Ep 9: Should I Care About... Jumping On Viral Instagram Trends?
What this episode is about
This week on Should I Care? we (Sophie Griffiths & Ruthie Walmsley) get into whether you should bother jumping on viral Instagram trends, & the snobbery quietly building around them. Sophie's had a summer with next to no capacity, so she's leaned on trends to stay visible, & then sat on one post for 2 days because a corner of Instagram has decided trends are a bit beneath us all.
So we get into whether jumping on a trend is ever actually worth it, or whether it's a fast track to the wrong followers & a feed full of noise. Ruthie coaches this for a living, & she's got a two-question test she runs before touching any trend that has nothing to do with going viral.
Plus why your audience isn't seeing what you're seeing, & what that means for what's actually safe to post.
Key topics covered in this episode
In this episode:
The 2 questions Ruthie runs before jumping on any trend (neither is "will it go viral")
The hula-hoop video that went viral & why it was one of the worst things to happen to that account
What butter yellow & the "kinda chic" trend are really doing under the fun
Why the same trend clogging your feed hasn't reached your clients once
The summer content that quietly works, & when lighter is exactly right
meet your hosts
Sophie Griffiths
Sophie is obsessed with working with impatiently ambitious women who want to build a business based on connection and depth and refuse to accept they can’t work less and still earn big money.
A fast talking scaling strategist who teaches women to grow their businesses with ads, offer they are obsessed with and marketing that actually feels fun.
Over the last 9 years she’s grown the business alongside 2 high energy girls, a cavapoo dog who doesn’t understand personal space, an ADHD diagnosis & strong (positive) feelings about trashy TV (yes Off Campus..) & salted butter.
ruthie walmsley
Ruthie is a storytelling strategist and recovering English teacher ( and deputy headteacher) who helps women turn what they actually think into content people can’t stop reading.
One husband, one son, one ridiculous puppy called Bernie, an obsession with storytelling and a CV that includes some of the biggest names in the online business space.
Read the Podcast episode transcript
NOTE: This podcast was transcribed by an AI tool. Please forgive any typos or errors.
Ep 9
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Sophie: [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to Should I Care? with me, Sophie Griffiths
Ruthie: And me, Ruthie Walmsley
Sophie: Hey, hey. How are you doing?
Ruthie: Hi, my love. How are you?
Sophie: I mean, I'm okay. I have had quite... No, I have had quite a lot of trauma since we last spoke. So this should have b-
Ruthie: it
Sophie: should have been the episode where I was like, "Ah, I had an amazing holiday. It was so good." however, the day before we went to go on holiday, I just had one of those gut feelings of like, "Just check the passports," and my daughter's was, out of date.
And not just , " someone said, "Oh, is it just within that three-month period where you can't travel on it?" I was like, "No, no, it, no, it ran out in April." Like, in, I think it ran out before we even booked the holiday. , I just hadn't checked. I mean, I'm gonna plead, I don't know, we're moving house.
I've got a lot on my brain. I can't be dealing with that kind of admin. so yeah,
Ruthie: well,
Sophie: it's a lot
Ruthie: balancing a lot of plates. I am gutted for you. [00:01:00] I saw on your Instagram and I was like, "Oh my God, no." And then I immediately went and checked all of our passports
Sophie: , If anything, I just hope that, it helps someone else not make this mistake. I obviously won't ever make that mistake again. but if it helps someone else, just go and check your passports. The kids are only five years. It just comes around unbearably fast, and it was just... It was awful. So anyway, .
we were meant to be going to Holland on the Eurotunnel. Luckily, the Eurotunnel is really easy to change, so that was fine. the accommodation, I mean, when I call them, because we were so close to going, it was
Ruthie: உம்
Sophie: cancellation fee. So I was like, "Oh my God," but they were really good.
I cried, obviously, on the phone.
Ruthie: Yeah,
Sophie: and they said, "Look, we will relist the accommodation, and if it sells, whatever it sells for, we will give you a refund for those nights." So they managed to sell five out of seven nights, which was amazing. we've now managed to get her passport, so, we have rebooked to go.
Luckily, they had availability for [00:02:00] one week. There was one alternative date that we could go, so that's in a couple of weeks' time. So we are gonna be going. So, and it's all exactly the same as it was. So I think in all honesty And a lot of people have said, "Oh, you know, the universe does these things and maybe it's all for the best and stuff."
