Meg Brunson

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A Just Marketing® Guide to Tragedy Response

It is no secret that our world seems to hit us with tragedy at every turn. Like an unstoppable freight train careening uninvited into our lives. Since the topic is unavoidable, the question becomes, as a marketer, how do you go about responding to tragedies? Or do you? There are typically two ways to react when a national tragedy occurs:

You either,

  1. Halt marketing efforts altogether, which allows people time to process the event and do what you can to mitigate the perception of being insensitive by continuing business as usual. (However, stopping all marketing activity could interrupt ongoing launches, contracts with other stakeholders, or put at risk the ad optimization that you’ve spent major moola on. And if you do pause your marketing efforts, the question then becomes, how soon is too soon to return to “normal” activity.)

Or, 

  1. Continue marketing as usual. Some people find comfort in normalcy, providing a  blanket of reprieve from the horror outside and pointing out there is always a rainbow after a storm. (On the flip side, continuing marketing as usual and not acknowledging the tragedy at all could come off as insensitive and give off the impression that you value earnings over humanity.)

A cookie-cutter response does not exist when it comes to deciding the best way to respond when a national tragedy presents itself. It is the goal of this resource to give you a few options and perspectives, including my own, to help guide you in creating a plan to respond that validates who you are, and best fits your business. 

What Constitutes a Tragedy?

A tragedy can be defined in multiple ways, including but not limited to:  school shootings, hate crimes, police brutality, legislation or court decisions resulting in loss of rights, war, death of an impactful community leader, etc. 

If you’ve ever turned on the 5 o’clock news, you’re inundated with one terrible thing after another. (There’s a mass shooting practically every day!) So how do you define a national tragedy versus just another day in the neighborhood? 

If we cut off our marketing every time something terrible happened, we’d never have any marketing. Therefore, we have to evaluate which circumstances require us to make changes to our typical marketing strategy. 

Shift does an excellent job of laying out these Five Factors to determine whether an event could be characterized as a tragedy: 

  1. Proximity
    • If an incident occurs directly in your community, the stronger you should consider interrupting normal operations as this is something that directly affects those who receive your material. 
  2. Magnitude
    • If an incident has great overall significance, more day-to-day operations should cease. 
  3. Audience Impact
    • If your audience has a significant reaction to the incident, it is a good sign that normal operations should pause. Be sure to gauge how your audience is responding to the incident and react accordingly.
  4. Brand Alignment
    • If an incident is impactful to your specific brand or industry, interrupting normal operations should be considered. 
  5. Judgment
    • If you have a conversation with yourself and ask, “Self, will this offend my people?” then the answer is probably yes. Using the factors above, use your best personal judgment and base your response on the specific individual incident. Erring on the side of caution, I think, is best if you’re not sure if a specific incident qualifies to interrupt business operations. Better to be safe than offensive.

What are the immediate things you should do when a tragedy occurs?

  1. Pause Automations 

Pause your organic social media design and consider whether things could be viewed as 

insensitive to those affected by the trauma.

Pausing social media, email, and any other marketing automations you have set up allows you to assess the tragedy at hand and determine whether you will move forward with business as usual or if you need to pivot your marketing approach. 

After pausing, it will allow you to review the five factors that determine a tragedy (above) as a step in your response plan process. If you determine that marketing strategies don’t need to be updated, it is simple to unpause and move forward. However, pausing first allows for the time and space to make thoughtful, educated decisions, therefore ensuring you don't inadvertently send or publish something that sounds insensitive to the situation.  

  1. Consider your Team and Clients 

If there are members of your team and/or clients who are impacted, then you should consider how you can go about providing the appropriate support. This very well may happen before pausing your marketing automations, but the key is that they both happen quickly, fast, and in a hurry. 

  1. Craft Your Response 

It is important to identify why this issue matters to you and how you plan to advocate on 

social media. Things to consider:

  • Sharing educational material and informational resources
  • Issuing a personal, official statement for your brand
  • Collaborating with credible organizations who have begun advocating for the cause

You should still consider how you want to reply to the incident that occurred, no matter if you stop all marketing efforts or not. This is NOT the time to leverage trauma to push for sales but rather to share open and honest feelings of sympathy and support. 

Social media is a perfect way to reach out to your audience, sharing words of comfort and any concrete help you can provide. 

  1.  Remember Trigger Warnings

We want to be extra cautious during times of tragedy to include trigger warnings so we can help prevent additional unwarranted pain and suffering for people who are trying to prioritize their emotional health after a tragedy. Listen to episode 18 for more information on trigger warnings.

