaying your knowledge of exactly how your actions bring them closer to their goals. This makes it clear that you’re not only putting yourself in your client’s shoes during meetings, but always thinking about ways you can help them achieve their goals.

BRINGING OUR LEARNING BACK TO THE REST OF THE TEAM

We all agreed that attending the AMI Digital Summit was a revitalizing, educational, and inspirational experience. Not only were we able to absorb information from others in the industry, we were also able to pass on our learning to the rest of our crew. When we returned from Chicago, the entire team gathered at our agency (for the first time since the beginning of Covid!) for a presentation and group discussion about our takeaways. To say we left feeling energized and smarter would be an understatement. We can’t wait for the next learning opportunity!

Grassroots Marketing

We recently brought a grassroots marketing campaign to life in Central Park for the family-owned snack company John Wm. Macy’s. Our experience got us thinking about the core aspects of grassroots marketing and audience engagement, and what it takes to create a successful campaign. It’s a layered concept, so let’s dive in together. 

Starting From a Place of Brand Understanding

Grassroots marketing is, at its core, an effort to target, engage, and expand your audience in a more authentic and personal way. If you’re going to focus energy on a hyper-specific portion of your audience, you need to make sure your brand feels distinct and consistent to that audience. Before you can plan your campaign or start strategizing, fine-tuning your brand voice is a great starting point. The more you understand your brand’s personality, the more you’ll understand your audience and vice versa. Some key brand questions to answer as you prepare for creating a campaign:

  • What physical environment does your product/brand exist or thrive in? 
  • What emotional environment does your product/brand exist or thrive in? 
  • What mood are people in when they turn to your brand or product? Are they alone or with others? Who are they with?

Finding Your Desired Audience

As you answer these questions, you will not only craft a more three-dimensional understanding of your brand—which is always beneficial—but you will also start to figure out who your audience is. Your existing audience is important, but the goal is expansion. The sweet spot lies in the overlap between your existing supportive fans and your desired audience. Since we’re talking grassroots, this takes on a physical meaning. Where can you find your desired audience while still being authentic to your own brand? 

Loyalty Is Your Secret Weapon

The answer is paying attention to the loyalty you’ve already cultivated. Your fanbase is more than a tool; it’s your secret weapon in grassroots campaigns (and beyond). No matter what your brand or product, you have an audience you can engage with. If you’re recruiting people to be part of your campaign, you’ll want people who genuinely believe in your product. This adds a human element and makes your desired audience more likely to trust your brand. And how do you get people to get excited about your product outside of the product being genuinely good? Build loyalty. Make your fans feel cared about. Every fan—whether they are part of your campaign or not—is part of your team. Grassroots campaigns are unique in that you are physically putting your current audience and your desired audience face-to-face. If it sounds intense, it is! But if you treat your existing audience well, they’ll pay it forward. If your potential audience sees people out in the world willing to support your brand, they’re going to be far more trusting before they even land on your website. This is where investing in understanding your brand’s voice and identity is critical. The brand personality you’ve crafted across all platforms has to line up. 

Seizing the Moment

A great grassroots marketing campaign pairs niche elements of the brand’s audience with niche elements of your environment and cultural moment. The face-to-face aspect of grassroots marketing feels fresh and has a strong impact in a world where marketing has become increasingly digital and everyone is oversaturated with screens. When you shape your campaign, think about the mental state people have been in. What has or hasn’t been going on in your city or neighborhood lately? What does your community crave and what are they tired of? Considering these elements will make your campaign feel more intentional and relevant.

A Unique Opportunity for Attention

In the digital world, most of the battle is figuring out how to draw your audience’s attention away from the million other things competing for their attention—another advertisement on the screen, the next Instagram post on their feed, or a text message reminding them of their empty cart. Even being in a store with the product right in front of them, a customer could get distracted by another product’s packaging. Grassroots marketing has the ability to capture someone’s attention and focus their mind on your brand because you are looking into their eyes and speaking to them directly about it. 

The time you spend face-to-face with your audience is precious. Pay attention to when they perk up at certain phrases, such as a particular aspect of your brand’s origin story, a special ingredient or a piece of technology. Another benefit of a boots-on-the-ground effort is that you can tweak as you go and absorb analytics in real-time. If you’ve ever played the game “keep-it-up” as a kid where you had to keep a balloon in the air for as long as you could, this is the same concept. You’re trying to keep their mind on your brand for as long as possible so that hopefully they return to it later. Be sure to have some kind of analytic tracker in place (a QR code, social media component, or other link) so that you can measure success. 

