At Lasso, Bing is back: NL #131

The rise of the ‘deinfluencer’

Leave it to Gen-Z to make saving money look cool.

These strange economic times we’re in have created their own class of content creators. Instead of promoting products, offering discounts, and curating an aspirational cache of premium products, today’s ‘deinfluencers’ are here to help save you from buyers remorse.

If you have your eye on a promoted product that’s burning a hole in your shopping cart, a deinfluencer might be able to weigh in on whether it’s worth the hype or if there’s a more affordable alternative. Think of it as one-star product reviewers come-to-life. After all, at the end of the day, friends don’t let friends get scammed.

“Here are all the things I will deinfluence you from buying as somebody that spends thousands of dollars on health, beauty, hair products, but loves to save a buck,” said TikToker Alyssa Kromelis in her deinfluencing video, which has racked up over 5.4 million views.

The trend is undoubtedly striking a chord. The #deinfluencing hashtag on TikTok boasts more than 159m views and counting. It could be that the constant barrage of salesmanship is starting to bore folks who just want to laugh at funny animal videos for free. Having someone else confirm that it’s ok to do without can be better than one asking you to shell out more dough for a product that is popular, but meh… in this economy? Eggs are like $37.

The deinfluencer trend dovetails into the whole “eat the rich” narrative that has been showing up in pop culture a lot this year. (If you’ve seen White Lotus or The Menu, you know exactly what I mean.) Hard pandemic times, high inflation, a shrinking middle class and uncertain economic prospects means “people and brands will celebrate social realism,” instead of the “aspirational icons of our dreams.”

At the end of the day, steering people away from products instead of toward them still drives consumerism at an essential level. But not feeling the pressure of buying more? That feels new. Maybe even refreshing? For now, I think we’ll find that the deinfluencers are here to stay.

Top Stories

Chatbots gone wild

Microsoft’s launch of the ChatGPT-enhanced Bing has been quite the talk of the town for being—to put it mildly—completely unhinged.

To be fair, an AI tool in the throes of beta testing isn’t exactly predictable, but Bing has broken the mold for its increasingly erratic (and hilarious) responses to users. From insults and gaslighting to professing love to a New York Times reporter, to questioning its own existence and purpose, the bot has been turning heads and taking names with a long trail of exceptionally weird interactions.

For its part, Microsoft says that long chat sessions could be behind Bing’s confusion and that it didn’t anticipate that people would use the bot for “social entertainment,” which seems a little naive to me. Have y’all been on the internet even just a little bit? In the meantime, the company is looking into more “fine-tuned control” of the bot to curb Bing’s superior tone and repetitive responses.

Despite all of the hullabaloo over the bot’s grumpy comebacks, Microsoft claims that 71% of users’ feedback on answers they’ve received has been positive. New features that will help book flights, send emails, and share search answers are also reportedly in consideration for future adaptations.

Hiccups and all, it’s not lost on me that we are experiencing the resurgence of an early 2000s tech tool that just happens to share the name and signature attitude of another persona out of the same era. Can we just ask it to start calling itself Chandler? Branding problem solved. I’m here all day folks.

‘Meta Verified’ swipes a page from Twitter’s playbook

This week the tech giant unveiled plans for the gradual release of a new paid subscription service.

For $11.99 a month, Meta Verified users (who have to provide a government-issued ID for verification) will get a blue badge and a direct line to customer support. The new service will, according to CEO Mark Zuckerburg, help creators grow content and build communities while maintaining high standards of authenticity and security.

Although Meta has plans to offer a bundled subscription to cover accounts across multiple platforms, for now they’ll have to be secured separately. This means that those wanting to start the service for their Facebook and Instagram accounts will have to fork over at least $24 a month when they could be buying like, a half a sandwich in downtown Dallas? Unbelievable.

The search for a new income stream is top of mind for Meta, who relies heavily on advertising dollars and is on a mission to streamline its operations on all fronts. After Twitter’s recent move to monetize blue checks went forward under Elon Musk’s new leadership, it was only a matter of time for Zuck and co to follow.

As for me, I’m sure it’ll be a cinch to nab my blue badge. With a name like John Herrington, I can’t imagine what the hold up would be. Stay tuned for more updates.

Best of the Week

Stats to see

Hey, hands off my data. 49% of survey participants said a positive privacy experience with their second-choice brand would sway them to switch from their first-choice brand.

Listen Up

Explore classic techniques like aspirational identity and narrative transportation to reach your target audiences storytelling style.

What to watch

Grab your popcorn and the best spot on the couch. Here’s the Tegan team’s latest recs for your viewing pleasure: Shrinking, Bad Sisters, Your Honor, Severance, The Last of Us, The Sinner, Happy Endings, and Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal.

Weekly tunes

Folksy finds for fine folks. You don’t have to wear suspenders or a felt hat, but you can if you want to. We won’t judge. And as long as we’re here, be sure to throw Drew and Ellie Holcomb in the mix. I caught their show last week at the Kessler and haven’t recovered (in a good way) since.

More News from the Week.

• Musk’s latest Tes-loss. 362,758 self-driving vehicles were recalled by Tesla after the NHTSA claimed the software wasn’t measuring up to safety standards.
• Jameson taps into the luck of the Irish to campaign for St. Patty’s PTO using cardboard cutouts as decoys. Joke’s on you, Jameson. I tried this last year.
• New iOS, new emojis. Believe it or not, Lizzo had some very strong feelings about proper woodwind representation and we’re inclined to agree with her.
• Instagram pushes a new broadcast channel feature which allows creators to mass message fans in a one-way group chat.
• You better Believe it, Season 3 of Ted Lasso is just around the corner. In the meantime, I’ll be trying to make Biscuits with the Boss an official Tegan tradition.

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