Raw & Unpolished: When to Go Low-Fi With Your Social Media

April 27, 2026 - 5:20pm - by Luke Thiessen

Forget everything you thought you knew about creating content for social media...

Just kidding! This idea isn’t new, and isn’t meant to make you stop putting in effort into your social media content. But increasingly, we are seeing situations and cases where more raw and unpolished content can be very effective for brands wanting to get attention.

Broader trends across social media, including the shift toward more video and amateur-creator-driven content, have ushered in an age of low-fi, longer-form video content. These types of posts get some of the best engagement across most platforms, and for the right pieces of content, can significantly boost views and reach. 

Let’s look at some potential cases where your company should (or shouldn’t) break from your usual standards and consider a simpler, unpolished type of post or digital ad.

When it works

Assuming your company has strong brand standards, a robust social media strategy, and is generally following best practices, it can be daunting and hard to know when to break the rules.

One of the best and most natural entry points to low-fi brand posts is when responding to something negative, critical, or even just timely. If you have received a negative-but-unwarranted comment on a previous post, or a bad review that isn’t legitimate, it can be a chance to grab attention by posting a screenshot and then having your CEO (or other spokesperson) respond with humour and helpful education. 

In this case, the context – responding to something negative, incorrect and timely – makes the unpolished nature of the post make sense. Your followers will understand that this is a break from your regularly scheduled programming, and the post becomes all the more interesting for it, without detracting from your overall brand and professionalism.

Now, what I’ve been describing is a response to comments, reviews or other criticism which is off-base and warrants a correction or a joke, but this format also works for legitimate apologies. If your brand finds itself having to admit to a mistake, address real concerns, or something else challenging, a raw and straightforward video of your spokesperson talking to the camera is often the best way to go.

Another use case for a less-polished post is when jumping on trends. Being quick and timely is a huge part of a successful trend-chasing post, and your followers will again understand the raw nature of a post that clearly had to be made quickly in order to capture the moment. The recent set of fast food burger-tasting videos, starting with the CEO of McDonalds, is an example of this; brands that got on it quickly did well, and those who waited too long and made anything too polished did not.

Why it works

In addition to (generally) being more timely, these raw and unpolished posts are an opportunity to humanize your brand, showing the real people behind the company. The content also looks more like what a user is seeing from their friends and favourite influencers rather than from other brands, which helps draw people in from the start.

To capitalize on these natural benefits, it’s best to involve senior leadership (like your CEO) and show real people from your company wherever possible. And when it’s not possible or doesn’t make sense, consider using a format that feels casual and familiar to your followers, like a screenshot from a notes app with no fancy design elements added.

Rules of engagement

While there are no established rules in this space, experts suggest keeping these types of posts below 20% of your total social media content. Even if they become your best-performing post format, resist the temptation to go back to that well too often. 

For ads, it’s a different story. Raw and unpolished content – video or otherwise – can make for effective digital ads using some of the same principles as feed posts, and don’t necessarily have to be balanced by other types of ads. However, you still want to avoid ad fatigue, so if you are running a campaign using this style of content, consider making a few versions or altering the creative in some way every week or two.

In all cases, something to remember is that “raw” doesn’t mean low-quality. You still want your followers and viewers to be able to understand your message and take whatever action you are hoping for. Good-quality audio for any voices, working links and good copy are all still important.

As with many things, it’s important to know the rules and why they exist before trying to break them. Best practices exist for a reason, and you can think outside the box without leaving them behind entirely.

We can help

Social media strategy and content creation are our bread and butter. It can be daunting to do this work on your own, and time-consuming to create new types of content.

At Starling Social, we help brands and nonprofits of all sizes develop social media strategies and run accounts day-to-day using a combination of solid best practices and sharp creativity. Get in touch today to book a free discovery call – we would love to help you navigate this world and get more out of your social media and digital marketing.

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7 Holiday Marketing Campaigns For the 2022 Season

November 21, 2022 - 11:14am - by Alyson Shane

This post was written by our Account Manger Alicia Kurz.

‘Tis the season for holiday marketing campaigns. Sometime between Halloween and the first snowfall, businesses start rushing to capitalize on the spending frenzy that is the holiday season. 

Consumers see holiday-themed social media posts, targeted ads, email marketing campaigns, billboards, tv ads, and the list goes on. It’s a lot to take in, but we’ve compiled a list of the most effective campaigns of holidays past and present to give you a little inspiration for your next campaign. 

These brands have created campaigns that spread holiday cheer by evoking emotion and promoting sharing. Follow their lead to stand out from the white noise and make your brand stand out. 