And at the time, like, I just ... "Just fuck off."
Ruthie: Yeah
Sophie: no, this is really stressful. This is not the kind of universe thing that I really want to be dealing with right now. However, in hindsight, with some perspective, I managed to get over the initial, , adrenaline dump, which was, , pretty outrageous.
it took a good couple of days for my poor eldest, who is nine, and she is autistic and has ADHD, and she had planned this holiday. You know, every night she was on the app. You can plan the, stuff in. , And she just was utterly distraught. And that probably was the hardest thing. I mean, obviously I was disappointed not to go on holiday, but I have to tell the children that tomorrow [00:03:00] we're not actually going on holiday and you're gonna have to wait three weeks to go, when for them, three weeks is a lifetime, absolute eternity.
Sophie: However, once we got over the first few days of that, we actually had a really, really lovely week. so I think maybe it was for the best. I saw lots of people for my birthday. Lots of friends made a really big effort on my 40th, which was when we were meant to be away. and we had a really lovely, wholesome day with the kids, and I think it helped that the weather here was really good.
So , you know, we weren't trapped inside in the rain when we're meant to be on a beach somewhere.
Ruthie: Yeah.
Sophie: Like, it was really lovely. We did things like paddling in the stream and going blackberry picking, and it actually felt like I really lent in to the fun mum summer energy
Ruthie: Yes.
Sophie: in the end.
Ruthie: Darling Buds of May. Do you
Sophie: Doesn't it? yes. I'm just, just about young enough to remember that. But I have to say, and , I know we're gonna talk about this in depth, I have found the change very hard because I did a lot of planning for the summer. I wanted to be really [00:04:00] prepped. I did a whole thing on it.
I got myself really sorted, and I find it, I mean, I don't think it's out of the realms of possibility that I have autism too. it's just that I haven't ever gone down a formal diagnosis route, and I do find changes to plan, especially when they're outside of my control, unbearably hard to come to terms with
Ruthie: I was just gonna ask you, how, I'm nervous to ask,
Sophie: go on
Ruthie: how is that... 'Cause aren't you also meant to be moving house? Like, how is the
Sophie: Yes.
Ruthie: all puzzling out?
Sophie: I know. Well, so yes, we've been working towards moving completing on the 12th. So it was the 7th of August, then it was the 12th, and then so to move on the 12th next week, we needed to exchange on Wednesday, which is the day before we're recording this podcast, and we have not exchanged. Because we are ready to exchange, everyone is ready to exchange, but our buyer has decided that she wants two weeks between exchange and completion, so she's refusing to exchange [00:05:00] until, we all agree to that.
Our seller at the moment, so the house we're buying, is refusing to agree to that. So
Ruthie: Okay, bye
Sophie: yeah. So we were gonna be moving on the 12th and going on holiday on the 14th, which in itself is like, that is very Sophie ADHD wild. I'm like, I'm actually, , fine with that. I'm like, "Yeah, it's fine. We'll do it."
Like, I'll dig in.
, I'm here for that. I'm here for a crisis. , A kind of that crisis management is really kinda my vibe. but now it looks like we'll be moving after we get back from holiday.
Ruthie: Okay
Sophie: which might, again, might end up working out for the best, right?
Ruthie: So you've had a lot,
Sophie: I've had a lot. Yeah. How are you?
Ruthie: Yeah. No, to be honest,
Sophie: Pretty low-key compared to that, right?
Ruthie: Yeah. Listen, I have- I've checked our passports. I'm due to go away. I was actually, writing a social media post this morning, haven't published it yet, but was writing it, 'Cause, I'd seen a really great trend that I really liked, like a sort of an angle, not so much of a trend, that was like five things I've done that have been great for my mental health [00:06:00] recently. And I was swiping through and I was like, "Oh, I love those sorts of posts." then I was thinking, actually, I wanna do one that is, five reasons that I've been super shit on social lately, and I have. And obviously it's a bit triggering for you when you're the person talking about that. So one of the things I talk about is, consistency on social media, and I've been really inconsistent, and, I felt like I needed to justify it, and I was going through the reasons why, and it's basically just like, fucking hell, Sorry for my swearing, but it's a lot. I've had everybody's birthdays. It's the summer holidays. I'm really busy with client work, which is great. I'm trying to prepare for going on holiday, and we know what it's like when you're the business owner. work alone in my business. I haven't got any, support.
