Nine things we need to stop doing on social media, or at least do a whole lot better at. Let's get into it.
1. Posting Without A Plan
You feel like you HAVE to post something, so you pull out your phone, think of something quick, post it, and wait for likes. That's not a strategy. The algorithm rewards consistency, timing, and intention. When you post randomly, you're not just hurting your reach, you're teaching your audience not to expect much from you.
The fix: Create a content calendar. Know what you're posting, when, and why. Plan around key dates and what your audience actually cares about. Prep your content the same way you meal prep your week.
2. Being On Every Platform
Nobody needs to be everywhere, unless you're Double Palm. Trying to be is how you burn out and produce mediocre content. Every platform has its own culture, format, and crowd. What works on one may not work at all on another. You can't show up fully in six places at once.
The fix: Pick two, maybe three, and go where your audience actually is. Build there first, then think about expanding.
3. Posting More Instead Of Posting Better
More posts doesn't mean more growth. Posting every day just to look active, when your content is rushed, does more damage than posting nothing at all. It tells people you don't value their time, and they'll start scrolling past you without even thinking about it.
The fix: Before every post, ask yourself this — does this educate, entertain, or inspire? If the answer is no, don't post it. Three strong posts a week beats seven lazy, rushed ones every time.
4. Replacing Your Voice With AI
AI tools are useful. Nobody's saying don't use them. But there's a big difference between using AI as a tool and letting it speak for you entirely. People are catching on fast. Your captions sound robotic, every post reads like it came from the same template, and nothing feels human about it.
The fix: Use AI to draft your script, then rewrite it in your own voice. Add your opinion, your experience, your perspective. That's the part no algorithm can copy, and it's exactly what your audience shows up for.
5. Chasing Trends That Aren't Yours
You see something going viral and think, I need to get on this right now. Chasing trends that don't fit your lane doesn't make you look "up to the minute." It makes you look lost, and it confuses your audience about who you are. Not every viral moment is an invitation. Some trends belong to specific communities, and getting it wrong can damage your credibility.
The fix: Before jumping on any trend, ask yourself — does this align with my message and my audience? If yes, move fast. If no, let it pass. Your consistency will always outlast someone else's viral moment.
6. Only Selling And Never Connecting
"If every post is you trying to sell something, your audience will tune you out faster than a maxi-taxi driver when you try to pay him with a hundred-dollar bill."
People don't follow you to be sold to 24 hours a day. They follow whoever is relatable to them, entertains them, or teaches them something. Social media is a conversation, and nobody wants to talk to someone whose only motive is getting them to buy something.
The fix: Try the 80-20 rule. Eighty percent of your content should give value with no strings attached — educate, entertain, inspire. Then when you do promote something, it actually lands, because you already built that connection.
7. Not Engaging With Your Audience
You post. People comment, DM you, ask questions — and you just don't respond. Or you reply days later with a one-word answer. That's not community. That's a bulletin board. Engagement goes both ways. Every comment you ignore is a person you're telling "you don't matter." And people have options. They'll find someone who actually shows up for them.
The fix: After every post, set aside 15 to 20 minutes to engage with your audience. Reply to comments. Ask follow-up questions. That's how community happens.
8. Obsessing Over Likes And Follower Counts
How many likes did it get? How many followers did I gain? Why did that post only get 200 views? Just stop. Likes don't mean loyalty. Followers are not community. Vanity metrics feel good for about 30 seconds, then pull you into a spiral of chasing numbers that don't actually mean anything. Some of the most influential accounts out there have modest follower counts. Some accounts with massive followings can't sell a hundred products. The number isn't the thing.
The fix: Track what actually matters — saves, shares, replies, click-throughs, conversions. These tell you if your content is really working. A thousand people who genuinely care about what you do will always beat a hundred thousand who scroll past you.
9. Ignoring Your Analytics
"The algorithm is against me." No it's not. You just haven't learned how to work with it. Every platform tells you, for free, exactly what's working and what's not. It's sitting in your analytics dashboard right now — your best posting times, your top-performing content, your audience breakdown. All there. All ignored. Algorithms reward content people actually watch, save, and share, not just content that goes out often. Relevance and quality always get rewarded.
The fix: Once a week, set aside 10 to 15 minutes to go into your analytics. See what worked, what flopped, what people saved, what they shared. Work with the platform, not against it.
The Wrap-Up
Nine things, all of them fixable. Social media isn't broken. But a lot of how we're using it, is.
Did this article make you irrationally angry, because you're guilty of a few of these? Perfect.
Channel that rage into a lengthy YouTube comment — @kirkpadmore. It really helps my metrics. Same handle on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
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