If that statement sounds like I’ve turned into an unbearable bossy britches, then let me explain. Put simply, you wouldn’t feed a Mogwai after midnight… would you?

As much as I have trouble saying ‘no’ to calls for help, when those plaintive pleas happen in November and December alarm bells ring.. Managing a digital agency for nearly a decade means I have certainly noticed a pattern with the type of folk who come knocking on our door for our services in November and December.  There are always exceptions to the rule - but there is a very solid collection of negative past experiences that have informed our firm policy to not onboard new clients in this ‘danger zone’.

Here’s some of the top reasons why we’ll be saying NO

Onboarding a new client to manage their social media takes time, concentration and lots of love. It’s like dating someone new but with the clock ticking, your clothes on fire and Jingle Bells playing on a loop. First you have to organise the logistical bits and bobs like contracts, service deliverables, social passwords, admin rights and connections to name just a few. This is assuming there is no weirdness like rogue Facebook Business Manager ownership by Tegan the intern who left in August. It also takes time to work out your voice, what you like, how you/your business tick and how you want to be represented on social. This process alone can sometimes take up to three months. Which obviously does NOT fit with the ‘let’s make this work’ in the two-months-before-Christmas timeline. Just writing all that makes me feel anxious and tired so please take note and say ‘no thank you very much’.



7kg babies – or delivering the undeliverable


There is a very real sense in this current world that bringing in a digital team will ‘solve all your woes’. Fair enough, we are pretty damn awesome, but even Team Amazing can’t perform actual miracles (most of the time). Whether they’re expecting you to manage the overflow from an overworked marketing team, ticking off some looming KPIs or myriad of other businessy things, the simple truth is it’s impossible to deliver everything in this short time frame. Add to the mix management trying to navigate increased days off (Chrissy functions!) and holiday requests within both the incoming business and your own team and you’ll understand that we have to manage expectations with a very firm dose of tough love. No matter how much you try to offer realistic insight into what can and can’t be achieved, I can almost guarantee those warnings will not be remembered in the heat of the moment, and everyone will be left with feelings of being let down with targets (real or imagined) not being hit.



Sell Season makes everybody a little nutso


Even for our long-standing clients, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Pre-Christmas and Boxing Day sales are seen as the Hail Mary patches not only for most businesses, but especially for e-commerce. Those that have seen lower-than-expected sales for the past 10 months of the year, will see your digital agency as their saviour to finally hit those lofty goals (and deliver bonuses in time for Christmas). Of course, we have been known to work miracles, but this time of year is a highly competitive and noisy sales space. If your digital strategy has been woeful for a while, it’s going to take some work to get you out of the dumpster bin that’s on fire and hurtling to Nowhereville.



Our normal clients want fries, a Fanta and a super sundae too


Even with our already on-boarded existing client list, things start to get a little… intense. They want extra photo shoots, more ads, supersized content and EDMs all day long because tis the season of golden sales. Not unreasonably, they too want to ride that purchasing wave and want us to help them get there. We’re super sorry, but that means at this time of year we have no more room at the Inn (even if you turn up on a donkey with some myrrh on the side).



We get it. The lead-up to Christmas is rarely ‘drama free’ - both in our professional and personal lives. All of us are spread thin, a bit tired and some of us are even ready for a full-blown punch-up on the best of days. Taking that into consideration, we’d prefer not to put the ‘boxing' into Boxing Day.



Once the tinsel is put back in its box, January brings renewed ideas, refreshed staff and plenty of down-time for a lot of us. Come-a-knocking then, we’d love to hear from you!

Putting the 'NO' in November – why we don’t onboard new clients in November or December . . . and why you shouldn’t either. 

You can probably guess my thoughts on this before I start . . . by putting quote marks around 'let'... I've 

 to make it clear that you don't have a choice.

Trying to stop them creating a personal brand is also kind of… stupid.

I hear many business owners bemoan a staff member building a strong personal brand, especially in the creative industries such as photography, hair and make-up, marketing, events and social media; simply because they are afraid they will build their brand under the umbrella of your business and then walk away with your clients and business. Yeah, that can happen (snakes will always slither ), but you are missing an opportunity if you don't support the amazing people in your team (and their personal brand journey) - and your business will miss out too.

1. If you don't support it - they'll find a company that does


We live in a time where building a personal brand is not just an option, it’s highly recommended. It ensures job prospects, career advancement and personal growth will follow you and will act as a walking, talking resume. By restricting your team's ability to grow in this space, you’ll increase the chances of their departure… not decrease it.

