Over a year ago, we met Bryon Stewart at our GOOD THINKING NYC tour. And we loved him from the beginning.

Bryon writes one of the best social media letters out there, Tapped In. You can rely on it for surfacing things nobody else is finding. It’s as much culture analysis as it is social trends and tactics. We wanted to get Bryon on to talk about everything brands should be thinking about when it comes to social.

We’ve wanted this one to happen for ages, and it’s finally here. Enjoy!

Meet Byron

Byron got his start in sneaker retail back when “social strategy” barely existed as a term. From there: fashion media, then back to retail and the agency side, building social, content, and influencer strategies for Nike, Jordan, adidas, TikTok, Levi’s, Wingstop, Chipotle, and more. Today, he’s Senior Director of Social for a portfolio of heritage fashion and retail brands, and he writes Tapped In, a Substack read by 3,000+ marketers, creatives, and strategists. In short: he thinks outside the social box, and we’re better for it.

Hit the links to skip to the bits you fancy

02:11 — TAPPED IN // How Bryon got to where he is today.

03:21 — BYRON’S INTERNET // Everyone says they have their own internet. Byron actually does. And he refuses to stay in his box. Amen.

07:53 — CULTURE FIRST, SOCIAL SECOND // Social through a culture lens, not the other way around.

09:28 — SPORTS IS THE LAST UNIFIER // The Knicks might be the most unifying thing on the internet right now. Sport is the one piece of culture everyone can still rally around.

13:08 — PEOPLE BUY FROM PEOPLE // Social commerce isn’t a trend anymore. And everyone’s still hunting for a TikTok shop person.

16:25 — ANTI-AI IS A FLEX // Right now, NOT using AI is a win. But it depends on your brand. Porsche can’t. Kalshi can.

19:37 — RETAIL CAN’T BE TRANSACTIONAL // Entertainment first, niche down, and go backwards to go forward. GAP, J.Crew, and yes, Chili’s is a heritage brand.

26:32 — THE UNTAPPED PLATFORMS // Reddit, streamers, and YouTube.

30:35 — SUBSTACK FOR BRANDS // You can’t just show up and perform there. It takes a real perspective and a dedicated team.

32:48 — COMMENTS EQUAL CONTENT // Social listening is the lowest-hanging fruit there is. Look at your own comments, and you’ll never run out of ideas.

34:09 — TRANSPARENCY IS THE FLEX // The Topicals founder didn’t hide that her brand Bread’s new launch flopped. Put your face out there. Be transparent. People become bigger fans of it.

40:02 — QUICK FIRE // Three things every brand should do. The trend Byron’s most excited about. And what brands keep getting wrong.

Huge thanks to Byron for coming on. Find him on LinkedIn and subscribe to Tapped In!

ABOUT

Chris and Kirsten are the founders of IN GOOD CO, a consultancy that ignites challenger brands with fearless and proactive positioning.

Chris writes a weekly newsletter for +17K subscribers that shares the best-of-the-best on culture, trends, marketing, etc. What she's dropping to friends on Slack or finding useful in meetings with brands | Follow her on Substack

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