'Very Demure': How Microtrends Are Redefining Marketing

In case you haven’t heard: party-girl Brat Summer has given way to a more modest Demure Fall, and brands including Verizon, Lyft, and Zillow are moving at breakneck speed to keep pace amid yet another cultural shift. “Verizon lets me trade in a musty diva for a demure diva,” says Jools Lebron, the TikToker behind the now ubiquitous “demure” trend—which celebrates a low-key, understated lifestyle—in a sponsored post on the platform. https://www.tiktok.com/@joolieannie/video/7399736793119247662 The advertiser was among the first major household names to collaborate with Lebron, who recently went viral for describing her workplace demeanor as “very demure, very mindful,” in a satirical video that has now been watched over 35 million times. Her tongue-in-cheek TikToks on how to be “demure and cutesy” while doing everyday things have captivated younger audiences. As per agency Truffle Social, the hashtag #demure has been used 276,300 times on TikTok and 98,600 times on Instagram in the weeks since Lebron's viral post. At the time of writing, social listening firm Sprinklr said Lebron had clocked up 1.16 million public mentions on X (formerly Twitter) since Aug. 5. The creator has even made her late-night debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live alongside RuPaul, courting fandom from A-listers including Jennifer Lopez and Jamie Lee Curtis. Verizon’s quick-off-the-mark collab sees Lebron describe her phone habits in her signature style while encouraging people to switch out their devices using Verizon’s new guaranteed trade-in program. “We don’t have a crunchy phone. We don’t do a cracked screen. I’m not typing on my phone and getting cuts on my fingers … that’s why I partner with Verizon,” Lebron says. Verizon chief marketing officer (CMO) Leslie Berland told ADWEK the clip had clocked up over 4.1 million views so far. The business had been watching the trend internally, she said, and partnered with influencer agency Poster Child to turn the collab into a reality at speed. “We immediately thought of ‘dusty musty phone’ and knew this could be magic,” she told ADWEEK. Fresh from launching a strategic rebrand, former Peloton CMO Berland said: “Creator marketing is a central part of our marketing strategy, bringing to life customer stories and what we offer in timely, relevant, and powerful ways." Verizon will measure the impact of the Lebron partnership based on engagement, views, sentiment, and clickthrough rates. Very demure, very mindful partnerships Other brands that have scrambled to work with Lebron include rideshare service Lyft, which featured the creator in an ad discussing respectful treatment of its drivers. Elsewhere, Synergy Kombucha organized an event dedicated to her in Los Angeles. Maybelline, Marc Jacobs, Oreo, and e.l.f. Cosmetics also jumped on the trend with their own organic posts. Zillow was another to officially partner with Lebron for a series where she helps the real estate marketplace determine which houses are demure, in the new role of “chief demure officer.” https://www.tiktok.com/@zillow/video/7405704056393469230?lang=en Ben Levine, senior director of social and channel marketing at Zillow, said Lebron’s “authentic, entertaining” style and tie to her community was perfectly aligned with the brand’s established tone on social media as a “friendly voice” on the home-buying journey. “Her approach aligns perfectly with our mission to create relevant content that resonates with our customers and deepens their relationship with us,” he added. “She also brings the perfect level of unhinged energy that gets our team excited to activate on—making her a natural fit for Zillow.” From Barbiecore to Brat and beyond The quick transition from a slime green-hued Brat billboard to Demure Fall is not only informing the pace of brand activations, it's continuing a pattern of femme-driven trends that move online to offline almost overnight. "Barbiecore" painted the world pink last summer for the release of Mattel’s first live-action Barbie film. In 2019, Megan Thee Stallion declared a “hot girl summer,” which she described as a time for “women and men just being unapologetically them.” In 2024 so far, "tennis core" (inspired by the Zendaya film Challengers) and a “mob wife aesthetic” (see: hoop earrings, fur coats and leopard print) have also given marketers cultural whiplash. For Emma Ferrara, chief business development officer at digital marketing agency Viral Nation, which represents influencers including vegan celebrity chef Priyanka Naik, marketers should only jump on such trends if they align with their own tone of voice, and they only have a brief window of opportunity to make an impact before oversaturation. With trends going viral overnight, she believes those best equipped to ride the waves are the brands whose teams can spot a trending moment before the curve drops. “Brands have to be social-first in nature and speak the language of digital, able to quickly gauge public sentiment and react accordingly to inform further content decisions and collaborations,” she noted.

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From Brat Summer to Demure Fall, Microtrends Are Redefining Marketing

Verizon, Lyft and Zillow moved quickly to work with ‘demure’ creator Jools Lebron.

Rebecca Stewart

Cydney Lee

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Rebecca Stewart

Cydney Lee