The Online Culture of “Dupe Shopping”

Let’s face it. Everyone wants to save a little bit of money here & there. There are coupons for grocery stores, online discount codes for websites, and points/reward systems for stores. I know I’m always looking to save a bit of money here and there.

In today’s world where everyone is influenced by what they see online, high-end products are highly reviewed and sought after. However, sometimes the price can be what turns someone away. I know I’m not willing to spend $50 on a mascara that I’ve never used before. Why would I want to spend 3.5 hours working to afford a product I may not end up liking? This is where social media comes into play. I will find myself scouring the internet, whether it be on TikTok or Instagram to find a cheaper version of a product I’m interested in trying.

Some people spend hours finding what is called “dupes” for high-end products. I see videos of it all the time on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. A perfect example of a product I saw everyone raving about lately were the Ugg Ultra Mini Platform Boots.

https://www.ugg.com/ca/women-boots-classic-boots/classic-ultra-mini-platform/195719883461.html

Everyone had them. The people who didn’t wanted them, but sometimes it’s hard to justify spending $220 on a pair of boots you may not like. When these came into style this past fall, I spent a bit of time looking for dupes of my own. Linked below is the exact article about dupes to help me save a bit of money, yet still follow today’s fashion trends: https://www.narcity.com/ugg-dupes-that-are-way-cheaper-than-the-real-deal

Back in the days before social media, finding cheaper products of high-end ones had to be done through word of mouth. You had to know someone who spent time finding a cheaper version of a product, and it was hard to have this knowledge at our fingertips. With social media, influencers and trendsetters often showcase these budget-friendly alternatives, fuelling the dupe shopping trend by making fashion and cheaper alternatives accessible to a wider audience. The ease of discovering and sharing dupes on social media platforms creates a culture of consumers who prioritize style without compromising their budgets.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s nice to sometimes splurge and spend the extra bit of money on high-end products. If you’re like me however, and can’t justify spending your hard earned money on a product you may not like, here are a few of my favourite “Dupe” content creators.

If you’re into finding more affordable versions of high-end makeup, check out @lolo.lehen on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lolo.lehnen?_t=8hwDIqrjRwb&_r=1

If you want high-end clothing you can order from Amazon, without the high-end prices, check out @skylarsfinds on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@skylarsfinds?_t=8hwDWCmaK7a&_r=1

Questions:

Are you more likely to buy a dupe product before buying the real deal?

How often do you find yourself buying cheaper versions of high-end products?

Facebook: Check out my article on how social media has influenced the dupe shopping craze! #dupeshopping

X: Do you buy dupes? Check out my article on how the craze has helped shoppers save more! #savemoney

The World of Short Stories – Are they making us less attentive?

Photo from Digital Mainstreet (https://digitalmainstreet.ca/tool/15-free-instagram-stories-templates-that-will-make-you-stand-out/)

You see it all over social media. Everyone posts stories showcasing what they’re doing for the day, their travels, what they’re eating, etc. These quick glimpses provide a quick look into people’s lives and doesn’t require much attention or effort to engage from the viewer. However, are these quick sneak peeks affecting our attention spans?

Stories are usually short videos and/or photos that disappear after a specific period of time, usually 24 hours. These videos range in length depending on the platform, but usually range from 10-30 seconds. Disappearing content like stories took social media platforms by storm in recent years, and has been a popular feature for content creators to use. They’re most seen on platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, & Instagram.

There are plenty of benefits of using stories on social media platforms. The LinkedIn article titled “What are the benefits and challenges of using Instagram stories and reels for personal branding?” (https://www.linkedin.com/advice/1/what-benefits-challenges-using-instagram-stories#:~:text=Stories%20and%20reels%20are%20more,top%20of%20your%20followers%27%20feeds.) discusses how stories help to create engaging and creative content for viewers, including interactive aspects such as question boxes, polls, & stickers. It takes followers just a moment of their time to engage and doesn’t require much effort to feel as though you’re interacting with accounts you follow.

This sounds great and all, but before quick stories took over social media, viewers had to take the time to read content that was posted online. This took a more significant amount of effort to interact with content creators. I know myself personally, I’m more likely to interact with something that doesn’t require much effort from me as a viewer, such as stories, than read a long caption under a post on social media like Instagram or Facebook.

