Roll For Content

THE RISE OF ROLL FOR

Good afternoon Dungeons and Dragons TikTok, and beyond, and welcome to this week’s something to watch where we take a look at the rise of 'roll for content' on the platform. For those of you who are or were unfamiliar with the world of Dungeons and Dragons (like us), users on TikTok have taken the games’ 'roll for' system (which determines the success and failure of a move), incorporated the dicer tower (to get a fair roll) and used it to help them make randomized choices when it comes to picking sandwiches, cereal, sushi and more.

Most famously known for his 'roll for' sandwich content, @adventuresinaardia has over 1.7m followers that tune in to see him build a bun based purely on what the dice says. With a list of items corresponding to the number on the dice, he takes his time picking bread, a main, cheese, roughage and wild magic (usually seasonings) before topping everything off with a sauce. Wearing a chainmail glove, he then slices open his creation as he captivates viewers with his ingredient info, clear voice and the fact that he always, always eats the entire end product despite the questionable flavor combinations.??

And yes, we have watched hours of these videos.

HOW FAST CAN YOU GROW?

Taking over our FYPs one Starbucks shift at a time, @amirambappe is pulling in followers thanks to her simple, chaotic and hilarious content. Lip-syncing (or as she puts it, expression syncing), @amirambappe is proving that sometimes to hit over a million followers you really just need to show the full breadth of your personality... and upload 10 times a day... and use popular TikTok audios. Another creator climbing the FYP ranks with their slapstick content is @octopusslover8 who reacts to user comments on what videos he should make next, from the first phone call ever to the Statue of Liberty unveiled. Doubling their following (now at over 1 million followers) in four days, both these creators are breaking the mould on what it means to go viral.

THE BATTLE OF THE CROSSBODY BAG

If you ever thought a shoulder bag couldn’t break the internet, you were wrong. Last summer Uniqlo released their magnum opus, the round mini shoulder bag. It was the perfect nylon moon-shaped crossbody - and it sent TikTok into overdrive. Creators from the platform rushed to get their hands on the viral bag before it sold out, excitedly sharing what they could fit inside (a lot) and even ordering dupes just to match the look. The #uniqlobag has since racked up almost 50 million views and you’ll be hard-pushed not to see one of these bags in the wild in any of the eight available colors.

Fast forward seven months and Uniqlo re-released the viral bag with a new and improved waterproof, puffer-like feel. With a slightly increased price tag, the new fabric has split TikTok and many customers are undecided on the upgrade. Not only that, a number of brands have caught on to the success of the crossbody and the market is fierce. Enter cool bag brand Baggu, who’ve been doing a huge creator push on TikTok to get their crossbody and shoulder bags front and center. We’ve not been immune to this effort either, as our FYPs have been flooded with different creators in the past few weeks sharing how they style, use and love the Baggu bags.

For brands, having a viral moment on TikTok is the optimum for success, and we admire and are in awe of the impact that the Uniqlo round mini shoulder bag has had on consumers - both last year and even again now. It only goes to show the power creators have on the platform and why it’s so, so important to connect with Gen Z on the platforms they use. We also applaud Baggu, and other fashion brands, for taking note of the crossbody success and producing an item they know will resonate with consumers on TikTok following Uniqlo's win. It’s so interesting to watch this trend evolve and notice how much TikTok can impact fashion brands, even so much so that it determines what items they create.

It also comes as no surprise that 61% of TikTokers mentioned that they tend to buy from brands they see advertised on the platform and tags like #tiktokmademebuyit cause products to sell out. The authenticity, relatability and transparency that TikTok still affords creators helps to build a relationship between them and their viewers, unlike any other platform we’ve seen before.

WHAT I’M REALLY LISTENING TO

Ever wondered what music someone is listening to as they glide past you? Or what the straight-faced stranger is blaring into their ears as they stare deadpan into the distance? Utilizing CapCut’s split-screen feature, creators combine a shot of Patrick Bateman walking through the halls of Pierce & Pierce with a video of an alternate, more upbeat (or not) track playing in a clip below.?

WHY IT WORKS:

Playing on the idea that we all romanticize different moments in our days with the help of music, this CapCut format has been used over 1M+ times to bring users together through hyper-relatable audio choices. Whether it’s walking to class with a stern face while listening to Taylor Swift’s All Too Well (10-minute version) as you crumble inside or enjoying the best Disney hits on the way to work this trend leaves us saying ‘totally, same, real’.?

Bonus Info: We're seeing CapCut being used more and more by creators to showcase their individuality on TikTok, such as cut-out reaction videos (like the most recent Pedro Pascal car meme) as the app can provide more editing capabilities within TikTok. Owned also by ByteDance the video-editing app now has 200 million monthly active users.

LIPSTICK STAIN

Either interpreting this playfully or using it as an opportunity to hard launch their partner, this trend sees creators applying a layer of lipstick that slightly smudges before they have someone close by wipe away the mistake. As the camera pans over, we see that the person wiping away the lipstick is covered in red kisses…

WHY IT WORKS

Trends like this that gain traction on TikTok usually have the quickest and easiest uptake to execute. Who doesn’t have lipstick handy? Or a BFF/SO they can cover in kisses?

Bonus Info: Set to the ultimate sad girl song K by Cigarettes After Sex (but slightly sped up in true TikTok style) this trend is a good one for brands to tap into. It’s an opportunity for cosmetic companies to promote their best-selling lipsticks, and a way for people also to showcase adoration for popular products, i.e. cover your favorite Starbucks drink in kisses...

In one of our previous posts, we discussed the surge in #corecore videos, which we defined as content that creates a unified feeling of nostalgia, happiness or determination through stitched-together visuals, in conjunction with an emotional moving audio. Typically this content can also be categorized by a level of uncertainty or despondency.

As with so many videos and audios, things tend to take on a life of their own on TikTok, and corecore has begun to splinter off in different directions, covering feminism, satirical moments and most recently #hopecore - a new sub-genre of #corecore to bring us the most beautiful, uplifting moments in life from actors, athletes and inspirational people that remind us of the indomitable human spirit.

And yes, Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” makes us cry every time.?

CHRONICALLY ONLINE CHIC

All consumed by our devices, you’ll be hard pushed to go anywhere and not see someone scrolling, holding or talking into their phone. Although this is something we wouldn’t advise, Courrèges at PFW revealed that actually, phones are very chic and cool accessories to hold in hand if you’re thinking about putting together a killer AW23 look. Strolling down the runway in some of the cutest fits we’ve seen - it’s giving office athleisure-wear slick vibes - incorporating phones into fashion shows how chronically online we all are.