An AV and integration-focused podcast broadcast weekly

This week's episode of Automation Unplugged our guest today on this marketing experts episode is Kali Keegan, Senior Social Media Coordinator here at One Firefly.

About this episode:

Kali brings 8+ years of marketing experience and a passion for helping brands build real connection through creative, on-brand content. She leads high-profile campaigns and helps shape the voice of our clients across platforms.

This conversation is hosted by Kat Wheeler, and together they explore:

• Why storytelling beats sales pitches on social.
• How video is dominating in 2025—and how to get started.
• Kali’s takeaways from her attendance at this year's Social Media Marketing World.

SEE ALSO: AU 306: Michael Wilson on the Business of High-End Integration

Transcript

p>Kat:

Hi everybody. , Welcome to another edition of Automation Unplugged Marketing Experts, the podcast where we talk about what actually works in marketing for the AV industry. I am your host Katharine Wheeler, account executive here at One Firefly, and today's episode is called Stop Hosting, like it's 2015 Social media tips that Actually Work. Let's be honest, some of y'all out here posting like it's the early days of Instagram. Project photos with no context, generic captions with no personality, and we can do better. Social media isn't just a place to post, it's a way to ignite your brand, your voice, and your customer connection. So joining me today to talk about how to do just that is one of the brains behind the content that you love. , Kali Keegan from One Firefly social media team. Let me bring Kali in here and welcome her to the show. Hey Kali. Hi Ka. I'm super excited to get to chat with you today about social media. Yeah, we're gonna have a good time. , Before we get started, tell everybody a little bit about yourself. I.

Kali:

Yes, my name, , as Kat said, my name is Kali Keegan. I am based in Cleveland, Ohio. , And I've been in the marketing world for almost eight years now. , When I graduated out of college, I got into email marketing and all things around that realm, and then I got more into social media, marketing, , storytelling, content marketing, and all sorts like that. , So I'm really excited to kind of talk more about social media and what's working and what's not working in 2025. p>Kat:

I love it. , This is your first time on Automation Unplugged. Am I correct? Correct, yes. Very cool. So today to kind of warm you up a little bit and get us started on the right foot, I thought we could play a little game. Okay, let's do it. Okay, so we're gonna, the game is called, , poster or Ghost. Okay. And I'm gonna read you some social media post ideas, some that have been inspired by real AV posts, but I'm not gonna name names. , And some are totally made up. So your job is to tell me whether it's a post like you would Green Greenlight this, or whether it's a ghost, whether you would leave it in the drafts folder and then tell us why. Okay.

Kali:

Sounds good. Let's do p>Kat:

it. All right. You ready to go? Yes. Let's do it. All right. Number one, check out this install from one of our top techs, hashtag Tech Tuesday. Ooh,

Kali:

I, , I would probably say Ghost I, and I don't wanna start out with an immediate ghost, but I think, I think it's a great idea, but I think it's just kind of there. Like I wouldn't pull me in. , I think it would be cool if you did maybe something instead that's a little bit more personal, like it's a technician talking, or it's talking about a specific project or a service. And it's kind of more in the moment and not. Kind of, you know, a hashtag that you know is trending that you wanna get on. p>Kat:

Okay. All right. No, that makes sense. Okay. All right. Next up, how about this one? , Need whole home audio? We've got you covered. Ooh,

Kali:

I'm gonna have to say ghost again. Okay. I think this is, , something that I maybe would've written four or five years ago when, you know, talking about specific services was more the norm. , But it nowadays it feels a little bit too salesy to me. , I feel like you need to tell more of a story about why someone would need home, need whole home audio, and not just saying that you're selling it. Okay. p>Kat:

Yeah, no, that's interesting because I think. And maybe, maybe I'm jumping into early 'cause it's only the second, second poster ghost, but I think the, the theme here is that what we used to do, which is talk about products, isn't what we're trying to do now. What we're trying to do is just get people to Yeah. Take a next action, whether it's call or click or do something. Right. Get them interested.

