EP 18 Social Issues On Social Media - Should You or Shouldn't You?
Sonia and Harley take on a hot button subject: Social/Political issues on social media. Should influencers and brands speak up? If they do, what should they consider and expect? Does the "happy little corner of the internet" still exist or should everyone be using their platforms to raise awareness for issues they are passionate about?
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Timestamps:
[2:20] Things feel heavier because of social media.
[4:40] How you relate to clients and the audience.
[8:26] Being trauma informed.
[11:43] Do you have to post for every cause?
[13:27] Should we be sharing receipts?
[17:42] Brands jumping on every cause.
[19:28] Pop culture memes from brands.
[21:31] Can we have a happy corner of the internet?
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00:00
This episode is brought to you by my new favorite content creation tool flip stick. Wish me luck and trying to explain this ingenious little device. So recently featured on Shark Tank flip stick is a tripod alternative that attaches directly to your phone on one side and can stick directly to any flat surface on the other. So open it up, stick it to the wall, a window, the refrigerator, anything that floats your boat and film right there. Use code Harley for 20% off and get flip sec.com or head to the show notes to go directly to their site. Welcome to brand meet Creator Podcast with me Harley Jordan and Sonia Elise,
0:34
a place where we pull back the curtain and the trashy filters on the influencer marketing
0:39
industry. So pull up a chair and grab a notebook, it's time to shed some light
0:43
on the ever changing it's diverse. Thank you so much for joining. Today we're gonna dive into what I think is a spicy topic Harley, I am very excited to see. I'm so excited to see what listeners think about this episode because we're going to be discussing what it's like in the age of social media to be socially conscious to be aware of what is happening in the political sphere and whether or not you should be commenting about it. And I think it's beyond whether or not you should or shouldn't because that's the first step in diving into everything right? It's your own comfort level. It's not a blanket yes or no for everyone. And I'd love to know what you think, especially from an influencer perspective on commenting on social or political issues on social media.
1:46
It's so hard and I'm feeling like a heavy pressure with say something or Roe versus Wade thing. I've been searching the internet scouring the internet, listening to our seeing all of these like repost some people's stories and I cannot find one to save my life that just feels like it fully epitomizes what I want to say. And it doesn't do it justice. I don't think my own verbiage can do my thoughts, justice. So I've gone without saying something. And you know what, that in and of itself is also just like an icky space to be in?
2:22
Yeah, I mean, I agree, personally, I think, Well, I think it's it's it's not just personally, it's a fact that the last two to three years have been some of the most tumultuous in terms of things going on socially and politically that people feel the need to comment about. And well, I'm sure you know, 10 years ago, we were going through many crises, just as we are now, it feels, of course, a lot heavier because of social media. Because even if you'd like to perhaps unplugged from the news, there is so much social sharing of so many different topics that you may not be prepared to come across when you are just casually writing Instagram. So I think of course, right now we are hitting another peak with the news cycle around the overturning of Roe versus Wade. And, of course, as female entrepreneurs, we probably are much more invested in the topic than others, and especially those who follow us and those who are around us. And I personally, I don't tend to use my social media as a platform for speaking out. I always applaud people who do, but I find that a few things go into it. And I think these are a few things that influencers can ask themselves if they feel like should I be sharing or not? For me personally, I asked myself, Do I have something new and original to add to this story line? If I have a personal story that feels like I would like to share that is in connection with the topic. Perhaps there is something to add there because you are adding a humanizing element to the news cycle. I also think about have I researched this enough that I would be able to relate to someone who might be on the opposing side? Yeah, because we do tend to surround ourselves especially on social media with people who think and feel similarly to us. So I like to also use approach as well as if someone who didn't feel the same that I did approached me and wanted to have a discussion. Am I ready to have that conversation?
