Your questions, Michael's (ex-Ryanair) answers - part 2

A couple of weeks ago we hosted a talk with Ryanair’s ex-Head of Socials, Michael Corcoran.

It was full of SO many juicy insights that it's now become a three part newsletter series.

This is the last one of the series. If you want to catch up on the last two:

• This is part one

• This is part two

Now onto the third – your questions on all things socials, Michael's answers.

🗣️Q: How do you move fast enough to win on reactive content, even without a big team?

💬 Michael’s answer:

Speed isn’t magic. It’s process. At Ryanair, we built a system called the ‘shock clock’ – five minutes from idea to post. But it took us months to get fast.

Start by building a trend engine. Use:

• X Pro (Twitter lists)

• Reddit filters

• TikTok Search Insights

• Don’t wait for agency trend reports – they’re already too late. You need to spot signals before they go mainstream

• Prepare templates. Meme banks, product shots, visual shortcuts (then when the idea lands, you’re not starting from scratch)

🗣️Q: Where does social start and end? Does something like Substack count?

💬 Michael’s answer:

Social doesn’t stop at the feed. Platforms like Substack, email, Discord – they’re part of the new media ecosystem. They give you ownership. When TikTok goes down or X implodes, you’ll wish you had that.

Look at Sleep or Die.

They’re building a Substack audience before the product’s even launched – telling the story, growing community, and even charging for behind-the-scenes access.

🗣️Q: Are we moving away from short-form content? What’s the future – is long-form coming back?

💬 Michael’s answer:

Long-form never really left – it just got overshadowed.

Podcasts and YouTube are booming, but most brands have been shit at doing it. Creators have run the show.

Short-form is low-hanging fruit.

It’s easier to produce, gets fast engagement.

But long-form is a lever – especially when it comes to building depth, trust, and passive viewing.

And the real play is that long-form content gives you short-form cutdowns that often outperform everything else.

🗣️Q: Should every new brand just default to TikTok and Instagram to start?

💬 Michael’s answer:

No. And that’s one of the biggest mistakes I see.

Most founders assume they have to be on TikTok and Insta. But where your audience hangs out and what problem you’re solving should drive that decision. So don’t default – diagnose.

If you're a brand in a niche vertical, Pinterest or Reddit might outperform Instagram. If you're selling something experiential or physical, short-form video might work. But maybe it’s Substack. Or email. Or even Snapchat if you're clever.

The platform choice is strategic, not aesthetic.