The Ramen Brand With an Interview Show

I interviewed Emely Alba, Senior TikTok Strategist at immi, about why they created a separate account to host their popular series.

The most repeated comment on Ramen on the Street’s TikTok account is “I needed to hear this”.

The second?

“an ad for ramen??!”, “This was all a ramen ad 👁️👄👁️?! Consider me influenced”, and “Ngl sometimes I forgot that this whole account is just a company account for ramen 😭😭”.

immi is part of a growing group of brands that are creating second accounts dedicated to specific series. Their show Ramen on the Street asks strangers serious life questions, while the host is dressed up in a ramen costume. BODY Social Club—which appears to be the new entertainment arm of BODY Vodka—has “The internets favorite internet shows 😎” as their bio. So far they run @rekindleshow (there’s nothing posted) and @dumb_hot (an existing show that they likely bought). In my interview with Overdrive Defense yesterday, they described their social strategy as “a media company that monetizes by selling product instead of advertising space.”

Is the future of brand social…media?

For today’s interview I spoke with Emely Alba, Senior TikTok Strategist at immi, about why the brand created a separate account for their show, how long it took for it to find an audience (nine months!), getting strangers to open up, and more. Let’s dive in.

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Emely Alba, Senior TikTok Strategist at immi

Rachel Karten: First can you tell me about your current role and any previous social (or not!) roles you've had?

Emely Alba: My current role at immi is Senior TikTok Strategist. I handle mainly the production process for content on TikTok. Currently, it focuses on brainstorming, producing, strategizing, talent, and editing for the Ramen on the Street account.

Regarding other social roles, I started my career in social media at BuzzFeed as a video fellow. I learned how to produce content for all social platforms and honed in on virality. My other roles include being a production assistant for many of NBC's late-night shows, such as the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and SNL. 

RK: I'd love to dig into immi's short-form video strategy. Can you talk to me about how "Ramen on the Street" came about?

EA: When I started my role here at immi, the Kevins (founders of immi) allowed creative freedom. There wasn't a format that I wasn't testing on TikTok. One day, I asked about wearing our ramen as a costume and asked people serious life questions. I laughed it off at the moment, but then the Kevins were like, why not? The possibilities were endless.

So we got the costume and started filming interviews on an iPhone around NYC's most popular spots. Immediately after we started filming the series, many people in the space gave us great advice on how to continue experimenting with this series.

@ramenonthestreet“If I am lucky we will both catch up to each other at wome point.” #publicinterview #streetinterview #interview #ramenonthestreet #ramenonthestreetinterview #fyp #lifeadvicetiktok #hopecore #hopecoretiktok #parents #parentsoftiktok #adulthood #human

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RK: Why did you decide to create an entirely separate account for the show?

EA: While testing different formats on the @immieats account, I noticed that the interviews performed exceptionally well. This organic success inspired us to create a separate account for the series.

At first, we saw no traction, but then, nine months in, we had our first viral video. It was a testament to the power of organic growth and the impact of our strategic experimentation.

RK: Do you produce the show completely in-house or did you hire an agency to help with it?

EA: Another co-worker, Michelle Ruiz, and I produce the series. We have just hired another contractor to assist us. But that's mainly our team.

RK: Everyone’s answers are always so amazing. Is there any pre-screen or are you genuinely coming up to people on the street asking if you can interview them?

EA: I mainly approach people in the ramen costume and ask if we could ask them inspirational life questions. If they say yes, I introduce our brand and explain why we make inspirational content.

Although my question may not be about ramen, we love to have some people try it during interviews. We want people to see that immi has a good product out there and good feeling content. immi is a high protein, low carb, and plant-based, healthier option than other brands. With our content, we want to inspire people to choose immi and be motivated simultaneously.

RK: A tactical question—are you paying them for these videos or having them sign some sort of release? I'm curious how you approach them to get such natural, thoughtful answers!

EA: We are not paying them, but we ask permission to film before filming. Also, we give them free samples after every interview to thank them for their time. 

RK: The show has significantly more followers than the brand account. Do you ever think about going all in on the show and retiring the "official" brand account?

EA: Seeing our success on ROTS is incredible, but I don't see us retiring @immieats. Other kinds of formats or videos can go there. We also have our TikTok shops connected to that account, and it is something we are looking to grow right now. 

@immieatsOhhhh yeaaaah this ramen hits

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RK: Do you cross-promo on Instagram or YouTube shorts? How do they perform on channels other than TikTok?

EA: We cross-post everywhere, but we see great success on Instagram Reels. We are still trying to figure out YouTube Shorts.

RK: I see comments on the "Ramen on the Street" videos like "I'm shook that this is a ramen commercial". How do these videos help bring awareness to immi or ladder back to brand goals?

EA: These comments show our audience the kind of brand we are. As I said, we are selling healthy ramen and showing our community that we want to inspire them in their everyday lives by sharing their commonalities with a person sharing their story on ROTS. These videos also show our top-of-funnel brand awareness to many other retailers when pitching immi to them. 

RK: Which video interview is your favorite? Is there a good story behind it?

EA: My favorite video thus far is our most viral one. It was so random, too. We were interviewing someone at the park, and they had dyed hair, and a woman came up to compliment this person. Since they seemed like such a cool vibe, I asked her our most popular question: what advice would you give to your younger self? And she said that she wished she would have shaved her hair. We were all so shocked, but she was so grateful that we asked her. The video went so viral that it inspired others and some to shave their hair. 

@ramenonthestreet“And I still may do it.” #publicinterview #streetinterview #interview #ramenonthestreet #ramenonthestreetinterview #fyp #advicetiktok #LifeAdvice #shavedhead #70yearsold

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RK: Something I talk a lot about in this newsletter is how more brands should be thinking about their short-form video strategy like a TV show. Entertaining, repeatable storylines with lore and characters. As a brand that has done this via interviews, why would you advocate for this strategy?

EA: This is getting tougher daily because there is so much on the internet. Audiences no longer want you just to sell them a product. They want to see what value you can provide to their everyday lives, whether through educational, inspirational, or entertaining content. 

It may be tough to convert, but content like ours puts immi out there to the masses and shows them who we are as a company, which could then lead them to check out immi. 

RK: Any final thoughts?

EA: Although we have achieved some success in brand awareness, there are a lot of challenges, but that is the fun part. We are experimenting and learning every day here at immi. We are still not done; we are testing new strategies every week. Challenges such as maintaining consistency in content quality, adapting to changes in the social media landscape, and managing audience expectations are all part of the journey. I am grateful that I am allowed to explore and be guided to learn new things every day. Also we just launched our third TikTok account @immi4lunch—so check it out!

You can support free interviews like this one with a paid Link in Bio subscription! It’s likely an educational expense at your company—here’s a template for you to use when asking your manager. I personally think the Discord is worth the subscription alone.

Thanks so much for reading!