I haven't got anyone that I work with. So, , when I go away, that's it. So I
have to make sure that everyone's got everything they need, that I... I'd hate the thought of someone not having what they need. And so for me, it's just that juggle and, I was writing about it. I was like, journaling about it and I was just like, it's all stuff to be grateful for.
Don't get me wrong, like I don't wanna sound like a spoiled [00:07:00] bitch. Oh my God, I'm going on holiday, and it's like extra stress. Everybody I love had a birthday and I wanted to celebrate them. I'm busy with client work. they're all such things to be grateful for. It's just hard, isn't it, sometimes to be grateful when you're in the thick of it and you're like, "Fucking hell."
I feel like, you know in cartoons when there's like an, a machine that's about to blow and then something just pops, like a bolt pops off and the smoke comes out of it. I'd say earlier this week I was at that point. I'm now on the downward slope where I'm like, "Okay, actually, it's fine." But my husband's very much "You're not my favorite person on the run up to a holiday.
I could
Sophie: Yeah.
Ruthie: give or take you."
Sophie: I could definitely just do without. And I, do you know what? I think this is when I started, , working for myself versus being in, like, a corporate career. I don't know, I'd be interested in your take on this as, actually, as a teacher. But I mean, I had a team, so I would... You know, and the work, everything carried on.
I worked for British Airways, so , you know, planes still took off without me. And, you know, life still carried on without me. And that, in a lot of ways, was really freeing. In a lot of ways it was a bit terrifying because it was like, [00:08:00] "What's gonna happen without me? What if I haven't thought of something?
What if someone makes a decision that I don't like or I have to come back to and clear up?" But generally, I would say I had a really good team, and I could, like, prep a handover, and then off I went. And then by the time I came back, it would just... Like, I had to pick up. Think a bit of catching up, but, like, catching up on emails and then off I go.
Think the biggest challenge for me - I realized when I was working for myself, especially when I used to get paid, like you, I think, as, , a retainer, where it's like unless I want to half my revenue, But even so, clients don't really want me to not do the work.
You still have to do your full month's work, but squashed into smaller time. And I always used to think of, , the holiday in the middle, and then the work, like, pushed either side. Yeah, nothing gets taken off your plate. You just have to do it in a more condensed period of time, which is really not conducive to then...
Like, you know, you go on holiday feeling absolutely exhausted.
Ruthie: This is the thing,
and like I think as well I've got a sort of narrative in my own head because, a good proportion of my business is retainer work. [00:09:00] Not only do I want to do the same amount of work, but I wanna make sure the client doesn't feel in any way they've been short-changed.
So I have one client who is a big retainer client, they pay for a lot of my time, and I've completely overdone it
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: month to just prove so that there can be no doubt that I've done enough work.
Sophie: Yeah。
Ruthie: I've been working till 1:00 AM and - I am a night owl, so part of that's my decision.
Yeah
find, like I get into flow state about 11:30 when the house is quiet. but yeah, it is really hard and it is that, idea of pushing the work aside. so yeah,, I feel this pinch every year and I think so many of the business owners that I've been speaking to feel the same, where it's just God, it's a lot, isn't it?
Sophie: It is
Ruthie: you wanna be everything to everyone. You want your clients to be having an incredible experience. You want your children to be having the summer of their lives. You want to have your suitcases packed in this like super early
Sophie: the cubes.
Ruthie: packing cubes.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: I was speaking to somebody who works for my husband and he, like irons everything and puts sheets of [00:10:00] tissue paper in
Sophie: Oh my God, stop
Ruthie: the creasing and I was like... Okay. So yeah, I think my overwhelming feeling at this point is just woo, okay, it's a lot, but I'm just trying to, stay grateful
Sophie: Thank you
Ruthie: like, look, it is first world problems. I'm like, "Oh my God, I'm so stressed 'cause I'm going on holiday and I've got lots of clients." they are both blessings, but fucking hell. It's been a bit sweaty is what I would say. I've just felt a bit harassed
Sophie: Yeah. And I think that actually leads us really nicely into what we kind of want to talk about today, which is a bigger picture. Should I care about, viral Instagram trends? Now, the reason why I feel like it flows really nicely is because, and I know you probably feel this, I feel this, I have had a lot less capacity this summer than I thought I would.
mostly because of the house move, because of changing all our plans, because of thinking I was gonna have loads of great holiday content that I could post, which I do not yet. I have had to lean on viral trends to just stay visible, just [00:11:00] to stay connected to my audience, just to stay kind of able to get something out every week.