2. It builds respect and trust for them and by extension - your business


Trust and respect for your team and your business are not mutually exclusive. If people trust your team, they will trust your business. With the rise of AI and the lean into authenticity and humanity, people need to connect to a person - and individual - a human. Not a faceless brand, product, service or business. So if you have many trusted humans as part of your brand story, the trust and faith in your business will be amplified too.

3. It builds brand awareness and visibility for your business in their niche audience


Is it such a leap to think that the audience that follows the superstars you work with, also would be the EXACT audience you and your business are trying to attract? Whether that be as client attraction or recruitment - both are solid wins.

4. It helps to soften the impact of any negative brand fallout from other staff


If one of your team members cocks it up royally and publicly, having many other team members with strong personal brands will soften the impact of bad PR amongst potential clients and the general public… you know the old rule… it’s the negative reviews that give the positive reviews context and weight.

5. It's a strong testimonial tool for potential staff (and clients!)


Happy, supported staff talk about being happy and supported. They talk about you... and about your business. A big part of what makes businesses great is the amazing team and culture they cultivate… and the attraction of quality staff can be one of the toughest jobs out there. What better testimonial is there than team members that sing your praises… even better if it’s to a large audience of like-minded individuals. Jackpot!

6. Building trust and a strong positive relationship with your team means they'll support you too


Support, trust, collaboration and respect are all two-way streets. It can't just flow one way. You should openly and genuinely support your team and help them build their profile and reputation. Of course they may leave to fulfil their dreams and career aspirations, but that is something that's outside of your control - and trying to restrict that is like trying to put an octopus in a vase . On the flipside, by supporting and encouraging the growth and development of personal brands in your team, they might come back one day - or even stay - imagine that?!

7. By holding back their personal growth, you do yourself and your business a disservice


If you start by assuming the worst in people, you can create a self-fulfilling prophecy. But not only that, by hindering their potential for growth you are holding back the growth and development in your own business too. Your team and your culture and the foundational blocks for your business. You want everything and everyone to grow - and that includes their own personal brand.

Should I "let" my staff create a strong personal brand on social media?

Do you feel relaxed after the school holidays? Or have you started 2023 with half a tank? Desmond Tutu once wisely said “there is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.”

What he meant by this is that we should take the big things that life throws at us gradually by taking on just a little at a time. But many entrepreneurs try to eat the whole damn elephant, and quite frankly try to eat multiple wrinkly grey bois - family, friends, business, second business, personal brand. It’s a herd, and no-one is that hungry.

One of my favourite authors and ‘digital mentors’, Arianna Huffington, collapsed from complete exhaustion in 2007. Smashing her face against the desk on the way down was the wake up call she didn’t know she needed.

Although I am a massive advocate of the hustle (controversial statement these days) - I love living on the edge and thrive in an environment of ‘busy’. I have also been through fatigue and burnout before and it’s not pretty. I blow shit up. Like anything in my path… so maybe I need to pump the brakes a wee bit.

Like me… maybe you need to step back and have a look around because we all need to start 2023 refreshed and renewed. Not batshit crazy. Some of the warning signs that you may be on the path of wellness self-destruction could be:


EVERYONE seems to see it - except me. My staff say often that they don’t know how I’m still standing and how on earth am I managing ‘all the things’. Even my website designer and creator said that I was trying to ‘eat the whole elephant’ (thanks for the analogy and the visual Jeremy!). If everyone around you is saying the same thing, maybe it’s time to listen.


When you tell more than two people to Go F*ck themselves… it’s probably time to have 

a little lay down. (But also - maybe they NEED to be told). It’s cathartic for sure, and most times in retrospect it’s the cleansing that was needed, the person, client or ‘thing’ that wasn’t serving your values or goals anymore. But let’s maybe bid them a beige farewell instead of lighting it on fire.


You get words wrong, you forget what you were saying and quite frankly you start sounding drunk… or like an idiot. Or both. Avoid being Yoda and take that trip to Bali.


Is everything a chore? Are the kids giving you the irrites? Does going to work bring forth existential dread? Are you doubting every idea and choice you are making? Fatigue, stress and burnout paints everything grey. It’s hard to feel joy when you’re in this state.


Without that ‘space’ in your brain, creativity will elude you. Believe it or not, taking actual timeout will make you more creative and you will be able to work faster too. Instead of pulling your work day through mud, you will ski on top of it.

Like I said, I am a massive fan of the hustle, but there are only so many balls you can keep in the air at a time… and sometimes you have to drift into that space where you drop a few so you know where your limits are. Just make sure you drop the rubber ones and not the glass ones and take that gawd dayam break.

