The corporate office is the new haunted house
The haunted mansion has been swapped for a fluorescent-lit office. A new cultural subgenre called Institutional Gothic is dominating pop culture right now, and it tells us a lot about what consumers actually want from brands. Here is what it means for your content strategy.
Read the full thing →The algorithmic void of ultra-fast fashion
Shein isn't a fashion brand. It's an algorithm that turns clothing into content and outsources the damage to underpaid workers and overflowing landfills. This piece breaks down how ultra-fast fashion weaponised social media, why the slow fashion counter-narrative collapsed, and what that says about consumer culture.
MarketingThe Ordinary just set up a stall selling £305 avocados (and it's some of the best anti-marketing we've seen)
The Ordinary built a fake luxury supermarket and sold an avocado for £305. It's a brilliant piece of anti-marketing that exposes the deceptive language beauty brands use to inflate their prices. And it permanently changes how shoppers see every luxury skincare counter they'll ever stand in front of.
Pop CultureWe've turned our friends into coworkers
We've started running our friendships like a business. We schedule coffee weeks in advance, talk about emotional bandwidth like it's a data plan, and quietly calculate the ROI of every relationship. This piece is about how corporate logic crept into our private lives and why showing up anyway is the only radical thing left.
The NPC uprising (and why the future of advertising may look like a 2004 graphics card)
A handful of brands are trading polished AI visuals for pixelated, early-aughts gaming aesthetics. It is not just a style choice. It is a direct response to how over-rendered and soulless the internet has started to feel.
Wolf in chef's clothing: how the manosphere weaponizes fake allyship for clout
A new type of creator has figured out how to use women's pain as an algorithm hack. They look like allies but they are not. Here is how to spot the difference.
Your AI "voice" sounds nothing like you. Here’s why.
Most people think their AI-written posts blend right in. A journalist who reads LinkedIn for a living says it’s way more obvious than you think. From arrow lists to filler phrases, the signs are everywhere, and they make your content sound like everyone else’s instead of you.
Help! My olive oil is trying to become a vase!
The most valuable advertising space in 2026 is not a billboard or a TikTok feed. It is your kitchen counter. Brands have figured out that if they make their packaging beautiful enough to double as home decor, you will never hide it in a cupboard again.
The internet is officially a psychological thriller
The internet has gone from dodgy spam folders to AI voice clones, deepfakes, and algorithms designed to keep you scrolling until 3am. Both the technology and the creators using it are manufacturing reality for profit, leaving us burnt out and cynical. Media literacy is no longer a nice-to-have. It is active digital self-defence.
Algorithmic mysticism is on the rise; should we be trading cold data for corporate magic?
The internet was supposed to make us more rational. Instead, it has become the world's best engine for mysticism and meaning. For marketers, this digital re-enchantment signals a shift from cold optimisation to building brands with narrative, ritual, and depth.
Is branding everything blinding us to the consumer?
Platforms are targeting people mid-divorce based on their data, and brands are calling it an opportunity. It is part of a wider pattern of turning raw human experiences into tidy market categories. This piece asks whether chasing the next hyphenated economy is clever strategy or just a fast way to lose trust.
Did we curate the fun out of the feed?
Social media used to feel like a neighbourhood where a half-baked thought could start something real. Somewhere between the death of Twitter and the rise of the perfectly lit OST Reel, we traded organic digital communities for a polished content production machine. Getting back the soul of social media means being willing to post like a real, messy person again.
Luxury rage: who is Matieres Fecales really mocking?
Matieres Fecales showed up to Paris Fashion Week with a collection mocking the ultra-rich. The internet loved it. But when the ultra-rich are buying the clothes, who is actually being mocked?
From MasterChef to Social Media w/ Alice Taylor
Alice Taylor built Alice Taylor Eats into one of New Zealand’s most loved food pages, creating real, affordable recipes that went viral and changed her life.
In this episode, she and Stan talk about growing an audience, turning social media into a full-time career, and staying grounded while building a creative business that’s about more than money.
