From Bog Standard to Gold Standard: Rethinking BAU Social in 2025

For years, BAU (business-as-usual) social content was the safe bet and the bedrock of brand channels - reliable, scheduled, consistent. But in 2025, that approach is losing relevance fast. Consistency isn’t cutting through.

The platforms have changed. The algorithms have shifted. Audiences have evolved. What once passed as 'good engagement' now barely moves the needle. Consistency, once a virtue, now often signals complacency.

Remember the era of Duolingo’s chaotic owl and Ryanair’s out-there content? They were lauded not just because they were funny, but because they were original. They weren’t jumping on every TikTok trend because they were the trend.

They leaned into their voice, stayed close to their audience, and built original, standout behaviour into their BAU. They didn’t play by the rules; they wrote their own.

Fast forward to now, and we’re seeing a sea of sameness. Brands are still trying to reverse-engineer what worked for others, mimicking meme formats, leaning into trend cycles already on their way out, and calling it a 'strategy'. It’s social content that ticks the boxes, not content that earns attention.

Meanwhile, TikTok (and the internet at large) has moved on. Audiences have seen it all before. They’re not just savvy - they’re exhausted. We live in an era of overstimulation where the average user scrolls through hundreds of posts a day. Another UGC-style video stitched with the latest trending audio? Blink and it’s gone. 'Authenticity' has become a buzzword, stripped of meaning through overuse.

We’re not saying BAU should disappear - far from it. But it needs a radical rethink. Today’s BAU needs to be smarter, bolder, and more culturally attuned. It needs to feel intentional, not obligatory.

Put simply: it’s time to go from bog standard to gold standard.

That doesn’t mean bigger budgets. It means bigger thinking. More originality. More insight. Less copy-paste.

What does that look like in practice?

• It looks like content with intent - posts that say something, not just fill a calendar.
  
• It looks like social teams working upstream with creatives, not just adapting the ATL.
  
• It looks like platforms used for what they’re actually good at, not what the boardroom expects. (No one’s buying a 90-second manifesto on TikTok. Likewise, don’t treat Threads like a dumping ground for LinkedIn rejects.)
  

And most of all, it looks like brands with a point of view. Not just on what’s trending, but on how they show up. Whether you’re serious or surreal, irreverent or informative - own it. The scroll stops for clarity, not mimicry.

Take Loewe. Their content isn’t fast, or frequent, or obviously 'engaging.' But it is unmistakably theirs - surreal, stylish, and self-assured. The same goes for Jacquemus. These are brands that understand who they are, and bring that energy into everything they post. They’re not fighting for attention; they’re earning it.

The role of organic social has changed. It’s no longer just about maintaining a presence. It’s your sharpest tool for cultural relevance. It’s where people come to feel your brand - not just see it.

Treat it like the creative opportunity it is. Not the box-ticking exercise it’s become.

And if you’re not sure where to start, ask yourself:

• What’s the one feeling we want to leave behind?
  
• What do we want to add to the feed - not just take from it?
  
• Would anyone miss us if we stopped posting tomorrow?
  

Because the truth is, most brands are forgettable. Not because their budgets are small, or their products are dull - but because their content feels like it could belong to anyone.
The brands that stand out tomorrow are the ones who dare to do something different today. Those who understand that insight plus originality is the new formula for cut-through.

That’s not a trend. It’s the new baseline.

Because in 2025, fitting in is the fastest way to be ignored.