Ruthie: Yeah
Sophie: I have lent on some viral trends, and honestly, they've been really fun. I don't generally do a huge amount of viral trends. Often it's 'cause I can't think of like, "Oh, how does that apply to me? I can't really work it out." I wouldn't necessarily say it's gonna be, it's not, definitely not gonna be my like full strategy forevermore, but I do think there are periods where it's incredibly useful to be able to rely on them.
However, I think , I'm seeing quite a lot on Instagram at the moment, a bit of like, I don't know, backlash maybe isn't quite the right word, but there's just maybe some really strong opinions about being , a bit mean girl, a bit sniffy about using trends, a bit snarky. You know, like a bit like, "Oh, but butter yellow isn't gonna like blow up your business," and like, "You're not gonna get more clients if you use butter yellow."
And like, " If everyone does a trend then, you know, you're not gonna stand out." , And honestly, I had one which has gone live today, about the kind of chic one. I had [00:12:00] it ready on Tuesday, and I didn't post it until Thursday because it sort of got in my head a little bit, and then I had to have a bit of a word with myself.
But yeah I found it really hard. So I thought, obviously, having our social media expert with us today, it might be worth going into a bit of what, viral trends. Do we use them? Do we not use them? Like, what's the vibe?
Ruthie: Oh, do you know, this is really interesting to talk about actually, because I also have seen lately just like, yeah, as you say, a bit of snarkiness around, , you know, actually some really quite big accounts being a bit snarky about certain trends and
being like, if I see one more person doing the Netflix documentary trend, I'm gonna, yeah, I don't know, blow up my phone or whatever." and it's, so it is interesting that they can be quite divisive.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: and actually I'll tell a little story. So obviously I've got the Bloody Good Story Club where I provide prompts for the people in it to give them three social media post ideas, and I've really noticed an amazing bunch of women, but everyone's appetite for posting online at the minute is lower. and just like you've described, it's often to [00:13:00] do with capacity. So it's like my capacity's lower, therefore my creativity feels lower. so I was, like, trying to think of low lift approaches. what could they just get out there? What could they just do to, tickle the belly of the, algorithm, but also just keep the attention of their audience?
Because also what we need to remember is that while our appetite is lower, that is the same on the other end. So the appetite, I believe that in the summer, the appetite for consuming hardcore business content, hardcore educational content to do with business, I also believe is lower. think people are in even, an even higher state of split attention. And so not only are we pampering to our own needs a little bit, I do think it's pampering to the needs of our audience as well. I don't wanna be getting into the detail of my programs with my audience right now, 'cause I know some of them are on a sun or at the park holding three bags, an ice cream and trying to keep an eye on someone in the sandpit, I think, to get to my point, what virality does and what viral [00:14:00] posts do is just give us a shortcut. just give us a little opportunity to get something out there that feels fun for everyone, that feels fun for the person doing it. what you get with a, a viral trend is loads of examples of how it can work,
Sophie: Yeah。
Ruthie: of inspo, and sometimes that's what we're lacking.
It's not that we haven't got something to say, it's just "How do I get this out there? What can I say?" And so I think that's what one of the things viral trends do. They give you an opportunity to just be like, "Oh, shit, yes, I can get a piece of content out," 'cause that's gonna take me 10 minutes, rather than the rich storytelling posts that I obviously believe massively in. But has anyone got the time right now? And has anyone got the inclination? And so, yeah, that's what I think viral trends give us an opportunity. It's like a shortcut. It's like having a, a really great prompt-
Sophie: Yeah. And I think to be really clear, I'm not using them to go viral. Do you know what I mean? Like, I'm not- I'm like, "Oh, I'll use this viral hook because I'm hoping I'm gonna suddenly get, like, a million followers." , That isn't what it's about at all, for me [00:15:00] anyway. it's not a strategy to, yeah, be wild.