Kali:

Yeah, exactly. I think we'll probably talk about that a lot more today. p>Kat:

Okay. Cool.

Kali:

Okay, p>Kat:

well, we'll, we'll keep going. Number three. No one's touching this rack unless it's with a microfiber cloth. Hashtag clean install.

Kali:

I actually think that's really funny. , So I would say post, I think it's a little bit quirky and out there, I definitely think you have to have the right audience to post something like that. , So if it's something that like fits the vibe of what your social media presence is, I would definitely say post. p>Kat:

So it's just kind of, it's, it's not a ghost. Because it's got a little personality. It's showing a little, little brand, a little something. Yeah,

Kali:

exactly. I, I totally am all for that. p>Kat:

Okay. All right. Number four. , Throwback to that time, our installer accidentally met a celebrity on site.

Kali:

Ooh. I would say probably post. I think that's a good like laughing point or like something that you're like, it's something cool that happened that might not happen to any other person. , And people love like a funny story like that. So I think it would do really well on social and would really show, again, if it fits your vibe and it fits kind of the story you're telling, I think that would do great on social. p>Kat:

Okay. , okay. Number five. We designed custom AV systems tailored to your home or business? Oh, can you guess what I'm gonna say? I feel like you're gonna say ghost.

Kali:

Yeah. This is a ghost. I think, , again, it's very similar to the other one where I might've written this a few years ago, and that's kind of what was in then. , But I think you need. More of showing how things work and not just telling people what you do. You need to show them what you do or, you know, tell a story along with it and kind of show like how these, you know, custom AV systems are actually benefiting someone's life. It's all about showing and not just telling people. And I think that's a, that's a big point of how social media has changed. p>Kat:

That's really interesting. 'cause it's, it's kind of the why you would want it, not the what it is. Yes, exactly. Interesting. Okay. All right. Next up would be, and this is not a caption, but the idea for the post would be a time lapse video of a full day install with some music backing it up.

Kali:

Oh yeah. Love that. People love time lapses. I love time lapses. , So that would definitely be a post. I would say you obviously wanna add a little bit more detail to a caption of what is going on. People might not understand what the time lapse is, , but anything video, any time lapse thing. Related to that, I think is a great post to be putting on social. p>Kat:

Oh, love it. Okay. I was gonna post on that one too, so I feel like I finally got one right. I. When you finally finish a cable pool and remember why you love this job with a meme?

Kali:

Oh, I would say post. I feel like if it's, again, it's something that fits the vibe of what you're posting on social media, , I definitely think that is something that's relatable and funny. And memes can go a long way on social media. , But you wanna make sure that the meme that you're posting isn't just like a trend that you're hopping on. I feel like that can be one of those things where people are just posting memes because it's. It's trending, but if it doesn't make sense for you or your business, people aren't gonna relate to it. So you gotta make sure that you're posting with intention. p>Kat:

So don't do it just to do it like, yes, exactly. Alright, I feel you. Alright. , Okay, next up. Oh, this one I'm interested to hear your thoughts on, 'cause I am a fan of this, but maybe, maybe I shouldn't be. , A photo carousel showing a home theater transformation with before, during, and after.

Kali:

Oh yeah, a for sure post. I definitely think projects like that definitely hit like the before and the after seeing, you know, , a living room before you added smart tech into it. And then showing the after is definitely something people are interested in. , And it shows the magic behind the services and the installations that you're doing. , And again, I would just make sure you have a nice caption that goes along with it, and I feel like that would be a great post. p>Kat:

Okay. All right. I, I'm glad I'm, I feel like I'm on the right. It. You're validating my stuff. Okay, , next one. We are your trusted AV partner serving the tri-state area. I feel like I know what you're gonna say here.

