IN PHOTOS: How social media is transforming traditional marketing strategies

Social media has removed the barriers of geography, as well as the need for costly ads and brick-and-mortar stores. But is it the great leveller of the marketing world or a bubble waiting to burst? (Story by Debjani Paul and Akshita Maheshwari) (Pics courtesy: Special Arrangement)

Updated On: 2024-12-17 01:41 PM IST

Compiled by : Jyoti Shukla

From leveraging Instagram's storytelling potential to removing geographical barriers, here's how social media is reforming old-school marketing.

Founder Yash Kotak with his brand Boheco’s products. Pic/Nimesh Dave

Social media enables hyper-targeted marketing for brands like Bombay Hemp Company aka Boheco, whose niche products feature cannabis, a “highly misunderstood” ingredient, allowing them to educate and engage a younger, informed audience. Social media has probably been the biggest contributor to their efforts to educate the consumer segment, reveals Yash Kotak, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of the hemp and medical cannabis company. 

Method art gallery has harnessed the power of social media to make art accessible to younger audiences, drawing them to the gallery

Social media enables art galleries to make art accessible, allowing galleries to shape conversations around art, engage younger audiences. “Social media has been extremely powerful for us in terms of getting the message out. Since we are a young gallery, working with young artists, it is the natural medium for us to connect and engage with young art enthusiasts and audiences,” says Sahil Arora, Founder.

Founder of Tanzire (centre), Suhani Batwara, conducting a strategy meeting with new products for her jewellery platform. Pic/Ashish Raje

Community has been the keyword driving Suhani Batwara’s social media campaign for her jewellery marketplace. Transforming a traditional B2B jewelry business to B2C model, Tanzire's founder uses social media as a universal language to connect directly with customers, educate them about demi-fine jewelry, and create an accessible brand experience.

Actor Vatsal Seth and his son in twinning kurtas from Tura Turi

Social media has become a community-building platform for this children's wear brand, allowing them to create organic connections with parents. Their authentic content has attracted the attention of celebrities such as Sonam Kapoor, Genelia Deshmukh, Vatsal Seth without paid placements.

Priyanka Bhattacharya Dutt, Co-Founder, Tura Turi

“Our audience is people like us—parents, uncles, aunts—anyone connected to children,” says Priyanka. “As moms ourselves, we relate to our audience on a personal level. We take a casual, informal approach, creating relatable content. It’s not just about advertising; it’s about building a community where parents feel they belong,” adds Priyanka.

A concept shoot of Prdgy’s best-selling design, Lone Wolf 

Social media has removed geographical barriers, enabling an indie apparel brand from Raipur to reach customers in remote Jamjuri village. With strategic digital marketing, they've built a 35,000-strong customer base by transforming advertising economics.

Mrityunjay Jha, Co-Founder, Prdgy.in

One of the pitfalls of social media is that paid ads can quickly become a black hole for finances if brands don’t figure out a well-rounded strategy, he says. “Ads will introduce new customers to your brand, but if you don’t engage them with effective and consistent communication, they won’t return. You will effectively end up paying just to make one sale at a time, instead of retaining your existing customers and paying only to bring in new ones,” explains Jha.

145 East, a design collective from Kolkata, is on a mission to make the humble gamcha an aspirational textile

Leveraging Instagram's storytelling potential, this design collective turns everyday humor into viral content. By creating relatable, in-house videos that resonate with audiences, they've transformed marketing from expensive shoots to daily, engaging narratives. “Social media is free. It’s up to creators to be smart with the content they make,” says Pratibha Goel, Sales & Marketing, 145 East.

Balram Vishwakarma, Co-Founder of digital marketing agency Scroll Back Studios 

For smaller brands, the goal should be to get more for less, and influencer marketing is the way to get there, says Vishwakarma. Small doesn’t necessarily mean low quality, though. “The content creator economy has become decentralised—brands are no longer dependent on the handful of influencers from the pre-Reels era who charged a bomb,” he says, “Now there are tens of thousands of small creators making lots of good, sometimes crazy content.”

Also Read: How social media is revolutionising old-school marketing

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