Social Media Strategy
The Unseen Field That Shapes Communication
PAYSON WICK | FEBRUARY 24, 2025
Why Do Two Posts Feel So Different With the Same Reach?
Imagine two creators, Alex and Jordan. Both share a post that gets 2,000 views.
Alex’s audience is used to seeing small, personal updates. To them, the post feels impactful, even big.
Jordan’s audience follows accounts pulling in tens of thousands of views per post. To them, the same number feels small, maybe even like the message didn’t land.
Same reach. Completely different perception.
This is social relativity at work. Just as income is measured against a surrounding field, resonance online is shaped less by absolute numbers and more by comparison. It’s not only what you share, but who your audience measures you against when they see it.
For anyone trying to cut through the noise on social media, this awareness is a tool. By learning to map the social field your message enters, you can fold it into your production flow—improving how your content is delivered and increasing the chance it resonates with clarity and authenticity.
The Social Field: Einstein’s Lens Applied to Human Interaction
Albert Einstein revolutionized physics with his theory of general relativity, which reframed how we understand gravity. Instead of seeing gravity as a simple force, he described it as a curvature of space and time caused by massive objects. Planets, stars, and black holes don’t just sit in space—they bend the fabric of reality around them, shaping the movement of everything nearby.
Social relativity works the same way.
In any given society, industry, or community, people don’t exist in a vacuum. They exist within a social field—a landscape of power, status, and influence that bends around them. Just as a massive planet distorts gravity, high-status individuals, trends, or cultural forces warp the perception of success, shaping how everyone else navigates their path.
For example:
A small business owner might feel successful in a local community but insignificant in a high-profile startup scene.
A mid-tier actor in Hollywood might feel like they haven’t "made it," even if they have more fame than 99% of people.
A social media creator with 100,000 followers may feel invisible in comparison to those with millions, even though they have more reach than most people will ever achieve.
Status and success, like gravity, are relative. Just as space bends around massive objects, our perception of our own achievements bends around the people and environments we exist within.
The more attention and power something holds—whether it’s a celebrity, a trend, or a certain way of life—the more it warps the expectations of everyone caught in its orbit.
Social Relativity in the Hunting Field
In rural communities, the rhythms of daily life create a very different social field than what you find near city centers. Travel often means long stretches overland, and human overlap is less frequent. Encounters with neighbors or peers are fewer, and when they do happen, they’re rarely centered on the hunt itself.
This difference matters. In more urban or suburban contexts, relativity is shaped by constant overlap—seeing what others drive, wear, or share online. In rural environments, the comparison isn’t happening every day in direct contact with others. Instead, it’s internal: a quiet measure of how one’s skills, preparation, and pursuit stack up in a broader but less visible field.
Recognizing this was crucial. It showed that hunting communication couldn’t just lean on gear envy or elite achievement—it needed to celebrate the pursuit itself, making people feel their time in the field mattered. That the act of showing up, refining skills, and investing in their own growth was meaningful, with gear positioned not as status, but as a way to enhance participation in the sport.
By grounding the message in this social relativity—understanding how the field shapes identity and comparison in rural life—the strategy cut through the noise. It spoke to hunters in their own context, affirming that their pursuit matters, and that their improvement matters, regardless of how often they overlap with others or how much gear they own.
This alignment with the lived social field of the audience made the communication feel authentic and earned, rather than imposed—a reminder that strategy rooted in relativity resonates because it begins with seeing people where they are.
Grasping at an understanding of Social Weight by Exploring the Social Wake of the Inca Empire
The Incas built one of the most sophisticated civilizations in history, structuring their empire with precision—both physically and socially. Their rule extended across vast Andean landscapes, connecting diverse cultures under a single, hierarchical system. Power wasn’t just about military might; it was about influence, infrastructure, and control over perception.
Much like Einstein’s theory that massive objects bend space-time, the Inca elite—led by the Sapa Inca—bent the social field around them. They controlled access to resources, dictated labor through the mit’a system, and set the standard for success, status, and survival. To be in the emperor’s favor meant prosperity; to be outside his sphere meant struggle.
But the wake of the Inca Empire didn’t disappear when the Spanish arrived—it left behind a gravitational imprint that still distorts social relativity in Peru today.
Walk through Cusco, and you’ll see remnants of two worlds: massive Incan stonework forming the base of colonial Spanish buildings. This layering is more than architectural—it’s symbolic. The descendants of the empire still live in the wake of a system that shifted but never fully dissolved.
Indigenous communities, once at the center of power, now often find themselves pushed to the margins in the modern social hierarchy.
The perception of wealth and success is still shaped by echoes of European influence, blending with indigenous traditions in a complex, evolving identity.
Tourism has become a new kind of social gravity—foreign visitors seeking connection to the past, while locals navigate a system where history is both a source of pride and a commercial force.
The Incas, like all dominant social forces, created a center of gravity so strong that it continues to shape perception centuries later. Even as power structures shift, the field they created still distorts the way success, heritage, and status are understood in modern Peru.
Just like Alex and Jordan in our opening example, people in Peru don’t measure their wealth, identity, or success in isolation. They measure it against the ever-present weight of history—the social relativity left behind by one of the greatest civilizations the world has ever seen.
Social Relativity in the Age of Social Media
Voice online isn’t measured in isolation. It’s measured against the surrounding echoes. A thoughtful post can feel small when it garners only a handful of likes next to someone else’s viral reel.
A creator with a deeply engaged audience can still feel invisible when scrolling past influencers with millions of followers. Even a message that resonates in one community may suddenly feel outdated or overlooked when placed beside the latest trend.
This is social relativity in the age of algorithms. Platforms constantly feed us highlight reels of voices that seem louder, more polished, more successful. The result? Many of us start chasing what looks resonant rather than listening to what truly connects.
Using Social Relativity to Cut Through the Noise on Social Media
As I continue to spend my career crafting messages, I’m applying this framework not just as theory, but as practice. It helps me build a clearer understanding of the audiences I’m writing to—how they measure meaning, what shapes their perception, and why certain messages land while others fall flat.
By mapping a message with social relativity in mind, I can turn it into a practical tool—one that builds awareness, informs strategy, and increases the chances of content resonating with authenticity and clarity. The focal points below have emerged as ways to keep that measurement flow healthy.
Shift Your Reference Points. Instead of comparing your posts to viral creators, focus on the specific community you’re trying to serve. Measure success by how clearly your message reaches them, not by chasing sheer volume.
Focus on Real Gains. Track progress against your own past work—are you clarifying your message, engaging more meaningfully, or sparking richer conversations? Those are truer signals than likes or views alone.
Curate Your Inputs. If certain accounts or trends make you second-guess your voice, limit exposure. Fill your feed with creators who inspire clarity rather than trigger comparison.
Define Resonance on Your Terms. Before planning posts, ask: Am I sharing this because it feels aligned, or because I think it will perform?
Authenticity builds the kind of trust that outlasts trends.
Recognize Phantom Metrics. If you feel pressure to chase likes, followers, or trends, pause. Ask: Does this move me closer to genuine connection, or am I just feeding the algorithm?
Step Outside the Gravity Wells. If a platform or format consistently distorts how you measure success, step back. Experiment with new channels, rhythms, or offline spaces that allow your voice to stand on its own.