Kali:

Yeah, that's a ghost. I would say, again, I feel like those are the ones that are more salesy. Like that's something I feel like would either be like on a flyer or on a website, and it makes sense in those types of, of content. , But you really wanna tell a story as to why you're, you know, the best, trusted AV partner serving the area. You don't just wanna tell people that you wanna give them a story as to why, so that they can trust p>Kat:

that.

Kali:

You can p>Kat:

back that up. And the odd part is now that I'm seeing these all together, I realize how generic that is and why I wouldn't stop scrolling.

Kali:

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. And that's, that's kind of the thing is if, if someone's not gonna, we call it thb stopping, and if it's not someone's good when they're scrolling, they're not gonna stop on it, then, you know, you're not getting the attention, you're not getting the, the impressions that you need on that. So definitely would be a ghost. p>Kat:

Okay. All right. And this is our last one. Okay. I feel like I know what you're gonna say here too, but, okay. Short video of a tech explaining what a control system actually does in playing English.

Kali:

Oh yeah. I would definitely say a post. , If it's done correctly, I feel like video is one of those things that you can't really do wrong and video is. The biggest thing is probably a lot of what we're gonna talk about today too, , 'cause people don't really always understand what a control system does. , So explaining it to them how it works and keeping it simple is definitely something that would work on social media. You just don't wanna overdo it to the point where you're explaining the nitty gritty details that people won't understand and will then scroll past. p>Kat:

All right. Love it. Okay. I'm glad you said that too. You said something that I'm just gonna repeat because I think it's genius that you can never go, you can never do bad video or whatever you just said. You said something and it was Yes. Yes. , Because I think people are intimidated by taking their own video for social, and I think we'll probably get into a little later, but I wanted to note that. 'cause I think people do get scared. They're like, I can't do that. I'm not a videographer, I'm not a professional social media person. I don't know how, and I think doing it is better than not. Right. Yeah, absolutely. Okay, cool. Well let's get into the, getting into part of this. So we'll talk about all things social media, but this is the good stuff and I think. The key thought of this is that social media always evolves, right? Like it's continuously changing. So what used to work doesn't work now and what will work maybe isn't working right now too. So a lot of integrators maybe haven't rolled with the times and are still doing things the way they used to do per our title back in like it was back in 2015. So what do you think a lot of AV integrators are still holding onto these old school habits that they still do?

Kali:

Yeah, I definitely think, and even for myself, like change is very intimidating and I feel like that is a, a lot of the same for a lot of people. , Especially when something has worked for so long. You, we've, you know, social media has been growing for many years now, and a lot of the things that have worked back then don't really work now, but. When they work and that you see that it's working, it's really hard to change from that or do something different because you don't know if that different thing is gonna work. Mm-hmm. ,

Kali:

So I would say, you know, years ago it was all about, you know, the tech, the installs, just posting the picture and like letting people see. What you're doing and talking about the services and that was enough then. , But social media to really today isn't about showcasing what you do. It's about how you make people feel and kind of telling a story that will resonate with people because you want people to remember your brand and remember who you are and not just remembering, oh, this is what they do. Like obviously we want people to know what you do, but if they don't feel a certain connection to you. Then they're, you're not gonna be a choice for them when they're going to, you know, install a lighting control system or upgrade their home theater because they didn't feel anything, , with you on that. So I think that's kind of a hard change to make into that more personal feel. , It's definitely hard. You know, even as we're changing and we're evolving at one firefly and that change that we have been seeing of that content needs to be more personal, it needs to be more on brand with the company and not just something that's being written just because that's what always has been done in the past. p>Kat:

That's interesting. And I, I like that you say that. 'cause I think. I think too, one of the biggest things is getting noticed. Mm-hmm. Like how we talk about, you know, stopping scrolling, or what did you call it? Thb pausing.

Kali:

Mm-hmm. Thb stopping. Yeah. Thb stopping. p>Kat:

How do you, you know, how you stand out from the crowd is important and you're not gonna do that with something super generic. You're gonna do it with something that's interesting to people, right. Yeah.

