What do these powerhouse properties have in common?

• The Pacific Bin
• Bolt Farm Treehouse
• The Cliffs at Hocking Hills

... Ready?

They’re founder-led brands.

You know the person behind the vision.

You see their face, hear their story, and feel like you're connecting with them, not just a business.

But most operators have ZERO desire to be the "face" of the brand like this, so they assume they're stuck feeling corporate.

I have good news:

You can create people-led content (without you being the "people").

At Oasi, we've generated millions of views with this strategy.

Let me show you how you can, too.

THE WRONG WAY

Most hotels look at the founder-led accounts winning on social and walk away with the wrong takeaway:

"We can't compete without a founder to put on camera."

But you’re missing the larger point.

The reason founder-led brands win has less to do with the founder title and more to do with a simple fact:

There's a real person on the feed with a personality the audience can attach to.

People connect with people, not brands.

A founder is just the most obvious version of a person on a feed.

But what if your future guests could find someone else to connect with?

Not just one person... but a whole team?

THE PLAY

The play is staff-led content that positions your hotel as the local authority.

Here's 3 steps to start running this play this week:

Step 1: Pick the faces (yes, plural).

Ask your team who'd be down to do it.

The criteria:

• high energy
• speaks naturally about it
• passion for the local area
• personality that lands in the first 10 seconds

Let people self-select so they're comfortable on camera.

Ideally, you have 2-3 faces in rotation instead of betting everything on one. That gives you variety in content angles and lets different audiences find the staff member they connect with.

If you're an owner-operator who's up for being on camera, you should be one of the faces too (the founder-led version).

Pro tip: a few of our clients are now considering "camera presence" as part of the hiring criteria for front-of-house and concierge roles. The right faces are that much of an unlock.

Step 2: Lead with rankings and recommendations.

This is a great starter format for 3 reasons:

• Easiest to film
• Highest shareability
• Lowest barrier for someone who's not a creator

Here's some examples:

• Top 5 coffee shops
• Hidden date night spots
• Best hiking trails within an hour
• Restaurants locals go to instead of the tourist traps

These are all questions that your guests are asking themselves when planning a trip.

Answer them and make it crystal clear how staying with you would help really bring their dream trip together.

Step 3: Layer in other formats and run it like a testing game.

Once your team is comfortable on camera, expand:

• Interview-style content where staff share recommendations, insights, and personality-driven takes on the property and area.
  ​
• Story-driven tips and secrets delivered through short clips with minimal on-screen text and long, value-packed captions.

Throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks.

Instagram will quickly tell you which format and which people the audience attaches to.

THE PROOF

We've been running this content style across multiple Oasi client properties.

Here's two recent posts from very different properties:

Post #1: Countrypolitan, Nashville

890k views. A staff member walking through hidden gems most visitors miss.

Post #2: Alila Marea Wedding Account, Encinitas

326k views. A wedding coordinator naming the appointments brides forget to book.

That's over a million views in two posts.

Both feature staff members sharing their local POV, not the hotel selling itself.

That's how we're creating found-led connections and brands without the founder becoming "Instagram famous".

THE TAKEAWAY

Next week, take the first step.

1. Send a message to your team asking who'd be up for being on camera.
2. Pick a local ranking video they'd be excited to talk about.
3. Film it.
4. Post it.

It's that simple :)

Ben Wolff

Founder, Oasi & Modern Hospitality Accelerator