From Textbook to Reality: The Impact of Social Media

By Chua Sheng Rui

In May 2026, I would have completed my two years with SW Strategies.

This time last year, I was working remotely from Japan with my colleague Danial Halim, exploring Osaka and Kyoto while learning more about what this industry can truly offer.

Going back even further to March 2024, I was in Japan, submitting the employment contract to my managing director, Jose Raymond.

Funny how life comes full circle, even during my days in university as a marketing major.

Back then, digital marketing was the craze. Lecturers teaching about the use cases of social media, the impact that social media can bring to businesses, and assignments where I had to reference the number of social media users across the board in Singapore religiously.

Yet, while the theory and numbers sounded great, my understanding of social media stopped at mere theory.

Yes, I am an active user myself, but the impact of social media felt exaggerated, with it being seen as the almighty gateway to brand visibility.

From Theory to Practice

When I first started in SW, I remember Jose asking me to do a check on social media platforms and letting him know if it’s worth it to pursue having our own platforms.

Back then, doing a simple search on social media showed that other agencies had given up on their own corporate platforms due to the lack of engagement, and that was what I told Jose, it’s not worth it for the time we have to put into it.

However, our team began experimenting with nano-influencers for clients, using them to promote hashtags and increase visibility through content created from their own ideas.

Though I was unconvinced at the impact earlier on, what really struck me was when the cumulative views of these posts surpassed a million views.

It was then that I realised that social media wasn’t just numbers or theory, it was a tool that could amplify, a platform even the smallest voices can resonate and make an impact beyond what I had imagined.

The number of followers a creator has only tells one part of the story, while the other is told by the engagements and views.

A Sword That Cuts Both Ways

Social media is useful, but it is sometimes too powerful and unpredictable. Virality can happen in mere days or even hours, as seen with the PropertyLim Brothers (PLB) Saga, escalating from reddit posts to articles on mainstream media, showing that with the right ingredients (topics), anyone can cook a 5-star meal (go viral).

Social media platforms like Reddit have proven exceptionally useful in raising awareness and unjust, for unheard voices such as students at NTU, their voices could no longer be left unheard as the school was pressured to respond with statements after posts on its subreddit went viral.

Anonymity plays a major role on social media, giving courage to users to share their deepest and darkest thoughts. On one hand, it allows factual and honest perspectives to surface, on another, it is a playground for trolls to spread misinformation.

Companies can decide not to actively use it, but they cannot ignore the impact of social media. Look what happened when PLB decided to stay silent and allow the speculations to paint the story.

Yet, even after ignoring the situation, and when all eyes were on them, they decided to start a food war during their company’s CNY dinner, resulting in further backlash and which led to them restricting comments across their social media platforms.

Under the Social Media Microscope

Disclaimer: this reflection isn’t intended to call out any organisation, but to highlight how social media places anything and anyone, under the microscope, allowing communities to fuel fires out of proportion. Once something juicy is uploaded, it is up to luck whether the algorithm decides to put the spotlight on you.

Traditional PR is great and it provides a certain amount of credibility, but the influence of social media has already begun to rival your traditional outlets.

A social media strategy isn’t just merely about creating content and putting it up for the sake of it. It is about developing a story, a narrative to share with others through different lenses. No matter how small a creator, social media can elevate you into the spotlight, and when that happens, consistency is key.

While social media has definitely come a long way since 2 years ago, the failure to see its potential back then was due to my lack of exposure towards real case examples.

These two years have definitely changed the way I interacted with social media, from understanding narrative building while I am scrolling through instagram platforms to getting a feel of public sentiments on certain viral topics. These have allowed me to get a grasp on trending news to further develop different strategies to build brand perception for clients.

Two years ago, I viewed social media as a tool which everyone exaggerated its impact on.

Today, it is part and parcel of the strategy which we would propose to clients, and knowing how to utilise social media well can make all the difference in how a brand is seen and remembered.