Kali:

Exactly, and that's, we are, we're always encouraging our integrators and our clients, you know, to take pictures doing absolutely anything. Take videos. And it kind of goes back to the point you were saying of it can be daunting that you might think you can't take photos or take videos, but people, everyone has a. Phone. Everyone, you know, an iPhone picture can do just the same as a picture on a really nice camera. You know, those nice pictures also do really well. I'm not, not saying that, but just taking, you know, behind the scenes pictures or videos of, you know, people. Pressing buttons or things like that, and it's like more real. , Rather than something that's generic, that's what people wanna see, and that's what will make people stop. , If they see the same generic photo over and over, they're gonna know that it's a generic photo and that's not what we want for people, especially in their social media presence. p>Kat:

Okay. Good to know. All right. , What are some of the biggest mistakes that you've seen AV integrated? Not to call anybody out. We won't name them. But, , but you've seen some AV integrators make when it comes to social content. Yeah,

Kali:

I think, oh, one of the biggest mistakes that we see a lot is that, and we kind of dis discussed it a little bit earlier, is that people are so, , tuned in on the what and not on the why. So I get that posting about the latest, you know, home theater installation that you're doing is important, but it doesn't tell your audience why they should care, like, why they should care about this. , And if they. You know, don't have a reason to care. They're not gonna care. So you have to kind of get into more of a storytelling aspect of why, you know, this new speaker system should be important to them, what it can do to change their home or change their day to day, and kind of what the big, bigger picture is, rather than just focusing on the small details. And, you know, I'm not saying that that's gonna work for everyone. Some people might, and. Some audiences might care about, you know, the fine details of things, what the speaker does, how loud it can get, things like that. , But the storytelling aspect is something that social media has evolved into where you wanna tell the story and connect the dots for your audience so that they can, you know, get the bigger picture of things and not just get like. I say the bigger picture, but you also don't want it to be so high level that they're not really understanding what's going on. p>Kat:

I think you kind of nailed it, and I think you're right. There's kind of different audiences within our industry, like maybe the two channel audio guys, like their customers are really niche and really tech oriented. So for them, like all those fun details are personal and what matters to them. 'cause that music and that, you know, again, that listening audience is specific to that. So that fits that. Branding and that audience, but then for like the av, like the control system guys, being more specific about different parts and pieces and not trying to, you know, tell the whole story in one social post.

Kali:

Yeah, exactly. And I feel like that's then goes into like, it's a kind of goes hand in hand with the mistakes that are made. It's like not considering the audience that you're writing to because an audience that, you know, a shoe company might be talking to is very different than who our installers are talking to. , So when people are writing social media posts or they're drafting up graphics and they're thinking in the eyes of. What I think looks good or, and that's kind of where you have to take off those glasses and say, Hey, I need to look at this from who I'm trying to sell to. , And not saying that social media is just for selling, I think it's actually the complete opposite, which I think will again, talk about a little bit later. , But you really have to think about who you're talking to and if they will like. The post or if they will stop when they're scrolling on Facebook or they're scrolling on Instagram to look at that and it might not be something you love. There have been a lot of times where I've written social media posts that I'm like. This does not resonate with me whatsoever, but I do know it will resonate with the people that I am trying to talk to. p>Kat:

I love that you said that. 'cause I think that is something universally han that we all do is we, you know, we tailor things to ourselves instead of considering that audience first and think about, you have no idea how many. Like AV guys that I talk to that are like, I hate social media. I don't do it. And I'm like, I don't care. Yeah. Like, do you know how many people are on it? Yeah. Like you don't have to like it to know that your audience is there.