Putting Your Digital Where Your Mouth Is

As we’ve discussed, two of the major components of a grassroots marketing campaign are the strategy and research behind it coupled with the in-person interactions between team and audience. But what happens afterwards? Going back to our “keep-it-up” analogy, this is another way to keep the balloon afloat after that in-person interaction ends: digital. 

Having a digital space for your audience to enter will allow them to continue engaging with your brand after you’ve walked away to the next group. The messaging on your digital platform then fuels the energy of the real-life interaction. Having a landing page or printed materials for your audience can help to create a cohesive, standout image of your brand right out of the gate. This is where you want your brand voice to be defined and your digital pages to appear clean and vibrant. 

Social media is another significant component of grassroots marketing, so much so that there are arguments for some grassroots marketing campaigns taking place entirely on social media. While your main goal might be person-to-person interaction, social media can play an equally strong role if you position it correctly. Running a social media campaign is a smart way to mirror your physical presence with your digital presence. Consistency and a sense of movement on digital platforms makes people even more likely to engage with your brand. Having content ripe for engagement like a fresh blog, new photos, the promise of a discount, or a coming announcement are great examples. When crafting these digital elements, be as approachable as you were when they met you! This could include responding to comments, sharing audience content, and using language that lifts up your audience.

At Vision we’re excited to help our clients find fresh marketing approaches that work best for their brands. Check out photos on our Instagram and Facebook from the Central Park Picnic Event, our recent grassroots campaign for John Wm. Macy’s. Who knows, maybe it will inspire you with an idea for an engaging grassroots campaign that our team can help you bring to life.

Sources

  1. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/13/how-covid-19-changed-the-advertising-industry-.html 
  2. https://www.inc.com/samuel-edwards/grassroots-marketing-in-the-age-of-social-media.html
  3. https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2016/12/08/grassroots-marketing
  4. https://smallbusiness.chron.com/definition-grassroots-marketing-23210.html
national intern day

National Intern Day

With today being National Intern Day, we saw it as the perfect opportunity to introduce our summer flight crew additions: Julia, Graydon, and Fletcher. All three bring different skills, fresh insights, and an exciting energy to the agency, and they have experienced firsthand what it truly means to make penguins fly with us!

Meet Julia
  1. Full Name: Julia Nehrings
  2. Age: 21
  3. Where do you go to school? Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
  4. What are you aspiring to be in your advertising career? A copywriter and future creative director.
  5. What is one thing that working at Vision has taught you? There is no such thing as just having “one job” in an agency. The best advertising professionals wear many hats. Collaborating with those in other areas is not just the key to being part of a team, but the key to being part of success.
  6. What’s one piece of advice you would share with future advertising interns? Don’t be afraid to push the envelope. This business was built on crazy, creative ideas and thinking out of the box is a part of every department every day!
Meet Graydon
  1. Full Name: Graydon Rogers
  2. Age: 22
  3. Where do you go to school? Elizabethtown College.
  4. What are you aspiring to be in your advertising career? A digital marketer, not sure what role just yet
  5. What is one thing that working at Vision has shown you? This is a very fast-paced industry, and you have to keep up, but it is doable.
  6. What’s one thing you would tell future advertising interns? This kind of work is a lot of fun!
Meet Fletcher
  1. Full Name: Fletcher Ewing
  2. Age: 22
  3. Where do you go to school? Clemson University.
  4. What are you aspiring to be in your advertising career? I want to work in digital marketing, preferably in sports or automotive or at an agency that handles clients of that type.
  5. What is one thing that working at Vision has taught you? Always be ready to change your perspective and adjust to circumstances, business is a fluid thing and a one-track approach won’t often work.
  6. What’s one thing you would tell future advertising interns? Expect to work as a full-time employee. You might feel inexperienced and not ready, but get involved and engaged and you’ll learn so much more from your time.

Digital Trends to Embrace in 2019

The constantly changing landscape of the digital world demands an ever-changing ability to adapt and grow with what digital users are consuming and how. Several trends that have grown exponentially in the last five years are still in the running but have changed in favor of what consumers demand. With 2018 coming to an end rather quickly, we took a dive into some of the most popular digital trends for 2019 and what they mean for marketers.

