I’m going to admit something to you. I’m a marketer—and I don’t like social media.
Now, I don’t hate it as a communication channel for marketing. I love that businesses have these tools to share their story and just generally have real-time reach with their audience that we never had before. What I hate is the user side of social media—because it can bring out the absolute worst in human beings.
This is a bit of a different post for me. I normally offer tips, geared especially toward small businesses, but after recent events in the world, it’s hard to sit by when you know some of the very tools you use to perform your job are also fueling outrage, division, and manipulation. It’s dejecting to read the news, and it’s overwhelming to think about what scale of change is necessary put people on a more positive course. It’s hard to know where to begin.
As with most big issues though, a good starting point is often ourselves. In my marketing world, that means ensuring that the communication tools I use to do my job are used responsibly. And one tool in particular that needs a reset is social media. In this article, we look at the challenges of social media, and share ways to use it more positively, whether for business or personal use, and maybe even reduce your use a bit.
What is the Problem with Social Media?
On its face, social media seems like a wonderful idea. I remember signing up for Facebook in 2005, back when you could only have an account if you had a university email address. I even had MySpace before that, though I didn’t actually do anything with that account. It was really cool to have a way to keep in touch with friends you didn’t see everyday. A tool of connection—sounds great.
Somewhere along the line though, as social media scaled into the behemoth it is today, we began to see changes in the platforms. The “newsfeed” was introduced, which was the first big move that allowed social media companies to shape the information that you would see. Then the “like” button appeared, which flipped the script from social media being about sharing to being about validation. You then began to see companies jumping on board, further converting the original, intimate social space into a marketplace competing for your attention.
Because media companies derive their income from advertisements, the goal became to keep you on the platforms as long as possible. How is this done? Through deliberate design choices and strategic algorithms that exploit human weaknesses for novelty, reward, social approval, FOMO, tribalism and negativity bias. “Like” buttons encouraged you to keep posting content. The newsfeed offers you sensational stories it knows you can’t not read. Better yet, it knows you can’t not comment. The more you like and follow, the more you are given similar content, creating a spiraling echo chamber, generally of negativity. An infinite scroll allows you to continue on and on.
No longer are you making choices on what content you want to see. This information is being fed to you.
Who is to Blame for Social Media Negativity?
Up to this point, it sounds like I’m making the case that the social media companies are 100% at fault. But I don’t think those companies are entirely to blame—it’s also the internet itself. The anonymous nature of the online world permits behavior that most would never display face-to-face.
What is it that compels human beings to be their best selves in the first place? Integrity plays a part, sure, but I’d argue that social pressure is a much stronger driver of virtue. We learned as children that we can’t take toys away from someone else not because it inherently felt wrong, but because other kids would stop playing with us if we did that. In person, non-verbal communication helps us gauge how to modulate our behavior.
The trouble with the internet is that we do not have that in-person contact. We cannot see a person’s sadness or anger when we say hateful things, and thus, there is no incentive to not repeat that behavior next time.
Social media creates a double whammy. Not only do we have the anonymity of the internet, but these platforms actively provide and encourage the opportunity to exercise these maladaptive behaviors.
Who to blame is not a straightforward answer. The structure of the internet, the profit-driven tactics of social media companies, and the vulnerabilities inherent in human behavior all play a role, making it difficult to know where to turn our attention to improve the problem.
Whose Responsibility Is It Then to Fix the Social Media Problem?
This is a tricky question, and it’s the question for many issues we face today. We can’t change the faceless nature of the internet. Is it the responsibility then of the company to provide a responsible product? We certainly don’t require this of soda or junk food companies.
The purpose of a company is, simply put, to make money. And that’s not inherently wrong. A free market doesn’t require ethical considerations. So, where does that leave us? I would say—to take the responsibility ourselves, as consumers of these products. By choosing to support only those companies that align with our personal values, we allow market pressure to influence behavior. And perhaps most importantly, we can choose how we personally engage with these platforms, behaving online as we would in a face-to-face conversation.
How to Be Responsible with Social Media as a Business
If you agree that social media as a problem, you have two choices. You can either continue using it, but in a more responsible way, or you can choose to reduce your usage, or even eliminate it completely. The right course of action depends on many factors, like your type of business, your target audience, your goals, your available resources, and more. It’s not a light decision; you want to weigh all considerations before making any pivots in your social media strategy.
No matter how a business chooses to use social media though, the key is using it in a responsible manner. This looks like:
- Promoting positive, helpful content
- Building relationships with your audience
- Being transparent
- Keeping it professional
- Encouraging a welcoming community
Following these practices helps your business build trust, encourage meaningful engagement, and create a social media presence that reflects your values, rather than just chasing clicks.
