Why your social media strategy needs a 2025 upgrade

If you hit 10,000, it felt like a golden ticket to endless reach and engagement. Well, those days are gone.

Remember when having loads of followers on social media was the ultimate flex?

If you hit 10,000, it felt like a golden ticket to endless reach and engagement.

Well, those days are gone.

Now, even if you’ve amassed a massive following, your visibility isn’t guaranteed. The algorithms don’t care about your follower count anymore - they care about your content and your recent engagement.

In fact, if you have a million followers but none of them have interacted with your posts in the past week, your reach might is probably zero.

So, where does that leave us for 2025? It’s time to rethink how we’re using social media. It’s no longer just about posting great content and hoping it sticks. It’s about using social media as a tool to build something bigger - an ecosystem that’s under your control.

Social media isn’t the endgame

Think back 10 years, when social media was a goldmine for organic reach. Back then, it was almost too easy to get in front of your audience. Now, platforms like Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and TikTok are fiercely competitive. The days of effortless virality are over, and that’s not going to change.

Platforms don’t value followers anymore.

So, if you want to play the social media game, you’re only as visible as your last post.

Every day you pretty much start from scratch.

Why would they do this? To keep you working away, feeding their feeds with your best work.

Platforms can’t allow creators to have it too easy. They need their users to spend more and more time engaging and consuming - so they continually change things up, to keep us scrolling and creators chasing more reach and engagement.

So what’s the solution?

Stop.

If you don’t need a huge following and you don’t care about popularity online, just stop.

If you want clients, stop seeing social media as the be-all and end-all.

Instead, think of it as a traffic source - a way to funnel people into spaces where you have the final say.

Building your ecosystem

If you want to future-proof your strategy, you need to build an ecosystem that doesn’t rely on the whims of an algorithm. Here are three key components to focus on:

1. Direct messaging channels

Platforms like WhatsApp and Slack are brilliant for creating direct, unfiltered communication. Whether it’s a group or an announcements-only channel, these spaces allow you to connect with your audience instantly.

The upside? It’s personal and immediate. The downside? Some people might get overwhelmed by constant notifications and leave the group. You’ll also have a constant battle with people joining and spamming your members.

2. Structured communities

Tools like Kajabi or Skool offer more structured community spaces.

These can be great for deeper engagement and creating a sense of belonging. But - and this is a big but - they’re not easy to manage.

Keeping people engaged in a paid community requires constant effort.

You need fresh, valuable content to keep members interested. I’ve found this challenging, and I know I’m not alone. Facebook groups often suffer the same fate. Without consistent engagement, they can feel like ghost towns.

3. Email lists and newsletters

If you’re just starting out, or if you want the biggest bang for your buck, email is the way to go. It’s direct, reliable, and - most importantly - algorithm-free.

Unlike communities, you don’t need a massive audience to make email work.

And unlike social media, your reach isn’t at the mercy of changing rules or trends. An email list is a one-way conversation that puts you in control, making it the most dependable way to nurture and grow your audience.

Why email is the hands-down winner

Let’s be honest - building and maintaining communities can be tough. Yes, they’re appealing. Yes, they have potential. But they require time, effort, and a significant number of members to avoid feeling like a flop.

Email, on the other hand, is simple and effective. It’s the most direct line to your audience and a crucial tool for protecting your business from social media’s unpredictability.

In 2025, your social media efforts should have one main goal: growing your email list. If they’re not doing that, it’s time to change your approach.

What this means for your strategy

So, what should you do?

If you’re just getting started, focus on building an engaged email list.

Once you’ve grown that, you can look at adding communities or direct messaging channels.

But make email your foundation - it’s the one thing that consistently delivers results.

Social media is still powerful, but it’s a means to an end, not the end itself.

By using it to drive people into your own ecosystem, you’ll create a business that’s not only more resilient but also less dependent on the whims of an algorithm.

2025 is your chance to take control.

Build your email list, nurture your audience, and use social media as a tool to build it.

And if you’re not sure where to start, let’s talk.