“Would you go abroad if you couldn’t post on Instagram?” That’s the question Evan Smith, widely known for rating the aesthetic of Instagram profiles, posed to his followers. The majority of the comment section responded with “yes!”, because obviously a trip abroad is much more than a piece of a curated social media aesthetic. Even so, the question definitely highlights that our desire to connect and share online can shape the way we engage with the world around us.
If traveling across the globe is performative for some, our everyday purchases can be tailored in the same way. The company Crumbl Cookies has capitalized on this, creating a wildly successful business strategy centered around social media. Each week, they release a new collection of limited edition cookie flavors. The huge cookies come slathered in thick frosting and are packaged in vibrant pink boxes, at least in part designed to pop on camera. Crumbl has mastered what marketers call “User-Generated Content” by selling a product that’s first and foremost designed to fit a certain aesthetic that’s easy to share online. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; cookie reviews are their own sub-genre on social media, and they turn what could be a pretty simple dessert into a fun opportunity to share opinions and connect with others.
This shift toward primarily online connection has been building for a while, and is only becoming more widespread. Think about the “Museum of Ice Cream,” a museum that exists to some extent to showcase art, but it was also super popular in the late 2010s because it provided nice lighting and cute backdrops for photos. To me, this is an interesting illustration of the modern shift in how we find community. As traditional third spaces like malls or community centers disappear, digital platforms have become the new hubs of connection. Buying a pretty cookie or visiting a photogenic museum gives us an opportunity to bridge the gap between our physical lives and our digital ones. It gives us something to talk about, an excuse to compare notes with friends, and a reason to talk with people we might never meet in person.
Crumbl has been so successful because it understands how to turn a product into a way to build community. So, would millions still line up for Crumbl cookies each week if social media didn’t exist? Would it still be justifiable to spend $5 on a single cookie? I doubt it. But at the end of the day, brands like Crumbl have mastered marketing because they’ve mastered the art of creating a product that gives people a reason to reach out to one another.Â