AITA for wanting to talk about voyeuristic instagram accounts?

Welcome to Inspired by Anywhere, a short, fortnightly LinkedIn newsletter from Rough Paper. Here, we seek marketing inspiration from places that are not exactly marketing - at least formally. This could be from a YouTube channel, the world of rock music, someplace we visited, a nice line in an article. The sources will be eclectic (much like our own tastes), and hopefully inspiring for those working in marketing & branding. If nothing else, we hope you find some new content to gorge on!

Did I F up by spending 2 hours scrolling through toxicreddit and cringing at strangers’ life choices?

If you’ve ever found yourself wondering why on earth you enjoy reading the kind of Insta-post in the header of this thing, you're not alone. Long before Instagram became the breeding ground for AITA-style voyeurism, these stories lived on Reddit’s various confessional subreddits. And if you’re old enough, you might even remember the OG chaotic confession hub - the FML website, which is now but a watered down shell of itself.

These platforms played an important role in society. Don't laugh, I'm serious. To make us feel better about ourselves by gawking at the messes other people have made of their lives. Today, a bunch of instagram accounts have turned these ongoing "woe is me" reddit threads into bite-sized Instagram content so you can get your dose of superiority on the go.

And listen, no judgment (you also don't judge plz). It’s cathartic. It's fun to see how messed up or odd people are. Why? It's a no-stakes way to enjoy punching-down humour. We can feels momentarily superior and fancy and justified in all our life choices in 20 seconds - rather good ROI as you quickly doomscroll in between calls. This appeal was beautifully explained in an article about “deep-fried memes” and I’m paraphrasing the part I mean:

[This situation] paints an optimistic picture, and this type of “laughing down” type of joke makes us feel like the elite. For a bunch of jabronis who find solace in a screen in-between sessions of life grinding us to meatballs with self-esteem issues, this joke presents a rare opportunity to feel on high ground. For a small moment, we’re free from our social fear and insecurity of having something so awful as [being part of the horrific AITA you’re reading]

In other words - it's funny. Or horrifying. Or weird. But mostly, it’s an escape from our own insecurities.

Beyond garbage scrolling: Creative uses of voyeurism

All this isn’t a humblebrag about my terribad Instagram recommendations. A lot of brands and content creators are using this voyeuristic urge in clever, interesting ways. Here are a few examples:

1. "Overheard At" accounts

The Overheard series of Instagram accounts - @overheardLA, @overheardNewYork, and even @overheardinGoa (that I happily discovered just now as i was writing this) give us silly little stereotype-affirming peeks into different cultures through the things people (allegedly) say.

They're all so entertaining. We’re eavesdropping on caricatures of people who confirm our snap judgments about them, but then surprise us by adding layers to the stereotype. Fun!

2. Le Labo’s social media strategy

Luxury perfume brand Le Labo uses this very concept for their social media strategy, with an entire account dedicated to this delightful rubbish. @overheardlelabo is full of pretentious, quirky, or odd statements that are allegedly by the brand's customers and fans.

Unusual for a luxury brand no? Especially perfume brands, who lean very hard into the sensuality of the senses or whatever this is. Le Labo's strategy kind of humanises the brand and makes its exclusivity feel approachable. It turns their patrons from faceless blow-dried couture-wearing members of the elite class to quirky, funny unusual people who we kinda relate to.

3. An aerospace company's recruitment campaign

My last example is an unexpected one. The American aerospace defence company Northrop Grumman dropped an adorable campaign with tiny Overheard-style videos gently making fun of their own engineers. The goal - to make NG seem extremely nerdy, chill, and approachable as employers.

I'm sure actual engineers will appreciate this more than I did, but I did appreciate them all nonetheless. #FormerScienceStudent

Marketing takeaway: Let da people watch what you're upto

Voyeuristic content is just fun, and a bit of guilty pleasure. Here’s how brands can use this to their advantage:

1. Turn customers into gawkers: Borrow from Le Labo’s way of doing things. Use social media to share unexpected quotes, moments, or teeny-stories from your brand’s interactions with the world.

2. Expose the (not-so) mundane: What’s something your brand does every day that might feel fascinating or unusual or remarkable to an outsider? How you package your product, how your logistics work, how you introduce your cats to clients on video calls (just us?). Show people, tell them about it. It may just reveal new facets about your brand to your audience.

3. Play with stereotypes: Accounts like Overheard thrive on gently poking fun at harmless stereotypes. If your brand lives in a specific niche or serves a particular culture, lean into it and laugh at it, maybe? It could be self-aware, it could be a tad controversial, it could be very engaging.

And if we sent you down a rabbit hole of sob stories by toxic people on reddit, we're not sorry. Just enjoy it.