Social Media vs. Traditional Ads

Social media is NOT the same as traditional advertising.

So many brands (including ones I've worked on) seem to think that an Instagram Reel should feel like a commercial. For a variety of reasons, that just isn't true.

Companies will spend months working out the strategy for one ad. One! If that was done for social, creators would burn to a crisp.

I'm not saying that there shouldn't be a strategy behind social media. I actually think there should be a lot! What I am saying is that those strategies are fundamentally different. A traditional ad is going to be seen countless times, and will often be completely unskipable. Meanwhile, users can easily scroll past your organic social content. Rather than trying to tug at all of the emotions that a normal ad will, organic social content has to prioritize engagement. It's job, even more than traditional ads, is to get people in the door, often of brands that are far smaller than what will be shown on TV.

Building a social campaign with a traditional advertising mindset will only get you so far. The methodology is quite different, as is the headspace that social media users are in when seeing your content.