# Here’s How Brands Are Capitalizing On The Tumblr #Aesthetic

- Link: https://chatterblast.com/blog/heres-how-brands-are-capitalizing-on-the-tumblr-aesthetic/
- Published: 2016-06-07T20:31:40-04:00
- Author: Valerie Hoke

Let me start by saying this: I’m beginning to sense a pattern here.

Fifty percent of my posts here at the ChatterBlast Blog — including [this one](http://chatterblast.wpengine.com/blog/move-over-reddit-answer-time-with-tumblr-is-here-to-stay/)
and [this one](http://chatterblast.wpengine.com/blog/is-your-tumblr-post-going-down-the-toilet/)—
have been about **Tumblr**, a thriving but often-overlooked microblogging website
that’s been a quiet contributor to the rise of social media.

And here I am, blogging about Tumblr once more.

Am I in a position where I can claim the title of **Official ChatterBlast Tumblr
Correspondent** for myself? _Hmm_? I think I’m going to do that.

It’s not like I blame my coworkers for refraining from writing about Tumblr. The
site can be quite an overwhelming and straight-up bizarre black hole of user-generated,
fandom-fueled content. As the [birthplace of many memes](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2015/12/18/an-insane-timeline-of-2015-in-tumblr-memes/)
and the host of many [shame sessions for “problematic” celebrities](http://yourfaveisproblematic.tumblr.com/),
Tumblr is also the cause of many headaches.

Despite this, [some of the world’s biggest brands have found a home on the site](http://brands.tumblr.com/),
proving that Tumblr indeed can be an active player in the social messaging and advertising
game.

For the sake of this blog, I decided to do a little experiment. I would log into
Tumblr, scroll until I find the first ad or sponsored post and then proceed to center
this blog on said post. So I did. Here’s the lucky winner:

[https://www.tumblr.com/musicmovesyou/145082262301/drive-me-to-the-music](https://www.tumblr.com/musicmovesyou/145082262301/drive-me-to-the-music)

OK, that’s great. But let’s look a little closer at a few things here.

[⌊Toyota Tumblr Sponsored Post (1)⌉⌊Toyota Tumblr Sponsored Post (1)⌉[

_Screenshot via Tumblr_

 1. See how the post says “_Follow_” at the top? That means I _don’t_ already follow
    this blog. Which means I’m seeing this because someone paid to make me see it. 
    Which means this is the equivalent of a _sponsored post on Facebook _or a _suggested
    account on Twitter_.
 2. Note the blog’s URL (musicmovesyou) and the first tag (#toyotamusic). Nothing about
    that URL makes you think the account has anything to do with a massive car manufacturer,
    does it? But lo and behold, the tag subtly lets us know that this post is part 
    of a **Toyota** campaign called #toyotamusic.
 3. Check out that little dollar sign up the top right corner. That, above all else,
    is the “_I’m a sponsored post!_” badge. _(It also links to a page called “_[_Tumblr Ads and You_](https://www.tumblr.com/docs/en/relevantads)_.”
    So personal!)_

### **So What’s Going on Here?**

Good question. Think about this GIF for a moment:

[⌊Cool_Mom_GIF (1)⌉⌊Cool_Mom_GIF (1)⌉[

That’s basically what Toyota is doing here. The company is trying, via Tumblr, to
say, _“We’re not a regular brand — we’re a cool brand!”_ by tapping into what we’ll
refer to as the Tumblr [#aesthetic](https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/aesthetic): carefree,
wanderlust-y young people with a longing for authentic life experiences and some
good music _(check out the blog’s icon — nothin’ like a Toyota-branded vinyl record
player!)_, maybe along with some pretty pastel colors and dreamy clouds and stuff
like that.

Clicking on the #toyotamusic opens up [a brand new page](https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/toyotamusic)
that hosts every post that’s tagged the same way. You’d be hard-pressed to find 
a post that actually mentions Toyota in it — [soft sell](http://chatterblast.wpengine.com/blog/instagram-and-the-art-of-the-soft-sell/),
baby — but you _will_ find numerous references to popular music festivals like **
Sasquatch**, **Stagecoach** and **Life is Beautiful**.

