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On Social Media: What Every Business Owner, Creator, and Person With a Message Needs to Know2/12/2026 Summary: In this episode of Wisdom for Wannabes, Jackie Morreale explores the multifaceted world of social media, discussing its potential for connection and growth, as well as the challenges it presents. She emphasizes the importance of authenticity and community engagement, while also addressing the evolving landscape of influence, including the rise of AI influencers. Jackie encourages listeners to embrace social media as a critical tool for personal and professional growth, urging them to overcome their fears and be visible in their endeavors. Takeaways:
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Chapters: 00:00 The Love for Social Media 02:21 The Shadows of Social Media 04:41 The Power of Authenticity and AI in Social Media  Transcript: Jackie Morreale (00:00): Hi there and welcome to Wisdom for Wannabes. My name is Jackie Morreale and I am the host. Today I am here to talk about a very important subject. You ready for this? Social media. I love social media. I know it's not a fashionable thing to say. We're supposed to talk about burnout and algorithms and doom scrolling. And yes, all of that does exist. But still, I love social media, because Social Media took ideas that once lived only in my head and expanded them into the world. Took thoughts I had that I wasn't sure anyone needed to know and showed me that there is a community, thousands of people, in fact, who want to seek wisdom alongside of me. And thank you so much to my community, the one that we are building together, seeking wise words in business, beauty and betterment. I am eternally grateful for you. Thank you for tuning in. One reel, if it lands right, can even reach thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people. It's crazy and I'm just scratching the surface. That kind of reach, that kind of exponential growth, I have never experienced anything like it and I am grateful. Thank you. Now let's be honest, social media does have its shadows. Anxiety, comparison, fear of missing out, insecurity, not so nice comments mixed in with the nice ones, and as your message grows, so does the resistance. And with the likes also come the dislikes. But here's the thing that I'm learning in real time. You have to be willing to get better. And that's just not social media. That's with anything. I'm speaking as someone who has used social media as a professional tool for over a decade for brands, businesses, public figures. But now I'm also speaking about it as an entrepreneur, a creator, as a human with a message to just something to sell, but something to say. Social media is no longer optional. It's a critical tool. And if you're not using it, you're invisible. I recently heard this line and it hit me so hard. The real barrier is not technology. It's fear. Fear of putting yourself out there. Fear of putting your face out there. Fear of putting your thoughts out there. Fear of being judged for how you look, for how you sound, for how you think. Thank you, Wisdom for Wannabes, lovely community, for your support and for helping me get past that fear. I've posted interviews, videos, spoken essays... Imperfect, evolving, very human work. I still don't know exactly where this is all going, but I do know this:
Every day is new, every day is interesting. Thank you, social media. That's why I love you. Each platform is also its own unique world. YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, different audiences, different languages, different energy, and I'm just mentioning a few. Podcasts add another layer entirely. Yes, it is this tangled web that we weave, but it's also a super powerful one. Opportunities appear that simply would not exist otherwise. Here's where my gratitude deepens. In the last six months, I had the opportunity to study social media academically, really study it, research it, question it. Learn from data, not just intuition. And what I learned is something that every business owner needs to know. For every 1 % increase in your social media activity, there is a measurable increase in your revenue. That impact has grown over time. So Social Media doesn't just feel good or look good for your brand. It actually moves your bottom line, which makes it low-hanging fruit. Be creative, be consistent. be moderately frequent. There is a sweet spot where engagement thrives. Research shows (Colliander, & Marder, 2018) that raw, imperfect phone photos on Instagram actually outperform the polished, expensive looking studio shot photos. Why? Because people see themselves in realness. Authenticity attracts connection. And that's why we're here after all. Then there's a future: AI. Did you know that it's already here on social media? AI influencers exist and they hold surprising amounts of trust, especially when it comes to investments made in tools and technology (Belanche, Casaló, & Flavián, 2024). Humans still lead the emotional decision making when it comes to influencers, but influence itself is evolving and fast. It's fascinating, it's a little bit scary. So I will end where I began. I love social media. Without it, I wouldn't be connected to people around the world, people like you, people who've been following Wisdom for Wannabes. Thank you so much for building this community with me. As someone who spent over 20 years in marketing, I am endlessly grateful to witness and test how this amazing medium of social media works. It changes daily, and it's moving at the speed of light. And if you are a business owner, a creator, or someone with a message to share, use it.
