Your ATTN Please || Saturday, 26 April

Many years ago, Snickers famously opined: “You’re not you when you’re hungry”.

And sure, food can influence your emotions. But imagine if just the sight of it, without any ads or upselling, could influence you to hit the checkout? That’s called ambient product placement, and food-fluencers have been doing it for years: leaving products in the background, completely unacknowledged, while you cough up the dough.

- Devin, Guest Editor

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN MARKETING TODAY?

Insta launches Storylines, Roblox gets sued over a TikTok dance & Wendy’s squashes its Katy Perry beef

Instagram adds more features, AGAIN.

Okay but slow down. I’m starting to feel like a literal boomer trying to catch up. Anyway, after adding its engagement-focused Blend option for Reels sharing last week, Instagram is also working on another way to encourage even more interaction, this time with Stories. It’s called Storylines, and is essentially collaborative stories built by users + their followers in the app.

So, friends that you follow back would be able to “link a new, related story to your story,” building a larger narrative from an event. Think about it like this: you go to a party or gig with your bestie, your bestie could add to your story from that event with their own related content, building a larger story from your initial post. These collaborative Stories would then be viewable by their connections (if you’re posting publicly), enabling even more people to add to the Story chain, building a broader, multi-perspective narrative, and boosting exposure for each creator taking part.

Fun!

Charli XCX’s “Apple” dance creator suing Roblox is so Brat.

What a time to be alive. Kelley Heyer, who created the TikTok dance to Charli XCX’s song Apple that went viral last year, is suing Roblox for using the dance without permission, according to Polygon.

So here is the tea (lawsuit): Heyer alleges that she and Roblox were in negotiations for the dance to be licensed as an “Emote” on the platform, which are usually purchasable. Roblox then released the emote before the deal was finalised and sold it on the platform’s “Dress to Impress” as part of a Brat-themed pack. So basically, Roblox moved forward using Kelley’s IP without a signed agreement. As an independent creator, Kelley has a right to be fairly compensated for her work (the Apple dance), and is asking for Roblox’s profits off the dance, estimated in the lawsuit to be US$123,000.

Tell ‘emmmm Kelley. 

Wendy's says it has “respect” for Katy Perry after salty tweet amid Blue Origin flight beef.

First of all, a multinational food behemoth like Wendy’s throwing shade at a popstar is such weird behaviour in the first place lol. You guys realise you don’t have to be assholes to be relevant, right? Anyway. The fast-food-chain has walked back the shade thrown at Katy after posting "Can we send her back" after the star's appearance on a Blue Origin flight on April 14.

Obviously, everyone was all “wtf” because why are we being mean and unnecessary on the internet, Wendy’s? Reps then told Entertainment Weekly and People: "we always bring a little spice to our socials, but Wendy's has a ton of respect for Katy Perry and her out-of-this-world-talent.”

Erm okay. Keep it to yourself next time… also, the word “sorry” doesn’t hurt, either.

Anyway, that’s all folks!

-Sophie, Writer

DEEP DIVE

The quiet genius of food-fluencer product placement

There’s a particular kind of magic that happens when you watch your favourite food-fluencer whip up a dreamy pasta or a late-night snack.

In the quiet safety of their kitchen, making sh*t I would never think to make but absolutely HAVE to try now. And lately, I've noticed something else — something sneaky, silent, and incredibly effective.

It’s always there. A little green box of Maldon sea salt flakes perched just so. Or a bottle of Graza olive oil chilling in the background. These aren’t shouted out or linked in bio. They’re just... part of the aesthetic? And literally before I knew it, I was adding them to my cart like some sort of hypnotised umami zombie.

This, my fellow food-obsessives, is ambient product placement. The unspoken kind of influence that happens when a brand becomes so baked into the visual language of food content that you don’t even question it. You just want it, and my brother in Christ, it works. Because I do - I want it all.

The pantry status symbol

Maldon is the queen of this genre. She’s more than just a finishing salt — she’s a marker of good taste, in both senses of the word. That crinkly green box has been quietly flexing in the background of TikToks and Reels for years. Never mentioned, never sponsored. Just there, like a culinary wink to those in the know.

