Why Most Brands Are Still Socially Inept

Social media is not new, so why are some brands still falling over at the smallest of hurdles when it comes to making social media part of their marketing plan? In this opinion piece Claire Waddington from media monitoring and analysis company iSentia gives us the lowdown on why some brands are still rubbish.
A lot of the problem seems to be based in fear from our stakeholders. Fear about a platform they don’t understand, fear of opening up the flood gates to complaints and fear of not being able to resource something that they think isn’t right for their target market anyway! But with nearly 50 per cent of all online time spent on social media* you can be sure that your audience is spending a significant part of their day on one social platform or another, likely to be one that you choose to be active on.
Compounding the problem is that social media could be under the ownership of any number of departments from marketing to communications to media to corporate affairs to customer service. Political minefields then have to be negotiated in order to make sure that you have the right people in the room to even openly discuss social media.
Not ensuring social media is part of the conversation from the outset will just perpetuate the problem and mean that you will never be able to integrate it properly into your marketing. The social media fails are the stories that tend to get shared, and are obviously the stories that your stakeholders are no doubt so worried about. But there are some great examples of brands using social in ways that you don’t expect,
Hilton Suggests is a team of Hilton employees in various locations who suggest options in their local areas, be that restaurants, things to do or places to see. They are clearly monitoring Twitter for mentions of certain cities but use this as an opportunity not to sell Hilton, but to surprise and delight with tweets aimed specifically to address one to one needs. And they never seem to push Hilton as a hotel provider, it is just about helping people with travel tips. A complete delight when dealing with a big corporation like Hilton!
Or you can approach social with a coherent and complete plan for all channels that would work for you as a brand which can help present who you are and what you stand for. Canva (amazing home grown Australian design software) are currently doing this with beautiful images across all their social channels as well as their communications with customers:
By letting fear play into your development process you will end up with badly planned and even more poorly executed social media activity. So here are three simple changes you can make in your approach to social to help you instantly feel better about social media.
Start using social media to research your brand and your industry
Ok so you probably can’t just launch into social by yourself, often social media activity needs to be approved by a panel of people most of whom are scared about even getting started. But social is a great way to research your industry and mentions of your brand as well as giving you a good idea of what influencers in your industry are talking about. Twitter advanced search is awesome but if you want to get your company stakeholders on board, a simple social media listening tool is a great place to start.
Bring social media up to the front of the conversation
If you work with a creative agency like Two Social, the creative social media arm of Isentia, you should add social into your initial campaign brief. It means that social can be considered as part of the whole campaign rather than a last minute add on that won’t make sense. This way the social elements of your campaign will be much more integral to the overall success of the campaign and therefore much more likely to get buy in with the people holding the purse strings or final sign off.
Measure your successes and your failures
Marketers should be aiming to position themselves as a revenue generating department. By not measuring social or neglecting to measure it properly you are doing yourself a disservice that is actually really easy to resolve. Social media can provide you with all kinds of measurement – but don’t just measure Facebook Likes because you can; determine what measures of engagement matter to your stakeholders and start there.
You could look at engagement with your posts by channel to determine which works best for your audience, or even better engagement of your posts in terms of A/B testing headlines or images to really understand what appeals to your audience. By providing measurement, even if it isn’t always the results you hope for, you demonstrate that you are willing to hold yourself accountable which will gain you much more respect in the long run.
Latest News

Why Advertisers Cannot Overlook The Benefits Of Generative AI
The world of work is changing thanks to the advent of generative AI and the new tech is helping workers perform their jobs faster and better. At the same time, however, staff have never been so stretched with mundane tasks. This fact is something that Microsoft, in particular, is aware of with a recent study […]

“He Cannot Die Without People Knowing What He’s Done”: Alan Jones Accused Of Indecently Assaulting Young Men
Infamous radio personality and former Rugby Union and Rugby League coach Alan Jones has been accused of indecently assaulting young men – using his position of power to grope or inappropriately touch them without consent. Please note: This article discusses themes of sexual assault that may be distressing to some readers. In a significant investigation, […]

B&T TV – Jasmin Bedir On Why Trade Media Needs To “Drop The Shade”
Innocean CEO Jasmin Bedir and B&T‘s Imposter-In-Chief found themselves both fighting some pretty serious battles this week on B&T. Industry legend Bedir, famed for being the brains (and fire) behind the F*ck The Cupcakes Movement, recently turned her attention to the dangers of anonymous comments on the website of trade rags. Whilst Bedir champions constructive […]

Kmart Does Christmas Via Dentsu Creative
Kmart is always B&T's one-stop shop at Christmas. Particularly for people we don't overly like.

