Should I Include My Children In My Social Media Content

Emojis do not protect your children online. Identifying details and backgrounds can still reveal a child’s identity and location.

When advising solopreneurs on their content strategy, a question that comes up frequently is:

“Should I include my children in my social media content?”

If you want the short and easy answer: absolutely not.

But if you’re a mother and self-employed, I understand why this feels like a tough call. Social media is still relatively new, yet so ingrained in everything we do that it can be hard to know where to draw the line. After consulting with countless solopreneurs on their content strategy, here are my thoughts. 

Content Strategy For Small Businesses

Many independent contractors or people with personal brands, like real estate agents, authors, and fitness instructors, typically don’t create a separate business account for Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok. Instead, they use one account for everything (business and personal) because it feels easier to manage. The issue is that when the individual is the business (their name, face, and expertise are the brand), it can be difficult to decide where to draw the line on what to share from their personal lives. 

They’ve been told the way to succeed on social media is to be authentic and relatable. And yes, those things are important, but that doesn’t mean you automatically have to share your children on social media. 

I would add to the marketing advice and say that solopreneurs should be authentic and relatable as the content aligns with their brand pillars. If children aren’t part of your core branding, maybe they don’t belong in your content. 

Does Your Business Actually Relate To Children?

Ask yourself: 

Does my business have anything to do with children? 

Is my target audience mothers?

I don’t mean, “I’m a mother and want motherhood to be part of my brand.” I mean, does the service you provide directly involve children? Is the service you provide only used by mothers?

For example:

• Do you make custom children’s clothing?

• Are you a child therapist?

• Do you run parenting workshops for first-time mothers?

If the answer is no, then you really don’t need to include your kids in your social media.

If the answer is yes, you can still weave motherhood into your brand without showing your children’s faces. There are tons of resources on creating faceless content, and it has been shown to perform just as well. 

Once your child is on the internet, you have little control over where it goes and how it gets used.

The Risks Of Sharing Children Online

Weakens Your Brand Position

From a marketing perspective, when you mix business and children on the same feed, your content can feel scattered. One day it’s your child’s baseball championship, the next it’s a business update, then a family holiday photo. 

That kind of inconsistency makes it harder to grow a professional following. A muddled feed dilutes your brand and leaves potential clients confused about what you actually do. 

Safety And Privacy Concerns

The bigger issue with sharing children on social media is the danger of predators. Even unintentionally, you may be sharing identifying details about your child when you post them on social media. Even with an emoji over their faces, you might give away:

• Their school name is a logo on a shirt

• The location of their dance studio when you share their recital

• A recognizable street in the background of a photo

Predators, scammers, and even AI tools can exploit this information. Today, anyone can take a child’s photo and manipulate it. AI can alter the image, clone the voice, or create deepfakes that are almost impossible to tell apart from the real child. Once that content is out there, you have little control over where it goes. 

My first Instagram post. Social media was not around when I was growing up, so I had full control to create my digital brand as a young adult without childhood photos following me.

That Digital Footprint Will Follow Them Forever

If you do decide to share your children, take the responsibility seriously. You’re not only building your professional brand, but you’re starting a personal brand for your child that will follow them for the rest of their lives.

Content lasts on the internet forever. What you put out there today will be associated with your children in the future. Every job application includes Googling the prospective employee. Is your child going to be okay with the photos you shared coming up in the results?

I often think about my own experience with social media. I created my Facebook page when I was 18, and even then, there’s more than enough embarrassing content floating around on there. Imagine if there had been a full decade of childhood posts on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook that followed me into adulthood. Yikes. 

Final Thoughts: Your Children Are Too Young To Give Consent

I strongly advise against including children in your business content. But, at the end of the day, they are your children, and the decision is ultimately yours. 

Some people think that if they ask for their children’s permission, it’s okay, but children are not old enough to understand the full ramifications of that decision. Even if they agree to it now, they may grow up wishing their childhood had remained private. 

If you do decide to share your children on social media, create a separate account for your professional career. Keep a private personal account for family photos and a dedicated public account for your business. 

Protect your kids and build your brand around you.