Have we Reached Brand Mascot Fatigue?
Cervae's new mascot is a GOAT. Plus: Google's AI video tool, Kai Cenat's Streamer University, and five social posts you shouldn't miss.
What’s up yall! Hope you’re having a fantastic week. In today’s letter I share thoughts on Cerave’s new mascot, Google’s VEO 3, Labubu Mania, Nike price increases, and more.
Plus, for paid subscribers, I’m sharing 5 posts/trends that are worth your attention —the ones that make you stop scrolling and spark new ideas.
Let’s get it
FAVORITE CONTENT OF THE WEEK
Promoting his upcoming album, DJ Khaled sprinted alongside Ashton Hall, creator of the viral ‘mourning routine.’ It’s nine seconds of entertainment. Besides the video being funny, I appreciated the use of juxtaposition. Khaled and Ashton side by side create a contrasting element that grabs attention immediately.
BRANDS, COLLABORATIONS, & CULTURE
Cerave’s latest campaign introduced a new brand mascot, Sarah V. (clever), inspired by fans who refer to the brand as the G.O.A.T. in the comments section. It’s a smart move on the surface:
It shows they’re listening to the comments
It reframes the brand as community-first
And it taps into a familiar playbook: giving your brand a personality through a mascot
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Sarah V.’s debut rollout includes a series of videos interrupting creators mid-shoot, including one with mega foodie creator Keith Lee. It’s funny, well-produced, and also familiar.
And that’s what got me thinking:
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserAre We Entering Brand Mascot Fatigue?
In theory, brand mascots help humanize your brand, take creative risks under the mask of a character, and spark engagement. Duolingo’s Duo the Owl cracked the code in 2021, proving that a social-first brand mascot could thrive and take your brand to new heights. The success of Duo triggered a wave of brand mascots on social (From Hootsuite to Scrub Daddy). Some created mascots from scratch, while others reimagined legacy characters for today’s social media landscape.
For the most part, it works. However, I feel it’s starting to become overused. What fun is there if brands seem to be doing the same thing repeatedly? This isn’t a criticism of Ceravae’s latest effort - the content is good, and I’m excited to see what they have planned for Sarah V.
But it does raise a bigger question: Are we innovating? Or just remixing the same idea? Mascots can still work, but only when they bring something new to the conversation.Kai Cenat’s Streamer University kicked off this week, and it exemplifies ‘world-building’.
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