What do you do ASAP after a tragedy has occurred? 

After you take care of the immediate tasks, you can begin to work through this list of things that should be done as soon as possible.

  1. Process, reflect, and rest.
    Self-care is an essential element of activism. You must be taking care of yourself. Make sure you’re creating content that’s aligned with your values as opposed to being driven from a place of pure emotion. If you have a strong conviction to write immediately, give it a pause until you have the chance to review your words.
  1. To stay paused or to resume marketing as usual? That is the question.
    What are your clients and supporters focused on now? The initial reactions are likely to feel terror, shock, sadness, empathy, helplessness, and even anger. These types of emotions are key indicators that pausing regular marketing efforts makes sense. 

You’re not missing an opportunity to sell because your audience simply is not in the right headspace to invest right now. Instead, they’re focused on the tragedy and expect you to be as well. It’s important to re-evaluate after a few days to see if the mood is shifting back to “normal,” then you can proceed with strategic small steps with your existing marketing plan.

Everyone experiences tragedy differently, depending on their environments and upbringing, so make sure you’re consuming content from diverse voices to ensure you best address the issue inclusively and respectfully. And seeking counsel on these topics is important if you aren’t positive about the best way to go about responding.

  1. I’m not marketing at the moment. Now what?
    There are a few different ways you can use your time during the days when you’ve stopped marketing due to tragedy:
  • Spend the time advocating for and strengthening your messages of support available to the impacted community as well as those who have been impacted directly. 
  • Focus on plans for future marketing efforts. Think about what you have planned for later in the month/quarter/year and get a jump start preparing those things.
  • Spend additional time on your own self-care. Let’s be honest, we don’t get enough time to begin with, and during times of trauma, we need it even more than ever.
  1. Be prepared for corrections and/or internet trolls.
    There are many different opinions on the best way to approach marketing following a tragedy. Social media is tricky in that you should be prepared to receive constructive feedback, however, also be prepared to deal with trolls. Check out episode 4 for more info about what to do when you mess up, and episode 5 to learn about trolls.
  1. But what about ads?
    This is my personal opinion and one that I am well aware may be polarizing.

I don’t often pause ads, even during times of tragedy, when it comes to paid advertisements on Facebook/Instagram, where I currently focus most of my efforts and run ads for many clients.  

I do this because, with my intricate knowledge of how the ad algorithms work on social media, I know that “pausing” an ad campaign will disrupt the optimization that my clients invest lots of time and money into achieving. 

Of course, this is vastly different from halting organic content from delivering — which is something I do recommend.

Make sure you review the content of your ads to ensure there is nothing problematic in the material in light of the tragedy. When dealing with a bombing, for example, I would want to make certain there aren’t any images resembling bombs in my ads, or language that may be insensitive such as, “your sales will explode” or “the first ad bombed,” etc.  If these instances occur, turning off those ads and getting new ones running would be imperative.

After reviewing the ads for sensitive images and language, I tend to leave the paid ads running as is. When the ads have comments on them, users will be able to see that it is a long-running ad versus one that has been freshly posted. 

To easily see the brand's response to the tragedy, I highly encourage brands running ads to pin the response to the top of their page so that if someone clicks through to the page from the ad, it is easily visible. Of course, if they’ve paused other organic posts, it should be there already.

After reviewing all of the steps to ensure you are responding to tragedy in a just way, the main takeaway is acknowledging that communication and marketing strategy during and after tragedies requires an abundance of concern and consideration. 

When planning a response strategy, the most important guideline is to recognize those who are affected by the tragedy itself. Representing who we are and what we stand for to the outside world is a pillar of being a social media marketer. Implementing a considerate response standard when a tragedy occurs helps to respond appropriately to these events. 

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Tags: Blogging Strategy, Core Content, Email Marketing, Ethical Marketing, Inclusive Marketing, Podcast Marketing, Promotional Content, Social Media Strategy, Values-Aligned Promotions, Video Marketing

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About Meg Brunson

Online marketing authority and former Facebook employee Meg Brunson combines their mission to build a more accessible and inclusive world, with their expertise in the digital marketing space.

Meg is on a mission to disrupt the status quo of marketing so that financial success is the byproduct of a genuine commitment to justice, rather than an end goal in itself.

Through Meg’s signature approach, Just Marketing®, businesses are implementing ethical, inclusive, and accessible marketing campaigns that make a positive impact on society and their bottom line, creating a virtuous cycle where profitability and responsible practices reinforce each other.