Influencer Marketing

This effective marketing tool has exploded due to the growing saturation of social media in consumers’ lives. Popular people on Instagram and YouTube became celebrities and both the content they posted and the volume of followers they had determined if they would be an influencer worth the budget spend.

Though influencer marketing started with using Instagram or YouTube celebrities to promote businesses and/or products, it has since started to take a turn. People tend to trust consumer opinions rather than a corporate spokesperson or celebrity, so influencer marketing is shifting its focus to a new community: micro-influencers. Micro-influencers have a moderate following on social media and niche audiences with whom they have established trust. Because they can be found in almost any sector, micro-influencers are proving to be a dedicated community worth looking at when researching your next influencer marketing campaign.

Personalization

More and more, consumers are bombarded with content. Cutting through the white noise of generalized content is an important (and necessary) step towards connecting with your target audience. Businesses that are built on subscription-based models are already capitalizing on personalization. And thriving. Netflix, for example, shows a banner, carousels and search related content that is all personalized once you’ve logged into your account. Adopting this approach to marketing in content, products and emails can markedly affect the advancement of customer relationships. A study conducted by Marketo shows that personalized emails that are triggered based on behavior perform three times better than (generic) batch emails. Making your target audience members feel special could be the deciding factor for them to choose your brand over another.

“Personalization and authenticity will separate successful marketers from those who just contribute to noise.” 

– Forbes 

Micro-Moments

Google has termed a new “consumer behavior” and it is changing the way brands have to work in order to capture consumers’ attention. According to Google, micro-moments deliver your marketing message clearly and concisely in a way that is of interest to the consumer within a span of seconds. These moments occur when people need to learn something, do something, discover something, watch something or buy something.

(Source: Think with Google)

People spend an average of 3-1/2 hours on their smartphones every day and with mobile devices becoming the medium that gets the most minutes in 2019, these micro-moments are occurring when people turn to a device.

The ability to find whatever someone is looking for on their smartphone has consumers expecting that brands will deliver exactly what they want when they want it. This short span of attention coupled with consumers’ desire for immediate satisfaction demands that brands understand consumers’ needs in micro-moments and meet those needs. In order to capitalize on micro-moments, being where people search for information at a moment’s notice (Google, Amazon, YouTube, etc.) is imperative.

Video Marketing

While video has been around for years and integrating it into a digital marketing strategy isn’t a new idea, the statistics showing the importance of utilizing video are staggering. For example, 70% of consumers say they have shared a brand’s video. Not only is that garnering a stronger connection with the consumer who shared the video, but the video’s reach is now being increased as well as brand awareness. Despite YouTube still being the top-of-mind platform for video, other social platforms are gaining traction with businesses via live video. In an effort to showcase “behind the scenes” footage, product demos and company culture, businesses are turning to live video and limited-availability sharing (via 24-hour Stories) in order to capitalize on FOMO and create a sense of urgency.

Visual Search

This is a game-changer that is still flying under the radar. Google allows users to upload an image to conduct a search to garner more specific results, but they’re not the only platform. Pinterest, which had 250 million active monthly users in 2018, came out with a new visual search tool that will likely change online shopping in the coming year. Users can take a photo of an item and search for where to buy it online, search for similar products or view pinboards of related items. This visual search capability could expedite a shopper’s journey and enhance the shopper experience.

Google Lens is currently available on Pixel phones and certain Android devices, but its visual search engine capabilities warrant a mention. It recognizes objects, landmarks and other things through a camera app. For example, if you take a photo of a landmark or a painting in a museum, you could get details about it. Its integration capability with the rest of your smartphone is also very user-centric. If you take a photo of a business card, you can save the phone number or address to a contact.

(Source: Android Authority)

The growing number of visual search platforms means that there will likely be a shift in focus for users who may have been previously searching keywords. Brands will need to focus on the visual content they have available that could help them appear in visual searches while also looking at the additional opportunities for social media and ad placement.

Sources: SingleGrain, Forbes, NY Times, Think with Google

The Age of Artificial Influencers

In 2018, it seems like there’s a social media influencer for just about every industry. Influencers are intriguing to the fans that follow them and the potential brands who want to collaborate with them because influencers do exactly what their name says…they influence. Users on social media follow influencers because they feel like they have gotten to know them on a personal level and trust their opinions on products and/or services. Brands love to work with influencers because they can receive a ton of exposure working with those who have a fan base that the brand wants to target. Influencers love what they do because they get paid to simply be themselves and review a product and/or service. So, win/win/win, right?

