Imperfect on Purpose: A New Way of Looking at Your Social Media Strategy

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Rachel Strella: Welcome back to Untamed Social. I am Rachel Strella and I am here with Anna Dobbert.

Anna Dobbert: Hi.

Rachel Strella: I'm excited. This is the first time that Anna and I get to collaborate, and this is actually a really fun topic for both of us. So, um, today we're gonna talk about being imperfect and being imperfect on purpose. So this is actually really great because we're talking about a new way of looking at your social media strategy, um, being imperfect on purpose. So, um, I, I had a former business coach who used to say all the time, people are messy. And I, I think that's a great way to kind of sum up, um, the truth about humanity. First of all, we are messy. All of us, but also I think it's a great way to sum up, um, the reality of social media.

I think a lot of us have been living the lie, um, and we, we've lived behind this, um, perfect persona on social media, but the truth is we are messy. And while we don't have to showcase all of the messy details of our lives on social media, um, we were living behind this facade. So, um, I thought we could each share a little bit of a personal story about a time we've tried to live, uh, the perfect life.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah, when I, I think about that question, you know, social media wasn't very like there in my childhood, but it got popular like in my early teens and I started to engage with it later, like than the rest of my peers did. But then once I did get into the social media world, I was like all in. I would post anything. And then one day when I was 19 and I started to get like a little bit more of a frontal lobe, I kind of freaked out. I looked at my Instagram grid and I said this, this has everything. This has every different side of myself. This has so many pictures of my face. And I really, um, honed in on that element of it being so many pictures of my face. And I went through and I deleted every single one, that had my face in it. I archived all of them. I was like, the internet never needs to see my face. This needs to be done. It, it like messed with my head for a period of time and I still kind of feel that way on a decent amount. I don't post a lot of my face, I don't post a lot in general. Um, and I can tell that it definitely came from that sort of societal idea that Instagram is supposed to be perfect and your social media presence is supposed to tell this perfect story, and I was like, I can't even engage with it if that's what I'm supposed to be doing.

Rachel Strella: That's totally understandable. And I think that's actually more of a thing for women too. Like we have this like thing about how we look and we wanna, I, I feel like that way too, like you're my editor, sort of like with graphic design, I'm like, can you crop out, you know that scar my face? So we all feel that way at times.

So for me, um, just like this past Easter, um, my family was here and we took this big ussie before everybody left, and I have this hydroponic garden, this gigantic light fest in my living room, and I saw the lighting was absolutely horrible because it was way too bright and it was kind of blurry. My husband like tried to like Go Go Gadget his arm to take this photo and I was like, I can't post that.

That's, that's like way too bright and blurry. And I, my husband was like, no, it's such a great photo, you have to post it. So I was like, oh, okay. Okay. So I posted it and of course it was fine, but it kind of, it's just funny how much like we overanalyze, something like that. But I think for, for me, and I think this kind of leads to broader conversation being in social media as a social media professional, I feel like we're held to a different standard.

Anna Dobbert: Mm-hmm.

Rachel Strella: My work is out there on display. Like what kind of a social media professional am I, if I'm putting out blurry, poorly lit, you know, photo on social media, right.

Anna Dobbert: Well, yeah. I mean for you, in the line of work that you're in, like your social media is effectively your portfolio. If people are looking at that and saying, okay, this is your scope of work. This is like what you're capable of doing, when that's not necessarily entirely accurate. Like just because you do it professionally and you can consult people and you've had success with other people's accounts, doesn't mean that your account is gonna be treated the exact same way.

Rachel Strella: Right, but I said like, but that's that thing that we're being held to, you know. It's the same thing on Facebook. You know, I remember having a consulting meeting with a prospect one time, and they're like, you know, we noticed you're not getting a whole lot of engagement on your Facebook fan page. So it's like, if my Facebook fan page isn't blowing up, that makes me, you know, not credible at all.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah.

Rachel Strella: It's that. It's just that standard.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah, it's definitely like it's, uh. I don't know how best to describe it, but it's a, it's a slippery slope of looking at your personal social media and then determining what kind of then business you must run. It's not entirely accurate.

