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I run a social media marketing agency and I struggle with my self-image.

A lack of confidence has been a personal issue for me since I was about the age of six or seven. Before the invention of social media. Arguably after the inception of the internet but the WWW had certainly not reached our modest home on Hayling Island by that point.

So I can’t say that without big bad Facebook, MSN Messenger or MySpace, I would be a shining example of sheer confidence. However there is a clear correlation between the trajectory of said confidence and the rise of social networking sites. This link is fairly well documented so I’m aware this is not a revelation.

What is curious to me is that I’ve somehow found my way into a career that’s quite possibly fuelling feelings of low self worth. One could simply suggest a career change. But instead, what would happen if I tried to fix it?

I love my job. It’s creative, collaborative and helps people in many ways. There’s just this one thing about it which feels misaligned with my personal values. So rather than accept the notion that social media will forever be undeniably bad for mental health, I’d like to challenge this idea and attempt to make it a better place for myself and for others too.

Here begins my investigation. I always fancied being a detective. Over the course of the next 10 weeks, I’m going to conduct my own research in an attempt to uncover some legitimate solutions to the modern world’s depleting mental health caused by social media.

Some of the questions I hope to answer are:

In what ways does social media negatively impact mental health?

Why does this seem to impact some people more than others?

Who is responsible for the negative effects of social media?

Are some social media platforms more harmful than others?

Can we identify some ways to make social media a better place?

Who is going to take the lead in making real change?


I am currently reaching out to professors of psychology, mental health research groups,  health and social practitioners, wellbeing experts and individuals with personal experiences relating to this topic. If you know anyone who might like to be interviewed, drop me an email on 

Is social media the root of all evil? An investigation by a social media marketing agency founder. 

Job Title: Content Creator / Social Media Executive

The ideal candidate will have a passion for social media and experience in creating engaging content across various platforms. This role will be responsible for managing social media channels, creating content, and collaborating with clients to achieve their marketing objectives.

Develop and execute social media strategies for clients across various platforms, including TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and more

Create engaging content for social media channels, including videos, graphics, photos, and copy

Manage social media channels, including posting content

Collaborate with clients to understand their marketing goals and objectives

Monitor and report on campaign performance, providing recommendations for optimisation and improvement

Stay up-to-date with social media trends and changes to algorithms, adjusting strategies as needed

Attend client meetings and presentations as needed

Manage content calendars, ensuring consistent and engaging content across all channels

Work with other team members, including designers and copywriters, to create cohesive campaigns

Maintain strong relationships with clients and ensure their satisfaction with our services

Experience in social media marketing, preferably in an agency setting

Knowledge of social media platforms and best practices for marketing on each channel

Strong written and verbal communication skills

Ability to think creatively and strategically to develop effective campaigns

Strong organisational skills and attention to detail

Ability to work independently and manage multiple projects simultaneously

Proficient in creative/design software and social media management tools

This is a full-time position, with a flexible schedule and the potential for remote work. If you are passionate about social media marketing and have experience in creating engaging content, we encourage you to apply for this exciting opportunity.

New Job - We're hiring a content creator / social media executive

Job Title: Part-time Marketing Manager (Agency)

The ideal candidate will have a passion for events, excellent communication skills, buckets of initiative and proactivity. This role manages all aspects of our agency's marketing efforts, including events, content creation (social & blog), awards, partnerships and public relations.


Develop and execute marketing strategies to promote our agency's services and build our brand

Conduct market research to identify industry trends and best in class examples of marketing for digital agencies

Manage our agency's brand, including developing and maintaining a consistent voice and visual identity across all channels

Create and manage content calendars for our agency's social media channels, ensuring consistent and engaging content across all platforms

Develop and execute digital marketing campaigns to drive traffic to our website and generate leads

Manage our agency's website, including creating and updating content, monitoring analytics, and optimising for SEO

Develop and maintain relationships with media outlets and industry peers to generate press coverage and build our agency's reputation

Organising agency events for clients and new prospects

Organising networking events for other agencies to build and foster relationships with peers and partners

Stay up-to-date with marketing trends and changes to algorithms, adjusting strategies as needed

Marketing experience, preferably in an agency setting

Proficient in Microsoft Office and social media management tools


This is a part-time position, with a flexible schedule and the potential for remote work. If you are passionate about marketing for social media agencies and have experience in developing and executing successful campaigns, we encourage you to apply for this exciting opportunity.

