Growing Painted Paper: From Product Posts to a Social-First Brand

Social Media Strategy · Content Creation · Brand Voice · Trend Forecasting · Community Building

When I started working on Painted Paper's social media, one of my biggest goals was to make the account feel like more than a place to post wallpaper.

We had a great product and a very visual category to work with, but I wanted the social presence to have its own personality. Something people would follow even when they weren't actively shopping for wallpaper.

That meant shifting the strategy from "here's our product" to "here's why you should care."

First, I Had to Figure Out What People Actually Wanted to See

Wallpaper is interesting because it's naturally aspirational, but it can also be intimidating.

People love saving photos of wallpapered rooms, but actually putting wallpaper in their own home comes with a lot of questions.

Can I put it on textured walls? What's the difference between peel & stick and traditional wallpaper? Will I get tired of a bold pattern? How do I know which print works in my space?

Those questions became content.

Instead of only showing finished rooms and product photography, I started building Painted Paper's strategy around a mix of education, relatable content, seasonal moments, inspiration, and transformations.

That gave every post a purpose beyond keeping the feed active.

Making Wallpaper Feel More Approachable

Education became a big part of the strategy, but I didn't want it to feel like reading an instruction manual.

We turned common customer questions into content like Peel & Stick vs. Traditional Wallpaper, installation tips, textured-wall education, wallpaper-versus-paint comparisons, and posts about mistakes to avoid before ordering.

At the same time, I started looking for ways to demonstrate product benefits instead of just talking about them.

One of my favorite examples was a Reel testing our faux grasscloth by letting a popsicle melt directly onto it and then wiping it clean. (watch it here)

The message was simple:

For the homes that actually get lived in.

It showed durability in a way that felt entertaining, visual, and native to social media—and communicated more in a few seconds than a paragraph of product copy could.

Giving the Brand a Personality

As the strategy developed, I also wanted Painted Paper to sound more recognizable.

Wallpaper can easily fall into very polished, very serious interior-design content. There is definitely a place for that, but I didn't want every post to sound like it came from a catalog.

I started incorporating more conversational copy, trend-driven Reels, cultural references, stronger hooks, and opinions about what's happening in interiors.

Instead of just posting a floral wallpaper, we could talk about why whimsy was coming back.

Instead of posting another neutral room, we could talk about "warm being the new neutral."

Instead of simply showing toile, we could make the case for why toile was going to be everywhere for fall.

The product was still there. We were just giving people a reason to talk about it.

Building Around Trends Without Chasing Them

Trend forecasting became another important part of how I approached Painted Paper.

I regularly looked at what was happening across interiors, fashion, Pinterest, TikTok, and the broader culture and asked:

Does this make sense for us?

Not every trending audio needed to become a Reel. Not every internet aesthetic needed a Painted Paper version.

The goal was to identify trends that could naturally connect back to the brand.

That led to content around pattern drenching, unexpected maximalism, small spaces with bold patterns, matching interiors, transitional fall decorating, toile, warm neutrals, and other shifts that were already happening in the design world.

It allowed Painted Paper to participate in conversations while still feeling like Painted Paper.

Creating Content People Could Participate In

Another part of growing the account was thinking beyond what we wanted to say and focusing more on what would make someone respond.

Giveaways, questions, opinion-based posts, relatable Reels, trend content, and community-focused ideas gave people an easier way into the brand.

For a back-to-school campaign, for example, we created a teacher giveaway offering peel & stick wallpaper that could be used on classroom walls, corkboards, frames, borders, or however the winner wanted to use it.

It wasn't just a giveaway for the sake of engagement. It connected the versatility of the product to a real community and gave people a reason to tag teachers, share the post, and imagine new uses for wallpaper.

Creating a System, Not Just Individual Posts

Probably the biggest change in how I approached Painted Paper was moving away from thinking post by post.

I started thinking about the account as a whole.

What are we teaching this month?

What trends should we be talking about?

What products or launches are coming?

What questions are customers asking?

What worked last month?

What feels repetitive?

What deserves to become a recurring series?

From there, I built monthly content calendars around larger marketing priorities while still leaving room for trends and reactive content.

That balance made the strategy much more intentional.

The Growth

The growth of Painted Paper wasn't the result of one viral post.

It came from making hundreds of smaller decisions about what the brand should say, how it should say it, and why someone should care.

FOLLOWER GROWTH (IN ONE YEAR): Instagram: 147.37K followers (net gain of 94.09K over the period); 176.6% growth Facebook: 186.39K followers, +133.11% growth TikTok: 8,414 followers; 128.64% growth

REACH / IMPRESSIONS GROWTH (IN ONE YEAR): Instagram: 181.65M views, +704.77% growth (average reach/day: 136.78K, +52.31%) Facebook: 385.48M impressions, +119.35% growth TikTok: 7.64M views

ENGAGEMENT GROWTH (IN ONE YEAR): Instagram: 12.80K interactions on posts (comments up +179.73%) Facebook: 58.48K interactions, +368.96% growth TikTok: 39.16K interactions

TOP-PERFORMING POST RESULT: Facebook: "This is what effortless luxury sounds like. Shop Margo and bring your space to life with just a few..." (Jun 29, 2025) — 1.6M impressions, 17.36K interactions. (linked here) Instagram: "Boring walls? That's sooo last year." (Jan 4, 2026) — 30.26K views, 26.57K reach, 252 likes, 599 saves, engagement rate 4.14 (linked here) TikTok: "Durable and beautiful. Shop Oleander at paintedpaper.com now♡" (Mar 4, 2026) — 1.43M impressions, 3,345 interactions. (linked here).

Over time, the account became more educational, more conversational, more trend-aware, and more community-driven.

And that changed the way I think about social media growth in general.

You can post more. You can use trending audio. You can make prettier graphics.

But sustainable growth starts when a brand gives people a reason to follow it.

For Painted Paper, that meant turning a wallpaper company into a source for ideas, inspiration, education, trends, and personality—with the product naturally living at the center of all of it.