4:42
So here's this, here's the sticky part right here that I find. So this is like this is an internal dilemma constantly. So my whole my whole spiel when it comes to like putting your personality and your personal life on social media is that the more you put out that information, the more you talk about your ethos, your values, the things that make you tick, the more you're going to bring your exact people to the yard, it's attraction marketing, those people that see that I'm into, you know, sustainable fashion or like whatever else, there are going to be my exact people, and they're gonna want to relate with me about it. So one of the things I find very often is that I'll get, you know, health and wellness people like people that value health and wellness, because I have that degree because I talk about that degree, because I like post about workouts and my story, I get those clients, tons and tons. So part of it almost contradicts this, like sharing oversharing piece that I promote fully. Because I mean, at that point, if I'm sharing this political piece, is it going to be this echo chamber of I'm only getting the people that agree with my point of view? Is it going to turn off people that I could have worked with, it's a really tough space,
6:00
it is. And those are all things you have to think of, especially if you are an influencer, or someone who's trying to build influence on social media is how you relate to the audience and how you relate to future clients. And if you are prepared and passionate enough about a topic to say, hey, if the followers don't agree, I'm fine for them to leave. If the potential clients do not agree with either the exact point of view or you speaking out, in general, I'm willing to let those dollars go. Those are all things that you should think about prior to having any sort of communication on these things.
6:37
And sometimes the other thing is, sometimes you don't want to have a conversation. Sometimes you want to voice your opinion. And that this is where it becomes unwelcome. I think this is what's stopping me from posting about Roe versus Wade to because I do have such a hard and fast opinion here that if someone were to comment on my stuff and disagree with me, I don't have anything that I could say like I don't I can't let that at that point. So sure, that's really, that's not a welcoming, that's not a welcoming perspective that I want to put out there.
7:13
Yeah, and I think you also have the opportunity to say, Okay, I am going to speak out about this. And if people come into my DMs with opposition it and hate or if they comment on a post and leave, you know, whatever commentary, they'd like to say, what is the course of action I'm going to take, and you have to think through that and have a plan prior. And if you feel like I really just feel too emotional and too, feeling like very heated about this subject. And I don't think that I can respond in a way that makes sense. Or in a way that might be productive, then maybe that is assigned to you that it's not something that you should potentially post about. If you are willing to fight that good fight, as they say and comment back and listen and potentially have that conversation, then, you know, you're taking on an emotional burden, essentially, but it's for a cause that right, hopefully you feel strongly about. And I don't think that this has to be a blanket thing, right? Of course, we're talking Roe v Wade right now, because that is what is the hot topic in the news cycle. So very important to be discussing. But this can go about anything, this could be animal rights, this could be right, you know, abusive relationships. Like there's a lot.
8:28
So let's talk about this in context of everything that was happening in Ukraine still is happening in Ukraine. But as this started to blow up, a couple months ago, there was so much coverage on social media, everyone was kind of taking a taking a step back, not really posting because it just didn't feel right. I was talking to Ali Mason, of course, the number of times we bring up Ali is just like actually ridiculous.
8:56
In a row. Hi ally,
8:58
honestly. So we were talking about how you really don't have this responsibility, because you're not trauma informed to like post about news unless you're trauma informed. And you know how to like basically be a reporter. Like you shouldn't feel the necessity to report on news. And I ended up going to my story and saying like, do you think influencers need to need to speak up? And the amount of responses that were like, Yes, I think influencers need to speak up because they need their audience to know. I was like, You mean an influencer? That's not on the ground floor. Like yeah, what do you mean an influencer in the fashion space knows better than a reporter on in Ukraine like what are what are we talking about here? Because that's actually not someone that's informed at all to talk about. RNs,
10:01
absolutely. And even if they do feel informed, I think there is only a level most likely that they can get to that you like, you're saying, they're not a news reporter, they're not someone who's a war correspondent, they're not someone who maybe knows all the ins and outs of the political atmosphere, they have a strong opinion. And if they'd like to raise awareness, that's up to them. But interpreting the news, I think, is what gets tricky. amplifying things also becomes tricky, if you're not doing the due diligence to double check that these are facts, to, you know, know the root of where this quote or where this video clip came from. And I think that is a very extremely laboris task that I'm not personally committed to doing. I'm just and that's why I don't speak out, I have my personal opinions, I'm happy to support the causes that I feel strongly about. And I find it more that I'm not going to use my social media platform for that. But I'm happy to use my personal connections or my personal funds to invest in anything. And I think it's also Yeah, that's also a big thing. It's like, you can't just be reposting things to stories and not be taking action, because I think there's an authentic feel to that. So putting your eggs in the basket and saying, Hey, this is what I really care about. I'm raising money, I'm raising awareness, I've done the research, you know, whatever else, I think that takes you to a level that it's like, okay, this person really is committed. But once you do it one, right. I don't know, do you think people feel like you have to keep doing it every time for every cause?