Rachel Strella: Yes. Right. No, you're absolutely right. Yeah. But I feel like I'm always on display, you know? Yeah. So talk to me a little bit more about, you know, this pressure to be perfect. I mean. Just, we talked a little bit, you know, the other day about the highlight reel trap. Do you wanna talk about that for a minute?

Anna Dobbert: Yeah, I feel like it's, I feel like it's something I've been hearing more in the, you know, TikTok conversation buzz about how you can fall into the highlight reel trap, which would be like looking at people's, other people's, like your peers, social media, and comparing that directly to your own life and not understanding that everything that they're posting isn't a direct reflection of their life, but rather their highlight reel, the parts they wanna show the parts that they've like pruned and primed and made to perfection. And you're taking that and filling in all the gaps of being like, oh, because your breakfast looks this way and your vacation looks this way, this is the person you are and this is the life you lead.

And it's always beautiful and it's always happy, which just isn't the case. 'Cause then you turn and you look at your own life and you say, this wouldn't look very good in a picture or this has so many other complex, you know, humans are complex and humans are messy, like we were saying earlier. So you can fall into this highlight reel trap of saying, if it's not looking a certain way, then it must be less valuable, less happy.

Rachel Strella: Mm. Okay. So we're kind of curating the perfect life. Yeah.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah. Or you can, you can fall into the trap of believing that someone else's curation is their life.

Rachel Strella: Right.

Anna Dobbert: As opposed to what it is, a display.

Rachel Strella: Okay. And that makes sense. I get that. We're always putting out the, a version of ourselves that we want people to see.

Anna Dobbert: Mm-hmm.

Rachel Strella: Yeah. Okay. Well, um, so I follow somebody online. Um, Mark Schaefer, who, and most people may know him, um, he's, he's a social media consultant. He's very well known. Um, he, he wrote something recently, uh, it was called Why Strategic Imperfection is Your Essential Strategy to Beating the Boss, because of course, you know, everybody knows AI is out there, could potentially take, you know, all of our jobs someday.

But what I, what I really liked about this strategic imperfection, um, was he, he referenced certain things like the, the Pratfall effect, which was actually discovered back in the sixties by a psychologist. Um, and he said that, uh, people who are perceived as highly competent. You know, they actually, despite their competence, they become more likable when they actually make a mistake and they admit that minor mistake.

And I really, really like that. Like just this week, somebody on our team, they owned our fundamental this week. They were so vulnerable, uh, by admitting all of their mistakes this past week. And I really loved that, and it made me like them even more. Nobody likes a know-it-all. You know, somebody that's always perfect all the time tends to be perfect.

And it reminded me of a book that I read, a sales book. Um, it was somebody that wrote this book in the fifties, but it was called How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling. And he, he said that, you know, when he was, when he was speaking, he was hitting the speaking circuit. He would get up there and he would be nervous, and when he got up there, he would, he would get on stage and he would tell people, I'm kind of nervous right now, instead of just like faking it till we made it.

And, you know, hoping nobody noticed. And it actually made the audience want to be in his corner. They, they wanted to, to help him out a little bit. And it, it, it's, it's just funny what happens when you admit something like that, that you're nervous. So I, I like this. I like this whole strategic imperfection thing.

Instead of acting like we know it all, that faking it till you make it concept is kind of out the window.

Anna Dobbert: Well, yeah, and like if we wanted to use like, like him doing that and coming out on stage and saying, I'm nervous isn't, it is a strategic move and it's, it's authentic and in its representation, but maybe not in its spontaneity. You know? It's not like he came out there and felt so compelled to say that. He used it strategically and this is sort of what we're getting at here is like you can do, you can figure out ways to do that with your own social media and turn it into strategy by finding these things that are like authenticity signals sort of, of being like, I can inject this into certain places and it shows people that I'm human, that I'm here, that I understand you 'cause you're also human. Like I recently, um, last time I did the podcast with Laney, we had a slew of technical issues. We kept getting frozen. We kept not being able to hear each other, and Laney and I are also pretty close. And so it led to a lot of like completely unprompted laughs and all these different things going on. And so by the end of it, when I edited the podcast, I was like, this would make a hilarious blooper reel.