Kali:

Right. Yeah, exactly. I think, I think I've heard that a lot of the times too, that it's just like, I don't like social media, so I'm not gonna do it. And I just think that's such a, a loss because social media to do a lot of the times it's. It's the easiest, organic way to market yourself. , Because there's so many different channels of social media to get yourself out, out there on and so many different audiences that you can connect with. And just throwing away social media altogether can really, , affect your business in a way that might not be good for you, , especially with how times are changing p>Kat:

with social media. I love it. Okay, last question before we get into some whys of this, but. What is working now? What if, and if any, integrators are just kind of like willing to dig their feedback in the social media game. What are maybe a few things that are driving engagement and that are actually building brand trust and all that fun stuff?

Kali:

Yeah, and we talked about that of the one, the main thing that I wanna say is, , and we talked about that earlier, is that the. Authenticity and showing people that han side of the brand, that's like one of the big things. Yeah. , That is working with social media. So we talked about that a little bit earlier, but a few other things that are working too are, you know, client success stories, testimonials from your clients. , We wanna make sure that we are, you know, showing our happy clients or saying, you know, we. Installed this great project and our clients are really happy about it, but you have to share how that's improved. You know, their day-to-day life or like what it did just show saying, Hey, we installed this super cool, you know, home theater, but not saying how it benefited the person. , I think that can be a big game changer on social. , And then the biggest one of all is. Video content. I feel like that will is talked about everywhere. You cannot get away from video content. , It's just so easy to conse and it's can be quick to do if you know how to do it correctly or if you just aren't, if you get past the being afraid to do the videos or to talk on camera. , I think video content. Can be one of the biggest things, especially with how the algorithms are working on social media. They're pushing the video content. So that's definitely something that people need to jp on. , And then again, we talked about it too, the storytelling of things. , Not only I feel like storytelling of like how things will work for you, but also educating people on different things of how, you know, how this can benefit your life or. You think about, you know, lighting control and people think, oh, it just lights up my home. But it also can save you money. Save with your help with your energy efficiency, , can help with security. And some people don't always think about that. So educating them on those other things can be a really big game changer, , when you're telling stories and when you're talking about your content. p>Kat:

Love it. Okay. This kind of dovetails, but why should av, we talked about it a little bit already, but why should AV integrators care about social media? I hear a lot of, I don't need this. Yeah. All my business is referrals. Our clients don't go online, which. Everyone goes online. Yeah. It's not a real thing. All people are online, , especially your clients. So what would you say to that? That, that we don't care about social media.

Kali:

Yeah. And I, I totally get that. I feel like with the referrals part, like that is a huge part of our, our integrators businesses. , And I'm not saying that social media should replace that by any means. That's not what we're trying to get at here. But, . The real thing with social media is that it's not about closing sales directly, kind of what you're talking about. It kind of is the, the starting point of conversations. It's where people go to check before they pick up the phone. They're, they're, you know, Googling you. And if you have a Facebook page come up and you haven't posted since 2021, that person might think that your company's closed. They might think that you're no longer in business. They might think, oh, they don't have any work, and that's. You know, not what we want people to think when they're going to social media. We want people to see, hey, you're active, you're constantly working on projects. Or even if you're not working on projects at the time being, you're talking about how a certain product, you know, kind of selling how a product will, , benefit that person's life and they might not, you know, automatically go to a sale. But they're gonna remember, oh, hey, I saw this on, you know, Facebook and they were showing this really cool project. Or you know, I reached out to the, out in the comment and said, this looked really cool. And the person actually, you know, responded and they might remember that. And they might remember. Oh. Like if, if I'm picking between three different integrators, they're gonna remember, oh, this person, you know, reached out to me on social media, or they responded to my comment. And they're gonna remember those little things when they're going to choose an integrator. , And I think that's what the big thing is about social media. It's about creating that, that trust and that, you know, people remember who you are, , and that they know that you're a business who cares about what they're doing. , And they're the experts at what they're doing. p>Kat:

I love that. I think that makes a ton of sense. I think it does give you an opportunity to, to show one of the biggest things in our industry is differentiation, right? Like how, if you're up against two other integrators, how are you standing out? What's different about you and it? And in a world where, you know, we care about, we care about different brands, the end user might not care that you're the X guy and the other guy's the Y guy or whatever. But they do remember that personality and you know, your business acen, I guess, if you will. So. It's, it's kind of also too, it's a low cost, high visibility game, right? Mm-hmm. p>Kat:

You can get a lot of visibility and a lot of traction at a very low bar of entry versus other platforms or other areas of marketing, and you stay top of mind for people who maybe not ready

Kali:

to buy today, but maybe later, right? Exactly. Yeah. And I feel like that again, is one of the biggest things is that if people are looking between different integrators and they see that you're on social media and that you're posting, they're more than likely gonna click on your website then, because you know you're posting and you posted a link that links to this new sound system that you guys are starting to integrate and they're like, oh, this might be something when I'm building a house. In two or three years that I'm gonna want. So let me bookmark that because this person you know, is posting about it as opposed to someone else maybe who hasn't posted again in three years. They're not gonna bookmark that because that's three years old. They want something that's new, that's relevant and they're gonna remember that based on what you're doing on social media. p>Kat:

I love it. Makes sense. Okay, now. We at one firely are all big on continuing education. , Bless Ron and the exec team for making sure that we all get to stay up to date on the latest in our industry. And I know they recently sent you to Social Media Marketing World. Yes. , Can you tell the group. , All our listeners out there. What is Social Media Marketing World? Is it like the CD for social people? What's happening there?

Kali:

Yeah, I, I wouldn't compare it to C Dia. CD was a whole different ball game. , But social media marketing world, it's this big conference that happens every year. , We're all different, you know, marketing professionals. It's not just social media people, it's. Business owners, it's agency owners, , it's anyone and everyone get to go and take different sessions to learn about what not only is trending, but what is also working. , We also did get to meet with a lot of vendors and kind of talk to people about what's working for us at One Firefly, , and what's working or not working for our clients. , And we actually got to sit down too with just agency people and kind of talk about what are the downfalls that people are having or what are things that are working really well. , So we got to meet a ton of people that way, but we also got to take a lot of sessions. . On different things from LinkedIn ads to storytelling, which has been a big thing I've been talking about today. , And just kind of getting more in depth with different things that, you know, we stay up to date on. But it's, you know, someone telling you and educating you in a different way, , that might relate to your business. And there's like a lot of those things that we were like, oh wow, this is gonna direct. Affect what we do and, , benefit what we do. So it was a lot of great nuggets of information and a lot of great sessions that, , our teams got to, got to see and got to, , p>Kat:

experience while we were there. I love it. , What were your biggest takeaways? What did you, what did you get the most out of it?

Kali:

Yeah, I think one of the, the biggest things for us is that, , it's the quality of the content that you're doing and not just the quantity of it. I feel like there's so much pressure on social media to post all of the time. I remember once someone was like, I'm posting three to four days, or three to four times a day on TikTok, and I'm just like, how does anyone have the time to do that? And how is that content. Something that's good or beneficial to people. And a lot of the times it's not people are posting all of this. Random stuff just to say that they're posting and to get in the algorithm of things, but you really need to create content that is meaningful to people. Kind of going back to the conversation of if it's not something that someone's gonna click on or it's not meaningful to them, they're not gonna remember it. , So I think rather than just posting for the sake of posting, we have to look at it in a different way and say what is gonna relate to the audiences that we're writing to and create a connection with them. It's not necessarily a nbers game. , We don't need the most followers. We don't need the, this huge nber of impressions, but it's those impressions that we make, that form those connections that hopefully one day will then turn into a conversion. p>Kat:

I love it. So it's the right audience, not the biggest audience.

Kali:

Yes, exactly. p>Kat:

Okay. , Is there anything there that surprised you?

