“Don’t Turn Up at a Party and Talk about Yourself” How Brands Can Embrace a Publisher Mindset on Social

Today’s brands are eager to reap the rewards of social media success – and get tens of millions of views, explosive viral hits and the rapt attention of vast audiences. But while many brands achieve one or two hits and enjoy a brief period of fame on social channels, they often struggle to sustain that success over the long term.

As brands vie with publishers, creators and influencers to stand out on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and other social channels, the battle for attention is fierce. To win in this environment, brands must behave less like advertisers and more like social media publishers such as LADbible, BuzzFeed, Refinery29 or Upworthy.

This was the subject of a panel discussion organised by creator-led social agency native@AMV, entitled “Beyond reactive – turning brands into publishers” before an audience of brand marketers and social media managers. The panel was hosted by LBB’s Laura Swinton Gupta and attended my social marketers keen to connect with peers.
Joining the panel were marketers from two brands that have scored huge social media hits recently – Currys and Deliveroo – to discuss how they have turned social media into a powerful channel to enthral audiences.

Electricals retailer Currys has racked up millions of views, particularly on TikTok, with socially native content using humorous videos showing colleagues having fun in stores. One video features staff showing off fake six-packs, another shows an employee rolling on the floor eating a curry.

“You're competing for attention against incredible content creators on these platforms, so we went into an entertainment-first mindset,” explained Ryan Todd, head of social media and PR at Currys. “And then any Currys’ messaging would be secondary to that,” he added.

Key to sustaining Currys’ highly creative social media strategy has been the move to give Ryan the final sign off for campaigns so the social team can react quickly to the latest trends without having to plough through layers of bureaucracy. He said another key move was to move away from audience targeting.

“We sell to absolutely everyone and we made a deliberate decision not to go down the route of picking one particular demographic because the algorithm will find the right person,” he added.

Meanwhile, delivery brand Deliveroo has made waves last summer with a social video for its new grocery delivery service featuring actor Danny Dyer admitting he is a “tosser” – showing him tossing fresh salads as he launched the brand’s new freshness promise.

Amy De Robillard, marketing manager for grocery at Deliveroo, said the video turned the promise, which is quite functional, into something fun and amusing in the hands of Dyer. She said the key to success in social was to have a clear identity and strong personality. And she added: “We look at content in terms of three pillars. Is it to inspire, is it to discover a platform, or is it to convert a customer? We start from there in terms of planning campaigns.”

Liam Harrington, one of the original founders of social media publisher UNILAD who now heads publisher IJM Group, told the panel that it was vital for brands to react quickly to social media trends. But he felt it was also important to link content to the brand’s core business.

“With Currys, you can really notice that they always bring their content back to product. So don’t forget you are a brand. You are here to sell things to people.
“Not a lot of brands are doing that at the moment, and sometimes they need to be told - be reactive, but you are not a content creator. You are still a brand. Always bring it back to that,” he said.

Social has moved on since the days of clocking up followers and likes on Facebook and Instagram. TikTok has transformed social media by introducing discovery – its algorithm focuses on what you watch, how long for and what you reject to bring you the content you want, not just what your friends are doing.

“That’s really changed the way content surfaces”, said Sam Regan Asante, head of native@AMV, which supports Currys paid and organic social content. There is no longer a sharp divide between organic and paid content. “Users are really looking for an additive experience rather than content that interrupts their feed,” he said. Brands need to engage with audiences by addressing topics they care about and collaborating with creators who understand and represent their communities. “You don’t want to turn up at a party and talk about yourself,” he said. “But a lot of brands just get this wrong.”

To transition successfully to behaving like publishers, brands must earn permission to play in native social media, he said. “You can’t jump on every trend, so identify audiences and communities you want, create your own tone of voice and identity and have an always-on strategy,” he added. He advised brands to find a repeatable strategy such as RSPB’s “bird of the week” videos on TikTok.

The panel was positive for the future. “I think we are in a good place. Brands are going to become more educated and skilled,” said Liam Harrington. Brands are learning to behave like social media publishers while also using the channels to promote their products. It’s a difficult balance but one that offers huge rewards.