And I think, even we had forgotten the word for blooper reel while we were recording the podcast, and that made it into it, and that was such good little insight to make if we're making all of these podcasts and all of these clips of expertise and advice, but the audience doesn't actually start to see like, okay, but who am I as a person and who are you as a person?

Rachel Strella: Yes.

Anna Dobbert: Adding in things like that adds that authenticity signal to it.

Rachel Strella: Absolutely. I'm really glad you pointed that out, that authenticity signal, because it showcases who you are. You know, without having to like be, you know, trying to think of the best word. Like you know the person who like just puts everything out there and the kitchen sink. You know, you don't have to be that guy, but like you could showcase that you're a real person and that vulnerability factor, and that makes you more likable and relatable.

So, I mean, there's a cost to, you know, trying to be perfect all the time. Um, and I can speak to a few of 'em. Like first of all, it's consistency. You're gonna lose consistency if you're always trying to be perfect, uh, that analysis paralysis, I find it in myself. I struggle sometimes to come up with content because I'm like, oh, it's gotta be as good as last time.

Or, you know, if I had something that did really well, I keep wanting to outperform that one that did really well. And sometimes you're just not going to have content that like out does itself. It just, it's just not gonna happen. So like, it's okay to be imperfect. Um, I think, the authenticity thing we just talked about is really important because if you're just like, oh, I have to write my four posts for the week, or whatever, then you're just gonna be pushing stuff out that's not you, you know? Or you're just gonna have AI write it to say that you did it, you're gonna lose the authenticity factor. So, and then of course, the big remiss would be, you know, that human connection, which is really what we're here to do. Um. So like, you know how people always wanna create formulas like, oh, motivation Monday, or, you know, whatever it is.

And I, I tell people like, don't feel forced to do that because if you run out of a motivation Monday, you know you're gonna lose the authenticity factor. You're gonna run out of something to say. So like, focus more on that human connection. That's more important than anything.

Anna Dobbert: Well, yeah, and I feel like, like that relates to sort of the nature of social media and why it's particularly, authenticity is particularly important for this demographic because when you think about, advertising as a whole, right? If you're thinking like a billboard ad, a newspaper ad, a commercial, you first of all typically have a team behind doing all that, and also you can put all this effort into it and then it's done and complete and it can run for a period of time, and it's all the same ad.

Social media never ends. It never stops. You consistently have to feed that beast.

Rachel Strella: Yeah.

Anna Dobbert: If you're trying to feed that beast, billboard quality, commercial quality, newspaper ad quality content, all of the time, you're gonna start to lose some nuts and bolts. Like it is not going to be a sustainable way of functioning at all.

And so not only can authenticity and imperfection be strategic for connecting with your audience, but also can be strategic into creating a content plan that's functional for you that you actually enjoy doing because you're not gonna, no one's gonna do something that they hate, like forever. If you're starting up social media, you're probably gonna keep doing it for a long time, and you're only gonna do that if you enjoy it and if it's not miserable for you.

Rachel Strella: You're totally right. I know when I was like in my heyday at TikTok, I was like having so much fun, but it was a lot of work. But I kept trying to trump the things that I was doing and then I'd burn out. You know, like you really have to enjoy it, you know, committed to it and like be, you also have to be like really authentic too.

So there's so many elements here to, to be consistent, um, and be true to yourself. Um, the mental energy on social media is a lot. And imagine like the people who try to have like 10 different channels.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah.

Rachel Strella: You know, I think there's a lot to be said too for like sticking to one or two that like you really enjoy and that you're, you know, you're getting the most traction on instead of trying to be everywhere.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah. I agree. I, it reminds me of, so my, my boyfriend, I don't know if I've talked to you about this before, but he was in a band or he is in a band. And a few years ago, I wanna say maybe like four years ago, um, their label had a lot of pressure on them to be posting on TikTok at a certain frequency. Um, I think it was something like three a week and it was all in their hands. They had to do it all independently, they had one that went really, really viral and it was sort of like a scripted sketch bit. And so from then on, every single time they kind of felt like they needed to make, a scripted sketch bit and I remember kept trying to tell them, I was like, it doesn't need to be an elaborate song and dance every single time.