It's actually just like you say, it's a shortcut. And I do think that, and maybe we could talk about this, there are ways of doing them , that can still have, , an underlying business benefit, i.e. call in the right people and have the right conversations. Because I do think sometimes when I see them, people can get a little bit distracted by the fun of the trend and do something that's very off-topic, and then potentially do go viral or whatever, the algorithm picks it up, and then suddenly you've got a load of people that , aren't your people.
And that's not really ideal either
Ruthie: No. and I've met some people who've gone viral. I've worked with some people who've gone viral. had, I had one client, I might have told this story before, but, oh my God, she's such a babe. She won't be listening, but I wish she would, 'cause she's, I miss her.
And she was my client for about four years. Absolute legend. and, a real creative. And one of the things she loved to do was hula hoop.
Sophie: Ooh.
Ruthie: nothing to do with her business, but she like did it for exercise, did it for [00:16:00] fun, did
it to feel good. And on a whim, she recorded a video hula hooping, and it went completely viral, but , it had absolutely bugger all to do with her business. And so she got so many followers, so many people, so many comments, all the wrong people. And then it really actually messed with her account for quite a long time, because
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: then went down, because when she was posting about her business, none of the hula hoopers wanted to see it. So she was getting poor engagement rates, which then affected the way that her content went out. So I think I worry about when the intention is to go viral, because you just never know. You never know who you're gonna bring in, unless you're happening to be one of the lucky people who goes viral with something that is so on point for their business and
Sophie: Yeah.
Ruthie: in such the right people. More often than not, I see that the viral moment for people is completely random and is often on the wrong thing, and that can be a real shitter. so yeah,I love using trends. personally, I think one of the things we do have to be like mindful of as [00:17:00] well is things that are a trend in pop culture, things that are a trend in, like old-fashioned press media, that sort of thing, operate really differently to things that are trending on a platform that is driven by an algorithm.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: I think when we're on a platform that's driven by an algorithm, when a trend happens, that content's getting pushed out. There's a reason why you're seeing more and more of it in your feed is because it's having its moment. The algorithm is identifying that through whatever means, who knows, and we see more.
So there is an opportunity there as well with taking part in a trend. There is an opportunity that potentially it'll some of your other content. things are a trend for a reason. I don't believe in the, the narrative around, "Oh my God, I hate the algorithm." because I find with my own content and with all the content of my clients that
Good content always performs. And so often the reason why a trend is trending is because it's good.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: sometimes we just need to accept the fact. I spend [00:18:00] so much time in my feed just really laughing or really enjoying something. I'm like, "God, this is brilliant." at the minute, and I know you love this, Soph, because you, have told me, that radio show of Australians
Sophie: Oh my God.
Ruthie: the key change,
Sophie: The key change one. Oh my God.
Ruthie: the, we've gotta put it in
Sophie: Yeah, I'll put in the show notes 'cause it's so good.
Ruthie: is pure joy,
Sophie: Mm
Ruthie: and it's just them talking through and listening to the best key changes in music or the best beat drops or whatever it might be, and it is brilliant content. And the reason why it's going viral is because it's brilliant. The reason why some of these trends are going viral is because they're brilliant.
And so sometimes it's less about "Oh, I'm gonna jump on that trend in the hope that I get seen more." I'm jumping on a trend 'cause I think, "God, that's really clever. That's a really cool way of imagining things. That's a really great way of getting my values across or my ideas across." So sometimes it's not about judging whether something's gonna help you go viral, it's just that like, "Oh, actually, that's great content.
I'm gonna use that because it's a great way for me to speak to my audience."
Sophie: Yeah. And I [00:19:00] think the bit about like, oh, you just blend into everyone else and, you know, everyone's doing it. I think it's actually about how you use the trend and how you make sure that it's not just like you don't keep it really generic, but you actually still make it sound like you, like you say, show your values.
I guess as well, for me, it does call in that, , bigger question of how we're using Instagram for our businesses. Because I think a lot of the time the people that are sort of, , I don't know, maybe a bit snobby about trends. It feels a bit like viral trends are a bit, , trashy.
