Marketing is evolving. Traditional online strategies are no longer enough. With social media more saturated than ever, the brands that stand out aren’t the ones shouting the loudest but the ones engaging the most.
Community-based marketing is quickly becoming the most effective way to build long-term brand loyalty, and businesses that ignore it are falling behind.
“If you don’t have time to do it right. What makes you think you’ll have time to do it over” ~ Seth Godin
Seth Godin wrote about this shift in Purple Cow, where he outlined the decline of TV advertising. When TV ads first launched, they were novel, exciting, and effective. But as more brands entered the space, it became cluttered, and standing out became nearly impossible.
Instead of relying solely on paid advertising, companies had to create products so remarkable they would market themselves. Godin’s argument? The best way to stand out in a saturated space is to be so good that people can’t help but talk about you.
“You can never go wrong by investing in communities and the human beings within them” ~ Pam Moore
The same thing is happening right now on social media. The barrier to entry is lower than ever. Anyone with a smartphone can run an ad, create content, or push a product.
As a result, consumers are overwhelmed. They scroll past countless promotions, discounts, and generic “engaging” content that barely registers. Attention is fleeting, and users have built a tolerance to traditional marketing tactics.
So how does a brand stand out in this chaos? By shifting focus from selling to building a community.
“Make a customer, not a sale” – Katherine Barchet
A brand today isn’t just about its product—it’s about the people it attracts and the community it builds. The most successful companies don’t just sell things; they create experiences, conversations, and connections that make people feel like they belong. It’s not enough to have a great product—you need to have a place in the cultural conversation.
“Social media is a community effort, everyone is an asset” ~ Susan Cooper
Take the card game We’re Not Really Strangers. Their entire marketing strategy is built around emotion, love, and human connection, they never mention their actual product.
Their email marketing isn’t filled with promotions or sales pitches. Instead, it’s short, personal, and focused on relationships.
The game itself is about meaningful conversations, and their marketing reflects that same energy.
The result? A loyal, engaged community that wants to buy into the brand, not because they were sold to, but because they feel like they’re part of something.
Then there’s Thomas Straker, the chef-turned-influencer whose “All Things Butter” videos turned into a multimillion-pound business.
What began as a series of simple social media videos showcasing Thomas’s creative butter recipes quickly evolved into a brand that raised £2.2 million in investment in 2024.
His followers didn’t just like his butter—they liked him. His brand didn’t need flashy advertising because his community was already invested in his journey.
“Consumers with otaku are the sneezers you seek. They’re the ones who will take the time to learn about your product, take the risk to try your product, and take their friends’ time to tell them about it. The flash of insight is that some markets have more otaku-stricken consumers than others. The task of the remarkable marketer is to identify these markets and focus on them to the exclusion of lesser markets – regardless of relative size.” ~ Seth Godin
Emma Chamberlain is another example. She started as a teenage YouTuber, sharing her daily life with millions. Over time, that connection with her audience translated into a business empire.
Her coffee brand, Chamberlain Coffee, isn’t just about selling coffee—it’s about selling a lifestyle, an experience. And because her audience feels connected to her, they feel connected to her product.
Some brands naturally lend themselves to community building, but others have to work at it. Take Versus, the running & cycling socks company in Stellenbosch.
Instead of just selling a product, they appeal to the lifestyle around it. They host community running and cycling events, giving their ideal customers an experience they’d enjoy—even if Versus wasn’t involved.
They don’t need to hard-sell their product because they’ve built a culture where people naturally want to support them because their deep involvement in the community.
This is the new game. Today, the best marketing isn’t about who has the biggest ad budget—it’s about who can create a movement.
A brand that feels human, that interacts with its community, and that offers something beyond just a product is the one that wins.
Whether you like it or not, this is where marketing is going. And if your brand isn’t engaging with its community, someone else’s is.