So now you know. Have a wonderful day.  Further Reading on Social Media Balabanis, J., & Chatzopoulou, E. (2025). The value of social media content to browsing and searching consumers of luxury products on Instagram. European Journal of Marketing, 59(5), 1227–1246. https://www.emerald.com/ejm/article/59/5/1227/1246548/The-value-of-social-media-content-to-browsing-and Belanche, D., Casaló, L. V., & Flavián, M. (2024). Human versus virtual influences, a comparative study. Journal of Business Research, 173, Article 114493. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296323008524 Bentley, K., Rajagopal, P., & Kulow, K. (2024). Unfaithful brands: How brand attachment can lead to negative responses to influencer marketing campaigns. Journal of Consumer Psychology. Advance online publication. https://myscp.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jcpy.1432 Casaló, L. V., Flavián, C., & Ibáñez‑Sánchez, S. (2020). Influencers on Instagram: Antecedents and consequences of opinion leadership. Journal of Business Research, 117, 510–519. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296318303187 Casaló, L. V., Flavián, C., & Ibáñez‑Sánchez, S. (2021). Be creative, my friend! Engaging users on Instagram by promoting positive emotions. Journal of Business Research, 130, 416–425. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296320301089 Chung, J. (J.), Ding, Y., & Kalra, A. (2023). I really know you: How influencers can increase audience engagement by referencing their close social ties. Journal of Consumer Research, 50(4), 683–703. https://academic.oup.com/jcr/article/50/4/683/7077143 Colliander, J., & Marder, B. (2018). ‘Snap happy’ brands: Increasing publicity effectiveness through a snapshot aesthetic when marketing a brand on Instagram. Computers in Human Behavior, 78, 34–43. https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1016/j.chb.2017.09.015 De Vries, L., Gensler, S., & Leeflang, P. S. H. (2017). Effects of traditional advertising and social messages on brand‑building metrics and customer acquisition. Journal of Marketing, 81(5), 1–15. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1509/jm.15.0178 Gambetti, R. C., & Kozinets, R. V. (2024). From killer bunnies to talking cupcakes: Theorizing the diverse universe of virtual influencers. European Journal of Marketing, 58(13), 205–251. https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/ccd7cce0-07e5-3e6a-8540-b798260e988a/ Hwang, K., & Zhang, Q. (2018). Influence of parasocial relationship between digital celebrities and their followers on followers’ purchase and electronic word‑of‑mouth intentions, and persuasion knowledge. Computers in Human Behavior, 87, 155–173. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0747563218302553 Kapoor, K., Tamilmani, K., Rana, N. P., Patil, P., Dwivedi, Y. K., & Nerur, S. (2017). Advances in social media research: Past, present and future. Information Systems Frontiers, 20, 531–558. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10796-017-9810-y Kim, H.J. & Chan-Olmsted, S. (2022). Influencer Marketing and Social Commerce: Exploring the Role of Influencer Communities in Predicting Usage Intent. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 22(3), 249-268. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15252019.2022.2111243 Kübler, R., Colicev, A., Pauwels, K., & Gándara, M. (2020). Social media’s impact on the consumer mindset: when to use which sentiment extraction tool? Journal of Interactive Marketing, 50, 136–155. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1094996819300933 Lee, J. K., & Junqué de Fortuny, E. (2021). Influencer‑Generated Reference Groups. Journal of Consumer Research, 49(1), 25–45. https://academic.oup.com/jcr/article/49/1/25/6380146 Leung, F. F., Gu, F. F., & Palmatier, R. W. (2022). Online influencer marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 50(2), 226–251. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11747-021-00829-4 Leung, F. F., Gu, F.F., Li, Y., Zhang, J.Z., & Palmatier, R. W. (2022). Influencer marketing effectiveness. Journal of Marketing, 86(4), 94–114. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00222429221102889 Liadeli, G., Sotgiu, F., & Verlegh, P. W. J. (2023). A Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Brands’ Owned Social Media on Social Media Engagement and Sales. Journal of Marketing, 87(3), 406–429. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00222429221123250 Meire, M., Hewett, K., Ballings, M., Kumar, V., & Van den Poel, D. (2019). The role of marketer‑generated content in customer engagement marketing. Journal of Marketing, 83(6), 21–42. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0022242919873903 Möller-Herm, J., Gottschalk, S. A., & Mafael, A. (2025). To post or not to post: How minority opinion and posting frequency impact online review posting. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 42(1), 235-254. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167811624000661 Nistor, C., Selove, M., & Villas-Boas, J.M. (2024). Influencer Authenticity: To Grow or to Monetize. Management Science, 71(6), 5251-5267. https://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/10.1287/mnsc.2023.03479 Pan, Y., Blut, M., Ghiassaleh, A., Lee, J., & Palmatier, R. W. (2024). Influencer marketing effectiveness: A meta‑analytic review. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 53, 52–78. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11747-024-01052-7 Pham, T. R., Septianto, F., Mathmann, F., Jin, H. S., & Higgins, E. T. (2023). How construal–regulatory mode fit increases social media sharing. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 33(4), 668–683. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jcpy.1375 Reich, B. J., & Pittman, M. (2020). An appeal to intimacy: Consumer response to platform-appeal fit on social media. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 30(4), 660–670. https://myscp.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jcpy.1154 Shrum, L. J. (2024). The metaverse and consumer psychology: Introduction to Research Dialogue. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 34(1), 140–141. https://myscp.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jcpy.1355 Stathopoulou, A., Kreuzer, M., & Frisenberg, C. (2024). Is social media B2B engagement driven by impression management strategies? Understanding corporate‑driven versus individual‑driven LinkedIn profiles. Industrial Marketing Management, 121, 55‑73. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0019850124001056 Tyrväinen, O., Karjaluoto, H., & Ukpabi, D. (2023). Understanding the role of social media content in brand loyalty: A meta-analysis of user‑generated content versus firm‑generated content. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 58(4), 400‑413. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/10949968231157281 Unnava, V., & Aravindakshan, A. (2021). How does consumer engagement evolve when brands post across multiple social media? Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49(5), 864–881. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11747-021-00785-z Van Reijmersdal, E. A., Aguiar, T. D., & Van Noort, G. (2024). How is influencer follower size related to brand responses? Explaining influencer follower size success through cognitive, affective, and behavioral responses. Journal of Advertising Research, 64(4), 451‑464. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.2501/JAR-2024-024 Wies, S., Bleier, A., & Edeling, A. (2023). Finding Goldilocks Influencers: How Follower Count Drives Social Media Engagement. Journal of Marketing, 87(3), 383–405. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00222429221125131 Yannopoulou, N., Chandrasapth, K., Bian, X., Jin, B., Gupta, S., & Liu, M. (2024). How disinformation affects sales: Examining the advertising campaign of a socially responsible brand. Journal of Business Research, 182, 114789. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014829632400293 
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Summary: In this voice note and mini research study, Wisdom for Wannabes podcast host Jackie Morreale discusses the importance of our energy on our interactions, particularly during the school year or when arriving to an office and greeting an administrative professional. She reflects on a note she found at her children's school that emphasizes the idea of matching energy with others. Through a social experiment, she explores how positivity can be contagious and how our energy affects those around us. The conversation encourages self-reflection on the energy we bring into different spaces and the impact it can have on our interactions. Takeaways:
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Hi and happy summer everybody! Parents out there and kids are super excited for the summer. Teachers who have off for the summer super excited. Lots of blue skies ahead of us as we refresh and recharge our batteries before the next year starts up again. I happened to find myself at school last week, on an errand. I encountered this cool note at the front desk, a laminated Post-it note that looked very similar to this one that I had to create just for myself. It says, I match energy, so you tell me how this will go. How cute is this person for making a Post-it note that's so truthful and putting it on for everyone to see, as they're checking their kids in late or dropping off glasses or lunch or a water bottle. This note really made me reflect. It was my first time seeing it. I've been there many, many times. I have never noticed it before. Could have very easily just written, Be kind, right? As we would see all over the place in school, which is true. We should be kind. Everyone's fighting their own battle. It is on us to be kind to everyone as we would expect them to be kind to us. But to say, "I match energy, so you tell me how this will go", really forces anyone to see it, to notice it, to reflect on themselves in such a smart way.
How great is this person that she knows that she's going to match this energy of the people that walk in. Is anyone really going to the main office in any organization and not asking for a favor? If you're asking for a favor, you might as well bring some light in, some smiles in, when you greet this person. We're all so wrapped up in our own deadlines and where we're trying to go that quite often it just slips through the cracks... and this person feels the brunt of that. This gatekeeping role is so important for every single organization. I know today is not Administrative Professionals Day, but I thank everyone in an administrative role for making my life easier, for making everyone's lives easier, for making magic happen every single day. Happy summer to them! I genuinely hope that you are able to come back to the new school year fully refreshed and revived. Let's think about this question a little bit more: What energy am I bringing with me when I walk into a room? Let's bring this to your house, your office, a Zoom call even.
