All marketers know how difficult it can be to predict what will connect with your audience, and that only gets harder the broader your reach becomes. Season 7 of Love Island pulled its biggest numbers yet. For over a month, millions of people have been on a shared wavelength. Wherever you go, whoever you’re with—somebody is concerned about Love Island news. But best believe, not one concern is the same. Everyone has a completely different take.
Here are three lessons I learned from Love Island:
Let Yourself Be Messy
If you’re one of the millions who’ve been keeping up with Love Island, then you know contestant Huda. Huda has divided fans since the very beginning. She had an emotional crash-out over Jeremiah (one of the men she was coupled up with), which caused many fans to label her as toxic or manipulative. Yet despite all of that, Huda consistently bounced back, with humility and confidence. She wants to improve and, most importantly, she wants to be the best friend she can be to the other girls in the Villa.
Sure, she’s been messy along the way, but the sentiment is there.
In marketing, we have to let ourselves be messy, too. More importantly, we have to surround ourselves with people who encourage us to take risks. People who say, “Yeah, let’s give it a try,” and still have our backs if that try ends in a flop. Having a team that supports one another and always strives to improve? That’s huge. In the end, it’s not about being flawless, it’s about being real, taking risks and growing together.
Plan for Relevancy in the Moment
Cutting away from your content plan to embrace what’s relevant right now can be a game-changer. Case in point: Flex Disc created a Love Island-themed ad. If you saw episode 31, this will make sense. If not, all the girls were chanting a certain phrase when Amaya was chosen to go to “The Hideaway” with Brian for a romantic evening.
About two days after I saw that episode, this ad popped up, and let me tell you, I have never reshared something so fast. Flex Disc didn’t just hop on the Love Island train for fun; their brand fit what was happening in the show. And it worked. Really well.
Relevance and timing make or break a strategy. Don’t sleep on them.
Girl, It’s Time to Move On
Sometimes, you’ve just got to let go and move on. The perfect social media campaign might be right around the corner if you allow yourself to move toward bigger things. You can do better. No need to force love if it’s not there.
I won’t spoil anything, but let’s just say Amaya found lots of different connections in the Villa. But getting to one that truly let her sparkle took a few tries. Your brand deserves the same grace. If your strategy isn’t working, maybe it’s “not the tea you should be drinking.”
It’s okay to feel the heartbreak of ditching your old tactics. We all have to wallow sometimes. But ignoring that feeling can leave you stuck in a strategy couple that’s not helping you thrive.
Marketing isn’t about staying loyal to what once worked, it’s about recoupling with what works now.