Meg is a professional speaker, children’s book author, host of the Just Marketing® podcasts, CMO of BetterCEO.app and CEO of Just Marketing®.

Follow me on Instagram @theMegBrunson
If you missed last week’s post - no shame. If yo If you missed last week’s post - no shame.
If you didn’t track your metrics this month - that’s OK.
If you’re pivoting because something didn’t work - that’s growth, not failure.

Consistency is...
- Giving yourself grace.
- Coming back, even after breaks.
- Staying aligned with your values, even if progress feels slow.

This is your reminder:
Perfection is a trap.
Consistency is what creates momentum.

Your marketing doesn’t need to be flawless.
It just needs to be authentically you, showing up when you can.

If you needed to hear this today, check out the blog for zero-shame marketing strategies: MegBrunson.com/marketing-data 

Drop your favorite gif if you’re embracing progress over perfection this season…!

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You’ve got numbers. Cool. But what do they mean? You’ve got numbers. Cool.
But what do they mean? 
And how do you use them without spiraling into overthinking or analysis paralysis?

Here’s your ADHD- and entrepreneur-friendly roadmap:

Step 1: Analyze without obsessing
Ask simple questions:
 - What’s working?
 - What’s not?
 - What’s worth tweaking?
(Not everything requires a deep dive - look for patterns, not perfection.)

Step 2: Experiment and adjust
- A/B test little things (subject lines, CTAs, posting times)
- Make small, iterative changes
- Avoid "burn it all down" energy… steady wins here

Step 3: Celebrate progress, even the tiny wins
- 5 more clicks than last month? That counts.
- Someone replied to your email? That matters.
- Learned what doesn’t work? That’s insight.

Your marketing journey is NOT a pass/fail test.
It’s a cycle of learning, adjusting, and growing.

When in doubt, zoom out.
Look at trends over time.
Progress always tells a bigger story than one random metric.

Ready to start analyzing with confidence (and without overwhelm)?
I’ve got ADHD-friendly strategies for you at: MegBrunson.com/marketing-data 

And tell me: how do you celebrate your marketing wins? 🎉

ID: Infographic titled ‘Strategies for Making Data-Informed Decisions.’ Key points: Analyze Without Overthinking (identify what's working, what's not, and test small tweaks), Experimentation is Key (A/B testing, iterative adjustments), and Celebrate Progress, Not Perfection (learn from failures). Background features a purple gradient with laptop, chart, and computer illustrations.

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You don’t need to monitor all the numbers. You n You don’t need to monitor all the numbers. You need the right numbers - the ones that show whether your marketing efforts are actually working.

Here’s your permission slip to simplify:

1. Social Media:
Focus on engagement rates (likes, comments, shares, saves) and forget follower counts - they don’t tell the full story

2. Email Marketing:
Watch open rates + click-through rates. This shows who’s really connecting with your emails

3. Website:
Check traffic sources + conversion rates… Where are people coming from, and what actions are they taking?

Remember: Simple > Complicated

When you zoom in on the metrics that matter, you save time, reduce overwhelm, and make smarter marketing decisions aligned with your values.

Learn exactly how to track your marketing without stress: MegBrunson.com/marketing-data 

What’s one metric you always check first? 
I’d love to know - share below!

ID: Infographic titled ‘Marketing Metrics.’ Text: ‘The goal isn't to track everything, it's to track the right things.’ Key metrics: Social Media Metrics (engagement rates, not follower count), Email Marketing Metrics (open rates, click-through rates), and Website Metrics (traffic sources, conversion rates). Background features a soft pink and blue gradient with abstract curved shapes.

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For mission-driven entrepreneurs, tracking marketi For mission-driven entrepreneurs, tracking marketing data often feels like yet another overwhelming task on your endless to-do list.

But here’s the thing, tracking your marketing success doesn’t have to send you into a spiral. It can actually become one of the most empowering parts of your business.

Because when you understand what's working (and what’s just noise)...

…You make smarter, values-aligned decisions.
…You stop chasing vanity metrics that don’t matter.
…You save precious time and energy.

It’s not about tracking everything or aiming for perfection. It’s about finding clarity and creating marketing strategies that actually support your goals - without burning out.

I’m breaking it all down:
1. The key marketing metrics to focus on (ditch the rest!)
2. How to make tracking ADHD-friendly and stress-free
3. Simple systems to help you stay consistent without feeling chained to your dashboard
4. How to analyze your data with a growth mindset - and make confident adjustments

Progress, not perfection, is the goal here.

