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When American Eagle dropped their Sydney Sweeney “good genes” campaign, the internet exploded… but not just because of her looks. We break down the backlash, what went wrong, and the deeper marketing lessons you need to take from it.

What You’ll Learn:

• Why brand pivots go wrong — and how to do it without losing your audience
• The neuromarketing strategy behind envy, attraction, and sales psychology in this ad (see Michelle TT video here with deeper breakdown)
• What this campaign teaches us about aligning content with brand voice and cultural context

Timestamps:
03:12 – What actually happened in the Sydney Sweeney x American Eagle ad
06:45 – When “good genes” becomes bad PR
10:22 – Messaging missteps: Where AE strayed from their brand
16:10 – The power (and risk) of propaganda-style marketing
22:40 – Strategic pivots vs. brand betrayal: How to shift without shocking
29:55 – Should you respond to viral moments in your content?

References & Resources:

• Sydney Sweeney
• American Eagle
• Calvin Klein (Jeremy Allen White ad)
• Brooke Shields 1980s jeans campaign
• Lola Tung (The Summer I Turned Pretty)
• Coldplay kiss cam incident

Links to TT Videos with more information about the ad:

• sayantanidasguptabooks
• drjess21
• millenial.mia

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📩 Michelle: hello@michellepualani.com
🌐 Joanna: millennialmktr.com

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