#but when i see something that celebrates being lOw caLoriE and is branded as 'be kind to yourself'

[donttouchtheneednoggle]

.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #389

“i’m well aware i’m a danger to myself  /  are you aware i’m a danger to others?”

How much do you weigh? Yeah, we're starting off on a bad foot. If you are outside, what are you most likely doing? Putting Roman's used litter in the trash. Do you think you can love someone without trusting them? Hm... I guess you could love them, but it'd be a complicated situation. What’s your opinion on people who go hunting for sport? If it's purely for sport, from the very bottom of my heart, fuck you. Do you have a fairly fast or slow internet connection? I'd say it's decently fast. Have you ever been someplace tropical? Yeah, Florida. My grandma lived there. Are you sensitive to caffeine? No. It does like... nothing to me. How do you usually get around? My mom's car. Have you ever been accused of being too clingy? No actually, but I know I kinda am. What do you think about Kim Kardashian? I don't have an opinion of her. Can you speak any French? No. Favorite yogurt flavor? The only yogurt I've been liking lately is cookies and cream to add a different texture, because otherwise, I don't like its natural texture very much??? Idk man, my taste buds are wild. How much money do you have in your wallet right now? Just like $5. What bottled water brand do you like? Essentia. Your favorite way to eat chocolate? As chocolate bars, probably. How often do you listen to country music? Like, never. Linkin Park or Avenged Sevenfold? Linkin Park. Last surgery you had? Pilonidal cyst removal. Have you ever played guitar? I briefly took classes for it in high school, yes. Best I got to was playing some of the intro to "Crazy Train." I enjoyed it, but not enough to be consistent and really learn. Is there someone in your life whose career/life choices you find immoral/unethical? Have you ever told that person your views? Do you find it difficult to support them (emotionally or otherwise) because of their choices? I don't think so? What trait do you feel you lack that you wish you possessed? Independence and confidence would be nice... Have you ever considered writing your memoirs? No. Do you find it difficult to stay invested in online relationships? God no. I love my online friends. Half of 'em more than "irl" ones. Are you the type of person who pays close attention to the release dates of movies, music, etc., and will, for example, go see a movie or buy an album on the date it is released? If so, when is the last time you did so? I have to be VERY invested in it to care THAT much. It happened most recently when Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty premiered. Do you have any stickers on your laptop? No. Would you rather have a job for which you had to go in early in the morning or one you had to stay late into the evening at? Early in the morning. I'm in a better mood in the morning. Do you use any apps to track your health or medications? I have a calorie-counting app, as well as one to track my period. Whose opinions/recommendations do you value most? My mom's, best friend's, and psychiatrist's. If you could’ve been at any historical event, which would you have liked to witness firsthand? I don't really know. Maybe the very first Pride event? Is there something that you really want to do but are afraid of doing? If so, why are you afraid of doing it? Ride a rollercoaster, for one. I know I never will, though. I'm too afraid of throwing up, but even more realistically, I fear passing out before of the twisting and turning and just standing up makes me very dizzy. My blood pressure is STUPID low. What is something society “expects” you to do that you don’t want to do and/or don’t plan on doing? Have kids. That's a big 'ole fat no from me. Have Jehovah's Witnesses ever come to your door? Twice at least. Are you well-known by people in your area? No. Have you ever experienced sleep paralysis? No, thank Christ. It sounds terrifying. What's your favourite type of bird? Barn owls. Melanistic ones, to be exact. Stunning. What tv show(s) have you been watching currently? I'm only keeping up with Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty. Have you ever dated a smoker? For less than a day. Do you share a middle name with any of your siblings? Yes. Have you ever been a member in a band? No. Besides the school band. Can you cry on command? If so, have you ever used it to your advantage? No. Do you have separate emails for personal and business? No. Have you ever missed a flight? Yes. Have you ever seen a lunar eclipse? Multiple times. Have you ever taken a ride in a convertible? I think once with my brother. Why did you last need to use a band-aid? I'unno. What fruit do you eat most often? Apples. Who was the last person you visited in the hospital? My ma. Has someone ever tried to start an argument with you over Facebook? What happened? A few times. I don't feel like thinking over this. Have you ever had an unusual type of milk (eg. oat, rice, almond)? I've tried almond milk, and I hated it. If you could experience life as a Disney princess for a week, which princess would you pick and why? uhhhhhh idk When you’re at home, do you spend most of your time in your room? I'm essentially always in my room. If you like to sleep in late, have your parents ever told you off for doing so? No. Do you find piercings attractive? Yep. Do you like potato chips? Loooove 'em. What’s the most stalker-like/creepy thing you’ve ever done? If you don’t think you’ve done anything like that, what’s the most stalker-like thing someone’s done to you? Nothing beyond checking Jason's Facebook sometimes after the breakup, I think. Even that though I wouldn't recommend doing. You're just going to get yourself hurt. Stay away from exes' profiles. Do you think it’s a double standard that a woman can hit a man and expect to get away with it, but if a man hits a woman it’s assault? Yep. I