Like you can. You can put anything you want up there and see what sticks. You don't need to be, putting so much mental effort 'cause they all hated it. They all hated doing scripted perfect pixel perfect little sketches all the time. And I was like, then don't do that. Like do something that you can sustainably do and you are having fun doing.

One, it's gonna read better to your audience 'cause it's authentic and it's clear you're having fun.

Anna Dobbert: And two, it's gonna be easier for you.

Rachel Strella: Yeah. Yes.

Anna Dobbert: People wanna see other people have fun.

Rachel Strella: Yes.

Anna Dobbert: They don't wanna see miserable people making sketches.

Rachel Strella: But the pressure we put on ourselves, it's really unnecessary.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah.

Rachel Strella: Well, let's, um, let's like maybe just give a couple of things, you know, practical advice. Help us let go of this, this, perfect. So, you know, I think it's okay to be good enough, not perfect. Good enough. Um. One of the things that I remember, uh, Laney always saying, you know, especially for people who are camera shy, I, I, I was one, you know, who really struggled, like with talking head videos, um, is like, pretend you're talking to somebody on FaceTime, which was a really great tip.

Um, along with that is like talk, talking to somebody, like you're talking to a friend. So if you're saying it in a, in a conversation, it's a much better way of trying to get content out there than like trying to pretend like you're writing a novel. Um, another tip would be like showing that messy middle, so the progress shots, um, the unscripted stories, the behind the scenes.

And I highly recommend that because people actually like really seeing like the work in progress.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah.

Rachel Strella: Um, and you know, the storytelling part, like I can't emphasize this so much, like with forget the polished ending, you know, tell the story. 'Cause people are always gonna remember. You know, how you made them feel and that good story is, is everything.

So, um, whatever that story is, work in progress. Tell it.

Anna Dobbert: Yeah, I agree, I think if I had one piece of practical advice. I think the thing coming to my head is just to get out of your head. Like I think people are holding onto and defining certain rules of social media that don't exist. There's no rules to social media. There never has been. It's a blank canvas and you get to decide what box you wanna put yourself in, or if you wanna put yourself in no box whatsoever, you can do, you just need to get out of your head.

You just have to let go of whatever notion you think social media should be, and you can make social media what works for you.

Rachel Strella: Absolutely. That is such a great tip. There are so many people who come out there with rules.

Anna Dobbert: Mm-hmm.

Rachel Strella: Those are their rules, not your rules.

Anna Dobbert: Yes.

Rachel Strella: I think my number one tip would be, um, that it's okay to be vulnerable. Um, so many people are afraid to tell how they're really feeling about something or something that they've been through.

And I've always felt like that vulnerability is your voice and it's your chance to tell your story. And I have never had anybody, I've never had anything that's ever happened or a story that I've told where I was vulnerable that has made an impact, that has negatively affected me in any way. If anything, it, it made me relatable and I had people that would say to me, I'm so glad that you told me that, or, I'm so glad that you shared that story because I dealt with that too, and I can relate to that.

And that's the thing that can really translate to trust. I can't emphasize it enough, you know, if they're going through something, somebody else is too. And you know, again, this isn't like you have to share like your deep, your deepest, darkest secrets on earth, but like, just being, being vulnerable about something, whatever that something is.

Like I know this past year for me, I was suffering with depression. Um, being able to talk about that and, and um, other people shared their stories is like, it was something that a lot of people go through. So the vulnerability is, is something that I, I think you should be okay with at your comfortability level.

Like you said, get outta your head, your rules.

Anna Dobbert: Because isn't that the whole point, isn't that sort of the thesis of social media is like connection, connecting with one another and, and isn't the kind of the only way you can accomplish that through vulnerability?

Rachel Strella: Absolutely. Well, we, we have a challenge for everybody this week. We challenge you to post something imperfect, you know, a blurry photo, maybe a caption that you don't overthink. And you know what, like for me, next week, my sign isn't gonna be straight than I'm planning to hold. Um, get outta your head. Do something different, you know, and in marketing, you know, we're all about results.

So hey, try it. See what happens. You know, it's worth a shot. We, we, we, we love to see, you know, how it works out for you. Well thank you guys for tuning in to the Untamed Social Podcast and we'll see you next time.

Anna Dobbert: Bye.

Rachel Strella: Bye.