The Hustle of an Entrepreneur: Eating the Elephant

It’s here… the longest of all the school holidays. I can already see the maniacal twitch of fellow parents as we've breezed (?!) through Christmas yet, still have ANOTHER FOUR WEEKS TO GO. I'm 100% sure one thing causing this twitch is the ongoing war with our teens and pre-teens… over DEVICE USE.

I’ve already heard brutal tech war stories from other parents during this time (think 11hr Snapchat sessions, throwing things out of the car on the freeway and screaming fights in the middle of Coles).

I don't always get it right (HA!) - but I do lean on the wise words of Thomas Edison who famously said "I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work" - and I think parents managing the digital struggle with their kids can 100% relate.

But in those epic failures, I have found the following FOUR 'P's' have worked well for me*:

(*When I give a shit enough to enforce it - sometimes having them on tech for a solid day is helpful/necessary when you work from home or just need some down time. Don't come at me - you do it too)...

Having a ‘family meeting’ around the use and management of their phone sets expectations early, makes sure everyone is on the same page and there is no confusion around what ‘holiday use’ of the phone looks like. The chat should include use times, potential late night use, morning use and other non-phone-related activities. Make sure the parentals/guardians have a "pre-pre" meeting alone though… to make sure you are a united force. If you show weakness, they'll smell it. I know we are half-way through, but late is better than never if it's driving you INSANE.

It’s going to be a constant battle of repeating yourself, reminding them of the rules and enforcing punishments. It’s not 100% their fault… their prefrontal cortex is still a mushroom.

Yes. I'm aware this is actually TWO P's. Pffffttttt whatevs.

This is a prison for the phone. Not the teen. But I guess whatever goes in your house goes. As I said before, they have the ‘emotional’ and ‘impulsive’ part of their brain making most of their decisions, so best to take the temptation out of their hand and pop that phone in a nice lil’ safe prison overnight.

This will need to be discussed at the family meeting before the holidays start too - and encourage the kiddos to curate their own punishments… they’ll be more savage than you can ever be - and more likely to agree and stick to it if it was their idea… just remember that ultimately because they are under 18, the phone contract is in YOUR name. So if it comes down to it, you can threaten complete annihilation of the device (my favourite), pause or even terminate the contract.

Besides these, I recommend a solid screaming session outside for all parentals.

And a really strong drink... like REALLY strong.

Managing Teens on Devices: The Holiday Tech Wars

It was literally by accident that I ended up with a crew of clever millennials in my charge.

I think it’s both the stage my agency is in, and also the industry (digital and social media marketing) that has attracted them to the positions I had available. As such I’ve learnt a great deal about the employment pros and cons of a millennial workforce.

To help guide other Gen Xers through the millennial jungle, I’ve prepared some tips and tricks after 15 years of working with this extraordinary, yet sometimes boggling generation.

Almost every millennial I’ve worked with has needed strong encouragement to actually pick up the phone and make a call. They’d rather send three billion emails than make one phone call. They’re a generation that’s grown up with social media and ‘chat’ functionalities, the written word is their preferred comms method and phone calls freak them out. One of my team used to have to work up the courage for a phone call and make notes in preparation. Hold their hand on this one – the more they do it, the better they’ll get.

They love workplace flexibility and work-life ‘balance’

I have many thoughts on the concept of balance - and the fact that it’s total bullsh*t. But millennials love flexibility, it means they can enjoy their lives outside of work and their many social activities and relationships. If you want to tap into the millennial workforce, you need to look at how your organisation manages workplace flexibility. I’m talking hybrid working arrangements, flexible working times, time in lieu and workplace social opportunities.

Their emotional intelligence is set to high

In my work life history, I’ve literally had managers yell at me, seen them tell people they’re useless and throw massive workplace tantrums. We Gen Xers are used to sucking it up and saying nothing. Millennials are more tapped into their emotional intelligence and don’t respond to or manage this type of interaction at all. If my frustration boils to the surface and I’m vocal about things in the office, I can literally feel the temperature of the room change. Managing millennials requires a more measured approach. They don’t do uncomfortable.

Don’t worry about asking what they need... they’ll tell you

This one is self-explanatory. Millennials have an abundance of workplace assertiveness, they know their rights, they know what they need and they’re not afraid to let you know.

For my industry, this is obviously built into the job descriptions. But it’s also incredibly handy, as having a digital presence for every business becomes a necessity, not just a nice-to-have. Make sure you recognise their additional skills appropriately and don’t try to create unicorn positions. And spend time learning from them, they love to teach you.