Has anyone else in the room shown up where you've been and caused this chain reaction, caused this light to enter the room? If you have seen this, tell that person. Tell them to keep doing it, that they changed the room. It's hard to realize that we do match energies. Just look at your pet or your children or a meeting, right? If you get home and you've had a bad day, you kind of feel the entire vibe of the household shifting. Maybe you have a wonderful pet that'll come and greet you if he or she knows that you are sad. They know how to react to energy instinctively and it's an amazing thing. Thinking about how we create this chain reaction of positivity in the world. While we have hundreds, maybe thousands, of interactions, some of us, every day - whether it's in person, on the phone, email, text messages, online, however you communicate...
Let's bring ourselves up and let's bring other people up as well. I will keep that sticker. For those of us who want to create some positivity in the world and have that energy resound, for the sake of this conversation, did a little social experiment, with my daughter. Something like this, a little matrix if we have it here. We did a social experiment over three mornings last week. After we saw this sign we asked: What would happen if we just waved and said hello to everyone that we saw? What would happen? We did this over three days. The first day we went to the park, then we went for a walk around the community, and then we went to a camp drop-off. We charted it out based on other crazies like us who initiated a wave or a hello, those who matched our energy and said hi back in some way acknowledging us, or those who just had no response. The total was 30 people in our group. For the sake of conversation: If we're able to match negative energies, can we also match positive energies? Our results were interesting. They were situational. In terms of those others like us who initiate a hello, and this is just them, the park run had the most of them. There were two folks who were running and initiated the hello and it so great before we even had a chance to pick up our hands or smile. And one from the community walk initiated the hello. So of the 30, we have 10 % of people like us who are trying to put this positivity out there, these smiles out there first, because we know that other people are going to match our energy. Let's lead it with positivity! Thank you for that, 10 % of people. I really appreciated your hello. Right back at you. Let's talk about those who matched our positive energy, our hello or our smiles. In the park run, we had seven of the ten who matched our energy. This high energy group that are out there trying to find wellness and health. Thank you folks for smiling, thank you for waving, thank you for saying good morning. Next up was the community. Of the 10, five of them waved back or just matched our energy. Camp drop off, three, smiled or waved back. It's a little bit of a different group, less familiarity, more hustle, more bustle, more craziness happening to try to get kids to that camp drop off or to try to get back to your desk and pick up your next call. If I look at that group who match our energy in three different situations, with high energy, more familiarity, and more hustle bustle. We had a total of the seven + five + three = 15. 15 out of 30, 50 % mirrored our good energy. How great is that? It's not just about the bad energy that we're mirroring. If you put out there good energy, 50 % of the time, you will get it back. I would have done this mini research project if I had found that one person had mirrored my energy, it would have been worth it. Because maybe that one person takes it and has an exponential effect to their positivity. When I saw that 10 % initiated a hello just like us, and 50 % matched our positivity, that's incredible to me. No responders. In the park, we had one no responder. In the community, we had four no responders. At camp drop off, we had seven. People are in their own world. We can't affect everyone. We had 12 people out of the 30 who did not respond. Were not expecting this social experiment. Did not communicate back, 40%. But the majority did! Based on this cute little social experiment, I would say this: Put your best self forward. Think about every space that you put yourself in. When you walk into your house, when you walk into a boardroom, when you walk into a new office for an appointment and a gatekeeper welcomes you. Bring your smile, bring your positivity, because the majority of the time, they're going to send it right back to you. On those days where you just have abundant energy, bring it with you and share it with other people. If you feel it from that 10% of folks who already have the same and are putting it out there, just tell them they're doing a great job. Let's see how many people that we can spin the negative to positive, and have them be enjoying the fact that they match energy because it's important. Learnings from a Post-It note. I thank you for making me reflect and making me think about this a little scientifically and making me realize that we also match positivity and the majority of people do the same. Have a wonderful day! |
Jackie MorrealeJackie writes from her own experiences and reflections on her journey in seeking wisdom, creativity, spirituality, and life in general. This is "putting thyself out there" at its finest. 
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