It’s 2026. Everyone knows they ‘should’ have social media. So they set up the pages and dabble in the novelty of it for a while. Sometimes they’ll leave the pages to the metaphorical digital graveyard. Sometimes they’ll hire some help but then deem the whole thing unsuccessful when the leads don’t immediately start coming in.
Is any of this sounding familiar?
We’re positive there are many in the digital marketing space nodding their heads aggressively like those cute bobblehead dogs people used to put on the dashboard of their car.
Social media now always tends to be included - it's part of the marketing family, after all - but often isn’t given the attention, direction or strategic input it needs to do its job well. It’s still treated like the optional extra. Given a few scraps to help it get by, but never gets enough sustenance to really perform to its potential.
But, done well, social media is a key part of your marketing strategy.
Looks can be deceiving, and other reasons social media is undervalued
“Oh, your job must be so easy; social media is so simple!”
Well, Jessica, you try getting Meta Business access to a page where the owner of the page left the business three years ago, everyone's forgotten the password and just assumes the new social media person can ‘sort it out’.
The barrier to entry to the land of social media is low. Anyone, even your grandmother, can set up a Facebook page. This creates the impression that ‘doing social media’ is just as straightforward.
But there’s a big difference between posting on social media and using it strategically.
Understanding your audience, developing a consistent brand voice, creating relevant content, interpreting performance data and connecting activity to business objectives takes time, skill and planning.
Visibility is often confused with value. Social media has made metrics highly visible. Likes, comments, shares, views, and follower counts - right there for the world to see, like your gran's outrageous comments on the community notice board. (Unfortunately, this is an actual lived experience for one person on our team).
The problem is that visible activity doesn’t necessarily translate to business value. A post can attract thousands of views without reaching the people the business actually wants to engage with, while a quieter post might generate a valuable conversation with a potential customer.
On the flip side, sometimes the value of social media can be hard to discern, and it can take a while to see the impact. Good things, do indeed, take time. Building relationships with audiences takes time. Algorithms take time to learn about your content. And, importantly, the people behind the social media need to take time to test, learn, adapt and pivot content to see what works.
A seat at the table, not the whole table
We will (naturally) defend the middle child that is social media, but we’re not out here suggesting you pop a ‘favourite child’ hat on its head, give it all your attention and call your marketing job done.
No.
Social media is ONE part of a larger marketing picture. Your website, email marketing, search visibility, paid advertising, public relations, events and sales activity all play a valuable role, depending on your business and its objectives. Each channel has a job to do, and each can support the others.
The true magic happens when all of these activities work together.
Social media doesn’t need to do everything, and honestly, in most cases, it can’t. But it does need to have a clear purpose. Without that, it’s easy to fall into the trap of posting for the sake of posting, jumping on trends that have zero relevance to you or your audience, or spending hours creating content without knowing what it is you want to achieve.
And then you get discouraged that you're pouring time into something with little return.
The middle child ends up copping the blame - again!
How do we give the middle child the attention it deserves?
The good news is that giving social media a little more love doesn’t necessarily mean spending more money. Often, it starts with taking a step back and looking at what you’re already doing, rather than immediately adding more into the mix, and simply investing a little more thought and time.
1. Get clear on your goals
Before you start planning posts or filling up content calendars, think about your bigger picture. Are you trying to build brand awareness, reach a new audience, generate leads or strengthen relationships? These objectives will influence the role social media plays in your marketing.
2. Review what you’re already doing with your marketing
Got social media pages already? Audit your activity. How often are you posting? What posts are driving traffic or starting conversations?? Are you reaching the people you want to reach? Does what you're putting out there reflect the business you are today, or has your social media been left behind as the business has grown and changed?
You might find there are easy wins sitting right in front of you. This could be revisiting content that performed well, making better use of what you already have (e.g. newsletters, blog posts, etc.), or letting go of things that simply aren't working.
3. Get clear on how you want to sound and how you want to look
Your social media should feel like an extension of your business, not a completely separate entity that leaves customers feeling like they’re dealing with Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, but with the same logo. Think about how you want to sound and what you want people to associate with your business. If your business were a person, how would you want them to come across? Fun and cheeky? Professional with a light chuckle?
Creating this brand identity helps people understand who you are (very important in this day and age of marketing), what you stand for, and why they should pay attention. Your voice, combined with your branding, makes your business easily recognisable and memorable.
4. Figure out your flow
If you take anything away from this blog post, please, for the love of all things, let it be the word CONSISTENCY.
Consistency matters.
In your voice, your look, your customer journey - all of it. And your socials especially. Showing up on a consistent basis and in a consistent way is a really important part of getting all the parts of the marketing puzzle to fit together. Don’t be your Aunt Maude, who pops up twice a year with a reused birthday card months after your actual birthday (because she forgot, you being the middle child and all) with a crumpled-up $5 note, then expecting adoration.
Establish a content flow that works for your business and be realistic! Social media takes time, and doing it well requires a combination of skills that shouldn’t just be tacked on to someone's role with zero thought.
Rather than starting from scratch every Monday morning and desperately searching for something to post, build a plan around the things that are already happening in your business. What are your business priorities for the month? Are there upcoming events, new products, customer stories, newsletters or insights from your team you could make use of?
Think about how you can balance promotional posts with content that educates, entertains, builds trust or even just gives people a reason to engage with your brand and makes their day a bit brighter. A simple content plan can help you stay consistent, make better use of your ideas and connect your social media activity to the bigger picture.
Justice for the middle child of marketing
We ride at dawn!... or like Heathcliff, depending on your literary interests.
We’re not calling for social media to be the golden child (there's no such thing in marketing). It doesn’t need all the attention and an unlimited budget or a participation trophy every time a post gets more than 10 likes. But it would be nice if it got invited to the family meetings before all the big decisions were made.
Social media has a job to do, and when it’s given a clear purpose, a bit of planning and the support it needs, it can be a pretty valuable member of the marketing family. It can help people discover your business, get to know and love your brand, build trust and eventually become a customer. It just needs to work alongside the rest of your marketing, rather than being expected to perform miracles with whatever scraps it's given.
So, let’s stop making social media fend for itself while the other marketing channels get all the attention. It deserves to be included in the family group chat, consulted on the holiday plans, and to have Aunt Maude remember its birthday.
Ready to give your social media a seat at the table?
At Grass Roots Media, we help rural and agribusiness teams give their social media clear direction and connect it with the wider marketing picture. From strategy and content planning to creating posts and managing your channels, we can help you put the thinking into practice.
Book a 30 minute chat with our team to talk about your goals, where social media fits and what support could look like for your business.