So make sure you and your business are that shiny thing. Millennials won’t stick around for long service leave or a gold watch, and if you’re not careful, another shiny position or organisation will grab their attention. I think they’ve been unfairly tagged with a lack of loyalty… what it really means is you have to keep them feeling challenged and valued. Being ‘shiny’ means constantly checking in, keeping those feedback loops running smoothly and making sure your organisation walks its talk.

Learning and experiences are worth their weight in gold

Millennials are hungry for both experience and knowledge… they’ve literally grown up with a computer in their pocket and as such have an insatiable need for constant learning. I think this is an amazing asset, because it improves my workforce value too.

Be prepared to be more than their boss. You have to be their mentor, mate, mediator and mum

This generation doesn’t see workplaces as just somewhere to churn out the work and then head home. Their desire for richer experiences flows between their social and work lives and as such they want relationships that are less surface in the workplace too.

Don’t plan anything important on Mondays. Sunday sessions are alive and well in millennials social diaries. Give them a day to catch up and get back on track, by Tuesday they’ll be firing on all cylinders again.

A Gen Xers guide to working with Millennials 

Thinking about what to post on social media as a brand is exhausting… and never ending.


So, when something big happens globally, many brands think it makes sense to make that easy jump on to the content creation train as it whooshes by.


The death of Queen Elizabeth II last week meant that social media was awash with tributes, comments, and outpourings of sentiment.

Among those tributes were plenty of brands that got it right, for example 

 sweet tribute to Ma’am was extremely relevant because they had partnered with The Queen on several occasions, recently releasing an endearing video which showed Paddington and The Queen enjoying afternoon tea together at Buckingham Palace for the Platinum Jubilee.

 also led the way with a touching tribute, blacking out their windows and closing their main stores for the day. Clearly a move that wasn’t sales based.

But there were also plenty of brands that were nothing short of cringeworthy, and that clearly hadn’t thought this through, leaving themselves open to some ruthless social media heckling and subsequent brand damage.

There was a slew of mirrored condolences from West End productions such as 

 and Les Misérables, and while I’m no theatre expert, I do believe that these productions are about uprisings and revolution against the monarchy? Les Misérables has since deleted its ill thought out post, but the damage was already done.

We’ve also seen some downright disrespectful posts from CrossFit UK with the Queen Elizabeth II Tribute Workout and some interesting posts from Dominos, the 

. I didn’t know Her Majesty personally, but she didn’t strike me as someone who would have dropped into Maccas for a Big Mac to cure her hangover? Then we have BooHoo fashion, again I struggle to see the relevance of this one, unless perhaps you need an outfit for King Charles’ coronation?

While I believe that it’s right to honour the life of someone who served The Commonwealth for 70 years and dedicated her life to the throne, I also think it’s right to take some time to sit with the idea and work out whether it really is relevant to you and your brand.

When you’re thinking about getting on a trending global movement such as the death of a much-loved monarch, I believe it’s important to re-visit your brand values - is this part of a narrative you’ve had before? And will continue to have? Or are you just jumping on a bandwagon and looking for trending content?

The first and most important rule of social media is you don’t have to post just because everyone else is.

If you’re unsure or it’s just a thinly veiled attempt to direct some traffic your way, my advice would be to sit this one out... or your brand could end up paying for it.

Social media tributes: brands beware

It continues to be a strange time on our third rock from the sun… COVID still has its claws in our daily life and most of us have had to revisit how we work while keeping our homelives on track. Moving from an IRL (in real life) approach to a virtual one, has meant a lot more Zoom meetings, at-home or hybrid working models, social media overwhelm and a reassessment of our life priorities as a whole.

For those of us working in digital, things got a WHOLE lot busier – and very quickly. We had to pivot our strategies, adapt communication methods, activate online sales methods, change our social media messaging at the drop of a hat and be responsive to the ever-changing social climate that COVID created.

When social media is your job, there is an expectation to be “always on”. As the pandemic rolls on into its third year, the digital industry as a whole is changing its perception of this 24/7 approach – as are we. With that in mind, we also pride ourselves for our responsiveness and are trying to work that balance between 24/7 and 9 to 5 – as unlike iPhones, we aren’t machines and require time away from technology. While we work THAT out, you’ll still hear us at social events utter phrases like

“COVID restrictions have changed – see ya guys, I have to go change all my posts” *sigh*.

It can often mean we are ‘THAT’ person in our friendship group, and it can be an actual strain on our mental health. We’re talking: screen fatigue, burn out, anxiety from notifications and disinterest in our own personal social media. Snappy chappies who are tired all the time…

So, in the spirit of RUOK? Day, we want to share the Dark Horse team’s top tips to ‘switch off’, how we manage our stress and look after our mental health…

It’s tempting to be on the socials all day every day… they are actually designed to keep you in them, so it’s a hard battle to fight. Making rules or restrictions around your use can be the barrier you need to get out of the endless scroll.