11:45
Well, I think you start to bring in a group of people, you start to resonate with a group of people that do need that, you know, so it's all this like, slippery slope. So a couple of the things here that that you just mentioned, number one, let me also just say that the people that were sliding into my DMs and saying people must talk about this, it was people that were not influencers, it was people that were were trying to be, but they had like 1000 followers, like they were still a small creator. And they were not at the point where amplifying your voice like really does cause a lot of backlash. So I don't know if there was, it's the lack of knowledge. And what happens or like, the actual feel of this is this is how putting your voice out there can feel I'm not sure.
12:35
I feel like it's completely different to stand in the crowd when you have under 1000 followers or under 3000 followers. So yeah, someone should be saying something, then the person who's standing on top of 100,000 followers, and feel extreme pressure to reflect something in a certain way. I think those are wildly different scenarios.
12:57
Yeah. The other thing here is the performative nature of all of it, because you're, you're mentioned about like, what I'm doing with my money and say it with your wallet, instead of just putting it on your story. It there's so much weirdness about like, I have to see it, because it's all about perception. That in and of itself is kind of a gross thing for me too. Because a lot of the time Yes, I am donating Yes, I am, like putting my money where my thought process is, but putting it on online, like how do you how do you feel about showing us that the statement?
13:31
Yeah, the receipts, if you will I again, I Yeah, it's really, really tricky. Because no one wants to share exactly how much they've donated, how much is enough, what even makes a significant difference and who's to say the cause that you're donating and is really the best one, there could be something that's quite specific to an overarching problem that you're donating to but that other people don't find as valuable to them. So I think you kind of have to just take a stance every time a new issue is coming up and say yes or no, I'm going to talk about this. If I'm saying no, I'm ready for people to potentially be DMing me and saying, Why haven't you said anything. And my response to that is going to be very boilerplate, very neutral, and I'm ready to go and I'm brushing it off. Or you're saying I'm fired up about this, I'm going to research I'm going to find the cause that I want to support. I'm going to do x, y and z in terms of an active moment, whatever that may be monetary donation something else and I'm willing to weigh the consequences and say, Hey, this may not this may lose followers, I may, you know, end up in a poor space here. And I think all of this applies to brands as well. And especially to brands.
14:49
Yeah, and I think this is something that we're going to have to dive deeper into in a later episode, but also just the perform the perception of it. You know, like you were present Assuming that influencers are making this ton of money, so if I'm to post a receipt, if I'm to put that online and it's 100 bucks, like you don't know what I'm going through right now, you don't know what my what my budget looks like, and I think you're gonna get a lot of backlash of like, but you're successful, and you just paid 100 bucks like that feels that that also just like, makes my skin crawl?
15:25
Absolutely. I mean, I agree, I think it's a difficult platform to be on once you hit that 100k drange 50k range, to decide what to do and how you handle everything. But I think you just have to be very sure footed and strong that this is how you feel about it, yes or no. And this is what you're ready to deal with and put up with, however, you may tackle it. Right. And I feel very similarly around brands, I think brands and social issues can be even more performative than influencers. You know, we see every June pride month comes around and we see brands jumping on jumping on the way and jumping on the rainbow jumping on their pride content. But where are they in hiring or collaborating with people from that space year round? They're not. And you know, that I mean, that can be applied to so many things. But it's just I think brands need to have the same steps. And I think even more so because you're talking about the livelihood of your whole business. When they approach are we going to speak out about a social issue? Are we going to support something that is going on? Yes or no? What does that look like? And I think over the years, it's become probably more and more difficult. I remember five or seven years ago, people it would come to pride and people would cut out the rainbow t shirt, and no one would say they would buy it and you know, support this charity, quote unquote. And you when you really look back and think about it, what were they doing, like $1 per t shirt that they sold? You know? So I
17:10
mean, this this all sounds like the who wore what did I say that? Right? The like? Yes, thank you. Like bikini sales that were going to Ukraine that wasn't really going to Ukraine, that was actually just a package of, I don't know, resources or something like it's just like, it's all mumbo jumbo at that point that like what are we what are we actually saying here?