Why?

Because Toyota wants you to associate the feelings you get at a music festival _(
carefree, authentic, dreamy)_ with the fact that you drove a Toyota car there. Or
maybe you didn’t. But maybe you will next time. _(The text reads, “Drive me to the
music,” after all. Yup, “drive.” See what they did there?)_

If you go to the actual [musicmovesme](http://musicmovesme.tumblr.com) Tumblr page,
this is what you’ll find:

[⌊musicmovesme screenshot⌉⌊musicmovesme screenshot⌉[

_Screenshot via Tumblr_

Right away, you’ll notice that nobody’s trying to hide the Toyota association here.
But that hardly counts, because do you know how often a Tumblr user goes back to
an original source’s blog after they reblog something? Almost _never_.

### **What We Can Learn About Tumblr from Toyota **

Here’s how Toyota ensured that this sponsored post would be a success on Tumblr _(
and, as a result, allowed themselves to market to users without those users being
any the wiser)_:

 * There’s nothing about it that _deters_ Tumblr users from sharing it on their 
   own blogs, because there’s _zero trace_ of the Toyota brand in the moving image
   or URL. _(Tumblr users are all about authenticity, remember?)_
 * That means it only takes one blogger — we’ll call them Blogger A — reblogging
   this to their own blog for the post to drop the Toyota association. Meaning: 
   From then on out, it’s just a cool image that reflects exactly how much Bloggers
   B, C and so on are dying to get out in the world and have cool experiences and
   listen to nice music.
 * The lack of blatant branding is suitable for Tumblr’s primary sharing space: 
   the dashboard. On Tumblr, content sharing takes place on the ongoing stream of
   the dashboard, similar to how you scroll through your Facebook feed — not individual
   friends’ pages — to see updates. Users are generally turned off by flashy ads
   on their dashboards, but this sponsored post **blends right in** with everyday
   Tumblr content.
 * Plus, as a bonus, the post perfectly matches the pastel-packed, [soft grunge](https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/soft+grunge)_(
   think: “I’m not a regular hipster — I’m a cool hipster!”)_ aesthetic Tumblr loves
   so much.

### **What This Says About Tumblr Advertising **

If a brand is curious about advertising on Tumblr, it’s pretty easy to find out 
how to get in on the action. The site houses a [business page](https://www.tumblr.com/business)
that explains the various types of advertising options: sponsored posts, sponsored
video posts, sponsored days _(yes — a whole day with a link to a brand’s content
at the top of the Tumblr dashboard)_ and a flurry of other ad tools. Even getting
the ball rolling seems easy: In order to begin the process, brands are asked to 
provide some extremely basic information about the product they wish to advertise,
and the rest goes from there.

For a Tumblr advertising campaign lathered in a brand’s logo, like **Nike**’s “_sponsored
day_” content below, it’s easy to see the payoff: You get your name in front of 
an audience, you create brand awareness, etc.

[⌊Nike Tumblr screenshot⌉⌊Nike Tumblr screenshot⌉[

_Screenshot via Tumblr_

But what about a brand like Toyota, which went out of its way to keep its name in
the shadows?

It’s not likely that the average soft-grunge-loving, 16-year-old Tumblr user who
thinks high school is boring and can’t wait to get out of her small town is going
to purchase a Toyota upon seeing this sponsored post. In fact, it’s _far more likely_
that she’ll simply be inclined to save up her money for some music festival tickets
for next summer, _not_ buy a car.

Will she have a greater appreciation for Toyota as a brand because of the pretty
content the company created for her blog? That’s also unlikely, since there’s a 
good chance she’s our old friend Blogger B who found the post via someone else and
is completely unaware of Toyota’s involvement.

So… What’s the point? _I don’t know_. Yes, I’m admitting defeat. I’m not sure what
the brand’s measurable payoff is. But you know what I _do_ know?

Whoever’s creating this content for Toyota knows Tumblr, and they know it well. 
That’s admirable, because deep knowledge of a platform _(how it works, who uses 
it and what type of content does well)_ is crucial in order to achieve success —
in terms of real, emotional connections, not just sales — through advertising.