Why Beauty Brands Are Embracing “Shitpost” Marketing
Selena Gomez x Rare Beauty and Tajín Collab | Photo via © Instagram
Something interesting is happening in beauty marketing: playful, irreverent, meme-like energy is infiltrating campaign strategies. A standout example? Rare Beauty’s cheeky collab with Tajín. It didn't feel hyper-produced, like a brand announcement, it felt like sing-along chaos, and that will make it memorable.
Why Beauty Brands Are Embracing This Move
This trend isn’t born from desperation, it’s a smart response to digital fatigue. Audiences are tired of glossy perfection. They’re craving brands that can laugh with them, shock them, or simply surprise them. Why broadcast carefully curated product shots when you can spark a conversation with chaos instead?
TikTok and Instagram Reels thrive on unpredictability. When brands lean into meme culture, they tap directly into how people already speak, unfiltered, playful, and wildly entertaining. Rare Beauty’s taste-bud-meets-makeup take did exactly that.
A Network of Brands Doing the Same
Rare Beauty isn’t alone. Look at Duolingo, whose owl mascot is less study coach and more prankster, stalking users about unfinished lessons via viral TikToks. Or Wendy’s, turning their Twitter feed into a roast battleground, fun, sarcastic, and endlessly shareable.
This “unhinged” style, irreverent, vivid, and a little chaotic, is no accident. It’s marketing masked as entertainment. It’s the kind of content people scroll past and then double-back to watch again.
What’s Fueling the Change
Mixing humor and brand messaging delivers big returns. Gen Z and Gen Alpha expect authenticity, not polish. They want brands that feel real, relatable, and self-aware. And yes, this kind of content costs much less than a glossy video shoot. A well-timed meme or quirky post can reach thousands organically.
Humor and surprise drive attention. When that aligns with brand identity, suddenly you’re more than a product, you’re part of the conversation. And in an industry that’s been slow to change, that’s refreshing.
What Beauty Marketers Should Know
Be strategic, not random. This isn’t an excuse to spam offbeat content, please blend authenticity with brand purpose. You want people to feel invited into your world, not confused.
Timing matters. Internet humor is fast and ephemeral. Watch trends, move quickly, and pull back if it stops landing.
Stay on brand. Weird is welcome. Mismatched tone isn't. Make sure your humor feels like an extension of your voice, not forced.
Rare Beauty x Tajín did more than create buzz. It helped reshape expectations about what beauty marketing can be. It reminds us that sometimes, letting go of perfection and leaning into chaos tells a richer story.
Photos below via © Instagram
