Why does saying “I work in social media” feel like outing yourself?

Let me paint you a picture.

You’re at a party, or a conference, or that random work thing where they serve dry wine and everyone pretends to love what the next agency has to say. Someone asks you the inevitable:

“So, what do you do?”

You hesitate. Your palms get a bit sweaty. Your brain races through 18 ways to spin it. And finally:

“I’m on the social team.”

Cue the polite nod. The tilted head. Slight smirk. Maybe even a “So you post TikToks?” if they’re feeling bold.

Been there. Trust me. Despite being one of the most fast-paced, creatively demanding, emotionally draining jobs in marketing, it still carries the weird weight of not sounding “serious” enough. And that’s wild.

Because in reality? The social team are the ones building your brand. Every. Single. Day.

Social is everything, but it's treated like an afterthought.

Let’s talk facts. People don’t discover your brand from a 78-page strategy deck or a TVC that took 9 months and a small nation’s GDP to produce. They meet your brand in the wild. In their feed, in a story, in a comment thread, in a DM they’ll screenshot and send to their group chat.

And yet… based on what I’ve heard, social teams are still too often the last ones looped in. Given a brand idea that’s been cooked, overcooked, and plated three times over. Then told to “make it go viral.” Or “add a TikTok.” Or worse, “can we make this fun?”

All without the strategic context. Without creative support. Without actual authority. But yes, with full accountability for how it lands in the real world.

“Just make it social,” a.k.a. the modern marketing cop out.

When a brand idea doesn’t translate beyond a press release? “Social can fix it.” When the tone of voice is confusing, sterile, or allergic to human emotion? “Just tweak it for social.” When customer sentiment tanks? “Can the community managers respond to the comments?”

Newsflash: social isn’t a life raft for broken strategy. It’s not the duct tape holding your big brand idea together. It’s the literal heartbeat. The connective tissue. The place where brands either earn relevance or quietly fade into the digital abyss.

But despite that, social media is still treated as junior, both in title and in influence. It’s the marketing equivalent of the intern with the aux cord. Expected to set the vibe, make things cool, and not touch too much budget.

But can I be honest for a second (of course I can—who am I kidding)? This job can be brutal.

You know what the job description doesn’t say?

• “Must handle crises in real-time while maintaining a cheeky tone.”

• “Should be okay with being everyone’s scapegoat when metrics go sideways.”

• “Will be expected to comment on cultural moments within 4 minutes of them trending.”

• “Oh, and be funny. But not too funny. And not offensive. And never weird. But definitely on-brand. Even if no one can explain wtf that even means.”

Meanwhile, social teams are often:

• Underpaid

• Under-resourced

• Over-accountable

• And still showing up every day to make your brand feel like it has a soul.

Imagine… stay with me here… bringing in social from the start.

Here’s a wild idea: what if social wasn’t an afterthought? What if it was part of the brand-building process from day one?

If social teams were included in brand strategy, you’d get:

• Campaigns that don’t need five rewrites to survive the comment section

• Content that’s built for relevance, not just aesthetics

• A tone of voice that actually works outside of a PDF

• Teams that feel empowered, not exhausted

Social is the one team already operating at the speed of culture. 

So if you want your brand to be relevant, agile, and resonant? That’s where you start. Not where you retrofit.

Because social teams are not “just posting.” We’re building brand equity in real time. We’re answering customer questions, reacting to world events, measuring sentiment, driving reach, and building affinity. All while using slang your CMO still thinks means “laugh out loud.”

Social media isn’t “less strategic.” It’s just strategic faster.

If you’re still treating social as a junior discipline, you’re not just behind. You’re leaving money on the table and relevance in the dust.

So the next time someone tells you they work in social media? Don’t smirk. Don’t nod politely. Ask them what you can learn.

Because odds are? They know more about your brand than you do.

-Sophie Randell, Writer