Same goes with Graza. When it launched, it was all over my feed — its squeeze bottle shape, its vibrant green color, its casual drizzles over fried eggs and avocado toast. It was fun. It was different. It screamed cool. And then it disappeared a little, possibly because the hype cycle cooled or potentially the shine of exclusivity wore off.

My new fixation (and the internet's)? Fishwife tinned fish — GIMME THAT. But also Diaspora Co. spices? Brightland vinegars? All of them operate in the same visual universe. Their packaging is hot. Their ethos is indie. They’re not trying to yell at you; they’re trying to live rent-free on your countertop.

Not sponsored — just stylish, darling!

This isn’t the traditional influencer marketing model. It’s not a 60-second integration or a #gifted tag. This is marketing through osmosis — branding that gets absorbed by your eyes and later reappears as a "necessary" grocery purchase.

For creators, these brands offer more than function. They elevate the aesthetic. A dash of Maldon, a tin of Fishwife in frame, a Brightland bottle on the table — these are signifiers. They say: "I care about quality. I have taste. I’m not basic" (even if I am making the same viral vodka rigatoni for the fifth time).

The risk of trying too hard

Of course, the second something feels too intentional, the magic breaks. Part of why this works is because it doesn’t feel like marketing. The moment a brand tries to brute-force itself into the frame — without that organic cachet — it risks feeling cringe, or worse, fake.

The trick is to not chase the food-fluencers. Let the food-fluencers come to you. Make something they actually want to use. Make something that looks good on camera, but more importantly, makes sense in a real kitchen. Bonus points if it’s pretty enough to live permanently on the counter.

Marketers love to talk about authenticity, but this is what it actually looks like: your product showing up unprompted, because it deserves to be there. It’s not about paying for placement — you gotta EARN your spot on those marble-top islands in those shiny, studio-lit kitchens (that DEFINITELY get used once the cameras go off).

-Sophie, Writer

TREND PLUG

What the helly?

This wonderful sound all starts with rapper Rob49's viral 2025 hit "WTHELLY", where he gracefully lists some inventive ways to express confusion, such as:

"What the helly?", "What the hellyanté?", "What the helly, Berry?", and my personal favourite, "What the helly, 'Bron James?"

Soon after the track blew up, the Sainted Trap Choir (of America's Got Talent fame) covered the song. And, oh buddy - it's got everyone screaming "What the helly Cyrus?" (yes, those are real lyrics). We're seeing TikTokers use this for any situation that makes your eyebrows fly up your forehead. For example, when you're confronted with a terrible valet parking trade-in or a baby with weird heartbeat hair.

How you can jump on this trend:

Grab this sound, film yourself, and add text describing what's got you saying, "What the hellyanté?" right now. If you happen to be physically near whatever's perplexing you, be sure to get that on camera too! The better people can visualise your confused state, the better they'll relate.

A few ideas to get you started:

• When half the team goes out for drinks but you missed the invite

• When you head to lunch on time but you're the only one who goes

• Watching your work buddy run back and forth from their desk 17 times a day

- Devin, Guest Editor

FOR THE GROUP CHAT

😂Yap’s funniest home videos: OOP OOP OOP
❤How wholesome: PENGUINS
🎧Soooo tingly: ice asmr
🍝What you should make for dinner tonight: Greek Bowls

TODAY ON THE YAP PODCAST

Want even more “YAP”ing? Check out the full podcast here.

ASK THE EDITOR

As a mortgage broker, I want to create more educational content. How do I present it in a way that's interesting to watch? - Valeria

Hey Valeria!

If you're looking for an easy content format, you can start with creating "talking head" videos. This just means you film yourself talking to the camera about your area of expertise. Think about some little-known insights about your industry and create content around these. For your hook, try calling out your audience then introducing this information, such as, "First home buyers, did you know...?" This creates curiosity and zeros in on your target audience in the first couple seconds.

Another content style you could try is breaking down common scenarios of first home buyers on a whiteboard. This could be an easily repeatable content style as there are an endless combination of factors that go into the decision to buy a home. Don't be afraid to try several different video styles to see what works for your audience!

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

Not going viral yet?

We get it. Creating content that does numbers is harder than it looks. But doing those big numbers is the fastest way to grow your brand. So if you’re tired of throwing sh*t at the wall and seeing what sticks, you’re in luck. Because making our clients go viral is kinda what we do every single day.

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