With the number of influencers growing at a massive rate, it should come as no surprise that we’ve reached the age of artificial or CGI created influencers. It started in 2016 with user Lil Miquela (@lilmiquela), who currently has 1.4M followers on Instagram, and has expanded to others who have been working with high profile brands spanning the fashion and music industries. Lil Miquela was created by a company called Brud, “a Los Angeles-based startup that specializes in robotics, artificial intelligence and their applications to media businesses” (via Wired.com). The CGI “model” has her own personality, friends (both real and CGI created), life storyline, and fashion gigs with high-end brands such as Prada, Diesel, and Moncler.

(Source: Instagram @lilmiquela for Diesel’s knock-off “Deisel” campaign in February)

Another CGI “model” named Shudu, who was created by fashion photographer Cameron-James Wilson, went viral on Instagram after Rihanna’s beauty company, Fenty Beauty, reposted a “photo” of Shudu “wearing” one of their lipsticks. And most recently, luxury fashion brand Balmain recruited Shudu along with two other CGI “models” named Margo and Zhi for their 2018 Fall/Winter campaign.

(Source: Instagram @shudu.gram)

(Source: Instagram @balmain)

With CGI “models” and influencers popularity on the rise in luxury brands, there has been a lot of mixed reviews on the use of these fabricated beings and its potential negative messaging. From a social media influencer perspective, users are critical of the use of CGI influencers for a few reasons. First and foremost, some followers may not be aware that this account is actually completely fabricated, from their personalities to their fashion choices to where they are and what they do. So, how can users trust their opinions if they aren’t real but in fact paid for by certain brands? Adam Ribietz, co-founder and CSO of #paid, an influencer marketing company said, “Virtual influencers aren’t trying on a clothing brand. They can’t tell you, ‘This shirt is softer than another and that’s one of the reasons you should buy it.’ They’re not real people, so they can’t give a totally authentic endorsement.” However, brands are looking at it like these influencers are much easier to control.

Staying authentic on social media is something that influencers, celebrities, and even the regular users like you and me tend to struggle with. How many times do people try to get the perfect shot, use different filter apps to manipulate their photos, or even Photoshop them? It’s certainly a topic of conversation but these new CGI “models” are also posing a new legal issue. The Federal Trade Commission currently has guidelines for human social media influencers and how they can legally endorse on social media. However, this needs to be updated to include CGI users too. This means that their social media posts would have to include a disclosure such as “#ad” or “#sponsored” if they are getting paid to promote something and also make clear if they receive products for free for the promotion. Either way, any type of brand promotional post should be clearly labeled as such.

What are your thoughts on the rise of CGI influencers?

Sources: CNNtech, Wired, Vogue, The New Daily

What to Post on Social Media in February

It’s that time again! Here are our picks for the holidays to make the most out of for your February content calendar.

Ground Hog Day – February 2

Will Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow or not? This annual event is certainly one to note on social media. We recommend a post prepare for both situations. If you have a company mascot, maybe they see their shadow (or not) on Groundhog Day!

Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day – February 3

Well, this is one to celebrate! If you have a food-related business, might we suggest waffles with ice cream on top? Asking your community how they are celebrating, what their favorite flavor is, a cool recipe, etc., are all good ways to write a fun piece of content for the day.

Superbowl Sunday – February 4

When appropriate, especially food brands, should participate in Superbowl Sunday prep. We do want to note, however, you should refer to the Superbowl as “the big game” unless you have licensing rights. Yes, the NFL does pay attention to see if someone is saying “Superbowl” when they are not a licensed sponsor of the event.

National Pizza Day – February 9

What a great day to serve pizza to the whole office! Share photos on your social channels as a company culture moment.

Make a Friend Day – February 11

We like the idea of bringing your social communities together. Ask a question that prompts people to answer and find their twin. For example, asking users to share their birth date and month and find their birthday buddy is a fun way to get people engaging on your content.

Clean out Your Computer Day – February 12

Have a tip to keep your computer organized and clean? Share it with your users!

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday – February 13

Share tips to a Mardi Gras celebration with your users! Help them bring New Orleans home and prep for the Lenten season.

Valentine’s Day – February 14

Write a Valentine to your users! If you have the time and budget, record one!