The rapid consumption of content can contribute to a habit of switching attention quickly. This may make it more challenging for individuals to stay focused on a single task for an extended period. Linked below is an article from NeuroGrow that explains in depth of what social media does to your brain and science behind it. Read the article to further understand the psychology and science behind this: https://neurogrow.com/what-social-media-does-to-your-brain/.

The article “Do YouTube and Tiktok Shorten Attention Span?” (https://gabb.com/blog/tiktok-attention-span/#:~:text=11%5D-,Shorter%20Content%2C%20Shorter%20Attentiveness,children%27s%20ability%20to%20sustain%20focus.), although discussing other video platforms talks how short videos, which could include stories. Read through this article to see how the overall shortening of everything on social media affects one’s attention span.

Are stories beneficial? Do I feel its affected my attention span?

I would say yes. It take minimal effort, and myself as a content creator as a part time job, it is quick and effective to use. I find that I receive more engagement with quick content posted to a story than I do with posts with long captions. As a social media viewer, short videos are more appealing to me. However, I now find it difficult to read longer content or watch longer videos online. After 10 seconds if I’m not interested I will usually scroll and continue on.

Do you find that you watch more stories/short content on social media? Do you interact with stories more frequently than regular content?

Facebook: Rapid watching social media stories? Do you find it hard to pay attention? Check out my blog “The World of Short Stories – Are they making us less attentive?” and let me know if you think it applies to you. #quickcontent https://wordpress.com/post/algonquincollegesocialmedia.wordpress.com/134257

X: Do you find it hard to focus on long-winded social media content? Learn how stories have taken the social media world by storm! #quick content https://wordpress.com/post/algonquincollegesocialmedia.wordpress.com/134257

But Exactly Who and What is Real? COM0011 Blog #1

One social media trend that has gained significant traction recently is the rise of virtual influencers. These computer-generated people have their own personalities, styles, and life stories, and have started to populate popular platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Virtual influencers are not real people but are created through advanced computer graphics and artificial intelligence, an example of this being Meta’s new Instagram pages for various AI generated people, using the likes of various celebrities. These virtual influencers are becoming brand ambassadors and collaborating with major companies. This raises questions about the evolving nature of social media influencers, and if what we see on the internet is exactly real or not.

The most recent and captivating use of these AI generated people comes from Meta, and includes the likes of people like Kendall Jenner, Snoop Dog, and Charli DiAmelio. These celebrities are highly recognizable. Kendall Jenner is a highly-paid model and a well-known member of the Kardashian family. Snoop Dog is a world-renowned rapper. Charli DiAmelio is popular with the younger generation, collaborating with brands such as Hollister and posting dancing videos on TikTok.

The rising popularity of AI generated influencers posed this question: “How does this affect me?”. With using AI generated influencers, those who are young, impressionable, and maybe not so tech-savvy using social media lose a sense of what is real and what is fake.

Social media is essentially a massive search engine. Speaking from personal experience, I will read reviews for products coming from previous buyers, reels and reviews, TikToks, and posts before I choose to buy or use a product or service. As we know, AI can be generated to say, quite literally, everything and anything. This can help to skyrocket a brand or product into popularity; using fake influencers to give generated positive reviews, while that may not necessarily be the case at all.

Although AI can be positive in some senses, it can skew a person’s sense of reality, especially over social media. Again speaking from personal experience, I enjoyed following influencers that showed that they were still real people, genuinely enjoyed certain brands, services, or products, & their honest opinions.

For example, I just recently watched many Tiktoks and reviews on a skincare product I was interested in purchasing. I watched videos of girls who seemed to be my age, and seemed similar to me giving their opinions on whether it was worth the money to buy it. These reviews all seemed trustworthy to me. These girls seemed exactly like me, which as a consumer, made me feel better about the product. Seeing for example Kendall Jenner giving the same review on the brand’s website, I would be a little skeptical, knowing that she more than likely got paid millions of dollars for an ad from a brand. Where this becomes an issue though is if I was younger, and didn’t recognize Kendall. I could think she was just another influencer giving their opinion. AI generated reviews from computer-made people lose that connection one may have had with a previously trusted influencer.

The use of AI in daily life on social can be very useful. However, with large corporations and brands using virtually-created influencers for promotion, will we ever really know what is real and what is fake?

QUESTIONS:

Do you use social media as a “search engine”? What do you watch/read to gain insight into a product, service, or business?

What is your opinion on AI generated influencers? Do you think they’re helpful, or damaging to a viewer’s perspective?