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Each week, Marketing Brew recaps what people are talking about on social media, the trends that took over our feeds, and how marketers are responding.
Hey, Kendall…err, Billie?: People are talking about Meta’s new AI chatbots, which use celebrity likenesses to personify different characters. (No, that’s not Tom Brady. That’s Bru, “your favorite wisecracking sports fan who loves a good debate.”) Meta reportedly paid millions to the famous participants, ranging from Brady to Kendall Jenner to MrBeast. So far, people seem pretty creeped out by the concept, with some worrying about things like data collection and others comparing it to an episode of Black Mirror.
Sitting, so hot right now: Actor and comedian Brian Jordan Alvarez nabbed the first brand deal for his character T.J. Mack with skin-care brand The Ordinary and is now selling merch to go along with Mack’s viral song, “Sitting.” It’s been a big few weeks for Alvarez, who has also been profiled by outlets like Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, and Vulture, and is churning out other bangers like “Pickle in the Fridge.”
“Clean girl” to “mean girl”?: An influencer who seems to be having a rougher go of it is Matilda Djerf, who became famous for her minimalist fashion sense and curtain bangs on Pinterest and Instagram and, in turn, started her own brand, Djerf Avenue. Now, she’s being calledoutonline by microinfluencers alleging that Djerf’s team reported posts featuring dupes of Djerf Avenue items as copyright infringement. Given that some have pointed out that Djerf Avenue's pieces take inspiration from other brand items Djerf wore before founding her own clothing line, it seems, as The Cut put it, “ironic to then turn around and try to take down others for the same act.”
Well, that’s just a commercial: We’ve never heard of this show, but this is perhaps the longest brand integration we’ve ever seen. Eos got its money’s worth.