Chinese New Years – February 16

If your business is impacted by the Chinese New Year or would benefit from sharing information about the Chinese New Year, share it! You also may want to post a few times leading up to the day. PS – this year is the Year of the Dog!

Random Acts of Kindness Day – February 17

This is a great date to give people ideas of Random Acts of Kindness and ask them to complete one (maybe complete one to be entered to win?!) and share their experience.

National Drink Wine Day – February 18

Wine pairings? How to have an at-home wine tasting? The best wines for your product? If it is a natural fit, showcase National Drink Wine Day on your social channels!

President’s Day – February 19

So many sales, so little time. Prep your audience ahead of time, letting them know of any President’s Day sales. Or go a Patriotic route – the choice is yours!

Love Your Pet Day – February 20

Let’s see those pet photos! Everyone who owns a pet has more than 1(000) photos of their furry friends on their phone. Ask your followers to share their best photos. It could be a good day to have dogs in the office, share photos of that with your community, too!

National Tortilla Chip Day – February 24

Have a fresh twist on classic nachos? Great recipe for tortilla soup? Share share share!

What wacky holidays will you be celebrating this month?

7 Tips to Awesome Influencer Marketing

One of our all time favorite ways to leverage social media for your business is through influencer marketing. 92% of consumers trust an influencer more than a brand (source). We’ll let that sink in for a minute.

Let’s define an influencer:

  • An influencer is an individual who has the power to affect purchase decisions of others because of his/her authority, knowledge, position or relationship with his/her audience.
  • An individual who has a following in a particular niche, which they actively engage with. The size of the following depends on the size of the niche.

An influencer can be an incredibly powerful asset for your brand, not just in social media, but in your overall broader communication efforts. It’s important to remember the 3 A’s when you are getting into influencer marketing: audience, aesthetic and authenticity. You want influencers that can deliver on all three of those in a way that suits your brand, product or business.

Here are our 7 tips to executing an awesome influencer marketing campaign for your brand.

  1. Know what result you are looking for. Do you need to drive users to a specific link? You’ll want to make sure you have bloggers with good traffic and high click through rates (ask for their media kit). Do you need to showcase your product in a beautiful, fresh way? You’ll want to get Instagram influencers that can take great photos and who has a high engagement rate. Do you need a compelling story told about your brand or product? Make sure you like the influencer’s writing style.
  2. Know your budget. Budget determines everything: how many influencers you will work with, the quality of influencer, the number of posts. If you average $500-$2,000 per post (depending on your niche), you’ll have a head start on figuring out how big your list needs to be.
  3. Tier your list. Let’s say you want to work with 10 influencers. Have your list of top 10, then tier down from there and have at least 20 back up influencers (a list of 30 total). Remember, follower count isn’t everything. You also want to make sure your influencers’ have engaged communities. Ensure that their blog posts have comments/shares, their Instagram posts have comments/likes, etc.
  4. Negotiate. Reach out to your top ten all at the same time. Find out what they charge and you’ll be able to see how your budget comes together. Negotiate the budget and the terms – make sure you get permission to use their content if need be. For example, make sure you can use the post for a promoted post on your channels if you needed to, or use their recipe on your website for a set amount of time.
  5. Give your influencers loose guidelines & creative freedom. Show some examples about what you want to see and then let the influencer run with it. You picked these influencers because of their audience, aesthetic and ability to create something authentic for your brand. Let them be themselves and create something authentic for their audience.
  6. Be clear about expectations. Make sure your influencer knows what you expect in terms of keywords in the captions (try not to over do it), features of your product discussed, hashtags, account tagging, URLs, etc. Also, be especially clear on the expectation of posting on certain dates.
  7. Amplify influencers’ posts. You will have gotten permission to use the influencers’ content how you wanted to in the negotiation phase. Make sure you share their content to your social channels, blog, website, etc. Remember, you can share the pieces of content more than once or twice!

Friday Five

Every week, we share our favorite links from across the world wide web. Find something you want us to see? Share it in the comments section!

Five things you cannot miss this week:

Add GIFs to your Facebook polls for an exciting new way to to engage.

Reddit has a lot to say about net neutrality.

Our guide to December “holidays” will help you build out your content calendar for the month.

Just how many characters, hashtags and emojis should you use in your social media?

Get ready for Social Media, 2018.

Image credit: pixelfit | Getty Images

December Holidays For Your Company’s Social Media

Ho Ho Ho, December is (almost) here, which means a brand new batch of fun “holidays” to leverage in your social calendar this month. Let’s jump right in!