A bit like, there's a bit of, , a snobbery around it. Like, you should be creating better content, different content, use your voice, don't use AI. , I don't know, all of the, , rule police on Instagram. okay, but Instagram isn't, - my whole business. Like, Instagram is just, a part of my marketing.
, I send, for me personally, I send, emails. We do a podcast. I, you know, meet clients in real life. I do networking. There are plenty of ways that people get more depth that I, [00:20:00] you know, put across my differences, that I have more, , connection with people.
I just think sometimes we can look at Instagram and think that is, oh, that's , , all of their business, and it's just really not. So if you need to use a viral trend just to stay a bit visible, w- well, why not?
Ruthie: and also couldn't we argue that being a bit snarky and
controversial is also a trend?
Sophie: Yes, we could
Ruthie: that whole controversial hooks, like I'm calling people out. Like there's definitely a trend for that on social media, and it's an approach. And so I don't know that there's that big a difference between, obviously butter yellow is everywhere. And it does go against what, a lot of us teach in that you wanna have a really nice, clear brand identity online. social media, you, more and more, we're catching people in the feed, not on our page.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: So whereas we used to be like, "Oh my God, I've gotta have this perfect grid pattern," like it goes, photo, then quote, then photo, then
Sophie: [00:21:00] Yeah
Ruthie: we all had- loved it. I
Sophie: Loved it.
Ruthie: grid.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: But how often, if you think about your own behavior online, how often now are you visiting profiles? On the whole, we are staying in the feed, and it's now designed to keep us in the feed so that we can see more ads, we can see more suggested content. there is a part of me that, with brand identity, you want people to be able to recognize you in the feed straight away. That's Sophie's content. That's
Ruthie's content. And you could argue that if everyone's using butter yellow, no one's using their brand colors, and so maybe you're getting less visibility.
But again, it's what you were saying about just make sure you're using it in the right way. Just make sure your face is on it. If you're using butter yellow, but it's got a big Sophie face in the background or a big Ruthie face, people are still gonna know, oh, that's that person's content.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: I think it is just about how you take a moment interpret it for your business because I know how I respond when there's these trends going [00:22:00] on. Like I saw, your post this morning, the kinda chic one, and
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: I wanna see how Sophie's imagining this trend." Or, I did a post with my client and we did the things I think that should be trending and it was really fun coming up with the things , that she thought should be trending both from a personal perspective and a business perspective. And so I do think look, it, I should imagine some of it's to do with whether you're, a sort of slightly more cynical person or a slightly less cynical person. I just travel the internet thinking like, "Oh, I wanna see how that person's interpreted that trend."
Sophie: Yeah。
Ruthie: I absolutely love that Netflix one I mentioned
earlier where it's people sitting down to that dramatic music
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: essentially like prepping for, and they're putting their like mic on.
Oh
Sophie: My comm, yeah
Ruthie: love it. And I thought, actually, I'm gonna share that one of the prompts for my Bloody Good Story Club because I know the women well in there. I can imagine them doing it and it being really good. , There's a couple of real sort of spicy communicators who I know would really do something great. And as I was searching for good examples to [00:23:00] share with them to help them see different ways that it could be imagined- was loads of posts where - I typed in the search bar, Netflix documentary trend,
and I'd say the most popular posts of that were people shaming that Netflix documentary post.
Being like, "If I see one more of those," or saying that it was giving them the ick, basically. And there was a moment where I was like, "Oh, I'm not gonna share that with them, actually," 'cause I'd hate for them to feel like, I'm giving them bad advice or like I'm giving them a trend that's gonna have a negative, response.
But as I just put in the prompt, look, this is a bit of a Marmite one. I know some
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: it, but I personally have been searching them out over the internet, 'cause they're entertaining. They also do let you get to know a person. I do think some of these posts,the WTF one, the Kinda Chic one, actually what they are tapping into the overarching trend of identity maxing,
Sophie: Yes
Ruthie: people know who you are, what your values are, what you stand for in a fun and playful way, rather than a, five values that I attach to my business. [00:24:00] You know? Pretty
Sophie: I do think sometimes, when I see a lot, like, the criticisms and stuff, and I think there was a lot of this, like, everyone was using AI to, , write content, and there was loads of backlash , you know, I can't bear to see AI, you know, I can't bear to see- if I see one more person using the word quietly and em dash and all this sort of stuff.