Wavemaker Promotes James Boardman To Chief Strategy Officer
James Boardman amps up his Dungeons & Dragons creds as he's named Wavemaker's chief strategy officer.

When It Doesn’t Feel So Good Being Bad – It’s 2023’s Top Banned Ads
Other than a Cannes Lion, there's arguably no greater honour in advertising than getting your ad banned by a watchdog.

Taylor Swift Named Time’s Person Of The Year, Beating Out Putin, King Charles & Barbie!
Time magazine has named Taylor Swift as their Person of the Year for 2023. The 33-year-old singing phenomenon was called a “source of light” in a “divided world” by the magazine’s editors. The accolade goes to the person that Time deems to “who most shaped the headlines over the previous 12 months, for better or […]

Petbarn & Greencross Vets Create Live Parasite Tracking Tool Via Howatson+Company
Petbarn and Greencross Vets have partnered with Howatson+Company to launch PetWatch, a digital tool that uses live data to make parasite threats across the nation visible for the very first time. In Australia, up to 100,000 pets every year are affected by paralysis ticks, while thousands more suffer from other deadly parasites like heartworm and […]

Imogen Hewitt Promoted To Publicis’ Chief Media Officer ANZ
Imogen Hewitt ascendancy at Publicis continues apace. Not that she's to be known as Dame Imogen Hewitt.

Icon Agency Nabs Michael Knox From Think HQ
Following a period of rapid growth, independent Icon Agency has announced the appointment of Michael Knox (lead image) as executive creative director as part of its ongoing commitment to creativity and refreshed brand positioning. In this newly created position, Knox will oversee the creative output across the whole agency. Icon’s group managing director, Joanne Painter, […]

James Warburton Resigns From Seven
Warburton steps down from Seven and the stationery cupboard is already empty.

DBC2 Appoints Jason Fisher To Newly Created Role Of CEO
Following a period of significant client growth, leading auto marketing agency, DBC2 has appointed Jason Fisher (lead image) to the newly created role of CEO. The appointment is part of DBC2’s long term growth strategy ahead of the agency announcing a brand refresh and expanded proposition in early-2024. As a new shareholder of the business, […]

ACCC To Crackdown On Influencers & Businesses For Misleading Advertising & Dodgy Reviews
The ACCC has provided an update on the next steps in its ongoing work to scrutinise misleading online reviews and influencer endorsements. Two short reports, outline details of the findings of the ACCC’s recent internet sweeps of social media influencers and online reviews. “The next steps in our continuing scrutiny of these important parts of […]

Alastair Baker Promoted To Havas’ National Head Of Planning
Havas' Alastair Baker has a spring in his step and a song in his heart today following work promotion.

Three New Hires At Amplify
Extra pressure on Amplify's Nescafé Blend 43 catering tin today with the arrival of three new recruits.

Troye Sivan Named GQ Australia’s Man Of The Year
GQ Australia has celebrated the 15th GQ Men of the Year Awards in association with BOSS. Fifteen awards were presented last night at a black-tie event at Bondi Pavilion ahead of the special GQ Men of the Year collector’s edition magazine being released exclusively inside The Australian on Friday December 8. The GQ Men of […]

Indy Clinton, The Matildas & Fitzroy Garage Party Honoured At 2023 TikTok Awards
Last night, Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion played host to the 2023 TikTok Awards in front of 1,500 celebrities, VIPs and creators. Ten awards were handed out at the event hosted by television presenter and former AFL player Tony Armstrong, media personality Abbie Chatfield and last year’s Creator of the Year, Kat Clark. The top title of […]

Digital Advertising Excellence: A Blueprint For Maximum Engagement & Sustainability
The intersection of sustainability and attention in advertising is crucial, says PubMatic’s regional director ANZ, James Young. Eliminating ads that fail to capture consumers’ attention not only reduces wasted spending but also minimises unnecessary emissions arising from those ineffective impressions. Let’s explore some strategies advertisers can adopt to enhance digital advertising for both attention and […]

What Are You Waiting For?! Enter TikTok Young Lions Now!
We're certainly not young, talented and trendy but you likely are, so enter the TikTok Young Lions comp!

