8 MIN READ

Every brand, whether personal or business, aspires to become a social media darling. In building our online presence, we aim to discover the perfect content mix that will captivate our target audience and beyond, creating a thriving community. While the success of some accounts might seem random or at the mercy of the algorithm gods, it's actually the result of a precise blend of cultural awareness, timing, and experimentation.

To uncover this ideal recipe for your brand, start by borrowing strategies from businesses that are already killing it on social media. By studying their playbooks, you can adapt their successful techniques to match your brand image and content. If done correctly, you’ll secure your spot in the social media spotlight.

To help you get started, we've compiled a list of some of our favorite brands, highlighting what they’re doing right and how you can adopt their techniques for your brand.

Clarks 

When you think of trendy, of-the-moment shoes, Clarks probably isn’t the first brand that comes to mind. Having been in business for 200 years, Clarks is typically associated with a more mature clientele—those who prioritize comfort and arch support (Note: I don’t say this disparagingly. While I may be a younger Millennial, comfort and arch support are major considerations in my shoe shopping). 

Recently, Clarks has been working to change this perception, showing they're not just your mother’s shoe brand. Their TikTok account has tapped into trend culture, including street-style fashion and aesthetic content, amassing 3.2 million followers and regularly garnering millions of views.

While all of this is impressive, Clarks truly broke the mold by stitching pop queen Chappell Roan’s now famous quote on serving a certain four-letter C word. In this TikTok, Clarks cuts off Chappell to interject Clarks in places of the other C word. 

As the comments point out, this edginess is not something you’d expect from the brand. Serving “see you next Tuesday” is a beloved turn of phrase, but seemingly a little bold from the shoe company. 

What to Steal: Shock-and-Delight Posts 

If you tend to play it safe with your social media, consider this your sign to be bold. The best way to achieve this is by tapping into trending videos and audio that you can creatively apply to your brand. The looser the connection between your brand and the trend, the better.

By creating shock-and-delight posts, you'll increase your content’s shareability. This serves two important goals: boosting your brand awareness and pleasing the social media algorithms that favor content drawing people onto their platforms.

Olipop

There are four things I talk about incessantly: cats, romance books, Taylor Swift, and Olipop. My decades-long obsession with root beer has turned me into an Olipop brand fanatic.  And I’m not the only one. From iconic brand collaborations (the Barbie Peaches & Cream flavor tastes like memories of girlhood 🥲) to smart influencer partnerships, Olipop is knocking their social media out of the park. 

But where they really shine isn’t just in their flashy, big-marketing-dollars posts. They’ve also perfected the art of capturing the Gen Z nostalgia aesthetic.  Posts featuring friendship bracelets, digital cameras, and mixed CDs tap into Gen Z’s longing for things they’ve never experienced. These posts encapsulate the essence of a bygone era, yet somehow still tangible with the right summer bucket list and your favorite flavor of Olipop.

What to Steal: Nostalgia vibes

Nostalgia is a powerful buying motivator across all demographics, but it’s particularly potent and adaptable for marketing to Gen Z. They clearly communicate what evokes the nostalgic vibes they crave. With summer days dwindling, now is the perfect time to test this out, as everyone is trying to make the most of the remaining moments. Tap into this feeling by showing them your brand is the perfect accessory to these hazy August days. This could be as simple has making a short bucket list of must-completes for the end of summer. Or, if you too hoard old electronics, pop out the old digital camera and take some grain-y (but well lit and shot) photos to add to your grid. 

Good Girl Snacks

I firmly believe in everyone’s heart of hearts, no matter your age or gender identity, there lives an inner hot girl. As Megan Thee Stallion originally identified, hot girls generally make their appearance in the summer, sometimes on walks.

Good Girl Snacks gets the universal desire to be a hot girl.  They also know that hot girls love pickles—they’re the perfect addition to happy hour or a cute charcuterie board. With branding that heavily leans into hot girl aesthetic, Hot Girl Pickles are selling like wildfire, so much so that they sold out online at the end of May. In an unlikely turn of events, they’ve made pickles a must-have accessory for summer 2024. 

What to Steal: Aesthetic Merch

To be clear, now is not the time to rebrand to get in on the hot girl economy. Instead, take a different page out of Good Girl Snacks’ playbook and focus on their merch. They’ve created shirts, hats, and sweatshirts that take their brand from snack time to all day. Their apparel, with items like a baby tee that says “I have a crush” and a dad hat reading “hot girls eat pickles,” speaks to their iconic branding.