Why Some Choose to Reduce or Eliminate Social Media
While it’d be hard to believe, there are successful businesses that do not use social media. Locally, companies with hugely in-demand services, such as plumbers or electricians, find that word-of-mouth alone is enough to keep their companies running at full capacity. There are large companies too that have made the move to be social media-free. Lush Cosmetics is a prime example. After a brief stint offline in 2019, they quit social media in 2021, citing concerns over the impact of social media on young people and frustrations with ever-changing algorithms.
Again, your business’ social media usage should make sense for you. For those that wish to scale back, there are arguments to be made for putting your focus on other communication channels:
Organic Social Media Reach Isn’t Great Anyway
Let’s be real. Organic social media reach isn’t great; the game is now “pay to play.” If you’re a smaller business and don’t have the budget to put into ads, it might be worthwhile to analyze whether the time you are putting into your social media efforts is really netting the return you’d like.
For some, it does work. Social media lends well to businesses that are, by their nature, socially oriented products, and the offerings are also visually oriented—so, restaurants, clothing brands, travel companies, sports, or entertainment. It can work for other businesses as well, though they generally have to get a bit more creative to produce content people actually enjoy viewing. If, however, after examining all factors like content quality, platform choices, etc., you find social media isn’t giving you the return you hoped for, it might be time to revisit your marketing plan.
Your Social Media Audience is Not Owned
Followers, likes, and engagement all contribute to the “success” of your social media marketing, but these metrics ultimately belong to the platform. Though we may have a big follower count, algorithms can change, policies can change, or platform usage may decline. Investing heavily in one platform you don’t control is risky. It is better to maintain a balanced marketing plan—grow your social media audience, sure, but also make sure you are building up your own website and email list and, particularly for local businesses, building relationships in real life.
Customer Service Is a Better Place to Spend Your Time
I watch a lot of local business that are successful with social media. One business that comes to mind only uses Facebook and doesn’t even have a website. On the surface, it would appear that social media is the primary contributor to this business’s success. We should question though, is it really social media driving results, or is it the brand behind it?
Anecdotally, I’ve observed that businesses thriving online succeed because their owners are naturally social in real life. They engage with other businesses, build relationships offline, and then amplify those connections online. Over time, I’ve seen this principle hold true again and again: businesses are built on relationships.
This applies to local businesses and large companies alike. One of the most consistent themes in reviews of major brands is customer service—how well a company cultivates and maintains relationships with its customers. While larger companies may operate on a bigger scale and have more complex marketing strategies, the fundamentals remain the same: the most human-centric, customer-focused companies consistently succeed, and social media is just a support underlying a strong brand.
What Users Can Do About Social Media
Using social media responsibly is within every person’s control. Small actions can reduce negative impacts and maybe even go so far as to demonstrate to social media companies that consumers want a more responsible product. Consider these strategies:
- Limit time on these platforms: Social media companies want you to keep scrolling. The longer you are on there, the more ads they can show you, and the more revenue they receive.
- Talk to someone online as you would in person: Most people who write horrible comments online would never say that to someone in real life.
- Engage in civil debate: Differences of opinion are good. Our ideas are better refined when met with some resistance. That’s the idea. But it must be civil discourse. We must enter these conversations with respect and with the understanding that, at the end of our debate, we will shake hands after, thank each other for the intellectual challenge, and walk away better informed (virtually, of course).
- Limit ad engagement: A common model for digital ads is what’s called “pay-per-click.” This means the platform only gets paid if you actually click on the ad. Now, this is a debatable suggestion, but you could consider not clicking on social media ads and just going directly to the advertiser’s website if you see a product you like. That way, the advertiser still gets your business, but the social media company doesn’t get credit for the click. This isn’t foolproof—some ads are on a pay-per-impression model, so it doesn’t actually matter whether you click on it or not. Also, some businesses might actually prefer that you click on their ads so they can gain better metrics on ad effectiveness (though there are ways around this).
Conclusion
Social media is a powerful tool with the potential to be a positive, even uplifting, space, but its design and financial incentives—combined with the anonymity of the internet—have proven to bring out the worst in human behavior. As businesses and as personal users, the best way to counteract this negativity is to use these platforms responsibly—every time we post, comment, or share, we should remember that our words are visible to a vast audience, and we should let that awareness temper our negative impulses. When each of us makes more conscious choices online, the impact reaches further than a more positive newsfeed—it has a ripple effect in the real world as well.