The Think Media Podcast – Episode 448: What's Working on Social Media Right Now? (14 Real Strategies)

Date: September 26, 2025
Host: Sean Cannell (Think Media)
Guest: Caleb Raulston (Brand Strategist for Gary Vaynerchuk, Alex Hormozi, etc.)

Overview

In this engaging episode, host Sean Cannell sits down with influential brand strategist Caleb Raulston to break down the rapidly evolving landscape of social media for creators and business owners. The discussion dives deep into practical frameworks, dispels common myths, and examines real strategies that are working right now in 2025 to build sustainable brands and loyal audiences on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

With rich anecdotes and actionable advice, the episode covers:

• How interest-based algorithms have changed social content
• The myth-busting of outdated best practices
• Essential strategies for both solo creators and business owners
• The debate on virality, omnipresence, long-form vs. short-form
• The power of unique worldviews and personal branding
• Detailed frameworks—including the “Brand Journey” and “Eye of Sauron” strategies

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Shift from Social Media to Interest Media

• Main Insight: The feed is now driven more by a user's interests than their follows/subscriptions.
• Quote:
  “The way people are consuming content is radically different...it’s not the crucial element for success that it once was. Your idea becomes far more important in a world where social platforms are serving interest-based content, not follow-based.”
  — Caleb Raulston [02:06]

Example:

• Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube prioritize content “around interests” rather than simply the people you follow.

2. Modern Best Practices vs. Outdated Myths

• Debunked Myths:
  • Renaming video files for SEO boost is obsolete [05:05].
  • “Best Practices” are likely already saturated by the time you hear about them.
• Quote:
  “The moment people are saying it's a best practice, it's probably too late...you probably have a small window.”
  — Caleb Raulston [05:28]

Real Growth Levers:

• Brands that succeed define a contrarian worldview—they stand out not just via tactics, but unique thought leadership (Cody Sanchez and Gary Vee cited as examples) [07:43].

3. Worldview as a Brand Differentiator

• Actionable Insight:
  Find your unique, even contrarian stance in your space.

• Quote:
  “They don’t pop because of titles, thumbnails, or hooks. They pop because they have a fundamentally different worldview than any of their counterparts.”
  — Caleb Raulston [06:56]

• Personal Example:
  Caleb’s channel breaks “rules” (e.g., six-hour free course in one video)—it works because he’s delivering a completely different value than others [09:09].

4. Personal Branding: Authenticity Over Archetype

• Lean Into Disadvantages:
  Turn insecurities or quirks into relatable assets for your audience.

• Quote:
  “Whatever you identify right now as your disadvantage can be the very thing you lean into as your greatest advantage.”
  — Caleb Raulston [10:27]

• Visual Branding:
  Find combinations of your true interests (even polarizing ones) and showcase them.

• Quote:
  “The principle here is it doesn’t matter what the look is, as long as it’s such a great reflection of who you are.”
  — Caleb Raulston [15:13]

5. Not Every Business Owner Should Create Content

• Challenging the ‘everyone must post’ myth:
  Some highly successful businesses don’t even have a social presence. Content creation should align with your business goals and life ambitions [15:42].
• Quote (Gary Vaynerchuk’s advice):
  “Make sure this is what you actually want, and this lines up with the life you want, the business you want…”
  — (as recalled by Caleb) [16:46]

6. The Brand Journey Framework

A four-question process for intentional brand/content-building:

1. What do I want to have happen? (Goal)
2. Do I need to make content in order for that to occur?
3. What would I have to be known for in order for that to happen?
4. What do I need to learn in order to execute this? [18:03–19:04]

• Quote:
  “Do not let the simplicity make you ignore the impact.”
  — Caleb Raulston [18:03]

• Clarification:
  This framework aids both new and existing creators/businesses in aligning content to goals and avoiding wasted efforts.

7. Documenting the Journey vs. Teaching as an Expert

• If you’re not the expert yet:
  Be transparent—document your journey, share wins and failures. Audiences appreciate “building in public.” [22:01]
• Quote:
  “If you are not the expert yet…what you are is a proxy or a guinea pig for your audience. You're taking us on the journey.”
  — Caleb Raulston [22:04]

8. Five Major Lies Creators & Entrepreneurs Believe (and What to Do Instead)

1. All views are good views

• Some exposure is negative or attracts the wrong audience, which can hurt your brand.
• [23:36]
• “Not all views are good views.” — Caleb Raulston

2. I’ll figure it out as I go

• Action is key, but lack of intentionality leads to wasted years. Use the Brand Journey framework instead.
• [29:22]
• “You’re going to build a brand of some sort. I would just rather do it intentionally.” — Caleb Raulston [30:15]

3. If I keep posting, it will work eventually

• Focus on learning from top-performing content, not just volume for volume’s sake.
• [32:07]
• “You want to iterate from things you already have signal on.” — Caleb Raulston [32:50]
• Define what “winning” means for you (business results, not just vanity metrics).