“I keep my phone and all tech devices out of my bedroom – this stops any temptation to mindlessly pick up my phone or to wake up and immediately looking at social media, emails or the news (my husband does the same). This also sets a positive example to our kids. I’ll quickly check for any urgent messages once I’m up and in the kitchen, then I don’t look at it again until 8am. I have two kids to organise in the mornings, so it helps me to be more present with them too”

After typing away all day, sometimes all we need is half an hour to ourselves where we’re not interrupted by an email, Facebook notification or phone call. Many of us enjoy activities in the afternoon like walking, an exercise class, or catching up with friends to relax, de stress and enjoy screen free time.

“I love reading a good book. I find it’s an easy way to put my phone on silent and have a set amount of time with no distractions. After being on a computer screen and phone throughout my workday, I find this easy on my eyes and an easy way to wind down. I also enjoy getting outside and enjoy a walk to move my body.” 

Take up hobbies that don’t include screens


We all finish the workday and head home to our families, partners and lives that are filled with all sorts of things. Some of us love cooking, others play team sport or enjoy a long walk along the river with the dog. For some, after work is gym time or an opportunity to socialise. Whatever it is, switching off where possible is crucial to keeping us sane!

“I don’t take my phone with me when I go to my exercise classes. This is my hour to zone out, sweat and focus all my attention to what I’m doing. If I go for a walk, I’ll put it in my pocket so I can still snap a photo of the sunset if I need too…but I will have it on silent for one hour to enjoy me time!” 

“Catching up with friends is one of my favourite ways to be in the present and spend quality time with those closest to me. When you’re surrounded by good food, good drinks and of course the best company, there’s no need for me to pick up my phone. Pure bliss!” – Kelly, Operations Manager

We’re often online looking at other brands and agencies to see what they’re doing online and how we stack up. The truth is, we’re all doing our best in a fast paced, ever evolving digital landscape and we only have a certain number of hours in the day. If we can’t churn out 7 Reels a week, that’s ok! We know our clients love what we produce, and we try to go home each day reminding ourselves of that.

At Dark Horse, we also encourage everyone getting out of the office as much as possible. Whether that’s a lunchtime walk around the block, a coffee run down to our local Little Way or popping in to visit clients for a screen free meeting - we’re all for it! Culture is what makes Dark Horse so special, and bolstering that with fun activities that promote wellness is key.

Social media may be 24/7, but we don’t have to be. Making space for rest and wellbeing is important (probably now more than ever) for mental health and allows us to be the most creative versions of ourselves. And remember to ask others if they are OK? Sometimes the question can be just the care and kindness they need…

R U OK Day? Social media managers and mental health…

Ahh that (digital) age-old-question on whether you can use that photo or not. Believe it or not, it’s always been VERY VERY clear… but it did mean you would have to trawl through the mire of Instagram’s T&Cs. But now it’s become downright dangerous to use someone else’s creative content.

Instagram is changing, constantly, and one thing they’ve been very clear about for the past year is their focus on original creator content. What that also means is they are cracking down – hard – on accounts and individuals using other people’s photos and videos without consent.

Have I posted someone’s image or video on Instagram without credit?

Have I posted someone’s image or video on Instagram and credited them in the caption with a ‘tag’ or a ‘photo by’?

If you answered YES to either of these questions, you’ve infringed the creator’s copyright and breached Instagram’s T&Cs. Whether you meant to – or not.

Unfortunately, using another creators image or video on your account without consent, is against Instagram’s T&C’s and could very much land you in hot water with both Instagram and the creator.

What is consent? Asking permission (through a DM or email) and getting that written consent back from the creator. Simply tagging the creator in your post is simply not enough.

That pretty picture of a facial product or the stunning drone image of a popular Perth beach is someone else’s hard work, skill and time, and a tag in your caption isn’t going to cut it anymore (and actually never did). Instagram is cracking down on these types of copyright breaches more regularly and that ‘innocent share’ can get your account restricted or closed down… plus the creator can lodge a copyright infringement too.

It’s not all bad news… you can 10000% share someone’s Reel 

 to your stories, in fact – it is encouraged!

Orrrrrr – Instagram has made it very clear it will prioritise original content, that is, content made by you – a photo, video or sound… so have a go at creating that stuff you need! Smart phones take amazing photos and videos these days and you can be a graphic design QUEEN in Canva… it may seem hard at first, but trust us, your audience, your Instagram account AND your lawyer will appreciate the effort.

Ask nicely to use someone’s image or video, tell them how you want to use it – and make sure they say yes.