Kali:

Ooh. , I will say I'm very fortunate that a lot of the things that we were learning is we were like, oh, we already know that. And I think that that attributes to the, the education that we get being, you know, working for one Firefly and our leadership team educating us all of the time. , I would say, you know. A, a lot of the video content stuff I have been a little bit resistant to as well. So all those people that are out there that are like, I don't wanna do video content, I get you, I get it because it is very daunting. But we were kind of sitting there and, and looking at it like. This has been a big trend for a while and as much as we have been, you know, getting on that for our clients, it hasn't been one of those things that we are so focused on, but we definitely need to be, , and a lot of people should be as well. We should be focusing on this content that is fast and digestible and that gets straight to the point. Because that's what people are watching and that's what people are doing. People are on TikTok and on Instagram reels and doing all of that. , And it is something that is working. But then we also were sitting there thinking, you know, is this gonna work for our clients' audiences? So it's finding that balance of what is going to work and what's just going to be too much work for not the results that we're hoping for. , So we did go to a lot of trainings on, you know, how, how to use video content correctly. And we're really excited to, you know. Implement that more with our clients that we're working with. p>Kat:

I'm excited for that. 'cause you know, I am the biggest doom scroller there is. Wow. You too guilty. , Okay. If you had to pick out of all of the things you saw, and I know there was a lot, but what was the biggest trend or tactic that you think every AV integrator should try right now? Is it video? I feel like it's, yeah. Were

Kali:

you gonna guess? Yeah, absolutely. , As I was saying, you know, that's one thing, you know, I've even over the past years have been a little bit resistant to, and it's not for the fact that we're not sure if it's gonna work, it's gonna work like, let me let you in on a secret. It, it will work. , But it's putting in the time to. To get it to work. You know, you can't just post videos for the sake of posting, but you know, that's what like Instagram stories are for, or Facebook stories you can post that content that's not so polished or done up. , So I would say that that is something that we're going to be working more, especially in our industry. , We don't just wanna be posting generic videos. We wanna. Have videos that mean something to our clients' audiences. , So that'll be working, you know, with clients to get behind the scenes videos or walkthroughs of projects or, you know, talking to technicians. , So it's something that we're gonna be working on internally to, to, you know, work with our clients to get that as well. But it's something we wanna push our integrators to be doing as well. You know, it's taking their own videos. It's, you know, they might not be thinking about it while they're at a project site, but it's something that they should be thinking about because. You can use anything on social media, anything goes, there's an audience for everything out there. , So no matter what videos you get, whether you think, you know, there are some where it's like a blurry camera or like the lighting is really bad that you're like, okay, that might not work. , But there you can find a way for those videos or for those things that may seem silly mm-hmm. That they will work because video works, video is the thing that, that is happening in 2025. p>Kat:

I love it. I mean, you said a lot of things that really kind of stood out to me in that it, and I think, yeah, being scared of video is a thing I'm guilty of as well. So I would love to get our integrators over that hp. But I also think it's too, is working with us to make those images and those videos align with the story they wanna tell about their brand. Exactly. That gotta be the most important thing, so it's not again. Doing it for the sake of doing it or doing it for the most impressions, or doing it for the most clicks. It's doing it for the right ones and the right clicks based on how you wanna grow your company and how you wanna grow your brand and what your goals are, right? And your strategy.

Kali:

Yeah, absolutely. Having that strategy that leans in towards the goals that our clients wanna see or that integrators wanna see, we can, you know, make a strategy and create that, but it, it might not be what everyone wants. And kind of having that idea of what story they wanna tell will be able to help shift the content direction and the way that will make sense for them and will make sense for their audience too. p>Kat:

And Kelly, that's like you and your team working with the dealer to talk about like. What their most profitable part of their business is and what their pro, what kind of projects they wanna get and who they wanna talk to. Like what audiences, if it's homeowners or interior designers or architects, and tailoring it to that. Right.

