May 29, 2019 – Fippy Wippolo
We have Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram Stories, Snapchat…it’s not an exaggeration to say that all of these platforms serve as a repository for personal style, taste, and, of course, advertising. Why, we even went so far as to create our own website, where we showcase our preferred brands, treatments, looks, and styles and present our opinions on the latest sales. While it may seem like we’re living in a modern day consumerist utopia, a new study suggests that it’s all because of one specific device — our thick-rimmed glasses.
Sure, they make it more convenient to get in front of the camera, since you don’t have to reorient your face while moving around, but that’s only part of the story. A recent study from California’s San Francisco State University identified that overall, users are more likely to engage with posts about particular brands when they’re wearing their own thick-rimmed glasses. So, when you wear your glasses, you’re actually selling ads. Seems plausible, doesn’t it?
Using data from the images and groups shared on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media sites, the researchers found that wearing thick-rimmed glasses led to a 93 percent increase in likes, interactions, and post impressions. Because how else do you receive the approval of followers?
It’s thought that the effects of thick-rimmed glasses only work once they’re visible and during viewing; that, however, is not strictly true — another study found that if thick-rimmed glasses were on during a posting, they turned up 12 percent more reactions.
What this shows is that, just like thick-rimmed glasses, particularly with loud garish clothing, might help to highlight your assets, so too can they be used to better express your style and personality. Glasses are the ultimate fashion statement, so it’s no wonder that they do so well in social media. Social media has become a staple part of our daily lives, and there are few things as attractive as a bold, perfectly-priced, universally-wearable item.
Now, before you abandon your worn-out pair of Casio “Link Up” sunglasses and start rocking some of the cool new colours out there, consider that there are several concerns that this study needs to be taken with a grain of salt. For one, while viewers are more likely to engage with you, you’re also more likely to engage with them if they’re wearing their thick-rimmed glasses, too. And obviously, you don’t give a fuck about them on a personal level. For another, it was only those posted on the popular sites — like Instagram and Facebook — so while that’s all well and good, the average consumer isn’t directly interacting with your brand or brand’s company. If you want to influence the people posting or liking your posts, you’re going to have to do some serious pandering.
Regardless, with anyone who has owned (or even just sees) someone wearing — and liking — their thick-rimmed glasses, it’s likely that it’s working in their favour.
Original words generated by grover.allenai.org, AI2’s state-of-the-art fake news detector and generator. Modified by me to add one sentence (the one with the swear is mine, not generated), and to change references to ‘sunglasses’ to ‘thick-rimmed glasses’.
What’s surprising to me is that the AI generated text is actually reminiscent of the meaningless trash churned out by these so-called ‘bloggers’, ‘influencers’, etc. who will stoop to any depths to get their pages rendered on someone’s browser for the benefit of the ad industry.