How to Build a World-Class Social Media Team

t Shoptalk last week, Craig Brommers, Chief Marketing Officer of American Eagle, made a bold claim during a session on social listening:

“We have the best social media team in retail.”

At first, that might sound like marketing bravado. But then you hear what happened on Super Bowl night — and suddenly, it’s hard to argue.

In the same week, two very different stories unfolded in the world of brand + social.

A Viral Gift, Fumbled

Athlete and influencer Ashton Hall shared a series of viral videos featuring Saratoga Spring Water. We’re talking over a billion views across multiple platforms. The blue glass bottle was front and center, cemented in the minds of millions as a luxury-status item.

But it took the brand a long and awkward 36 hours to respond. No reactive social content. No engagement. No creator partnership pivot. Just... silence.

By the time the brand caught up, the moment had passed — and the momentum had slowed.

Eric Bausch pointed this out on LinkedIn: in the era of always-on culture, 36 hours is a lifetime.

A Super Bowl Surprise, Seized

Now contrast that with American Eagle’s performance the very same weekend.

Kendrick Lamar steps out at the Super Bowl in a pair of flared jeans. Twitter (now X), TikTok, and Instagram light up with people asking: “Wait... are those American Eagle flares like the ones from the early 2000s?”

American Eagle’s team had already locked in their Super Bowl campaign and were ready to kick back — but when that moment hit, they pounced.

They immediately rolled out reactive organic content, sparked paid ad placements to capitalize on the chatter, and aligned with creator and brand partners to amplify the message.

Within hours:

• Triple-digit search increases for “flare jeans”
• 35% spike in in-store foot traffic
• A run on inventory that made those jeans hard to find for weeks

And it wasn’t just the social team. The entire American Eagle ecosystem snapped into action — from eCommerce to supply chain to brick-and-mortar teams.

That’s not just agility. That’s operational excellence. And it didn’t happen by accident.

What Makes a Social Media Team Truly Great?

Craig Brommers pulled back the curtain a bit during his talk and shared what makes his team exceptional. It wasn’t a magic tool, a flashy influencer, or a gimmicky trend. It was systemic readiness.

“Every Monday morning, our team meets to talk about what’s happening online.”

It’s a simple ritual. But it’s grounded in a bigger cultural principle: social media is not a department — it’s a cross-functional muscle.

And here’s what that muscle looks like in practice:

1. Build Systems for Speed

Virality is unpredictable. But your ability to react shouldn't be.

The American Eagle team was able to jump on the Kendrick moment because they had systems in place:

• Social listening dashboards set up across platforms
• Clear roles and playbooks for rapid-response content
• Paid media levers ready to pull at a moment’s notice
• Communication channels open across teams

They weren’t scrambling — they were ready.

Ask yourself:
Would your brand be able to launch an organic campaign and a paid push within 6 hours of a viral moment? If not — what’s stopping you?

2. Remove Bottlenecks

One reason many brands fail to respond quickly is the number of hands content has to pass through.

Legal review. Executive approval. Brand voice checks. Asset routing. Scheduling.

American Eagle’s team has worked hard to eliminate these bottlenecks. That means empowering creators and community managers. Building trust within the brand. Pre-approving tone and visuals. And most importantly — making speed a priority across the organization.

Fast beats perfect in today’s attention economy.

3. Social Listening ≠ Just Tools

Yes, AE uses a variety of social listening tools. But Craig emphasized that it’s more than dashboards.

It’s also:

• Monitoring search trends
• Watching what creators are posting
• Paying attention to meme culture
• Reading the comments (yes, all of them)

And then actually bringing those insights into decision-making. That’s what the Monday morning meetings are for: making sure that social signals influence business actions across the company — not just vanity metrics on a slide deck.

4. Break Down the Walls

This is the big one.

Most brands keep their social teams siloed. But AE’s strength lies in its integration. The social team is in constant contact with eCommerce, product, PR, retail ops, and more.

When the flare jeans moment happened, the supply chain was ready. Store teams knew to promote them. Online product pages got updated. Influencer partners were activated.

That’s not just a reactive campaign — that’s a culture of responsiveness.

The Takeaway: Don’t Just Post. Prepare.

The brands that win on social media aren’t the ones with the most polished grids or viral dance collabs. They’re the ones that are ready to move — with speed, with purpose, and with cohesion.

Culture moves at the speed of TikTok. Your org needs to match that pace.

So here’s your checklist if you want to build a social media team as world-class as American Eagle’s:

• Create regular cross-functional social listening rituals
• Build playbooks for reactive content (with pre-approved templates)
• Invest in tools and human insight
• Shorten your approval loops
• Train every team — not just social — to see social moments as brand opportunities

Because you never know when your product might be at the center of a billion-view trend.

And when it is — you better be ready.