This is a social media audit for the brand Sun Bum I made for a class.

1. PR3315 Digital Media Audit Worksheet
Audit Worksheet
Sun Bum
Katheryn Ellis
February 4-18, 2022
1) Digital Channels
Channel URL/Notes
Website https://www.sunbum.com/collections/plp-skin-care-all?sort_by=best-
selling://www.sunbum.com/&gclid=CjwKCAiA6seQBhAfEiwAvPqu16WNhhhg2ZYxtihdIFUDsIBaFoPusbpJZA
App No
Blog https://www.sunbum.com/blogs/sun-bum
Email
Signup?
Yes
Text (SMS)
messaging?
No
Other? Sun Bum Fan Club
Sun Bum is an instantly recognizable brand. All their products have their mascot, which is a
gorilla named Sonny. Sonny consistently appears throughout their website, blog, and social media
platforms. Sun Bum has a clean, laid back, beachy appearance. Sun Bum makes their brand seem fun
and easy going. This directly reflects their target audience, which are people that love being out in the
sun. Across their platforms, they consistently use shades of brown, yellow, and purple. They even use
these colors in their product packaging. They also use the phrases, “Trust the Bum” and “We don’t care
if you use ours, just use sunscreen” consistently. The first call to action is to subscribe to emails from the
brand. The second was to follow their social media, to “join the fun.” The third was to shop/buy.
2) Search Engine Optimization
Search Engine Rank (example: 1/17,300,000 results) Paid Placement (Y/N)
Google 1/808,000 Yes
Bing 1/6,820,000 Yes
Yahoo 3/6,820,000 No
When searching for Sun Bum on all the search engines, I found them instantly. The only other
brand that came up was a brand called Sol de Janeiro. It sells products that are different than Sun Bum,
because most of Sun Bum’s products include SPF. Sol de Janeiro does not have SPF in their products. On
Yahoo, Sol de Janeiro comes up first, because they have paid placement, while Sun Bum does not. I tried
several searches for sunscreen, SPF haircare, etc. Sun Bum came up each time.

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3) Cross-Channel Promotion (CCP)
Website
Icons
Website
CTAs
Facebook Yes Yes
Twitter Yes Yes
Instagram Yes Yes
YouTube Yes Yes
Pinterest Yes Yes
Tik Tok Yes Yes
Snapchat No No
LinkedIn Yes No
Tumblr Yes No
Apple App No No
Android App
App: Other
No No
Other No Yes
At the bottom of their website, there is a second chance to enter your email if the pop up was
closed. It also says, “Follow Us” and has icons for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and
TikTok. There is also an icon that looks like a banana. When I clicked on that, it said “Thank you for
touching the banana. Here is a 15% off discount code.”
4) Social Media
Channel URL/User Name Audience Verified
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/sunbum/ 62,930 No
Twitter https://twitter.com/trustthebum 6.8k No
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sunbum/?hl=en 317k Yes
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIn4Y6n-
0oOT2KN50GcYsHg
6.4k No
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/trustthebum/ 5.1k
Tumblr https://trustthebum.tumblr.com/ 317k Yes
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/sun-bum/ 16k No
Snapchat N/A N/A N/A
Tik Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@sunbum?lang=en 37.4k Yes
They are extremely easy to find all their pages through the platforms, as well as through Google
searches. They use hashtags, such as #sunbum, #sunbumsunscreen, #trustthebum, etc. They also use
their phrases, “Trust the Bum,” “We don’t care if you use ours, just use sunscreen” in their bios.
5) Listening and Engagement
Sun Bum’s engagement varies based on which platform is in question. They have not been
active on Twitter since 2019. They post a lot on Instagram, and they also engage with their audience
frequently. On Instagram, they also do giveaways and things to increase likes/comments, and they also

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partner with brands sometimes. They do the same on FaceBook, they respond to comments and post.
Their FaceBook posts are less frequent than Instagram. They have a video on YouTube from years ago
pinned called “This is a Film about Sun Bum.” In this video, they address things that people have said
about the brand like, “…people tell us it smells like summer.” They post about once a month on
YouTube. On Pinterest, they post pictures that fit the brand’s aesthetic, and they link all their products
for people to shop. They post the most on Instagram and Tik Tok, and they also engage with their
customers on both the most often.
6) Content Publishing
 Types of Content
Sun Bum uses mostly original content, with some user generated content sprinkled in between.
They mostly create their own content, and post videos and photos of things going on at headquarters.
This allows their followers to feel like they are a part of the brand. They use all different kinds of content
across their platforms; they rarely post the same thing on two platforms.
 Candence
o Instagram: Sun Bum posts on Instagram every day. There is a healthy mix of photos and
videos on their feed. They post on their Instagram stories several times a week.
o FaceBook: Sun Bum posts on FaceBook about once a week. They do not post stories or
reels on FaceBook.
o YouTube: Sun Bum posts once a month on YouTube. They do not have any YouTube
shorts posted.
o Twitter: They have not posted since July 18, 2019.
o Tik Tok: They post several TikToks a week.
o Tumblr: They have not posted on Tumblr in several years. Their posts on here are
somewhat outdated. They are heavily filtered.
o Pinterest: They post on Pinterest a couple times a month.
 Consistency across platforms
They post different content on all platforms. They maintain the same look, so everything is
consistent and uniform, but the posts vary.
 CTAs Used
The CTAs that Sun Bum uses are “Shop Now,” “Join Today,” and “Follow Us.”
 Tone of Voice
Their tone of voice is mixed. It is a mix of trendy, humor, and slang. It is very relaxed and laid back.
They say things like “We’re just like you: we want to stay out in the sun all day.” A comment under their
“This is a Film about Sun Bum” video said, “This brand does an incredible job at selling an experience.”