Boomtown’s Final Masterclass Of 2023 Attended By Almost 100 Media Reps
Don’t treat regional media as a charity, but a real growth opportunity: That’s the message from Boomtown’s final masterclass of 2023, attended by almost 100 media industry representatives from across the nation. The masterclass was part of a series of educational sessions, delivered by Boomtown, the media collective championing advertising in regional Australia. The sessions […]

Mister Cartoon & Turtle Wax Partnership Launches In Australia & New Zealand Via DIJGTAL
DIJGTAL launches ‘The Art of Car Care’, an exciting partnership between renowned LA street artist and icon, Mister Cartoon and Turtle Wax in Australia and New Zealand.

GTA VI Trailer Smashes YouTube Viewership Records
This trailer marks great news for spotty teenagers and socially awkward people around the world.

REVEALED: The Staggering Rental Price Network Seven Paid In Exchange For Bruce Lehrmann Interview
Wish Mr Lehrmann would simply disappear from your TV screens and newsfeeds? Alas, B&T's not seeing it anytime soon.

Telstra Fined $3m By ACMA After Wrongfully Charging Customers
Do you fume every time the phone bill arrives? Take the rage 'next level' with this dodgy Telstra news.

Qantas, Optus, Andrew O’Keefe! It’s 2023’s Most Momentous F#ck Ups!
Typically, B&T likes to champion the best & the brave. However, today we're honouring 2023's most memorable calamities.

Government To Establish Copyright & AI Reference Group To Help Protect Creative Industries
It's industry news from Canberra that thankfully doesn't involve public servants misbehaving at the taxpayers' expense.

You Can Now Buy A Single McNugget To Celebrate Its 40th Birthday
McDonald's famous menu item, the McNugget, turns 40 this year. And cardiothoracic surgeons everywhere are celebrating.

Introducing Yahoo Blueprint: A New AI-powered Suite For Better Ad Performance & Optimisation
Yahoo Advertising has launched Yahoo Blueprint, a central AI suite that powers performance-based solutions within the Yahoo DSP. Fuelled by over 335 million logged in Yahoo users globally, Yahoo Blueprint enhances decisioning, makes AI more accessible, and serves as a results-driven guide throughout the campaign lifecycle to deliver better outcomes for advertisers. This new AI […]

Do Your Shopping On Company Time Says Cheesy Retro Spot From Amazon
Counting the days down till Christmas by doing as little as possible bar a spot of online shopping? This will resonate.

New Monash University Campaign Asks: Would Your Younger Self Be Proud?
Have a painful, inert sense you've f#cked your life up? Shine a light on things via this cavity searching campaign.

Foot Locker & Nike Recruit NBA’s Kevin Durant To Hype Up The Holidays
Haven't managed to shift the winter pudding? You'll lose two kilos just watching this Foot Locker campaign.

TEAM LEWIS Announces Rapid Expansion Of Its Australian Team With 10 New Hires
With a passion for redundancy stories, we can't see the Mumbrella team being too happy over this monster hire.

Icon & Snack Drawer Appointed Meta PR Agencies Of Record
Meta unveils its new local PR agencies. So be warned if you plan to publicly say anything unsavoury about Mr Zuckerberg.

Publicis Sapient Announces Launch Of PS Hummingbird, Expanding Its Generative AI And Cloud Capabilities With Microsoft
Publicis Sapient, a digital business transformation company, today announced the launch of a new joint venture with Tquila called PS Hummingbird. Lead image: Nigel Vaz CEO of Publicis Sapient The partnership with Tquila, with whom Publicis Sapient has collaborated on several other ventures, will extend Publicis Sapient’s generative AI offerings powered by Microsoft Azure, Microsoft […]

oOh!media Names Lisa Green As Its chief People & Culture Officer
Planning on getting boozed up at the oOh! Chrissie bash? Beware, a new chief people & culture officer is in town.

Anathea Ruys Sits Down For 10 Fast Questions On Agency Culture & Renovating Her Laundry Room
It's 10 quick ones with UM's Anathea Ruys. Even quicker if you've recently completed a speed reading course.