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Social Media Just Got a Massive Shake-Up — 7 Urgent Moves Every Business Must Make Now
Discover the game-changing updates transforming social media in 2025 and the exact strategies you need to stay ahead of your competition.
Ark
August 12, 2025
The Graffiti Revolution: Why Businesses Must Ditch the Art Gallery Approach to Social Media
In the ever-evolving landscape of social media, many businesses are clinging to outdated strategies that prioritize polished profiles and follower counts. But as marketing expert Adam Erhart points out, that era is long gone. Today, success hinges on performance-driven content that thrives in an algorithmic world. Drawing from his experience working with thousands of businesses over the past decade, Adam reveals how savvy brands are adapting to this “feed-first” reality by embracing a graffiti-like approach: messy, quick, and built for discovery. In this article, we’ll explore the brutal truths behind the shift, the new playbook for growth, and practical steps to outpace your competition.
The Death of the Old Model: From Followers to Performance
Five years ago, social media revolved around followers. If someone followed your brand, they were likely to see your posts, making a carefully curated profile essential. Brands operated like art galleries—pristine, predictable, and polished. Every post required approval from multiple departments, ensuring it aligned with branded visuals, consistent messaging, and a magazine-like grid.
This strategy made sense in a follower-driven world, where content was primarily for an existing audience. But today, that model is dead. Social platforms have transitioned from a “follower graph” to a “content graph.” Discovery is now algorithmic, not relationship-based. The feed, not your profile, is the front door. Each post stands alone, judged by its performance rather than the account’s history or aesthetics.
The harsh reality? Ninety percent of brands are still creating content for profiles, while algorithms only reward individual posts. This mismatch leaves them stagnant, easy to ignore, and unable to capitalize on the new dynamics where any account—even one with zero followers—can explode overnight based on a single viral hit.
The Graffiti Approach: Speed, Experimentation, and Adaptation
The brands pulling ahead aren’t curating like gallery owners; they’re operating like street artists. This “graffiti” strategy emphasizes rapid experimentation over perfection. It’s about high volume, low stakes, and quick iterations to discover what resonates.
Key to this is what Adam calls “experimental accounts” (EAs)—unofficial channels free from brand guidelines and approvals. These low-stakes environments allow creators to test formats, hooks, tones, and lengths at speed. When something hits, scale it: turn it into a recurring series, a new vertical account, or integrate it into the main profile.
Over time, this evolves a single feed into a portfolio of experiments. Some channels drive reach, others build trust, and some optimize for conversions. Constant testing makes the system smarter, leveraging real-time performance data rather than internal opinions. In this level playing field, ideas trump followers, enabling new accounts to outshine established ones.
Tools like Adverity accelerate this process by providing real-time insights through AI-powered “data conversations.” Instead of static dashboards or waiting for reports, teams can ask questions like “What channel had the highest ROI last week?” and get instant answers with visuals. This boosts decision-making by 60%, cuts manual work by 40%, and reduces overhead by 25%, empowering anyone on the team to act without relying on data analysts.
The Algorithm Flip: Content Finds the Audience
At the heart of this shift is the “algorithm flip”—from social distribution to algorithmic discovery. In the old system, content reached followers linearly: build an audience, then engage them. Now, platforms use performance loops. Early engagement (like watch time in the first hour) determines if a post gets pushed to more viewers. Strong signals expand reach exponentially; weak ones kill it.
This means two critical changes:
You’re not creating for your existing audience—you’re creating to find your audience.
Profiles are irrelevant if posts underperform; reach is earned through immediate relevance, not loyalty.
Brands still optimizing for followers miss this, posting as if consistency matters more than velocity. But accounts with massive followings often flop, while unknowns go viral. To win, focus on tight ideas that hook in the first three seconds. Test angles quickly, follow the platform’s signals, and double down on winners. Graffiti thrives here because it’s designed for fast failure and iteration, turning the algorithm into a distribution engine that uncovers future customers.
Format Velocity: Building Repeatable Hits
Success today isn’t about originality—it’s about repeatability. Many brands waste time on elaborate campaigns that flop due to poor sequencing: planning without data. Instead, adopt “format velocity”—the speed of testing, identifying, and scaling ideas.
Here’s the step-by-step process:
Test raw content: Prioritize core ideas over production quality. Record and post without overthinking.
Measure traction: Track completion rates, saves, comments, and replays as early signals.
Repeat with tweaks: Keep the core but vary hooks, delivery, or length to confirm what sticks.
Package the format: Add structure, branding, and consistency to turn tests into series.
Scale: Create spin-offs, derivatives, or expansions across channels and segments.
Borrow proven formats from others and adapt them to your niche. Content is infrastructure, not IP—the faster you build and iterate, the quicker you grow.
Channel Strategy: From One Feed to a Portfolio
Gone are the days of a single catch-all account. Consistency in one channel dilutes reach when formats compete. Smart brands build a portfolio of focused channels: personality-driven, product-specific, or entertainment-only. Each operates with precision, clear signals, and scalability.
Start small—launch one, prove a format, then clone it. This creates a “content network” with multiple entry points, future-proofing against plateaus or algorithm changes. Diversification maximizes surface area, turning posting into a systematic engine.
The Monetization Stack: Turning Attention into Revenue
Views alone don’t pay bills; monetization does. Content builds attention, but without a system to convert it, it’s wasted. Install a “monetization stack” from the start: paths like email capture, product education, affiliate flows, or native checkouts.
Structure it by funnel:
Top-of-funnel: Short-form content (Reels, Shorts) for reach.
Mid-funnel: Longer videos or emails to build trust and frame offerings.
Bottom-of-funnel: CTAs in videos, podcasts, or newsletters to drive sales.
High-performers treat pages as sales engines, using proven content for recurring value (e.g., newsletters for bookings or podcasts for demos). Architect this alongside content creation to transform it from a cost center into a revenue driver.
The old gallery game is over; the graffiti era is here. By shifting to performance-focused, experimental strategies, businesses can outlearn, outperform, and outgrow competitors. Start testing today—launch an EA, leverage tools for insights, and build systems that convert. As Adam emphasizes, the algorithm rewards those who adapt. For more strategies, check out resources like his video on “10 Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Grow Any Business.”
In this feed-first world, speed and signals win. It’s time to paint the streets.