Use some shit-hot stock imagery or videos to supplement your other content.

Hit us up via DM’s on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok - @darkhorseperth.

Is it RIGHT to use other peoples images on your Instagram? Copyright.

You may have heard plenty of Instagram experts talking about how hashtags are dead… or not dead… or you should only use 3 to 5… or 10… or you still should use the full 30… well - they are kind of ALL right.


Well, Instagram is becoming more sophisticated in its search capabilities (about bloody time) - even though searching for a username is still a massive pain in the butt and it has to be EXACT for it to be found… (hang on - where does that underscore go?).

In terms of content search and indexing, Instagram is operating more and more like a search engine and picking up common keywords across ALL your content - be that your bio, username, 

 AND hashtags. This is operating very much like SEO does for your website, using keywords regularly throughout to ensure those web crawlers can find you and get your site seen by people who are actually looking for your type of content.

Previously hashtags and your bio/username were the only ways keywords could be searched. NOT SO ANYMORE. The algorithm is indexing ALL words - even in your captions and across ALL your posts.

Start using Instagram like you would your website - using keywords that relate to your niche regularly, in your 

. I’ve seen content presented as an option in search, even when the keyword is not even used - but it was certainly used often enough in their other posts to ensure all their content started coming up in search as relevant.

What else does this mean? Stop using made-up, stupid, nonsensicle words. The ones that personally make my eyes roll back into my head are: biz, widdle chids, soshewwwl (seriously - I’ve seen this - it’s social - SOCIAL 🙄 ).


Unless your ideal customer is going to search “soshewwwl 4 biz”,  then maybe you need to rethink your strategy. I’m not saying don’t play around with language - hell, I do it all the time - just don’t do it for your KEYWORDS or anything you think your audience will be searching for.


To answer the ultimate question - are hashtags redundant? No and yes (don’t you love answers that are as clear as mud 😂 ). If you are using keywords relevant to your niche and customer, then your content will still be searchable - but maybe add a few industry hashtags in regularly to improve your searchability even more.

Are Hashtags Useless? Instagram as a Search Engine.

The rise of digital media has made way for a new way of working in recent years. From bloggers to Instagram stars, the sale of goods and services is extending far beyond traditional means of advertising with the likes of small beauty clinics to large tourism operators engaging the services of internet royalty, sports stars and celebrities to promote their wares for a fee. There is no denying the reach or…ahem influence…these digital moguls have, and to many of us (sitting at home on the couch, green with envy that old mate is raking in $1,000 per Instagram post) it seems they’re not really doing much, right? Wrong.

Social media influencers (or talent as we prefer to call them) are content creators. They are creatives, photographers, stylists and writers with perfectly executed social media feeds and the ability to perfectly and seamlessly articulate your brand in a way that you (as a brand owner) may never have considered. They know their audience, what makes them tick, what types of content they like to consume and how to best position your product or service in front of them.

They also have rent and mortgages, children and families to support and bills to pay. Like it or not, this is their job, so if you’d like them to create compelling, creative and engaging content for your brand, you must be prepared to pay for it. When was the last time you bought a car and asked for the wheels to be thrown in for free?

Unfortunately, it’s not an even playing field online, with many social media users and self-appointed “influencers” racking up tens of thousands of (usually bought) followers and, approaching brands for free meals in restaurants in return for a story (which is often just a selfie) or a facial in a decadent day spa to make every single one of their “fans” jealous. But a simple story or post, with no strategy or creative direction does not pay the restaurant staff wages, or the products used in a facial nor the time, energy and effort professionals should be receiving for their hard work and experience. So how do you know who is worth the money, and who isn’t?

Not all influencers are created equal and it pays to do your due diligence. A platform may have 20k plus followers, but who’s to say they’re all genuine, engaged followers? Micro influencers are on the rise too, so pay close attention to the highly connected and very active users who sit around the 1k – 5k follower mark. There are plenty of platforms available that have the ability to analyse and report on engagement, growth, reach and audience demographics, so running a quick check before you start the conversation is a worthwhile exercise. Hype Audit, Social Blade and Modash are some great options.

The first thing any talent manager or influencer (worth their salt) will ask, is what are you willing to invest? Generally, influencers and talent won’t have a “shopping list” of prices to choose from per se but will create a bespoke package in terms of content and creative storytelling to help achieve your goals. Quality influencers are all about value and creating authentic, genuine social media content as opposed to just a post or an Instagram story that sits in isolation and most likely won’t have any impact. Being clear about what you’re willing to spend from the get-go will help to mitigate any surprises. Expect to pay at least $1,000 onwards (on top of any gifted products or experiences) for quality content.