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That is the best way to summarize the way they utilize their social media pages. They do have a high
level of engagement, especially on Instagram and Tik Tok.
7) Conclusion
SWOT Analysis
 Strengths
o Brand consistency
 They are consistent throughout their use of colors and their mascot. This
creates a strong, recognizable brand. They are easy to find, and they are far
more prominent than their competitors in the search engines.
o Engagement on Tik Tok and Instagram
 Their Instagram and Tik Tok pages are their strongest points. They have high
levels of engagement, quality posts, and they have great interactions with
followers on those two platforms.
o Reputation
 On their Instagram page, there weren’t a lot of people commenting to complain
about products, shipping, etc. Their account is full of positive interactions
between the followers and the brand.
 Weaknesses
o Verification on FaceBook and Twitter.
 They need to work on getting verified on these platforms so that it is easy to
engage with people on other platforms as well. This will improve their overall
social media presence as a brand.
o Improve the quality of Pinterest
 Pinterest is a very artistic space, and Sun Bum is a creative brand. They could
utilize Pinterest by posting more often, and creating cute, trendy pictures of
their products in different settings. Because most of their products are
sunscreens, the opportunities for things they could post would be endless.
o Stop neglecting Twitter
 They need to start using Twitter. When they did use Twitter, they got high levels
of engagement. Their last post on Twitter was on June 18, 2019, and it said,
“Would you rather have In N Out or A Burrito? We’re having a debate in our
office.” It has 39 comments, 14 retweets, and 52 likes. All their comments were
positive and uplifting.
 Opportunities
o User Generated Content
 Sun Bum had a collaborative project with an influencer named Summer Mckeen
in July 2021. This was beneficial for the brand because Summer had 1.8 million
followers on Instagram, and 2.21 million YouTube subscribers. Sun Bum should

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collaborate with influencers and gather user generated content from
YouTubers, influencers, and celebrities more often. They have a strong brand in
several stores like Ulta, Target, Tyler’s, Academy, etc. Showing celebrities’ and
influencers’ content would help them gain a larger following.
o Shipping
 Sun Bum does not ship internationally as of right now. If they start shipping
internationally, they could build their brand even more. There is an opportunity
here to launch a “The Bum takes the globe” campaign, to market to countries
outside of the United States.
o Consistency
 Sun Bum should maintain a more consistent appearance across all social media
platforms, specifically Twitter, FaceBook, and YouTube. They should post more
frequently on the three. FaceBook especially, because they have a baby
sunscreen line, and a lot of parents use FaceBook more often than other social
platforms.
 Threats
o Competition
 One of the major threats is the amount of competition for beauty brands. There
are so many brands that make sunscreen, it can be difficult to stay on top of the
competition. Many brands come to mind when I think of sunscreen: Super
Goop, Neutrogena, Hawaiian Tropic, and Australian Gold.
o Storefronts
 Right now, Sun Bum has less than 20 storefronts. This makes sense because
they have their products in so many different stores but opening more in beach
towns would expand their market.
Summary and Conclusion
After stalking Sun Bum’s social media presence, I feel that they could make several changes to
benefit their brand. They seem to be expanding. They started off in Cocoa Beach, and they’ve since
moved their headquarters to Encinitas. I’ve used their products since I was working at Tyler’s in Fort
Worth, and I never knew a lot of the things I learned from looking at their social media and their
website.
I was shocked that they are not verified on Twitter or FaceBook. After I thought about it more, I
think they lack the amount followers needed to be verified. I was also surprised at how few followers
they have. I expected them to have a larger following than they currently have. It also surprised me that
they haven’t posted anything on Twitter in years. I was not surprised that they market to young people
through Instagram and Tik Tok, because they have a large following on those two. I also liked looking
through their content because it’s all positive and uplifting. There were also little to no customer service
issues flooding their accounts like some brand pages have.

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I think that overall, Sun Bum is a positive easy going brand and I like that about them. Their
content is relaxing to look at, and it is all based around having a good time and working to live rather
than living to work. They also stay true to their brand and their values. Their social media pages are a
perfect reflection of that. They need to start utilizing Twitter and FaceBook more because it will expand
their target audience. Everybody needs sunscreen, so they have a wide market to cater to. Even though
there are so many brands of sunscreen, this one sticks out to me because of their mascot, Sonny. You
can even buy a keychain with him on it, as well as an inflatable Sonny figure. They used this mascot in a
brilliant way to distinguish their brand from others in the market.
In conclusion, Sun Bum is a strong brand online, but they need to use things in their advantage.
They need to work to gain more followers so they can be verified. They also need to capitalize on the
opportunities that have been presented to them. One of their strengths is their brand values and overall
attitude. They have a great attitude and strong values, and that is reflected through their online
presence. One weakness is their presence on Twitter. They have a Twitter page, but it has not been
active in years. Their greatest opportunity is that could launch international shipping with a strong
campaign. Their biggest threat is the competition from other brands.