17:40
And I think brands also has to be careful about jumping on every single trend, right? Or every single I don't want to call it a trend. Let's rephrase that. But every single cause is not a cause that you need to hold near and dear. If you are in the very beginning stages of creating and launching a brand. It is very important to say what are our pillars around social issues? What do we stand for? And most brands have something that they should be supporting year round, or whether that be sustainability for the planet? Or it could be very Yeah, right. Right, Michelle, I'd like sustainability. Exactly. And it can be much more narrow. However, having that at the beginning and then holding up a measuring stick when when new things come in the new cycle and deciding is this something that we can veer off course from our core mission and support? Or are we going to stick with our core mission? Right we're not going to comment we're not going to raise funds we're not going to create a product to donate sales. I was at a restaurant the other day and they were selling a bowl of pasta where portions went to Ukraine and it was just like I don't I'm unclear like this specific bowl of pasta raises money for Ukraine like I don't does it
19:01
JC Yes, this one not anything else in the menu just this pasta?
19:06
Exactly. To me, it's like okay, why not do a portion of like all sales for a month or something else?
19:14
Like it can be small but yeah,
19:17
one pasta and it has a little Ukrainian flag next to it on the menu. I was just like, This just doesn't feel right for me.
19:26
Okay, speaking of things that don't feel right, let's talk about pop culture memes. Let's talk about this Will Smith moment that a lot of brands jump on? Yes. In their content, pulling playing into the Will Smith punch of Chris Rock? How do we feel about that?
19:45
I felt very icky about it. And I put up Instagram Stories The next day saying that I was shocked and appalled by the amount of brands and I saw a few influencers, but primarily brands who posted me meme posts in regards to their product or what they were trying to or kosher is trying to raise awareness around. And it was a meme of the steal of the exact moment where he was being slapped. And I just felt like it was so distasteful. And I've seen other memes before where I also found them very distasteful. And I think the core
20:21
red flag trend was a big one, I
20:24
think, yeah, I think the core of memes are to be funny, and I get it. And everyone wants to have a joke and a laugh. But I think when there are issues that involve violence, that involve major, uh, you know, social conversations, I just don't think those are the times to take an image and flip it and turn it into a social media post there. If that's the moment that you're trying to capitalize on, I think there's probably a problem in your social media strategy already.
20:55
Right? No, I think this kind of relies relays back into being in quotes, a happy little place on the internet, which I hear a lot happy little corner of the internet. And we're trying to make light of these situations. And I think this is this is really part of the heart of why I haven't posted something for Roe versus Wade, two, because a lot of them are playing into humor a little bit playing into this, like slapback kind of tone. And that also kind of freaks me out. Because I don't want it to come off like this, you know, joke about this big serious moment? Do you think we can be this happy little corner of the internet? Or do you think it's important to have that like deep water?
21:36
I think my personal stance is that you can be the happy little corner of the internet, but then just stay that happy little corner. And that's my personal view on my account as well. I am the happy little corner of the internet, have my personal views, I interact in a way that I want to interact with things that are social issues, but I'm not going to be the person who does the promoting who does the amplification. And here's why. Number one, I don't feel like I'm educated enough on the some of the topics. And number two, there are people who are doing an excellent job out there. And I would much rather read and err on support what they are doing. And I don't think I'm ever going to be that person. It's not my passion. It's not my calling in life. And the people who are that I follow. I admire I think that they are incredible. And I think that everyone should find those people that they love that they know are doing the research, they're doing the due diligence, they're providing the links, read more to form your own opinions. People who are only sharing memes or quotes or five second clips, I just don't think that is the type of person that everyone should look to to get their news and information. That's my personal stance.
22:52
So what's our takeaway here, wrap it up doggie bag, take it home.
22:58
The take it home is whether you are a brand or an influencer, you need to start from point one before you post anything thinking about what are the repercussions here and what am I willing to lose and or deal with in the commentary, or the brand deals or the followers in regards to this subject. It's about the preparation before you start reposting and going off in the stories,
23:25
right? Anything that you're posting, take a step reflect on what the actual heart of your point is here. Think about the perception that others will have with that content. Because at the end of the day, it does your intentions literally do not matter. Like I hate to say it but this is this has been a hard and fast fact that I've had to like grow into your intentions do not matter. It is perception on the internet and your actions. So being careful and the being quick to learn and take new info in as it comes through and start that conversation. I think that's our biggest takeaway here.