Have a clear brief and reasonable expectations

Being upfront and clear about what you want to achieve (ticket sales, product sales, brand reach and awareness) in addition to any requirements regarding imagery, copy and hashtags is crucial when briefing an influencer. Equally, being flexible with their style and creative licence is important to avoid looking contrived and dare we say it…paid. Always request data and statistics at the end of your campaign too, you need to know exactly how things performed

Allow your talent to experience your product

This is important. Do you want them to sing your praises and potentially go above and beyond for your brand? Then go above and beyond for them. If your product is a physical item, create a memorable press kit or gift for them to unbox and document. Allowing them to receive, feel and experience your product before entering into an agreement (if possible) will allow for more authentic and genuine storytelling.

We believe social media influencers and talented digital creatives are worth their weight in gold. The value add they can bring to a business, small or large, through reach, engagements, uniquely created content that can be repurposed, lead generation and sales is just the tip of the iceberg. Think of it as having an army of cheerleaders for your business, if they love it, not only will they nail the brief, but they’ll tell their friends, who’ll tell their friends…and so on.

So, do your homework, create a budget, know what you want to achieve and create lasting relationships with talented individuals who will elevate your brand like never before.

Why you need to pay quality influencers

When it comes to curating your brand’s social media content, we’re firm believers that original is best. Social media, Instagram in particular, is flooded with millions of pieces of content daily, so your content marketing strategy must cut through the noise, stand out and generate sales or bookings for your business. Gone are the days of inspirational social feeds and “regrams”, people want to see their favourite brands making an effort with their content, creating engaging images and clever captions to boot.

But how do you do this? You call in the big guns, that’s how. 

We recently executed a brand and product shoot for our client and collagen queen, Edible Earth. Following a stunning rebrand of her marine collagen, organic bee pollen and adaptogen wellness formulas, the purpose of the shoot was to capture Edible Earth’s new packaging in situ as well as imagery of the brand’s founder, Sarah. This content would then form part of an integrated content strategy as well as extending to PR and media opportunities.

Outstanding creatives and long-time friends of Dark Horse, photographer Thom Davidson (Shot by Thom) and stylist Clare Ryan helped us bring this vision to life with a brand shoot that captured the new style and branding of Edible Earth whilst keeping it accessible to a wide market. The end result was a catalogue of images we regularly swoon over and have had massive impact on Edible Earth’s social media growth.

Investing time and money into a professionally implemented brand and product shoot is worth its weight in gold. It will give you ownership over your own catalogue of high quality, perfectly styled images, allow your brand to stand out from the crowd on social media and ultimately result in more sales, followers and bookings.

We are also incredibly fortunate to have friends with a lust-worthy house and the patience to allow our whole team take-it-over for several hours while we captured this amazing brand story.

It takes a village - curating content to make your brand glow

The Dark Horse team recently travelled to Sydney to produce video for our National aged care client, Hall & Prior in preparation for ANZAC week 2021. Capturing three stories from brave men and women who live in their homes and once served for their country.

ANZAC Day is particularly poignant and significant for Hall & Prior as they care for more than 100 of our courageous veterans in 27 residential aged care homes across Western Australia and New South Wales.

Sharing three different veteran perspectives, Alfonso who served for Croatia in World War II, Allen who served in the Vietnam War for Australia and Gemma who worked in the Army Reserves and was married to a Major who served in the Vietnam War. It was a great privilege to help Hall & Prior shine a light on the amazing stories from Australia’s history.

Please take the time to meet Gemma, Allen and Alfonso and learn a little more about their stories…

ANZAC stories of sacrifice: filming Hall & Prior veterans

If you had told us 10 years ago that social media would someday be a full-time job, we would have laughed. However, there’s no denying the ever-evolving nature of today’s digital landscape - which essentially means, if you’re not on the ‘gram or implementing a social media strategy for your business, then be prepared to be left behind.

And while we love creating content, learning about what the heck Instagram Reels were and seeing our clients win, social media management is not all about cat memes and FBI level stalking… although those are quite fun. It’s constant analysis of data, keeping up with ever-evolving digital trends and dealing with the not-so-nice trolls and nasty DM’s that come with this space.

Working in social? Here’s what we’ve learnt…

You have a minor breakdown every time a new platform is released

Social media managers the world over breathed a collective sigh when Snapchat started to fade away…only to be swiftly replaced by TikTok. Those not born in the 2000’s quickly scrambled to create accounts, follow all the viral trends, learn the dances and desperately research whether our clients should have an account too. Every time a new social platform gets announced, we stress. Haven’t we got enough already?!

