Oh Sweet Nothing

Fashion

It is silly to be blind towards the power that social media provides us with. From the age where creatives went from one office door to the next, hoping for a face to face with an editor, art director, hell even a clumsy intern who may leave the door open and allow one access to those hallowed cubicles; to having the opportunity of being noticed from any corner of the world simply by self-publishing through a mobile device; clearly much has changed. All one needs is their work to be striking or engaging enough to the eyes of the beholder. Naturally, with great power comes great responsibility, an issue I have relentlessly spoken of, and plan to give a shot on a different sunny day. Today, I’d prefer to zone in on the power that social media brings, not just for individuals but for brands as well.

Similar to being the creative black sheep in a family of doctors or engineers, zero contacts before the nineties, meant your portfolio was being viewed by a few other than your mum and a supportive cousin; a brand with a little budget before the age of social media required to bow down to the powers that are printed magazines as we know it. A feature in the pages meant a few sales for sure and a possible roadmap to some potential investment, while a full fledged cover saw ‘Out of Stock’ signs outside stores and the brand having made it to the proverbial map. To the contrary, today brands can sit behind a desk and self-produce content, speak to their consumers personally and have a direct effect on sales. Even so, a majority of brands flock behind strange engagements with influencers or bloggers, usually leading to a conniving display of over sharing and social media exploitation. Many have been quick to call bloggers vapid, fame hungry and unaware, easily overseeing how short-sighted, unintelligent and uninformed a large number of brands are.

Numerous funnily resort to unattractive social media accounts with graphics and captions which would have been much better left away from social media altogether, talking down to their consumer by reducing their intellect to that of ‘Oh you “need” this lipstick simply because it exists’, or low-key harassing their existing consumers with constant reminders of their existence to the point that they slowly seize to exist. Several, unaware of the power that lies at their very fingertips, if only they stopped to stand, stare and educate themselves. There is a way to do social media right, and I’m on a mission to explain this phenomenon to any brand who will listen.

The consumer is smart. Brands should be smart too.

Let’s put forward smart ideas and quality content. Let’s transport, engage, cultivate relationships and seek advise to be better. Let’s listen and also speak, in actual words and not emojis. Let’s use our platforms to first share our minds and in the process, only and strictly in the process, gain a likeminded audience.