🧠 Social Media is KILLING Your Brand

Hey there,

Welcome back to the 47th edition of Brandish,

Your guide to crafting an iconic brand.

Look,

I know everyone nowadays loves TikTok, Instagram, and whatever else people scroll their lives away on.

And if you’re a brand owner, 

Social Media probably makes you a shit ton of money.

But while you’re busy taking a swim in a pool filled with cash, 

Your socials might be trying to murder your brand.

And if it hasn’t yet, it will.

You know what they say, 

“Trouble comes when you least expect it.”

So without further ado,

Grab your Brez,

And let's dive in.

Snipers are only a threat when you can’t see them

Just to make sure we’re on the same page —

Yes, we’re still talking about social media.

You might be asking,

Ankit, how does this relate to social media at all? 

Here’s your answer:

If you don’t already know, then it’s already a HUGE threat.

The Dark Side of Going Viral

Even if going viral seems like the holy grail in marketing. 

It’s not.

Not Unless you’re prepared…

Here’s what I mean,

When your content goes viral,

It Gets Thousands,

Millions,

Or even Billions of new eyeballs.

That means, an astronomical amount of eyeballs are either gonna love or hate what you’re showing them.

Not just that, they're gonna tell you exactly what they think.

But not just you, 

They’re going to tell their friends, family, pets, plants, EVERYONE.

Unfortunately, not all news is good news.

Which means,

No matter how much support you get,

There will always be haters. 

Always.

Anyway, I'm getting carried away now…

The point is.

You need to have a game plan.

Because personally, 

I wouldn’t let haters own my comment section.

I’m not trying to scare you away from going viral.

Just watching your back 🤝

Success in branding isn’t just about numbers, 

It's about the ability to get your customers addicted. 

Addicted to your product

Addicted to your community

And most importantly addicted to you.

Having a strong brand means being able to sell F*cking Bottled Water for any price and still have people hurling their wallets at you.

🤜 Encouraged vs. Incentivised Engagement 🤛

There are two ways to get engagement with your brand on Social Media.

1. Incentivised: 

Engagement by offering rewards, benefits, discounts, freebies, etc..

2. Encouraged: 

Engagement by motivating people through positive experiences, suggestions, and creating fire content.

Yes, one is better than the other.

Here’s the breakdown 👇

Incentivised Engagement

Picture This:

Imagine you want to plant a big strong tree. 

BUT you don’t want to take care of it and give it the time it needs…

So you just prop one up without having roots. 

It would NEVER survive a storm.

Forced Engagement is like having a huge tree without roots in the ground to hold it up. 

First storm and the tree is gone.

Encouraged Engagement

On the other hand, 

Encouraged Engagement is like wanting to plant a big strong tree but this time you actually care about it.

Which enables it to grow deep, strong roots that can stand the test of time.

Encouraged engagement really lets a brand build a solid foundation allowing it to thrive in the long run.

When you encourage your audience, 

You give them a reason to engage that aligns with their interest and values.

This is how you create –

Authentic Interactions, 

Improved Customer Experience, 

And Long-Lasting Relationships.

So I definitely encourage you to use encouraged engagement 🤣 😐

Moving on…

I Lied…

I know I just ranted about how social media SUCKS for your brand.

Yes, it has its drawbacks, 

But you can’t forget about the advantages.

If used the right way, 

Social media is a force to be reckoned with.

Here’s how to CRUSH with social media.

✅ Building Trust and Loyalty:

Showing up with a consistent brand voice and values builds REAL trust.

So none of that viral marketing bullshit.

✅ Encouraging User Participation

You can do this a couple of ways.

Here are a few ↓

• Community #:

  • Increases brand visibility and reach

  • Encourages UGC (User-Generated Content)

  • Differentiates your brand

• Compelling Testimonials:

  • Be sure to keep this authentic and reflect real customer experiences

  • Visual content with photos or videos are 10x more effective

• Polls and Contests:

  • More engagement and audience feedback to know what they love or hate 

  • It’s like having your own personal content idea generator

✅ Leveraging Facebook Communities

Shameless plug here,

Obvi does an amazing job at this.

Facebook Communities are a place where your audience can share their positive experiences with your product and let everyone know why they love it. 

Sorta like building an army of Obvi enthusiasts.

It’s not social media itself that’s killing your brand. 

It’s about how you use it.

The key lies in using it to grow a brand with a strong foundation.

Wrapping Up

In the world of social media, 

The real threats are often hidden in plain sight.

Hopefully, 

Today I could take your blindfolds off.

Your homework for the week:

I know, 

Nobody likes homework..

But relax… 

This “homework” will be fun 👍

All you need to do is keep your eyes peeled on social media and pay attention to the shady tactics being used.

Just don’t scroll your life away on TikTok lol. 

As always, I appreciate you.

And until next time,

Ankit