This unique approach has people eagerly wearing free advertising for the brand. Considering the relatively low cost of making t-shirts, now would be a good time to invest in some fun merch for your brand. Emphasis on the fun. We’re not talking polos with logos. You want your best creative minds on this content and coming out with products that walk the fine line of on-trend and pre-cringe. Remember, you’re thinking about more timeless statements like “hot girls eat pickles” rather than “brat summer.” 

California Pizza Kitchen

All marketers eventually learn this hard truth: no amount of preparation can prevent an inevitable brand snafu. Take California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) for example. Recently, a TikTok went viral of a woman who ordered her favorite comfort food, CPK’s mac and cheese. But when the delivery arrived at her door, her order was missing a crucial ingredient: the mac. Instead, she basically got a sheet pan of melted cheese. 

In her video, she explained that when she called the restaurant, she was told she had placed the order incorrectly and needed to order the macaroni separately from the cheese—one of the most absurd things I've heard on the internet lately. Naturally, folks flocked to her comment section, calling out CPK for this bizarre situation and demanding that they make it right. 

What to Steal: Top-tier Apologies 

Not only did CPK work to make the situation for the individual, but they also  posted a response TikTok that took their apology several steps further. CPK’s Chef Paul appeared in the TikTok to demonstrate the proper way to make their mac and cheese (hint: they do come together, not separately). Since the original poster only got half of her mac and cheese order, the CPK team is offering half mac and cheese to everyone—half off for the rest of the month using promo code macANDcheese. Despite CPK only having 40K followers on TikTok, the post has gone viral with over 10 million views and thousands of comments praising their top-notch response. 

The next time a hiccup inevitably pops up in your marketing plan, take inspiration from CPK and really amp up your customer service to earn more brand trust. Social media commenters are generally happy when the person that’s been wronged receives the proper compensation. But by taking it a step further, you can increase your brand trust, convert new customers, and boosg sales. I can’t tell you the last time I ate at a CPK, but this response has me seriously considering buying some mac and cheese. 

Kamala Harris

Though in its infancy, Kamala’s presidential campaign immediately began gaining traction across generations, particularly with Gen Z. While we can’t discount Kamala’s age being a factor in young voters’ enthusiasm for her campaign, a lot of the immediate fanfare can be attributed to brat summer.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, brat summer or being brat was popularized by pop icon Charlie XCX’s new album, appropriately titled brat. By this new definition, a brat is party girl energy, being shamelessly messy both in personality and in style. She is the polar opposite of your clean girls and #TradWives. 

Soon after Kamala’s presidential campaign announcement, Charli XCX proclaimed “kamala IS brat,” an unexpected  way to describe an older woman running for the most important role in the nation. Kamala’s team quickly embraced this endorsement, rebranding their Twitter account @KamalaHQ to match the pixelated neon green aesthetic associated with the brat brand.

Why position Kamala as brat? First, it highlights the goofy side of Kamala seen in the media, the parts that turn into memes about falling out of coconut trees. It even celebrates her unique, carefree laugh—something rare in politicians today. More importantly, this brat categorization appeals to Gen Z, the demographic Democrats need to mobilize to beat Trump in the election. Participating in cultural phenomena (or a femininomenon #iykyk) might be the key to getting them to the polls.

What to Steal: Cultural Relevance

While you’re unlikely to be running for president or to receive an endorsement from Charli XCX, Kamala’s brand is a masterclass in cultural relevance. Her team knows to strike when the iron is hot, participating in conversations that appeal to their target audience. This doesn’t mean you should fully dive into brat summer yourself—partially because Kamala may be the last brand to use it successfully before companies make it cringey. 

Instead, pay close attention to trends happening across social media and other digital spaces. Aim to be a first adopter rather than the last to jump on the bandwagon.  By staying attuned to what people are talking about, you’re more likely to be at the forefront of conversations and garner more attention from your target audience.

With so many moving pieces in building the perfect brand playbook, it can definitely feel a little overwhelming. Whether you’re trying to determine the right merch or the best ways to stay on top of trends, it’s understandable to feel a little lost. If you’re looking for support or have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out via our contact page.