Social Media Success Stories That Work in 2025

The social media landscape is undergoing one of its biggest evolutions yet.

What worked for marketing leaders in 2023 or 2024—like boosting organic reach or focusing solely on corporate pages—is no longer enough.

Declining reach, increased algorithm complexity, and fierce competition mean that marketers must work smarter, not harder.

One thing that remains clear is this: people engage with other people, not faceless brands. Tanya Dua, speaking at our recent New York event, pointed out how LinkedIn’s algorithm increasingly prioritizes posts from individuals rather than corporate pages.

Why?

People value authenticity, trust, and human interaction.

If you're ready to level-up your strategy in this changing environment, this blog post outlines the top successful social media tactics for 2025—all proven to work, informed by real-world examples, and ready for you to implement.

1. Organizational Thought Leadership (OTL): The Backbone of Social Media

Key Insight: Personal brands are outperforming corporate pages in engagement and influence.

More than ever, social media success hinges on individuals, not logos.

To stay competitive, brands need to spotlight their key employees as industry thought leaders. This strategy, often called Organizational Thought Leadership (OTL), leverages executives, subject matter experts, or even sales leaders as the "face" of the company.

Why It Works

• Authenticity Wins: People are more likely to trust and engage with other people than with anonymous corporate content.
• Platform Favoritism: LinkedIn in particular rewards personal posts with much greater reach compared to company pages.

Real-World Proof

LinkedIn's recent emphasis on thought leadership posts highlights this shift. For instance, executives like Scott Galloway dominate the platform with insightful, personal, and data-driven content that outperforms many leading company profiles.

Steps to Implement OTL

• Identify Key Players: Focus on employees with strong networks (think execs, product leaders, or team leads).
• Develop Content Frameworks: Balance expertise with storytelling. Posts should educate, inspire, and create relatability.
• Provide Support: Ghostwriting, media training, and engagement strategies help employees succeed.
• Expand Beyond the C-Suite: Engage sales leaders, marketers, and product experts at all levels as brand voices.

🔹 Pro Tip: Consider turning happy customers into advocates by nurturing user-generated thought leadership.

2. Focus on Comments, Not Just Posts

Key Insight: The best-performing social media leaders succeed not just because of their posts but because of their strategic, high-value comments.

Content posting is no longer enough. Commenting on industry conversations helps brands gain visibility, foster stronger relationships, and position themselves as thought leaders.

Why It Works

Comments don’t just get seen by the original audience—they build traction through replies and can dramatically amplify your reach.

Steps to Implement

1. Dedicate Time Daily: Comments from executives or key team members on posts by industry leaders or partners generate big rewards.
2. Add Value: Go beyond “Great post!” by contributing thoughtful insights or extending the conversation. Think personal anecdotes, counterpoints, or additional data.
3. Spotlight Conversations in the Industry: Engage in trending topics, showcasing your expertise through meaningful inputs.

🔹 Pro Tip: Comments from verified accounts or high-authority individuals can drive more traffic than a corporate page post.

3. Short-Form Video: The Content Style Driving Engagement

Key Insight: TikTok-style video content is dominating platforms beyond TikTok, including LinkedIn, Instagram, and even X (formerly Twitter).

Why It Works

Short-form, engaging videos are perfect for shrinking attention spans. They’re algorithm-friendly and pack more authenticity than text-heavy posts.

Real-World Proof

On LinkedIn, leaders like Sarah Wang have achieved viral engagement by repurposing knowledge-sharing webinars into 60-second clips with digestible insights for broad audiences.

Steps to Implement

• Repurpose Existing Content: Adapt blogs or presentations into short snippets that are engaging and packed with value.
• Use “Face-to-Camera” Videos: Videos featuring people build trust and authority. Speak directly to your audience.
• Add Captions: Up to 85% of videos are watched on mute, making captions essential.

🔹 Pro Tip: This tactic isn’t limited to TikTok—LinkedIn, Instagram Stories, and even YouTube Shorts see massive ROI from short-form video.

4. Dark Social and Relationship Building

Key Insight: Social media success is no longer confined to public posts. Deals and key connections increasingly happen in “dark social” spaces such as DMs, private group chats, and shared posts.

Why It Works

Shifting consumer behavior means more users are engaging privately. Platforms like LinkedIn report higher traction in their direct messaging features than their feeds.

Steps to Implement

• Shift Focus to Networking: Move beyond broadcasting content into personalized one-on-one engagements.
• Offer Value First: Use DMs for meaningful exchanges where you provide tools, insights, or solutions before pitching anything.
• Engage in LinkedIn Groups: Spark niche conversations to reach communities centered around your expertise.

🔹 Pro Tip: Track leads from dark social by incorporating customer surveys or monitoring inquiries tied to private discussions.

5. Thought Leadership Ads

Key Insight: Boosting corporate content falls flat—it’s time to turn your advertising toward boosting content from individual employees.

Why It Works

People trust and engage with personal content more than with highly polished corporate ads.

Steps to Implement

1. Allocate Ad Spend to Employees: Support employee-driven posts by reaching wider audiences with strategic boosts.
2. Experiment with Retargeting Ads: Use ad tools to showcase personal brand posts to prospects who are already familiar with your company.
3. Prioritize Video Ads: Create ads that look educational, offering value rather than coming across as “salesy.”

🔹 Pro Tip: The best ads often don’t look like advertisements—prioritize value, learning, or storytelling.

How to Win on Social Media in 2025

The days of relying solely on corporate pages are over. To succeed in 2025’s competitive landscape, brands must move from brand-first marketing to people-first marketing.

Winning on social media now means using Organizational Thought Leadership coupled with meaningful engagement tactics like commenting, short-form video, dark social, and thoughtful ad strategies.

Social media success no longer means simply generating impressions—it means driving trust, authenticity, and connection, one tactic at a time.

Want to master how to build an OTL-based strategy custom to your business needs? Reach out to us today!