Welcome to Day 21 of the Best of YAP 2024!

Our team’s taking a little holiday break, but don’t worry—we aren’t going anywhere.

Because over this holiday period, you’ll be treated to one of our fave articles in your inbox each day.

So whether you’re sitting by the fire with a warm cup of cocoa (lookin’ at you, Northern hemi folks), or hitting the beach (for those of us having a summer Christmas), you can catch up on some reading and remind yourself of what a wild year 2024 was.

Catch ya TOMORROW!

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

Why Does ‘Authenticity’ Suddenly Feel Inauthentic?

One thing about my cynical ass?

I love peeling back the layers of an overused marketing buzzword to expose what’s really going on.

Because lord knows there’s a heap of them.

And he also knows that when a dead horse is flogged, it’s still, well, dead.

And that’s why we’re currently experiencing what I’d like to call 'authenticity fatigue.'

Authenticity was once the holy grail of branding.

It was like a mass awakening. Brands dropped their polished exteriors. Influencers started posting makeup-free selfies.

And suddenly everyone was 'keeping it real' (read: scrambling to look relatable). A welcomed change, it was refreshing…until it wasn’t.

Fast-forward to 2024, and authenticity has become the pumpkin spice latte of marketing—overhyped, overused, and starting to lose its edge.

The question is: why? And what’s next for brands that still want to connect meaningfully with their audience?

This is the trendification of authenticity.

Let’s start with the rise and fall.

The authenticity era began with a rebellion against the overly glossy advertising of the early 2000s. Social media gave people a front-row seat to real lives, not just staged commercials. Brands had to adapt—or be left in the dust.

It worked, at first.

Gen Z emerged into the marketing landscape with a no BS policy, craving transparency, honesty and real connections.

On top of that, consumers were sick of being relentlessly sold to. Seeing the imperfections in brands and influencers made them feel human and relatable. And in a world becoming increasingly fake, this was like a breath of fresh air.

But like every trend, it became…predictable. Unimpressive even.

Today, 'authenticity' feels less like a genuine connection and more like a strategy straight out of a marketing playbook that every man and their dog are reading from.

So, why did it lose its power?

[Keep reading]

-Sophie, Writer