And, , I don't disagree. , As a business owner, as I am scrolling Instagram and I'm seeing the same thing over and over again, I get it. It's not the most exciting,feed for me all the time when you're seeing the same thing over and over again.
However, , I think we've got to remember that we're all in our little pods of, , of our own thing, and a lot of the time, for a lot of my clients anyway, their clients aren't seeing that. So, ,
Ruthie: Yeah
Sophie: client who's, works with parents who, whose children need support with phonics between , years, , two, three, and four, incredibly niche, incredibly specific.
Her client is incredibly different to my client. So if she did and she hasn't I don't think, but if she did a kind of chic one, that might be the only kind of chic one, in the parents' feed because their feed is full of all sorts of other stuff. So I [00:25:00] think as business owners we can get a little bit, , stuck in our own little vortex of, , what we're seeing and actually that's not necessarily what our clients are seeing
Ruthie: Honestly, this is so true. It's In the online business world, it is an echo chamber.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: And actually, even in the online business world, you'll sometimes mention a person
who's really big, or you pay to work with somebody and I'm like, " I've never heard of that person.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: literally never heard of them."
And I'll go and search them out and I'm like, "Bloody hell, they've got 700,000 followers." Never heard of them, even though I'm in this space. I said to someone in my personal life about this, I know we've talked about it a lot, like the Jessie J Home or whatever it was
Sophie: Yeah.
Ruthie: and they're like, "Who?
Sophie: Yeah. Yeah
Ruthie: we're like, "But she's made millions about three times over."
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: exist. Doesn't exist to people,
Sophie: No.
Ruthie: she is.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: easy to tell ourselves that, "Oh my God, I can't do that because everyone's doing it." Is everyone
Sophie: It
Ruthie: is it [00:26:00] actually, like you say, am I gonna be the only person doing it to my audience?
and also the question I ask myself when I'm thinking about whether to engage in a trend or not like, normally the first question I ask if I'm completely honest is can I be arsed? And if it's yes, I'm like, let's go with that. Let's follow that thread. Because social media is a slog. And if it allows you an access point in, if it feels like a piece of content you can just get out there nice and easily that's gonna have some value, then bloody hell, great. But also I ask, will my audience like it?
Sophie: Yeah.
Ruthie: will my peers like it.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: when we're talking about the criticisms, it's often peer to peer. Or it's people, business to business, let's say. But what I'm thinking about is will my audience enjoy hearing that from me? it's really so important.
I know it's marketing 101, but bloody hell, that's who we're creating content for.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: creating content for our to-do list. not creating content for our, sort of personal profile of what people think, whether we're good at content or bad at content. I'm creating content that I think my audience will want to [00:27:00] see. are they gonna be interested or is this Because the thing that I way more than whether something's a viral trend or not is if it's boring.
Sophie: Yeah. And I wonder if that's almost quite helpful, isn't it? As a mini checklist. I mean, yeah, A, can you be arsed? B, is it boring? And
I mean, for me, it's always like I haven't done the Netflix one because There's nothing really standing out to me. I mean, I have to say, I'm not very good at ones like that where you're only allowed to say one thing.
That's why carousels work really well for me because I did the kind of chic one, and I could have 10, and that works really well for me.
Ruthie: Yeah
Sophie: like to be able to express myself in a lot of different ways. I find it very hard to say something very, , clear and snappy like you have to do for, , the Netflix one.
And so when I've looked at it and I'm like, "Am I gonna do this or not?" I'm like, A, that feels a bit hard because nothing's coming to mind. B, I don't know that I'd be able to say something that my audience would find interesting [00:28:00] right now.
and C, is it something that's gonna, , be easy for me to make?
And to be honest, sitting down and filming the whole Netflix thing, I could definitely take a couple of hours over that if I wasn't careful.
Ruthie: To be honest, that's why I haven't done it,
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: was like, "God, I'd have to make sure that I liked my outfit."
vanity stopped me a little bit.
I was like, "God, is my ass gonna look really big? am I gonna like seeing myself on the camera? I got anything..." Yeah, so I do think it is really useful. In a space where there is so much noise,
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: problem with social media, is that there's noise, there's opinions, there is people's deep darkest fears of being cringe, which
Sophie: Yeah.