New Job - We're hiring a part-time Marketing Manager 

Job Summary: In this role, you will be responsible for managing our clients' social media pages, engaging with their communities, and collaborating with relevant influencers and partners.
Responsibilities:

Monitor and manage clients' social media pages (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok etc.) on a daily basis

Respond to comments and messages in a timely and professional manner

Proactively engage with followers and communities to foster positive relationships and brand loyalty

Identify and reach out to potential collaborators and influencers to build relationships

Work closely with the content team to ensure social media content is engaging, relevant, and timely

Provide regular community reports to social media managers on engagement and other relevant KPIs

Stay up-to-date with social media trends and best practices to continuously improve community engagement strategies

Excellent time management and organisational skills

Knowledge of social media platforms and their respective best practices

An understanding of brand and tone of voice

Ability to work independently and as part of a team

Customer service experience would be advantageous

This is a part-time position that requires approximately 21 hours per week. The Community Manager will report to Social Media Managers and work closely with the content team. If you are a self-starter with a passion for social media and community management, we encourage you to apply.

mobile phone showing how to use tiktok for b2b brands

New Job - We're hiring a Community Manager

As influencer marketing forever expands in the digital marketing world, it's important to ensure that you're partnering with the right influencers who can deliver real results for your brand. At Swwim, we pride ourselves on our ability to handpick influencers who are the perfect fit for our clients, creating authentic and mutually beneficial partnerships.

In this blog post, we will share six key factors that we consider when selecting influencers for campaigns, to ensure maximum success and return on investment for our clients. Let's dive in!

: We look for influencers who are consistently active on their stories, as this indicates that they are committed to engaging with their audience.

 A high follower count doesn't necessarily equate to high engagement. We carefully analyse an influencer's engagement rate, looking for a high level of interaction with their followers. We also like to see an influencer communicating with their followers too as this shows a real sense of community.

 We seek influencers who have developed a strong and recognisable personal brand. We should be able to tell what an influencer is all about within a minute of looking through their profile. A strong brand usually equals a strong community.

 We look for influencers who are consistent with their feed posting schedule. We aren’t talking about posting 7 days a week, but a minimum of 2 x on Instagram, and 3 or 4 x a week if we are looking for TikTok influencers.

 It's absolutely essential that an influencer's values align with the brand they are promoting. This ensures that the partnership is authentic and meaningful and that the audience will perceive it as such.

 We believe that follower counts don’t have to be huge in order to lead a successful influencer campaign. Micro influencers hold a significant impact and should never be overlooked. This of course depends on the client’s campaign brief but the majority of the time we are looking for a minimum of 5k followers.

If you have any questions about influencer marketing or need a hand on your next campaign, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!

6 Tips For Choosing The Right Influencer

Launching your own business can be an intense process - where do you even start?! If you’re not a big social media user yourself, creating profiles for your new business can seem like a daunting challenge - but it doesn’t need to be! We’ve put together some of our top tips for starting your channels and some great first steps to take.

As with any project or new venture, a great way to get started is by setting yourself some goals, giving you something concrete to work towards. Start by writing down some short-term goals, mid-term goals and long-term goals. This will enable you to manage your expectations and avoid feeling discouraged if you don’t get everything done in your first week.

A social media strategy is essential to running and growing successful channels. First of all, you need to outline your goals, and then provide a detailed plan on the tactics you will be using to achieve them. You should also decide what metrics you will be tracking in order to measure your progress, these are your KPIs.

Content pillars are 3 to 5 topics that will underpin all of your brand’s content. While you should always leave room to be flexible and create reactive content where appropriate, having a plan and guidelines will ensure that you are sticking to your strategy, producing consistent content and are on your way to achieving your goals!


Not every platform will be right for your brand. It’s important to bare in mind that different audiences use different platforms, and the types of content that work well on one platform may not work as well on another. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach and testing and learning is important in helping you create a solid posting strategy.

Having a solid, consistent look across all social channels will help your brand's authenticity and visibility. Cross-platform synergy involves having the same or similar usernames, profile pictures, cover photos and profile biographies.

Make sure everyone who has access to posting / commenting on your channels is aware of an agreed tone of voice and persona attached to the accounts. You want to be consistent in your messaging in order to strengthen your brand personality.


Becky Shepherd writing her small business social media plan

Top Tips For Your Small Business Social Media Planning

You'll have a self-sufficient marketing team

Using a marketing agency vs having your own in-house team means they’re more likely to operate self-sufficiently. Saving you time to focus on other tasks required for your business.

The social media agency will have a more thorough and in-depth understanding of best practices and industry news. You can rely on them to be experts in their fields. They’ve also worked across several different industries and will have a wider understanding of what works well.

Agencies work with a variety of different clients, this could be beneficial for your own marketing in terms of collabs. They will also have contacts in similar areas of marketing for services they don’t offer, eg. videographers, copywriters, and translators. You never know when one of these will be essential to your marketing strategy!

Agencies typically have a whole team of individuals working on client accounts, meaning last minute changes or decisions can easily be adapted to. They’ll also acquire more physical resources in terms of equipment and tools, allowing them to create content to a higher standard.

An agency will have the knowledge and know-how to create high quality content for your social media channels, but they’ll also be technically minded so they’re able to analyse and report on the results from the content.

If you're thinking of hiring a social media agency then 

, we have a great team with knowledge ranging from community management, influencers, content creation & paid media channels.

Swwim girls at their social media agency portsmouth

What Are The Benefits Of Hiring A Social Media Agency?

Interviews 💦 Marketing Examples 💦 Social Media Trends 💦Content Ideas 💦 Useful Links

We find the best examples of brands making a splash on the internet, so you don’t have to. 

Sign up for the not-so-serious side of social media.