Kali:

Yeah, absolutely. And I feel like you, you made a great point there that it's like they know, , who they wanna talk to, you know, like if it's those different audiences. But at the same time too, we always, we always say we also have a good idea being in this industry for so long, we know. Kind of those audiences that are on the different platforms. So, you know, everyone's like, I wanna get on TikTok and I wanna be doing this. And some, a lot of the times we're thinking, you know, a lot of the audiences aren't there. You know, those businesses, they're on LinkedIn, they're not on TikTok looking for those things. They're on LinkedIn making connections or people on Facebook or might might be looking for those things more. , With those audiences that are on those different platforms. So it's also thinking about it in that way too, how you're gonna strategize your social media content, not only for your audience, but for your audience of that certain platform. p>Kat:

That's so I love that. That's such a key point because it is a different segment of an audience that is on each individual platform and the content for each individual platform is a little different and it as it should be. So knowing how to navigate that while aligning with that brand identity and the messaging they wanna deliver is a lot. Is a lot at once.

Kali:

Yeah, absolutely. And I think that was another great thing about social media marketing world, is that there were. So many different sessions for all the individual platforms. You know, you could go and take a session on Instagram and we all did that. You know, some of us went and did the Instagram things and some of us went and did the LinkedIn things so that we could kind of divide and conquer and figure out what's working on all of the different platforms. Because the same thing that's working on Instagram isn't gonna be what's working on LinkedIn because they are. You know, vastly different. , So it's figuring out, you know, what can we do to make things work for those different platforms within the, the strategy and goals that their clients have and kind of figuring it out from there. p>Kat:

I, I love it. Kelly. I have learned a lot today. I thank you for coming and I know there's a bunch of takeaways, but I think I've, I think I've learned a little bit today that unlike in 2015, which. Feels crazy that we're talking about how long ago that was, but almost 10 years. , It's time for people to evolve. It's, it's auten, it's authenticity, consistency, storytelling, not perfection that makes people stand out on social and that you don't need a full-time videographer, , or a whole lighting studio situation set up. You can use your iPhone, take pictures and videos. You just need. Some courage to get out there and do it and a little bit of creativity, which we can help with, right? Yes, absolutely. And what are you got any final thoughts for the, for the, for the audience,

Kali:

Kali? Yeah, I, I kind of, you know, same thing that you were saying, it's just kind of taking that leap into what is changing. Don't we can't run away from change? , 'Cause it is going to keep changing and especially with social media, it is changing. Literally every single day things are changing and luckily for us at one firely, we're keeping up on, on top of what things are changing and what's working and what's not working, and always finding ways to implement those changes or figure out if those changes are going to benefit our clients. So I would say take that leap. Try something that you haven't, you know, you might be scared of. Take that video, , go live on Facebook. I don't know. Do those things that, you know, you're like, Hmm, maybe this would work. Well, you're not gonna know if it works if you don't try. So, so try, , , embrace change. I know it's very scary. , But it's, it's gonna keep happening. Change. Change is inevitable. p>Kat:

I love it. Thank you so much, Cali, for being here. I appreciate you and I hope this episode got all of the AV people out there thinking and willing to be a little creative and try new things and explore. , And so thanks. If you guys wanna get in touch with us, you can certainly reach out via one Firefly. And I know Kali is always available to talk about social media, , ideas with you. So thank you everybody for listening to another episode of Automation Unplugged, and we'll see you next time.

---

Ron Callis is the CEO of One Firefly, LLC, a digital marketing agency based out of South Florida and creator of Automation Unplugged. Founded in 2007, One Firefly has quickly became the leading marketing firm specializing in the integrated technology and security space. The One Firefly team work hard to create innovative solutions to help Integrators boost their online presence, such as the elite website solution, Mercury Pro.

---

Resources and links from the interview:

• Kali Keegan LinkedIn Profile


• Katharine Wheeler LinkedIn Profile


• One Firefly Content Marketing Services

---

<