Check out the blog to make tracking work for you (not against you): MegBrunson.com/marketing-data 

What's one metric you actually enjoy checking? 
Drop it in the comments… I’m curious!

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You’ve heard it everywhere: “Grow your follow You’ve heard it everywhere:
 “Grow your followers.”
 “Get more likes.”
 “Chase that viral moment.”

But here’s the truth: Vanity metrics won’t build the kind of brand that changes lives.

What will?
— Prioritizing accessibility so everyone feels welcome
— Centering inclusivity so diverse voices are heard
— Building genuine relationships that stand the test of time

When you align your marketing with your mission, magic happens:
— You attract the right people (values-aligned, ready to connect)
— You show up consistently without burning out
— You create ripple effects far beyond the algorithm

Ready to ditch vanity metrics and focus on values-driven growth: MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success

What’s ONE value you want your marketing to reflect this year? Let’s name it + claim it.

ID: A pink and purple gradient background featuring a dartboard with arrows, a purple briefcase, stacks of coins, and growth icons. Text reads: ‘Shift your focus from vanity metrics to values-driven goals. It's not just good for your brand - it's good for the world.’ The Just Marketing logo appears at the bottom.

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How do your values show up in your business? Anyo How do your values show up in your business?

Anyone can slap their values on an "About" page and call it a day.

But if your business is truly values-led, those beliefs show up in your: 

— Client onboarding process
— Pricing and payment options
— Marketing language
— Team communication
— Accessibility choices
— Boundaries and business hours
— Collaborations and brand partnerships

The question isn’t just what you believe…
It’s how you bring those beliefs to life in your everyday biz decisions.

I’d love to know: What are your core values, and where do they show up the strongest in your business?

(Mine sometimes show up on my t-shirts! 😉)

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Feeling stuck on what to actually measure when you Feeling stuck on what to actually measure when you stop chasing vanity metrics?

Here’s your cheat sheet for measuring inclusivity + accessibility instead:

Inclusive Metrics:
1. Engagement Diversity: Who’s showing up? Are underrepresented voices in the mix?
2. Feedback on Inclusivity: Are folks telling you they feel seen + included?
3. Representation Analysis: Does your content library reflect the world around you?

Accessibility Metrics
1. Adoption of Accessibility Features: Alt text, captions, readable text… are you using them consistently?
2. Audience Retention: Are folks sticking around? Accessibility supports sustained attention.
3. Positive Feedback: Are people noticing + appreciating your accessibility efforts?

These are the metrics that actually matter when you’re building a brand rooted in justice, inclusion, and ethical marketing.

Remember: Numbers tell part of the story - but people’s experiences tell the whole truth.

Dive into the full blog to learn how to track, improve, and celebrate these metrics: MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success

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What if we measured success in social media by how What if we measured success in social media by how welcomed and included our audience feels - instead of chasing empty stats?

Imagine this...
— Content that resonates deeply (not just scrolls by)
— Communities built on belonging (not just numbers)
— Metrics that reflect your mission, not just your marketing

This is what happens when you shift toward measuring inclusivity and accessibility.

Are diverse voices engaging with your content?
Are folks telling you they feel represented + valued?
Are you removing barriers with captions, alt text, and design choices?

These are the new success signals for mission-driven brands.

Not flashy. Not always trending.
But absolutely transformational!

If you’ve ever wondered “How do I know if my content is truly inclusive + accessible?” - this blog breaks it all down with simple, actionable metrics and ideas: MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success 

When was the last time you felt truly seen by a brand online?
Let’s reflect — share your thoughts below.

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If you’ve ever found yourself gripping the wheel If you’ve ever found yourself gripping the wheel a little tighter behind a logging truck, you’re not alone!

And last week, Final Destination recreated that iconic death scene to promote the new movie - a marketing move that’s part throwback, part genius, and all about going viral: trucks loaded with giant logs, advertising the new Final Destination movie.

These trucks are rolling IRL jump scares… and thanks to cell phones and social media, they’re now everywhere online.

This is a brilliantly layered strategy that we can totally learn from:

— Nostalgia is powerful. What part of your brand story or industry might spark a “Remember when?” moment for your audience?

— Offline can boost online. Even in the digital age, showing up in the physical world can spark real buzz — especially when it's camera-worthy.

— Make it easy (and irresistible) to share. Whether it’s a visual, a vibe, or a story — the more “OMG I have to post this” it is, the better.

