Big Tech Is Picking Sides.

When Elon Musk took over Twitter and rebranded it as X, the platform’s utility as a reliable marketing channel quickly deteriorated. Major advertisers left, the tone shifted, and the rules of engagement became unclear. But the problem isn’t just X—it’s systemic.

Meta’s recent decision to drop fact-checking for political ads on Facebook and Instagram has only deepened concerns. For many, this move signals a retreat from platform responsibility at exactly the moment when information integrity matters most. Combined with Mark Zuckerberg’s growing alignment with Donald Trump, it suggests Facebook’s future could become as politically charged—and brand-risky—as X.

For marketing teams, this raises a difficult question: how much of your strategy rests on ground that’s already starting to give way?

New Channels, New Challenges

Emerging platforms haven’t yet solved the problem. Threads, Meta’s alternative to X, still lacks mature advertising tools and wide audience adoption. Bluesky and Mastodon, both decentralised alternatives, show promise in principle—but they’re fragmented, unfamiliar to the general public, and not commercially viable at scale.

Meanwhile, ideologically driven networks like Truth Social and Parler offer active user bases, but they’re built around political identity more than community engagement. Any brand presence there is easily interpreted as a partisan move, making them high-risk for anyone targeting a broad or balanced audience.

In short: while there are more platforms than ever, none offer the combination of audience size, advertising tools, and brand safety that marketers need.

A Narrowing Path for Digital Advertising

With Facebook weakening its commitment to moderation, and alternative platforms lacking infrastructure or neutrality, brands are facing a narrowing path. For many, this leaves Google Ads as the only fully functional, relatively stable option.

That’s not necessarily by choice. It’s a default—one driven by necessity, not strategy. And when your ad spend is concentrated in a single ecosystem, your flexibility and negotiating power vanish. You’re left optimising within constraints rather than crafting a cohesive, confident strategy.

The Quiet Power of What You Own

This is where CRM and email marketing come into their own.

Your CRM holds the most resilient form of audience connection: opted-in, permission-based, direct relationships. These aren’t anonymous impressions or followers. They’re individuals who’ve explicitly said they want to hear from you.

Email is where you speak to them—without algorithms, platform drama, or headline-driven volatility. It’s consistent, measurable, and doesn’t expose your brand to reputational crossfire every time a platform changes its policies or ownership.

It may not be the most glamorous channel in your stack, but it’s one of the most durable and respectful—and right now, those qualities are in short supply.

A Smarter, Safer Foundation

The lesson here isn’t just to retreat from social media—it’s to rebalance your strategy.

Use CRM to deepen relationships. Use email to deliver timely, meaningful content that respects attention spans and privacy. And above all, use these owned channels to build long-term resilience.

Platforms will rise and fall. Moderation policies will come and go. Political climates will shift. But if your core strategy is built on relationships you own, not platforms you rent, you’ll be in a far stronger position—no matter what happens next.

Takeaway

As social platforms become less stable, less neutral, and less accountable, CRM and email offer a rare constant: communication you control, with people who’ve invited you in. In a time of growing digital uncertainty, that’s not just valuable—it’s essential.