4. I can’t make content for every platform

• It’s a lie that you have to be everywhere—dominate one platform, then scale.
• The “Eye of Sauron” method: focus intensity on one, keep others in maintenance mode, then rotate.
• [44:27]
• “If you’re a solo creator, pick one platform…and a secondary platform you repackage for.” — Caleb Raulston [44:27]

5. I need to go viral for my brand to grow

• Virality isn’t bad, but prioritizing trust over virality brings long-term business results.
• [50:31]
• “Trying to optimize around virality in an educational space is the wrong thing to optimize around. You want to optimize around trust…Trust is what precedes the transaction.” — Caleb Raulston [53:40]

9. The Six-Hour Free YouTube Course Strategy

• Caleb’s Ultra Long-Form Playbook:

  • Created a 6-hour free masterclass on YouTube, breaking conventions and building massive authority [54:00].
  • Results:
    • Over 300k views
    • 20,000+ new email subscribers
    • Massive trust/brand boost
    • Tangible business growth

• Quote:
  “Show me another person in this space that will go on YouTube for free and talk about this shit for six and a half hours…It was a brand positioning statement.”
  — Caleb Raulston [56:25]

• Execution Tips:

  • Ultra-long-form only works if you deliver substantive, high-value content per minute (“VPM” or “Value Per Minute”).
  • Created a detailed, 50-page download/workbook as a lead magnet. Mentioned 4–6 times, top of description and pinned comment [68:12–69:09].
  • “Every decision—graphics, lead magnets, downloadables—if it makes it easier for them to change what they do, cool. That’s the only aim.”
    — Caleb Raulston [68:45]

10. Quality vs. Quantity: Which Wins?

• Caleb advocates high effort, focused content (even just one video a month) over pumping out lots of low-impact posts—provided the effort matches your resources and your “audience’s pain points.”
• Accordion Method:
  • Start with more frequent content to get data/signals, then "contract" to fewer, higher-quality videos as you get clarity.
• “Pick an arbitrary amount of time—two, four, six weeks, and that's how often you increase your volume. But the key is, it's not so you show up everywhere, it's so that you acquire the data on what your audience is resonating with the most and then you can make more of it.”
  — Caleb Raulston [66:08]

11. Team Structure & Platform Management

• Editors or creatives should also manage posting on platforms for best insights—don’t fully separate creative and scheduling [41:57].
• Repurpose content based on which format/asset works best on each platform.

12. Closing Advice

• On momentum and serendipity:
  “Being in motion and in action creates incredible serendipity. The more you’re in action, the more strange things come your way.”
  — Caleb Raulston [74:00]

Memorable Quotes & Timestamps

• "What you identify as your disadvantage can be your greatest advantage."
  — Caleb Raulston [10:27]
• "Contrarian takes only work if you truly believe them."
  — Sean Cannell [26:33]
• "If you're a solo creator, don't try to be omnipresent—dominate one platform."
  — Caleb Raulston [44:27]
• "Trust is what precedes the transaction, not virality."
  — Caleb Raulston [53:40]
• "I posted a six hour course for free on YouTube—show me anyone else in the space doing that."
  — Caleb Raulston [56:25]

Important Timestamps

• Interest vs. social media shift: [02:06]
• Outdated best practices mythbusting: [05:05–06:56]
• On developing a recognizable worldview: [07:43–09:25]
• Brand Journey Framework explained: [18:03–19:52]
• Five Lies (Rapid Fire): [23:36 onwards]
• Eye of Sauron content approach: [44:23–46:43]
• Long form vs. Shorts debate: [46:43–50:23]
• Six-hour course breakdown: [54:00–60:39]
• Email list & workbook CTA: [68:06–69:49]
• Final advice to younger self: [72:53–74:21]

Final Takeaways

This episode drives home that intentionality, authenticity, and unique positioning are the engines of contemporary social media and business brand growth. Technical tactics are important—but who you are, what you believe, and how that sets you apart will have the most lasting impact in today's “interest media” era.

For creators feeling overwhelmed:

• You don’t have to be everywhere; just start intentionally, double down on your strengths, iterate from your best signals, and don’t chase vanity metrics.

Be sure to check out:

• Caleb’s six-hour free YouTube brand-building course and downloadable workbook (links in shownotes).

For part two and more, follow Think Media Podcast and connect with both Sean & Caleb on the recommended platforms.