Welcome New People

If you’re new to our newsletter and community welcome! Here we share information on upcoming and past events, insights on the social media industry, and some creative strategies at the intersection of creators and brands.

Our Next Event:

We’re finalizing the date for our next event sometime in March and hopefully, we’ll be able to bring some Madness! If you don’t get it I’m hoping to do a March Madness-focused event.

I’ll be in touch in the next issue with a finalized date so please look forward to that!

Microsoft Co-Pilot Event:

I had the opportunity to attend an event as Excel Daddy, where I spoke with the Microsoft 365 Copilot team about AI, their product, and how it’s shaping the future of workplace efficiency.

Many of you have probably attended similar events, likely within your own niche. I hope you’re not just showing up. I hope you’re building relationships. While Microsoft is naturally a strong fit for my content, I also paid close attention to Edelman, the PR agency that co-hosted the event. Agencies like Edelman can be just as valuable, if not more, than the brands themselves. So next time you're at an event, don’t just connect with the company. Build relationships with the people behind the scenes, too.

Also, there were some incredible creators there that I had the pleasure of meeting - a few of whom I included in the concept below!

Corporate Creators X Apple TV

Creator Spotlight:

Max Farber @Farbsy: 👨‍💻CEO of Customer Service👨‍💻 has over 1.3M Followers across his channels IG / TT / YT

Laura Whaley @loewhaley: Your virtual work bestie has over 7.8M Followers across her channels IG / TT / YT

Ben Sweeny @corporate.sween: CEO of Corporate America has over 550K Followers across his channels IG / TT / YT

Sam Wilson @liljehu_: Corporate Dumpster Fire has over 330K followers across his channels IG / TT / YT

Why These Creators?

I met Max, Laura, Ben, and Sam at the Microsoft event I attended, and seeing them all in person reinforced something I already knew, corporate content just works.

Why? Because the modern workplace is a shared experience filled with unspoken rules, absurd policies, and moments of quiet rebellion. These creators have built massive audiences by saying what employees think but can’t always say out loud. Their content thrives on relatability, and it taps into something universal:

• The corporate jargon that means nothing.

• The performative enthusiasm.

• The quiet defiance hidden under professionalism.

That’s what makes them perfect for a Severance concept—because Severance itself is a hyper-exaggerated version of the exact workplace culture they parody every day. It’s the logical next step. Instead of just talking about corporate absurdity, this would put them inside the ultimate corporate nightmare and let them play it out in real time.

Notable mentions who could also be a part of the campaign:

Corporate Natalie and Corporate Bro

The Concept:

Social Media #Severed

Apple TV’s Severance is a brilliant satire on corporate life, taking the idea of work-life balance to its most extreme conclusion. It explores the disconnect between who we are at work and who we are outside of it, and what happens when that separation becomes absolute.

So, what if instead of just a traditional creator campaign, Apple TV leaned into the actual mechanics of the show, and applied Severance’s storytelling to social media?

Part 1: The Creators Join Lumon
This campaign starts like any real corporate job—day one at a new company.

🔹 Each creator posts their “first day” at Lumon Industries, shot in their signature content style.

• Max gets hired as Head of Customer Service, enthusiastically explaining how Lumon values “corporate synergy” (but never defines what that means).

• Laura is HR, giving eerily positive guidance like “It’s totally normal that you don’t remember your personal life, just focus on being your best work self!”

• Ben is Middle Management, delivering an empty welcome speech, saying things like “You’re a valued employee… I assume. I don’t know what you do, but keep doing it.”

• Sam is the skeptical new hire, immediately sensing something is off but playing along.

🔹 Their followers become part of the onboarding experience, watching their posts unfold as if they, too, were starting at Lumon.

🔹 The tone starts normal… but gets subtly more unsettling—workplace rules are overly strict, personal details are ignored, and everyone is too enthusiastic about their jobs.

This makes the experience feel real and immersive, rather than just another sponsored post.

Part 2: Their Feeds Become ‘Corporate Reality’
After onboarding, their content shifts into full Lumon propaganda mode—mirroring Severance’s eerie corporate culture but in their own comedic style.

👨‍💻 Max (@Farbsy) – CEO of Customer Service

• Posts over-the-top corporate training videos full of vague buzzwords and no real information.

• “Customer service is an attitude. A mindset. A calling. Also, please do not ask any questions.”

💼 Laura (@loewhaley) – Your Virtual Work Bestie

• Posts Lumon policy reminders that sound helpful… but are actually terrifying.

• “Having personal thoughts during work hours is a violation of company policy. If you’re struggling, just schedule a wellness check-in (Note: Wellness check-ins last 6 hours and involve sitting alone in a white room).”

📊 Ben (@corporate.sween) – CEO of Corporate America

• Shares meaningless corporate pep talks, constantly pretending everything is fine.

• “Remember: Work is its own reward. Also, there are no doors. Ever notice that? Anyway, great work, team!”

🔥 Sam (@liljehu_) – Corporate Dumpster Fire

• Posts increasingly confused updates, realizing something is very wrong.

• “Hey, so quick question… does anyone remember their commute here? Or their last day off?”

Part 3: The Creators Come Together – The Lumon Office Crossover

After building up their individual Severance arcs, the creators finally meet in the same office—leading to the ultimate workplace crossover.

🔹 Their roles clash in ridiculous ways:

• Max hosts a mandatory enthusiasm seminar, forcing everyone to recite company slogans.

• Laura leads a conflict resolution session, but all problems are resolved by saying “We are all happy here.”

• Ben holds a strategy meeting but has no agenda and refuses to end it.

• Sam questions reality, but everyone gaslights him into believing he loves his job.

🔹 Dialogue feels straight out of Severance, but with their usual comedic delivery.

• “Excited for another productive workday! What do we do again?”

• “I asked HR for my employee file, and they gave me a single sticky note that says ‘Yes.’”

• “I took my break and stared at a white wall for 30 minutes. Refreshing.”

🔹 Tension escalates until they start questioning their reality—but there’s no way out.

This part gives audiences the shared experience of “working” at Lumon, making it feel like a real-world version of Severance unfolding on social media.

Part 4: The ‘Outies’ React – The Big Reveal

At the end of the campaign, the creators “wake up” as their normal selves and finally see what they’ve been posting.

🔹 Their reactions are filmed as duets of them reacting to their own unsettling content.

• Max: “Why am I selling ‘mandatory joyfulness’ like a cult leader??”

• Laura: “HR Laura is way too into compliance… wait, do I say this in real life?”

• Ben: “I gave a 3-hour meeting on synergy. I don’t even know what synergy means.”

• Sam: “WHY DID NO ONE LISTEN TO ME?!”

🔹 The audience experiences the “reintegration” process alongside them, mirroring the show’s core themes.

This moment completes the arc, turning it from a simple marketing stunt into an interactive social experiment that fully embodies the Severance concept.

Why This Concept?

I’ve been watching Severance lately, and it struck me how much marketing, and creativity in general, comes from connecting the dots between what you’re consuming and what you’re doing in your own life.

That’s what happened here. I met these creators at Microsoft’s event, I know their styles, and I saw a natural intersection with Severance that Apple TV never capitalized on.

The best marketing doesn’t just plug creators into a campaign—it seamlessly blends a brand into their unique content style, making it feel natural and engaging. This concept does that by taking the core themes of the show and applying them to social media in a way that makes the audience feel part of the world.

If you’ve made it this far thanks so much for taking the time to read my thoughts. If you have any thoughts or insight on how I can make this newsletter better or if you want to hear anything in particular I always appreciate insightful recommendations.

Best,

Jacob