Yes, it mentions the hit Netflix show, Emily in Paris. Yes, I am going to lament on some of the show’s inaccurate representation of how social media marketing is done. I am also going to rave on some aspects they did right. And no, this is not a blog that reviews the show, but more of a case on what to do (and not to do) when handling the social media for brands.
Don’t get me wrong – I loved the show. I loved the culture, the frivolities of living in Paris, the larger-than-life agency lifestyle that Emily and the rest of Savoir gets to enjoy because they had such prestigious clients. While it’s a fictional show that represented a fictional life of Emily and her Parisian adventures, I for one can’t help but remark on how wrong she is with doing social media.
For example, she started a new Instagram account to document her life. From zero followers she jumped to tens of thousands of followers with a few posts. Any sane social media professional knows that it takes a lot of time to build a solid follower base, even with a conservative advertising budget in tow. It almost feels hacked.
Pros: She creates beautiful content.
Cons: So does everyone else.
What I think is misrepresented here is that it shows that social media can be rushed. That there are shortcuts. That you can break through the competition with just some beautiful photos, a witty copy and a hashtag. Social media is such a very competitive place, and attention is very scarce. How different are you from the other thousands posted daily, and what makes your posts deserve more attention? As a social media professional, it creates a different expectation from people, and it’s challenging enough to explain how competitive brand marketing is in social media. Social media takes so much hard work, and literally years to master the craft of knowing the algorithm enough to create something that sticks.
Another apparent misrepresentation of the show is that social media can just be a simple process of posting, and you’re done. There were a lot of episodes that the magic of Emily’s social media is done by posting beautiful photos, and the engagement counters skyrocket. In the real world, clients will expect more. Results. Or at least engagements that drive back to tangible actions beneficial to the client. Because at the end of the day, clients care for results deeper than likes or comments.
Social media is more difficult (and serious) than in Emily in Paris
Yes, you heard me. It is difficult, because it is hard work. Don’t believe anyone who says that they can just breeze through their social media marketing work without breaking a sweat. I, for one, take it very seriously.It takes a lot of hard work. I sometimes spend hours in front of a social media calendar plotting how all of the content themes play together, thinking about how all of the plotted posts go back to the unique selling proposition of the brand and how can I make the content positioned more creatively.
Social media is so competitive now. With all brands now pivoting towards social media to communicate with their target audiences, you can’t become a generic brand that talks about your services only and how you want to sell more of your products. You can no longer push a hard-sell approach towards driving results with social media. Why? Because audiences are looking for value. As social media professionals, how do we drive value? How can we create better consumer engagements with social media? How can we educate them better? How can we create content that delights them regularly, leaving them wanting more?
Update: Ever since I wrote this article, I have produced several blog posts about social media marketing. Check them out here.
Let’s make it easier
My brand of social media marketing services aim to make it simpler for you to collaborate with me for your social media. No unintelligible jargon, no confusing, unexplained metrics. It’s a consultancy service that guides you, not leaving you in the dark. My goal is to collaborate with you, to find that singular aspect of your business that we can use to provide value for your target market, and delight them constantly.
This is my brand of partnership. Simplifying digital marketing for me means that it shouldn’t be just me who understands the work going on in conceptualizing and executing digital marketing campaigns. You should also know how it’s done, so you can ask better-informed questions, and from there, we can make better-informed decisions together.So, understand that social media is difficult and a serious endeavor. It’s supposed to be fun and creative, but it also requires putting our head down to work. Long hours, if that’s what it takes. But, with a capable and experienced partner, we can make it easier.
If you are looking for a partner for your digital marketing campaigns, contact me.