Your own personal social media account will either look a barren wasteland or will be so heavily curated it will start competing with some of your top clients
Fact: you will never be able to post on your own Instagram account without questioning your image composition, caption, hashtag set, how it fits in with the rest of your feed or the timing of your post. That’s if you even get to post it at all. Working in social media will either send you down a dark path of obsession or leave you so puffed out that you couldn’t possibly do more!

When Business Manager won’t play nice, just pour a stiff gin and come back tomorrow. It’s the social media equivalent of turning it off and on again.

Everyone thinks you have Mark Zuckerberg on speed dial

If only! Sadly, there is no direct line to God (or Facebook or Instagram), we’re as disconnected as the rest of the world when it comes to getting help from a real human at one of these companies.

 a perfect time to post on your social media. Sometimes it’s when you least expect it, too (we don’t know who is still up at 11.20pm on a Tuesday, but clearly someone is!). We’ll never tell our secrets at figuring this out though, you’ll have to hire us first…

"Relying too heavily on social media alone is a dangerous game for a brand…”

Put simply, relying too heavily on one platform is a dangerous game. As we’ve seen recently with many accounts (both business and personal), Instagram can 

 does shut accounts in a heartbeat, without any warning or reason (insert panic here). Ensuring you spread your effort, risk and potential across multiple platforms will stand you in good stead if the worst were to happen. If we can recommend anything, please curate and nurture a healthy email list. This together with your website will be your most reliable and valuable real estate. Because don’t forget, with social media, you’re playing in someone else’s backyard.

We cannot stress the importance of this one enough. Every woman, her dog and job are on social media now. How will your account stand out from the crowd and cut through the noise? Be different, take risks with your content and be rewarded.

You can spend almost an entire day on emoji selection for a post.

“Should I use the dancing girl in the red dress or the man at the disco?” and other frequently asked questions in the Dark Horse office… In all seriousness, emoji selection is paramount.

Placing a small fortune behind a large paid Facebook advertising campaign will only be successful if you’re sending people to the right place. A perfectly functioning website and seamless user experience is crucial to converting sales. Put it this way, you wouldn’t lead someone to a shop that was closed and expect sales, right? Fix up all the other bits before you start your campaign. 

Things to leave alone: religion, politics and bandwagons.

If you’ve never had a conversation about Black Lives Matter as a brand, make sure the conversation is real and continued. No one likes performative activism.

Always do your best to secure an alcohol brand, a beautician and something edible.

Because the one thing that soothes the soul of a social media manager the most is booze, botox and bread. 

The world doesn’t work like this anymore. Thanks for offering to tag me on your platform for the hours of hard work I spent curating this content, but that’s not paying my mortgage or feeding my family, so I might pass. 

Influencer management is a whooooole new world and a big fat can of worms.

If there’s anything we’ve learnt here, be very clear with your expectations and always have an agreement in place. And definitely don’t rely solely on influencers, have your fingers in all the pies. Apple pies if possible (please refer back to point 11.).

Basically, we never need an excuse to imbibe, Thursday afternoon drinkies are good for creativity and the soul. This day is called first Friday… the day before second Friday.

You can work from anywhere in the world, on a beach, on the moon, in quarantine.

As long as we have the Internet, we’re good to go. Not saying we planned this or anything but having the freedom and flexibility to work anywhere in the world, at any time, is priceless.

Your first line of customer service is your DMs. Read them, acknowledge them and respond to them as soon as possible. Just because they’re not forward facing doesn’t mean they aren’t PR…one disgruntled customer can create quite the shit storm.

If at all possible, take the conversation offline.

Don’t argue with customers or followers in your comments section. Diffuse any tension by taking the conversation offline ASAP. Most times people just want to feel heard and validated and you can remedy issues quickly and effectively. Plus, no one wants to see good old-fashioned fisticuffs in public…awkward!

Your weekly screentime notification will become a rude awakening.

HOW MANY HOURS ON INSTAGRAM?! If only those hours were a tax deduction.

You can’t manage what you can’t measure

Data and insights are everything when it comes to social media. Regularly analysing your statistics are crucial for forward planning, how will you know what’s working if you’re not constantly reviewing. We regularly nerd out when its reporting time for our clients… give us all the analytics!

Social media has the power to change the world.

If the past year has taught us anything, we couldn’t live without connectivity. Well, we could, but it would be bloody hard. Every lockdown announcement about COVID? Social media. Connecting with family and friends you haven’t seen because of a global pandemic? Social media. Live streaming events you would normally be at in person? Social media. It has the power to change the world for the better, and we couldn’t imagine our lives without it.

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