Google: Home Alone, Again

This ad will leave any Home Alone fans beaming. Thank you, Google for making us feel young again — even if it was just for a minute. 

Why it’s effective

Nostalgia is a hell of a drug. It’s easier to appeal to a large target audience when you have a big budget to hire a celebrity, but anyone can use nostalgia to help amp up their holiday marketing campaign. What makes your audience feel good inside? 

Coca-Cola Canada: Give Something Only You Can Give

When you see the Coca-Cola commercial around the holidays, you know it’s going to be good. Coke and Santa have been tied together since the 1920s, and their company even helped shape the image of Santa in the 1930s, so it makes sense for Coke to continue this tradition. While Coke definitely isn’t the drink we reach for around the holidays, the commercials still give us the warm and fuzzies. 

Why it’s effective

The meaning of the holidays is to spend time with friends and family, not buy expensive gifts. Coke has become so tied to the Christmas season with Santa and those caffeine-guzzling polar bears it doesn’t even need to sell in its holiday ads anymore, making it a perfect ad. 

IKEA: The Other Letter 

This commercial might need a trigger warning if you are a parent. You WILL cry. IKEA Spain asked a group of kids to write two letters: one to the three kings (Santa equivalent) and one to their parents. No surprise to anyone, all the kids asked their parents for more time together. When the kids are told they can only send one letter, guess which one they choose… 

Why it’s effective

Here’s another ad that doesn’t spend any time selling its product. The emotional impact this message leaves on their audience will last, likely creating more loyal customers in the future. 

WestJet Christmas Miracle 

Who doesn’t love a feel-good story, a little nostalgia, and happy families?

This campaign ran 8-years ago, but it still hits home. The WestJet team took on a sneaky project to perform 12,000 mini miracles during the holiday season. Their goal was to bring joy to over 13,000 people with the help of Santa and the WestJet staff. 

We’re not crying — you’re crying! No, okay we are actually crying. 

Why it’s effective

This campaign encompasses the spirit of giving. It was an act of kindness, and was completely random — which gives people watching the feeling it could have happened to them. We love how they used Santa to make their lists, and showed the hard and fast work WestJet staff had to do to pull off the gift giving. Imagine shopping for, wrapping and delivering gifts in just a few hours! 

Plus, the kids' reactions definitely made us tear up. 

TD Bank #MakeTodayBetter

We love a generous marketing campaign. TD Bank encouraged social media users to submit an idea for a project to help the less fortunate. They contacted 24 people, gave them 24 hours and changed 24 communities. 

Why it’s effective

TD timed this campaign with the holiday season and changed the perception of its brand to a company that cares about giving back to the community. Their line “it turns out there are a lot of people with great ideas,” makes people feel like they will be heard at TD. 

Apple: Make Someone's Holiday

Another ad catered to parents, but is extremely relatable: you need technology to keep the peace when travelling. The ad subtly shows the kids watching movies, colouring, and taking photos on the iPad, but the commercial takes a tear-jerking turn when the girls make a gift on the iPad for their grandpa.

Why it’s effective

The common theme throughout these impactful commercials is emotion. Apple typically focuses on function and how its products make your life better. Here they went for an emotional approach with the iPad as the centre of the story and it paid off. 

Nick Offerman’s Yule Log by Lagavulin

I think we’ve cried enough already, so our last example ends on a high note. 

If you are going to pick anyone to sell you scotch, I bet Nick Offerman is at least in your top 3. This ad is simply Nick Offerman sitting in a chair drinking Lagavulin for 45 minutes. There is also a 10-hour version! He doesn’t say a word. It’s somehow hilarious, soothing, festive and clever. 

Why it’s effective

It’s an alternative to the classic yule log special and an instant conversation starter. The Parks and Rec star famously loved Lagavulin, so it’s an instant tie to the product, and it’s a simple idea that paid off big with over 3 million views. 

Maximize Your Holiday Shopping Season

2020 saw a huge shift towards e-commerce sales from the pandemic. A Google survey showed that digital shopping has been cemented with 70% of surveyed participants stating their shopping experience would involve online touchpoints. At the same time, 80% of shoppers are seeking out in-person experiences. 

This means making your marketing campaigns cater to both in-store and online shoppers! 

With this in mind, communication is key. Make frequently asked questions readily available on your website and social pages. Engage your audience, don’t JUST sell to them. Remind them who is running your business and why you do what you do. 

If you are looking for help getting your marketing campaigns off the ground in 2023, reach out to our team of professionals to help you get started here. 

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