— Creativity > cash. You don’t need a horror movie budget... The emotional hook and clever execution are what make this campaign legendary.

We don’t need to shock and scare our audience like Final Destination - but we can tap into what they already feel, remember, and want to share.

I gotta know: Have you seen one of these trucks in the wild? 

I haven't yet - and really hope I do!

Every time we pass a log truck, I look in my rearview to see if it's a promo - but living in the PNW they're always just log trucks - LOL. 

ID: Composite image of three trucks hauling large logs and rear advertisements for the movie Final Destination: Bloodlines, mimicking a famous scene from the franchise. A sticker with a cartoon lightbulb and the word “brilliant!” overlays the image.

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"Likes are up - so everything’s great, right?" "Likes are up - so everything’s great, right?"
 ...Not necessarily.

Vanity metrics aren’t telling you the whole story.

In fact, here’s why traditional social media metrics (aka vanity metrics) can lead you down the wrong path:

1. Quantity ≠ Quality
 Lots of likes don’t mean your audience actually cares or will take action.

2. They Don’t Reflect Your Values
 You can grow fast — but does your content reflect inclusivity and accessibility, or are you sidelining your mission to fit in?

3. They Encourage Performative Content
 Chasing viral trends can water down your brand and alienate the communities you want to serve.

4. They Fuel Burnout
 The pressure to "always post more" is draining, especially for neurodiverse entrepreneurs and small business owners balancing everything.

It’s time to shift.

Ready to rethink how you define success?
Visit: MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success 

I want to know: What is the number one metric you are currently prioritizing in your social media marketing? 

ID: Infographic titled ‘The Problem with Traditional Vanity Metrics’ with four points: ‘They Prioritize Quantity Over Quality, They Don't Reflect Your Values, They Encourage Performative Content, and They Contribute to Burnout.’ The "Just Marketing" logo appears at the bottom. Background features a soft purple gradient with abstract chart and graph illustrations.

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Are you feeling stuck between marketing that feels Are you feeling stuck between marketing that feels good and marketing that actually works?

The old rules of social media reward whatever’s loudest and fastest. 

But if you’re here, you probably care about something deeper:
— Ethical content that respects your audience
— Inclusive messaging that makes everyone feel welcome
— Accessible design so no one’s left out

That’s why I lean on the Just Marketing® Strategy Foundations — because when your content aligns with your values, success becomes sustainable (and so much more fulfilling).

Here’s the quick overview of the framework I use:

Ethical Marketing
— Be transparent
— Avoid performative actions
— Amplify voices that need to be heard

Inclusive Marketing
— Use inclusive language
— Engage your community
— Audit your representation

Accessible Marketing
— Add alt text to images
— Caption your videos
— Make your designs easy to read and understand

REMEMBER: Start small and scale up. You don’t have to overhaul everything today to start showing up better tomorrow.

If you’re ready to rethink your approach and center ethics, inclusivity, and accessibility.. Diver deeper with me at:  MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success 

Drop your fav gif if this is the kind of marketing you want more of in the world!

ID: Infographic titled ‘Just Marketing® Strategy Foundations’ with three pillars: 1) Ethical - Be transparent, avoid performative actions, amplify others; 2) Inclusive - Use inclusive language, engage your audience, audit representation; 3) Accessible - Use alt text for images, include captions on videos, choose easy-to-read text. ‘Remember: Start Small and Scale Up’ is noted at the bottom.

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We’ve all been there: hustling for likes, chasin We’ve all been there: hustling for likes, chasing follower counts, and watching the numbers climb (or stall) on our dashboards.
 
It feels like progress… but is it really?

When "going viral" becomes the goal, we risk losing sight of what actually matters - creating content that reflects our values, fosters genuine connections, and makes space for everyone in our communities.

For mission-driven entrepreneurs (especially those of us navigating business while neurodiverse), social media shouldn’t feel like a popularity contest. It should feel like a conversation.

That’s why it’s time to shift the focus from vanity metrics to value alignment. When we do, we:

 — Prioritize people over numbers
 — Create accessible, inclusive content
 — Build authentic relationships rooted in trust

Viral posts come and go. But meaningful impact? That’s what lasts.

Curious how to start redefining your version of success on social? 

I break it all down - from why vanity metrics fall short to what you can track instead for ethical, inclusive growth - at MegBrunson.com/social-media-marketing-success 

How do you define success on social media right now? 
Is it likes and follows… or something deeper? 
Share below: let’s spark a values-driven convo.

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