What's the Last Brand You Unfollowed?
I talked to Ochuko Akpovbovbo, writer of the popular newsletter "as seen on", about the state of brand social.
I love reading
’s sharp newsletter , which covers business, culture, and gen z trends as seen on her group chats. And while most of my interviews for this newsletter are with people who work in social media, sometimes it’s good to hear from people who don’t work in social to understand what’s resonating with them. I knew Ochuko would be the perfect non-social person to chat with about the state of brand social.It’s funny to hear her thoughts—like how the grid still matters when she’s deciding if she’ll follow an account (I often say that it’s irrelevant), what makes her DM a brand post to a friend (she did not mention memes once), and what the last brand she unfollowed was (spoiler: it’s one of the most talked about clothing brands this year).
The point of an interview like this isn’t to say that everything we talk about within our own world of social marketing is wrong. But more to say that consumers view brand social quite differently than us, and it’s good to sometimes step out of our own bubble. Let’s dive in.
🚨 QUICK REMINDER 🚨
If you haven’t filled out The 2024 Social Media Compensation Survey yet, you can do that here! It should only take 5-10 minutes, is completely anonymous, and will help create a salary benchmark for social media roles. As a subscriber, you will be the first to get the report once it’s finished!
Oh, and if you’ve already filled out the survey, mind reposting this post on LinkedIn? The more responses we get, the better the data!
Rachel Karten: First, can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
Ochuko Akpovbovbo: I work at adidas right now, on the Global Membership team. Prior to that I did Brand Marketing for adidas Originals, and before that I was in college. I also write
, a newsletter about business, culture, and youth trends. Rachel loves it so you know it's great. [Editor’s note: It’s true, I do love it!]RK: I wanted to chat with you for this newsletter because you don't work in social, and sometimes I think the most salient brand social insights come from people who aren't directly in this industry. So, to start, how would you describe your relationship to brands on social? Do you find you follow a lot of them?
OA: Before I started my newsletter, I didn’t pay much attention to brand social. I followed a few brands like Glossier, SKIMS, and Parade—but otherwise brand social only came up on my discover page or as promotional posts. These days I’m paying a lot more attention and I follow a bunch in several categories. It’s fun.
RK: And what makes you want to follow a brand on social? Do you find it's because you love them IRL first, or will you follow a brand you've never used just because you like their vibe?
OA: A little bit of both, but mostly the vibes for sure. Thinking back to pre-newsletter (because my motivations now are different), the grid did a lot for me. If I went on a brand's IG page and liked what I saw, I was going to follow. Instagram is the only app I follow brands on, though.
Brands on TikTok are not what I want to be seeing, except if they're showing me what's happening in their offices. I love a brand BTS TikTok.
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
RK: What are a few of your favorite brands to follow on social? What do you like about them?
OA: I’m partial to beauty, fashion and CPG brands. My favorites are Lisa Says Gah, Glossier, SKIMS, Graza, Fishwife, Ghia, and Flamingo Estate. I also love furniture and design brands like noo.ma, Wall of Art, and The Six Bells. Beautiful pictures and an aesthetic grid gets me every time.
I know brands put a lot of effort into Reels, but unless the Reels are UGC content for beauty or food brands, I’m almost always going to skip right through. I just love content that represents the lifestyle I associate with that brand, and that transports me into that brand universe. The brands I follow do that really well.
RK: Have you unfollowed any brands recently? What would make you unfollow a brand on social?
OA: I know they’re thriving right now, but I do not love Abercrombie & Fitch’s Instagram. Most of their posts are random people posing unnaturally in cute outfits, which I guess is great for them. But each time I came across one on my feed, I’d think it was an ad which always annoyed me. So I unfollowed.
RK: Does brand social ever come up in casual conversations with your friends? What does it take for a brand's social presence to enter the group chat?
OA: I’m pretty sure SKIMS is the only brand social that’s made it to the group chat. Their timing with the celebrities and influencers is just perfect. At this point it’s like were you even trending if you didn’t do a SKIMS shoot?
RK: Speaking of, do you ever DM a brand social post to a friend? What types of posts do you find yourself DMing most?
OA: If there’s an outfit I like, or I think a friend would like, I’m going to send it over. I share a lot of beauty looks from brand social UGC too. Like, Hey, do you think this blush would look nice on me?
RK: Can you think of any brands that you followed on social and their presence eventually made you want to buy something? For me, personally, that just happened with Merit.
OA: Topicals. Glossier. Parade. CAVA. I was in DC this summer and made it a mission to get CAVA. It lived up to the hype. If I follow a brand for long enough, I’m going to buy something. Time is all it takes to convert me.
[Editor’s note: I consult for CAVA and did not tell Ochuko to answer that way!!]
RK: Do you consider yourself in the "community" of any brands?
OA: No. I’m not even sure what that’ll mean at this point.
RK: What's a brand social hot take you have?
OA: If you’re not hopping on a trend within the first 48 hours, just don’t. Brands talking about being demure or mindful a full week after that TikTok went viral was actually embarrassing.
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.
Lastly, there are some great new jobs on the Link in Bio Job Board! See all of the listings here.
love this crossover!!! 🫶🏻 and i love Ochuko’s answer about not really knowing what being part of a brand’s “community” even means at this point
it’s something i think about often, since brands are all obsessed with building community, but how many people actually think of themselves as part of a brand’s “community”? the last (and maybe first?) time i felt that way was when Glossier was first getting big around 2018. right now, i absolutely love Poppi, buy them regularly, and would choose them over any other probiotic soda brand, but i would never consider myself “in their community”
Ochukoooo breaking the internET