[021] Weekly vibe check: Bose's butter themed speaker launch wasn't original
Sorry!
It’s Friday, which means it’s time for a vibe check - a wrap up of the social (and social adjacent) news you may have missed, some brand content to inspire you, and the musings that keep me awake at night.
In today’s newsletter:
I think we’ve reached peak butter, and it’s time to move on
Social media news you may have missed
What everyone’s talking about on socials right now
Brand content worth peeping at
Bose launched a butter yellow colorway this week, but unfortunately they were beaten to the punch by *checks notes* at least four other brands.
My LinkedIn (which I regret to inform I do still scroll sometimes, against my better judgment) is full of posts lauding Bose for their Butter themed send out to launch their new yellow colorway.
Not to put on my party pooper hat, but Bose is late to the butter party, and their latest send out is a sign that we’ve officially reached peak butter yellow saturation.
A very brief history of butter yellow
Butter yellow is the colour of the season, having travelled from high fashion all the way through to H&M’s latest drops - please take this moment to rewatch Miranda Priestley’s Cerulean Blue monologue in The Devil Wears Prada.
Here’s a small sampling of recent butter themed content/campaigns:
The Skinny Confidential (side note: I’d love to discuss TSC’s MAGA/MAHA vibes at some point).
Bread - they encased their cult status hair oil in the stuff
Tala with a butter yellow collection
Dieux Skincare (who actually called out the trend in their content, which I enjoyed)
I’d like to plug the Style Analytics Cringe-Sincerity cycle post and graphic below, which illustrates the moment we tip from sincerity to saturation using skinny jeans.
Why does this matter, exactly?
To be clear, this isn’t about whether Bose or butter yellow is cool/uncool (personally: I really like butter yellow, so if it’s your thing, go forth).
What’s interesting here is that Bose’s launch comes at a time of peak butter saturation in marketing, and I think this campaign is a perfect example of what we’re seeing in marketing and social content in 2025:
Brands are just jumping on the same trends instead of innovating.
“But Laura, trends aren’t new - haven’t brands always done this?” I hear you ask.
To which I say: sort of. Yes, trends have been around for eons - let’s not forget that it was particularly fashionable for men in royal courts to wear colourful stockings during medieval times!
What has changed is the culture of speed & sameness
Social media has flattened the lifecycle of trends so much that by the time a brand joins in, the moment feels done.
Instead of creating culture and being original, brands are just chasing what has already been done.
The truth is: unless you work in marketing, you probably don’t care about the Bose butter yellow campaign.
If I showed this campaign to my non-marketer friends, they would probably say “hmm, that’s cute” before moving on. Whereas if I showed them the Troye Sivan Gap campaign from 2024, they’d have more of a “wow” moment.
The opportunity here is pretty simple:
It’s not about being the fastest to replicate the latest trend, it’s about stepping outside the cycle and making something worth copying in the first place.
Some brand content to keep you inspired (reminder: my big weekly scroll stopper is sent out on Monday’s! Here’s this week’s)
This meme compilation from Figma - “untitled” hit me hard :’)
Beis breaking down how they built a suitcase mascot costume. This was highly engaging to watch!
Pure nostalgia from Subway - I have no problem with the lean into nostalgia we’re seeing left, right and centre, but that’s probably because it’s a throwback to my glory days.
I’ve kept track so that you don’t have to :)
Old school scanners for showcasing product - tbh I forgot about the existence of scanners, but I’m seeing more of these pop up on my feed (yet another nostalgia fuelled trend!)
Photos on a moving background - when done well, this trend can be used to create a slightly disorienting experience for the viewer (which is a good thing, as it stops the scroll 👀)
The social (and socially adjacent) news & vibes of the week.
The hottest unboxing of 2025 is the tiffin
Lily Baria, aka Tiffin Lady, has gone viral for sharing her daily Tiffin Service unboxing on TikTok. For the uninitiated, Tiffins are a daily packed hot lunch service delivered in India and described as one of the most complicated human logistics services in the world. The BBC has a great piece detailing the 125 year history of the Tiffin lunch!
Apparently water lilies can hold a lot of weight, and quite frankly, I’m intrigued
The annual “Water Lily Weigh Off” was started three years ago by the Denver Botanical Gardens and I’m happy to report that my feed has been inundated with delightful people in public gardens putting weights on water lilies.
You need to watch Terrence’s weekly cultural digests
TBH he’s doing a better job than me!
Listening to classical music instead of rap is officially the vibe
The above video has 37M views and quite frankly…I get it.
Many people are discussing they don’t, in fact, have a hidden talent
The top comments being “don’t forget to set your alarm” have sent me.
We are on the cusp of northern hemisphere fall, and the content has begun!
As someone who resides in the southern hemisphere but has lived northside, I can confirm that nothing beats *true* US fall, and I personally love seeing this kind of content.
Meta admitted social media is dead
And I oop…in a highly self aware moment, Meta acknowledged that young people aren’t using social media to be, well, social anymore. This comes after their panicked attempt to lure Gen Z back to the app by rolling out new features like “Find Your Friends”.
New study suggests posting more often is the key to IG growth
This comes approximately one month after Sprout Social released a study showing that brands found posting more frequently didn’t lead to account growth. So what can we take away from this? Posting more may help your account gain traction in the early days, but at the end of the day, quality content is what will lead to growth.
Meta could release new smart glasses next month
I’ve attended a showcase of Meta’s yet to be released augmented reality wearables and I was extremely impressed (against my will, tbh).
The Tweens Down Under: Life Without Social Media in Australia
A great article from WIRED that explores what life could look like for under-16’s in Australia as of December 10. Recommended reading for those residing outside of Aus who are interested in how this could play out!
That’s it for now!
If you liked this newsletter, I’d love it if you let me know, or even shared it with a friend. If you hated it, let me know too! Hatred fuels me :)
Are we prepared for the next dairy marketing trend? I’m calling babybel cheese