In today's hyper-competitive social media environment, brands face immense pressure to produce engaging content quickly. Chris Edwards of Tommy notes that while platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts offer unique storytelling opportunities, they also contribute to a cycle of 'disposable creativity' — content made for fleeting engagement rather than lasting impact. Brands need to recognize that their competition is not only other brands but also their own audience, who are now empowered creators. To truly connect, brands should prioritize strategic, emotionally resonant storytelling over mere volume.
Every day, around 30m TikToks are posted. Most disappear without a trace. That's not a criticism, it's just the reality of how the platform works.
Your biggest competition isn't other brands - it's your own audience. Today, everyone's a creator. Everyone has a brand. Everyone is a brand.
This has created what we at Tommy like to call 'disposable creativity': content built for speed, surface-level engagement, and short-term gains, rather than distinctiveness, emotional impact, or lasting value.
The problem is when the pursuit of speed comes at the expense of strategy, or when creativity becomes a numbers game with no real brand idea holding it together.
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