PART 1: Things NOT to do in marketing — IWD Edition

If you can't back it up, don't post it: Part 1 of our Things NOT to do in marketing series

At The Doers, we're all about getting shit done. But doing things well means knowing what not to do just as much as knowing what to do. That's why we're launching a new series: Things NOT to do in marketing. And we're kicking it off with a timely one.

It's International Women's Day. Inboxes are full. Feeds are flooded. And businesses everywhere are hitting post on their "we celebrate women" content — purple graphics, a group photo, a caption about how proud they are of the women in their team.

Here's the problem: most of it is performative. And performative IWD content doesn't just fall flat — it actively damages the message that actually needs to land.

So before you hit post, consider these things first.

One day of proclamation isn't enough.

Posting about the women in your business for one day a year hands performative cover to companies that haven't truly earned it. And women — the very people you're supposedly celebrating — see straight through it.

Real change doesn't happen in a caption. It happens in a boardroom. In a payroll review. In a hiring decision. In the policies that protect women 365 days a year — not just today.

"Posting about women won't protect them. Policies will. Pay will. Promotions will."

The questions you should be able to answer.

If you're posting about International Women's Day today but can't honestly answer these, log off.

Pay & Progression

→ What's your gender pay gap — and what are you actively doing to close it?

→ Are women in your business in the rooms where decisions get made?

→ Do women have a clear, supported path to senior leadership — or does it stall at middle management?

→ When did you last promote a woman who didn't have to fight twice as hard to get there?

Hiring & Representation

→ Are you hiring women from different backgrounds, ethnicities, and life experiences — or just women who look and sound like you?

→ Do your job ads, interview panels, and hiring criteria have bias baked in?

→ What does your board look like?

Policies & Benefits

→ Do your benefits actually support women? Fertility. Menopause. Flexible care. Mental health. Not just maternity leave.

→ Is flexible working genuinely available — or available in theory but penalised in practice?

→ Do you have a policy for domestic abuse leave? Period leave? Miscarriage support?

Culture

→ Are women in your business psychologically safe enough to raise issues without career consequences?

→ When a woman last flagged a problem — what actually happened?

Not sure where to start? Here's what to do instead.

IWD isn't a content opportunity. It's an accountability moment. If you're not sure where to begin, start here.

→ Run a pay gap audit — and publish it, not just file it → Set a deadline to close the gap. A real one. With accountability.

→ Review your promotion criteria — and ask honestly who it's built for

→ Actively recruit women from different backgrounds, not just the same networks

→ Audit your job ads for gendered language

→ Make sure interview panels aren't all one type of person

→ Ask your female employees what they actually need — then act on it

→ Make flexible working a genuine option, not a career penalty

→ Hire a woman into the room where decisions get made

→ Do the boring, hard, structural work — then post about it

The bottom line.

International Women's Day is not a content opportunity. It's an accountability moment. And if the most effort your business puts into gender equity this year is a social media post — that's not celebration. That's cover.

So before you hit post, ask yourself honestly: can you back it up?

If the answer is yes — post proudly. Show your receipts. That's the kind of IWD content we're here for.

If the answer is no — use today as the starting gun, not the finish line.

This is Part 1 of our Things NOT to do in marketing series. Follow @thedoersuk on Instagram to keep up with the series.