Key Themes:
• From viral recipes to full-time creator
• Balancing authenticity and monetization• Building a media brand with heart
• Staying true to your audience
Guest: Alice Taylor – Creator, Writer & Chef
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YouTube BANS AI Slop, KFC Goes Gritty, and Gen Z Learns to Drive in Fortnite
Subscribe to the newsletter now: https://www.yourattnp.lease/subscribe?ref=94emEwsTgRIn this episode of the YAP Podcast, we dive into five wild marketing stories shaking up the internet this week:🍗 KFC’s Comeback Era – The Colonel is back, but this time he’s scowling. We explore KFC’s gritty rebrand featuring The Bear’s Matty Matheson and ask: can a fast food mascot have a redemption arc?🎮 The General x Fortnite – T-Pain is now your driving instructor. We talk about how The General Insurance i
From MasterChef to Social Media w/ Alice Taylor
Alice Taylor built Alice Taylor Eats into one of New Zealand’s most loved food pages, creating real, affordable recipes that went viral and changed her life.
In this episode, she and Stan talk about growing an audience, turning social media into a full-time career, and staying grounded while building a creative business that’s about more than money.
Key Themes:
• From viral recipes to full-time creator
• Balancing authenticity and monetization• Building a media brand with heart
• Staying true to your audience
Guest: Alice Taylor – Creator, Writer & Chef
Instagram:
TikTok:
YouTube:
Subscribe to the Podcast
Power of Authentic Storytelling w/ Jason Gunn
Jason Gunn is one of New Zealand’s most iconic TV hosts turned communication coach. In this episode, Stan and Jason dive deep into storytelling, authenticity, and the power of connection — from children’s television to leadership coaching.
Key Themes:• How to be authentic on camera• The value of vulnerability and imperfection• Storytelling as a business skill• Why connection will always beat automation
Guest: Jason Gunn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasegunn
Subscribe to the Podcast:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StanleyCHenrySpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/36Bv3qmmRw7wPl3B2h0Mqv?si=355ad62544d74bfd
Follow The Attention Seeker:Instagram: https://instagram.com/theattnseekerLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theattnseekerTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theattnseeker
Follow Stan:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StanleyCHenryInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/stanleychenryLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanley-henryTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@stanleychenry
Building a Profitable Creator Business Without Brand Deals w/ VJ Cooks
Vanya Insull is the creator behind VJ Cooks, one of New Zealand’s most successful food brands, built from simple, affordable recipes into a multi-revenue digital business. In this episode, Vanya breaks down exactly how she turned content into a scalable company. From cookbooks and brand deals to a high-performing website and a subscription meal-planning app, this is one of the most practical, transparent conversations we’ve had about monetising an audience. If you’re a creator trying to turn views into real income, this episode is a blueprint.
World's Most Common Passwords
you won't believe how predictable people are with passwords. see the world's most common ones and find out if yours made the list.
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Building a Profitable Creator Business Without Brand Deals w/ VJ Cooks
Vanya Insull is the creator behind VJ Cooks, one of New Zealand’s most successful food brands, built from simple, affordable recipes into a multi-revenue digital business. In this episode, Vanya breaks down exactly how she turned content into a scalable company. From cookbooks and brand deals to a high-performing website and a subscription meal-planning app, this is one of the most practical, transparent conversations we’ve had about monetising an audience. If you’re a creator trying to turn views into real income, this episode is a blueprint.
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Stanley Henry's AUT Guest Talk
exclusive guest talk from stanley henry at aut university. discover proven social media strategies and marketing insights you can't find anywhere else.
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AI Brain Webinar.
A live 2-hour workshop with Stanley Henry. Learn how to turn AI from a chatbot into an operating system for your business. Leave with your foundation built and a step-by-step guide to build the rest.
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Video production, copywriting, hooks, visual design, and the craft of scroll-stopping content.
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UGC, EGC, influencer strategy, and the business of building creator-led brands.
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Algorithm updates, platform mechanics, and tactical guidance for TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, and beyond.
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Trends & Digital Culture
Memes, trends, Gen Z behaviour, and the cultural forces shaping how audiences engage online.
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