040 - are we NPCs or the main character?
So grateful for this reminder this week: “to create with the purpose of learning”.
SO I’m not feeling very well, so this week will be a shorter thought piece about hyperindivualism, as I’ve been seeing fair few on the topic lately and my first thought was:
This creator went on a rant recently about the “What About Me Effect.” Her video received 4.5M views.
The “What About Me Effect” combines individualistic culture with being chronically online. It means that we assume that everything should in some way apply to us—that we should be accommodated for our personal, nuanced situation.
But really, what about me?
After years and years of marketing for personalisation (Netflix, Spotify, etc), and the algorithm fixing our fyps so it is “just for you”, on top of recent delulu fever, main character energy, this phenomenon seems pretty obvious to me.
Kyle Fitzpatrick argues about personalisation:
Yes, the Bean Soup [What about me Effect] saga is eyeroll-inducing, but we should be spoiled by products and services that are tailor-made for us. More customization means more willingness to pay and more alignment between company and customer, leaving less deadweight loss (remember that term from Econ?).
We should be happy that we live now in a space where hyper-individualism has let us to express our ‘authentic’ selves in a freer way without any fear of persecution. On the internet we can put on a different skin everyday, and feed those identities with the algorithm, strengthening each and every one of these characters we play.
It makes more sense in the era we are in now, we’re brutally self aware, we’re cringe-y, cynical but all ironically? If we’re too serious it would be embARRAsing. We’re at this point of nihilism where at the same time, things don’t mean as much, but they also mean A LOT.
(That’s at least what I hope when I read this article about what it means to reply because “Social media encourages us to think of every thought we have as interesting”. Because yes maybe not everyone has ‘reply’ etiquette’, but is it that deep that we need to have a chat about it?)
Hyper-individual-same-ness
But as our culture is becoming more hyperindividual, through algorithms, while we’re under the illusion we’re becoming more unique, the reality is that this individualism is so superficial, that we’re all just increasingly the same.
Another creator talks about this dilemma very well (Watch his two part video on cringe and hyper-individualism). In our era, we’ve been told to niche down in order to be ‘successful’, whether that was ages ago before going to university, or ‘niching’ down in a social media context.
“You cant be a follower because you’re an NPC, but you also can’t be an outcast, so you have to be a tech-gorp-cottage-core-break-beat-enthusiast, who’s personality differentiates from other people because you were a different type of raver pant”
“Social media has democratised virality: there is a monetary and social capital drive to be performing and filming at every single moment”
also see comments from the video:
versus community
I think its funny that this concept is on the rise now, when we’ve been talking about community so so much. But maybe where we don’t find community, hyper-individualism is the alternative solution.
But where community is the stronghold in certain cultures, hyperindividualism is a threat. In western societies, hyper individualism is maybe more of the same. But let’s take Malaysia, or Asia in general, where community is the stronghold. The extent of your duties lie with your family. The choices you make, and the way you live, anything and everything you do is for your family. The ethos of which is antithetical to hyperindividualism. So when we start making decisions that don’t factor them in, it potentially, maybe, probably weakens these bonds.
But community is still around us!! We still crave connection of course! All I’m saying or trying to say is we’re letting the machines make us think we are all each and every one of us unique and special, and forgetting that there are more things that make us similar than make us unique. And if we forget that for the pursuit of our own individual reasoning, we might lose what it means to be part of something completely.
And what about brands?
Brands need to be aware of the shift towards hyperindividualism and adapt their marketing strategies accordingly. Here are a few suggestions:
Focus on
authenticity. Most people are tired of brands trying to be ‘authentic’ for the purpose of selling them their products. Maybe brands should just focus on delivering good products, that put their values where their mouths are.KEEP on KEEPING ON with personalized experiences. I mean we’re so used to it now, and like Kyle said, why shouldn’t we get that when it comes to brands. It builds loyalty and trust, and cOmMuNiTy.
Build communities. Even though hyperindividualistic consumers value their independence, they still crave connection. Brands can build communities by creating spaces where customers can interact with each other and share their experiences.
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field notes
Random things I found: (1) Don’t we LOVE QUIZZES? I found Irregular Hours which has a test that finds your work archetype. And I took mine and it said that i could be an F1 Technical Director! i have no idea what that is but I’m just imagining myself being stressed out at the paddock whilst the drivers fight each other out on the track. (2) Also Did you know Barilla has a playlist on spotify with songs with the exact duration it takes to cook pasta. (3) Another thing trending that relates is our obsession with real? Morning just released their report on Fake vs Fake, and Wetransfer and Co-Matter just came out with a report called ‘Networked Reality’ a creative’s guide to dealing with ideas & audiences online…“Authenticity is dead”.
Culture: A look into “Meme-ability” and fandom: How nostalgia drives memes, and how memes revive old tv shows. Apparently podcasts will evolve more into experiences,
Watching: I would like it to be known that I watched the Qatar Grand prix last weekend, and it was inSANE how the drivers were so physically challenged, with Ocon having puked in their helmet, Sargeant having to quit early on, and Stroll passing out from the heat while driving!! Also I am a sucker for documentaries really, but tell me why I was a little bored by the third ep of Beckham. Bored doesn’t mean I wasn’t bawling when Beckham was made public enemy no.1 after that world cup. Bored just means bored. What was more exciting was actually how funny Posh spice is: exhibit a, & exhibit b.
Tech: 23andme was hacked, which is terrifying. And also in a real life black mirror episode, the ‘digital afterlife industry’ is growing with 57 firms, one company sends people messages after their loved ones have died. But how do the dead consent to this?
Other essays I’ve read this week: The Post Pandemic skip; How some people are feeling FOBO (fear of feeling obsolete), and how some refuse to become culturally irrelevant; Most of you would have read about how rotten the tomatoes really are, but here’s a piece on how book blurbs are also a little rotten too. Also someone wrote this article on how group chat culture is out of control and I feel so validated. “without a standard etiquette, people have very different ideas about what degree of responsiveness is required—which can cause real tension.”
TRENDS: In the growing trend of longer videos on tiktok, Paramount took advantage of this on October 3rd by literally putting the whole of mean girls (in parts) on Tiktok. Also a look into the increasing number of ‘full-time children’ in China, and also can SOMEONE tell me why ‘giant woman’ is trending?
also:
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