Online presence has become a crucial aspect of every brand’s identity. As more people dive into the digital world, footprints are easily readable, traceable, and, most importantly, accountable. This applies to companies and major brands as well. If brands fail to manage their digital presence carefully, their steps can cause lasting reputational damage. In today’s world, such mistakes are often labeled as “cringe,” “low aura,” or “mid.”
Cringe, an internet slang term that often means embarrassment, is from a list of words that sounds like absolute gibberish coming straight from a toddler. Regardless of how mundane it sounds, it does have a weight. And that weight can be quite heavy. To start off, It’s easy for a brand to be labeled as cringe, and once that happens, it can change public perception, regardless of how much traction the brand gained before. This would eventually lead to a further impact on the engagement it has with different ranges of audiences . Thus, in their best practices, brands should avoid hopping on trends solely for marketing purposes. Instead, they should focus on original content and unique, well-thought-out strategies.
What makes a brand “cringe”? Some common problems include hiring an influencer without researching their history, using forced memes, and using outdated trends. A notable example is Burger King’s 2021 International Women’s Day tweet: “Women belong in the kitchen.” While their follow-up clarified the intent— a comment saying, “if they want to” highlighting opportunities for women in the culinary industry—the initial message was tone-deaf and widely criticized. It was a bad attempt on their part where it was a twitter post and the real message was hidden in the comment section. People eventually called them out for their approach and yes, “cringe” was one of the most used words.
To avoid overselling their message or presence, brands should first know their audience. A standard viewpoint would consist of understanding who their customers are, their age group, their demographics, what products they buy, and what posts are the most reactive. Let’s say your brand focuses on people aged 40 and over—maybe connect with them through their preferences instead of what is trending. Humor, preferences, and content vary drastically from person to person. A properly researched campaign increases customer retention and user morale. In 2017, Spotify released “Wrapped,” a customized shortlist of every user’s music listening habits. Wrapped allowed users to feel unique and heard. Releasing Wrapped helped Spotify stand out and is often hailed as a marvelous feat.
An important aspect of brands avoiding cringe is being authentic. After the initial stage, if brands can show they care more about their customers instead of just raising profits, customers are likely to overlook the cringe factor if it ever comes to that. For example, Dove, with their email marketing, rarely mentions any part of their products; rather, they solely focus on uplifting women. Dove could try and flood the emails of their customers with product deals and exclusive membership perks, but they don’t. This goes to show how they felt that connecting with customers through the newsletter was more essential.
The entire discourse about which brands are cringe and which aren’t also boils down to how their social media accounts are being handled. Previously, advertisements used to be on newspapers, billboards, and maybe public places. While some of those practices are still in play, social media seems to be at the forefront in determining how people perceive your brand. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook—it’s quite easy to be overwhelmed. You have to be responsive with your customers, compete with other brands, create constant content that aligns with current trends, and connect across various platforms; it has a learning curve. Understanding algorithms, community management best practices, and measuring engagement over time are some of the key metrics that need constant monitoring to achieve a concrete outcome. What brands can do in this regard is hire a proper team to manage their social media outlets. Outsourcing could also be a viable option.
So, how do you avoid being “cringe”? Firstly, understand your limitations. If you are behind on what works in today’s fast-paced, interconnected world, accept it. Then, reach out to younger employees or hire proper individuals with the right credentials to do the job. Check how your online presence resonates with customers. Are the posts too much? Tone them down a little. Are you getting the right individuals for outreach? Then find them. Divide the content plan into bits and then send them out. A major cultural moment breaks out, and everyone is jumping on the bandwagon? Verify whether the moment goes against the values the brand stands for. Avoiding social activism can seem like a reserved outlook, but sometimes taking the backseat doesn’t hurt.
While different perspectives work in different circumstances, testing a strategy is always essential because we never know what might work or fail. Having a guideline during dire times is an effective method to tackle emergencies as well.
The world of branding isn’t entirely black and white either. There are grey areas where things can go both ways, even if they seem to be doing well in terms of outreach. Campaigns backfire, and brands hop on ill-timed releases and trends all the time. A subtle fire escape is to test out ideas before going for a full-fledged launch and avoid overburdening content with memes or internet slang.
Occasionally being cringe is something that comes with navigating the online space. But as an increasing number of things go online, eventually, it’s an aspect one must learn and master. So, the problem isn’t being cringe; it’s being cringe and not fixing it. Strong brand values and exciting campaigns usually hold weight when it comes to being labeled as “cool” by Gen Z or the specific audience the brand is catering to.
Author: Malik Araf