Santa’s List Day – December 4th

It’s the day Santa checks that naughty or nice list – which list is your audience on? Be sure to ask them!

Recommended hashtags: #santaslistday #santaslist #checkingittwice

Letter Writing Day  – December 7th

What better day than this one to send out those Christmas cards! It’s a great day to send a “letter” via email to your customers, too.

National Cotton Candy Day  – December 7th

If your brand has anything to do with food, this could be a cute day to use! There are desserts and cocktails that feature cotton candy, so you could leverage those items. Or just give permission to your fans to eat cotton candy for no other reason than that it is National Cotton Candy Day!

Recommended hashtags: #cottoncandy #cottoncandyday

Pearl Harbor Day  – December 7th

If this is brand appropriate for you or relates to your staff or brand story in any way, it would be okay to acknowledge this day in social media. If not, we recommend staying away from it so as to not seem trite.

National Brownie Day  – December 8th

Share those brownie recipes! Do a round up, share on a dedicated Pinterest board, have a guest Pinner share a recipe, have a blogger create a recipe for you, ask for your audience’s favorite recipes and photos! You can even ask if your audience likes the ends for the crispiness or the middle for the chewiness.

Recommended hashtags: #brownieday #brownies #brownierecipe #baking

National Pastry Day – December 9th

Share an easy pastry recipe for Christmas morning, have a blogger create a recipe, curate a board on Pinterest, etc. You can leverage this day very similarly to National Brownie Day!

Recommended hashtags: #pastries #pastryday #baking #pastrydough #pastryrecipe

Channukah  – December 12th

Be sure to wish your audience celebrating the holiday a Happy Channukah!

Recommended hashtags: #happyhannukah #happychannukah #channukah #hannukah #8crazynights

Poinsettia Day  – December 12th

Ask your followers for pictures of how they decorate with poinsettias! If appropriate, remind your audience the plant can be poisonous to dogs.

Recommended hashtags: #poinsettia #christmasdecor #christmasdecorating #poinsettiaday

National Chocolate Covered Anything Day  – December 16th

What things are your audience’s favorite to cover with chocolate? Ask them! Run a promotion, share some ideas, put up some pretty photos, have a bunch of chocolate covered things in the kitchen for your staff and share a photo of it!

Recommended hashtags: #chocolatecovered #chocolate

National Bake Cookies Day  – December 18th

Leading up to this day, you can host a cookie recipe contest! If you own a store or bakery, have it be a contest to have the cookie produced in your business. You can also ask users to submit photos and recipes, pick your favorites, have the community vote on your top choices and then award the winner with a prize (a KitchenAid mixer, grocery gift card, a year’s supply of chocolate chips, etc.).

Recommended hashtags: #nationalbakecookiesday #bakecookies #[cookie emoji]

National Go Caroling Day – December 20th

This sounds like a day just primed for some great video content. Serenade your audience! Host a live caroling session with a local choir. Use the day to do something fun and different for your audience!

Recommended hashtags: #carolingday #gocaroling #singing #singinginthestreet #christmasmusic #christmassongs #holidaymusic

Winter Solstice  – December 21st

First day of winter! Who is excited? It’s also technically the shortest day of the year – from here on out, our sunlight will last longer!

Recommended hashtags: #firstdayofwinter #winteriscoming #wintersolstice #winter #bringonthesnow

Festivus  – December 23rd

Festivus – for the rest of us.

Recommended hashtags: #festivus #fortherestofus #festivusfortherestofus

National Egg Nog Day – December 24th

A perfect day to ask about holiday traditions and whether or not your audience enjoys egg nog. Nothing like a divisive drink to get that chatter going!

Recommended hashtags: #eggnogday #eggnog

Christmas Day  – December 25th

Be sure to wish your followers a Merry Christmas!

Recommended hashtags: #christmasday #merrychristmas #happychristmas #santa

Bacon Day  – December 30th

Oh, the possibilities are endless. Refer to National Brownie Day, Cotton Candy Day and Pastry Day for some thoughts!

Recommended hastags: #baconday #bacon #breakfast #givemeallthebacon

New Year’s Eve  – December 31st

Reflect on your year, share your brand’s biggest moments, etc. Wish your followers a Happy New Year!

Recommended hashtags: #newyearseve #happynewyear #happy2018 #goodbye2017 #peaceout2017 #welcome2018