#SMDayADL Takeaways

What do journalism, hot sauce and rubbish bins have in common? They were all hot topics at this year’s Social Media Day Adelaide. Yes, it was back after a five-year hiatus, and it didn’t disappoint. The speakers and the content they shared was fresh, relevant and informative. 

It’s always a good sign when the crowd is buzzing, lots of questions are asked and you can hear the soothing drum of fingers bounding on the keyboard. 

For those that weren’t able to make it, we’ve compiled the biggest takeaways from the six speakers that shared their knowledge and expertise.

Authenticity is at the core

Belinda Bracale from Neon Moose shared her top social media trends to be across in 2024/2025.

While Belinda shared a number of trends, the consistent theme throughout the day was making sure you share real, raw and genuine content. Gone are the days of perfect posts and beautiful imagery. Yes, they still have a place, but in the world of 5 second reels and limited attention spans, people are after authenticity. 

No longer are we buying from faceless companies; we are craving connection. Think Brittney Saunders and Fayt the Label or Richard Branson and Virgin. With that trend, comes the rise of influencer marketing… and the continuance of user generated content (UGC).

This style of content is way more memorable and in fact, has a 29% higher conversion rate. Why? It humanises your brand and speaks to social proof. Again, showing you are real and authentic.

Look at ways that you can jump on this trend and find micro influencers that you can create authentic partnerships with, that work. 

TAKEAWAY: Find ways to create authenticity in all you do, from content to partnerships.

The art of storytelling

As humans, we are all programmed to tell stories… BUT we aren’t all programmed to tell good ones!

With a background in journalism, Lily Hoffman from South Australian Tourism Commission, let us in on a journo secret. The framework to writing stories, which can be used when talking about your brand to create the perfect elevator pitch and brand content. 

Lily referenced the Significant Object Study, which shows that a good story can increase the value of something seemingly insignificant. 

Instagram knows this too, rewarding original content and content that is shared by others. When thinking about content, think about why you’re sharing it and why anyone will care about it. Think about how you can make your content entertaining, educational, timely, a little silly or something asks the audience a question. 

TAKEAWAY: Find your story and simplify your brand using the 5 W’s and 1 H framework: who (person), what (thing), when (time), where (place), why (reason) and how (steps). 

When the world is your audience

Sophie Cavies from Anthology runs social media for a range of countries and shared the challenges that come with that. Not only the significance of a good work-life balance and a working alarm clock, but areas you need to be mindful of.

When dealing with multiple time zones, you need to ensure you are scheduling posts that are convenient to the majority of your followers. Look at the visuals you are using to make sure they are culturally sensitive and use language that is universal. So look at eliminating or limiting your g’days and talking about having a barbie while wearing thongs if your content is being seen in different locations. 

TAKEAWAY: You can’t be everywhere so look at ways to use your staff as content ambassadors. Make sure you give them clear guidelines and tips on what to create content about. 

Connection and community management are key

Laura Bates from Adelaide United shared their latest campaign to promote the team’s fixtures. Traditionally a static post that is purely informational, her team took a deep dive into their community to find out what they would engage with most and set about creating content that they would relate to. 

What Adelaide United found was a community that didn’t take themselves too seriously, except perhaps when they were losing (!!), and LOVED to banter. With far less red tape than an AFL team’s social media team, they reinvented the way they post their fixtures and saw the community grow. They gave each team a hot sauce label that depicted an inside joke, label or how they viewed the rivalry to invoke humour and passion. In this sense, it was vital for them to be across audience comments and keep the conversation going.

The campaign was successful, and even had other teams in on the banter, keeping the conversation going. The fans loved what they were seeing and the connection the audience had with the team IRL only grew more in the digital space.

TAKEAWAY: Know your audience and see your content take off. If they don’t relate to and engage with the content you are creating, then you’re wasting your time. Social media is about your community. Find out what they like, who they are and what will connect with them.

TikTok ain't just for Gen Z

Maddi Ragno from MADE.Marketing shared her TikTok tips after these tactics helped her completely transform her marketing agency. When Maddi speaks, you listen!

Firstly, whatever you (or your boss, or marketing team) think of TikTok, unthink it. TikTok is where it’s at from everyone from Gen Z to Baby Boomers. When you change your thinking on how to use TikTok, your whole creative mind will be opened up to storytelling, rawness, consistency and hopefully, ultimately success!

Maddi reiterated that people no longer want to buy from faceless brands, so make sure that your TikTok has a ‘face’. Be that your founder, its staff or an expert.

Maddi suggested focusing on four key areas of content to win over your TikTok audience:

1. Controversial
2. Educational
3. Aspirational
4. Relatable

As with any other social platform, the content you create needs to provide value and be quality. For TikTok that doesn’t mean it needs to be highly produced and look amazing. In fact, the opposite works better, BUT it does need to be quality content.

You can post three times a day but if you’re not providing value and don’t have an engaged audience, your content won’t be seen beyond the FYP (For You Page - the main page you scroll through). So, once you find something your audience loves, it’s often just a case of rinse and repeat.

TAKEAWAY: Think about TikTok as top-of-funnel and create a strategy around that. Include a signature series as that’s what will keep viewers coming back, if they are engaged. Think about a catchphrase to open with, the same location or even an outfit to wear every time to create a signature for your brand.

What a load of rubbish

The day ended with a surprise piece from our host of the day, Port Adelaide Enfield Council’s, Ed Garner. Ed showed us all how one person and one media outlet can create absolute chaos. And chaos that has nothing to do with fact.  

When a Port Adelaide resident complained about receiving a fine for leaving their bins out, the media outlets jumped on the story and created a load of rubbish, or several bin fulls should we say! 

But Ed saved the day, even though he couldn't quite prevent the media’s incessant spin on the truth, by acting quickly, knowing the facts and sharing the real story on social media, he was able to get a little bit of the truth out there. 

TAKEAWAY: Prepare for the worst. Have the confidence to get on the front foot and speak your truth. Don’t be afraid to get a response out there quickly, especially if the situation is being reported incorrectly. Respond to comments on media posts to share the real story and control the conversation. In the long run, this will all help build trust with your leadership team and give you a framework to work to next, if and when it happens again.  

Social Media Day Adelaide was certainly a hit and we have no doubt that what was learned in the room will be used across Adelaide brands and businesses. Plus we’re pretty sure the event will be back again bigger and better. There’s not much certainty in life, but we are pretty confident social media will be around for a while yet!

Feeling the FOMO? We get it. BUT Social Media Day Adelaide was run by the same team as Digital Adelaide, which includes our CEO Ryan. If you need your digital marketing and social media fix sorted for next year, you can book in early and get your early bird tickets for Digital Adelaide 2025.