Ruthie: what holds so many of us back. I
don't wanna be cringe. that's why when there is critique of things, it becomes really hard,
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: feeling pretty vulnerable in this space anyway, or can feel pretty vulnerable and feel like, "Oh, God, what's that person who I went to school with gonna think
when they saw this?"
Or "What's my mother-in-law gonna say when she sees me doing that?" hear this all the time from [00:29:00] people. When you add to that a layer of criticism of people, adding judgment to it, we're making it harder and harder for ourselves all the time. So I do think having a little checklist of , "Well, do I wanna do it?
And would my audience like to see it?"
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: a pretty good checklist. And if the answer's yes to both of those, I wouldn't care whether it's a post that's got, know, 17 likes or 700,000 likes. I'm constantly looking for inspiration that allows me to answer those two questions. Do I wanna do it, and would my audience like to see it?
If the answer's a yes, I think bugger what anyone else is saying and just get it out there. But , I know, trends happen for a reason, because people have liked it.
Sophie: And I guess I kind of think of it as , it's not always that deep. Like, you know what I mean? You don't have to serve up main meals every time you do a post. You can serve up a little snack. You can have a main meal. You can have a little pudding. ,
Okay, we might not wanna live off snacks. That might not give you what you want from Instagram. But where you're at. And I think as we get back into September and we go more into launching, [00:30:00] which we are actually gonna do an episode on, in a few weeks we're gonna talk much more about launching. , I think we will be talking a lot more then about, okay,, how do we serve up some more main meal content, content that's actually gonna activate people or have a different intention than a viral post that's more about engagement, connection, just getting out there, being interesting, but in quite a lightweight way
Ruthie: Yeah, and we have to remember as well, oh my God, to continue the extended metaphor of
Sophie: Oh,
Ruthie: and
Sophie: yeah
Ruthie: , social media is about appetite. And at the moment, every day on social media we have to recognize that people's appetite for deep content is not the same on this platform. That's not to say it won't perform, and it's not to say you shouldn't do it. You absolutely should. But there isn't a consistent appetite for people to read post after post after post that is deep and meaningful and takes a little bit more sort of brain matter.
if you watch your own scrolling attention, you're having,a little snack, one main meal, and then back to snacking.
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: at the moment as well, summer holidays, people are here, there, and everywhere, [00:31:00] everyone's in snack mode. Everyone is like, this, the attention is split even more than normal. So I think it's a great time to just experiment with content that, is a little bit lighter lift and a little bit, more fun and like you say, not that deep.
And I think if we're thinking about a broader strategy, I encourage the people I work with to definitely have, in an ideal world, one post a week that allows people to go a little bit deeper with you, that has a story, that is taking them on a little bit of a shoulder-to-shoulder journey.
Because that is letting people get to know you on a level that, that works really well down the bottom of the funnel. But, that snacky content is amazing sometimes for bringing new people in, for getting you in front of new eyes, There's a reason why for one of my clients inspiring quotes still perform brilliantly, and it's because it's so easy to engage with.
You're
not asking anything of me. I can just look at it and be like, "Yep, love that. Thank you. Maybe if
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: of really good quotes from an account I'm like, "Follow." I started following one recently, they just share quotes that really make me laugh. They really speak to,sort of millennial,
Sophie: Yeah.[00:32:00]
Ruthie: sort
Sophie: Yeah
Ruthie: woman.
And I was like, "Brilliant, I'm gonna start following them." So we also need to recognize that the appetite varies person to person, but also think about yourself in the feed. are you scrolling so slowly that you're ready to go deep with every single post? 'Cause I'm not, and I don't know many people that are.
Sophie: No, I agree. Okay. So in summary, should I care about viral Instagram trends? If it works for you, babe.
Ruthie: Yeah.
Sophie: yeah.
Ruthie: if you can be
Sophie: If you can be arsed.
Ruthie: would like it
Sophie: Exactly. Think about your audience, not your peers. Let's not feel guilt about things that make your life easier and allow you just to show up for your business when there's a lot of other stuff going on
Ruthie: Absolutely
Sophie: Okay.
So we will be back next week, where we're actually gonna be talking about AI, whether it's stealing our clients, stealing our jobs, stealing our brains, and what we're doing about it. So we will see you then
Ruthie: See you then
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