don't give a fuck what's in your pants, you don't hit anybody unless you're fighting to defend yourself. What’s your favorite old Disney movie and favorite new Disney movie? I mean... define "old." I'll go with The Lion King for old, and for new, uh... Finding Dory, probs. Name something “trendy” or popular that you dislike. I don't really know what IS trendy right now... Is Snapchat still "in?" Because I've never gotten that. “Dirty talk” in the bedroom…love it, like it, don’t care, dislike it, or hate it? I think I'm kinda neutral about it? Like I mean it also depends on exactly what is said. I prefer more loving talk, though. What is/are your favorite type(s) of ethnic food, and what’s your favorite food within that type? I'm a basic fatass that likes American cuisine most, aha... Like give me a cheeseburger and I'm happy lmao. How would you describe your relationship with your hair over the years? I love it more now at a short length than I ever did long. When it was long and I was in my deepest depression, I was awful about brushing it. It would get so knotted. Like looking back, it nearly makes me shiver. I HIGHLY recommend cutting your hair for anyone who struggles with selfcare. How do you feel about your SO daily/regularly checking up on a couple of his exes on social media? I'm single, but hypothetically, if you're checking an ex's page nearly every day, I would not be okay with that. I'm totally fine with exes remaining friends and just cordially talking now and again, but that's it. It's a respect thing. Do you prefer your guy to wear cologne or not? I personally like cologne if it's not overwhelming. I really don't care if you wear it or not, though. Ladies, how important is it to you that your SO wears/would wear a wedding ring? This survey is so heteronormative. But anyway, unless there was an issue like it not fitting, I'd want my spouse to wear their ring. What was the turning point that led you to decide for or against having children? There are a lot of reasons I don't want kids. I'm too selfish with my "me" time, I stress out too easily, I don't want to dedicate my life to keeping another person alive and fed and happy, I have bad genes... I could go on and on. I just wouldn't be a good, "present" enough mom. I am much more interested in ensuring *I* am okay. Is having your “dream” wedding really that important to have? Not at all. I mean I want a smooth and memorable wedding, but I'm not obsessed with it being perfect. Do you consider it cheating if your SO goes to a strip club and then doesn’t tell you? That's certainly not cheating, but I wouldn't like it. Being secretive about anything in a relationship is unhealthy, imo. I'd be hurt and also very insecure because I wouldn't feel like "enough." How old is too old for trick-or-treating? Honestly? I don't think you ever are. Like come on, does it REALLY matter? Let people have fun. I don't do it because of societal standards, but I would if I didn't care about being judged. Do you sleep with your arms over or under the covers? It depends on the temperature, but I normally wake up with them under. Do you own any t-shirts of your favorite band? I have an Ozzy one stored somewhere, but it doesn't fit me now. There was another I really liked too, but that one is WAY too small now. Fries or onion rings? Fries. I'm not a fan of onion rings. True/False: you’ve had an odd dream this week. Story of my life. I had one last night where I kept dying in different ways, and I actually felt the pain, like drowning in magma. Do you find tattoo sleeves attractive? YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Do you like carving pumpkins? Yeah. What’s an animal you want to have as a pet but can’t? My mom has absolutely forbidden me to get a tarantula (uh, many tarantulas in my case) until I move out, lol. That doesn't stop me from checking Craigslist like every day. ;_; Have your parents ever caught you drinking? "Caught," no. Any time I've drunk, I've had permission or was a legal adult by then. How would you react if your celebrity crush came to your door? First be humiliated at my appearance and then absolutely pass out lmao. Has your mom/dad ever walked in on you kissing or anything more with someone? No, thank fuck. The person you have a crush on is drunk and goes to kiss you, you know they don’t realize what they’re doing, but do you kiss anyways? If I know it's something they wouldn't do sober, absolutely not. What would you prefer to get from a guy/girl: flowers, a hand written poem, a picture he drew of you or a nice night out? Any would be lovely, but the poem would appeal most to me because of the amount of thought that goes into poetry. Do you any shirts with any kind of images of food on them? What? I don't think so, no. Which holiday is the most fun to decorate for? Halloween. What was the first website you had an email account on? Yahoo. Have you ever written a fanfic? No. Tattoos or piercings? Both are grand, but tats win. What’s the last gross movie/show/video you saw? I saw this picture of a snake split open that had eaten another snake. Would you rather live in a huuuge house or a little cozy one? Lil cozy one! I don't want more space than is needed for cleaning reasons, as well as price. Do you have a tutor for anything? No. Who’s the best kisser you know? Jason was. Has anyone ever threatened you with a knife? No. I'd like it to stay that way. (If you’re a girl) Has anyone ever called you "shortie" instead of girl? Ew, no. Do you have a deep voice? For a woman, yes. Do you play games with boys/girls, like 'hard to get’? Hi, I'm an adult. Is there a Sonic where you live? YES. It's my fave fast-food place. What do you like on your pizza? I have three go-tos depending on my mood: Pepperoni, jalapenos, or meat lovers.

[tinywordsblog]

Tiny Words is a creative nonfiction podcast, featuring my own writing and stories. In episode 1, I talk about my experiences with disordered eating, body image, and recovery. 

And, more than anything, this is an ode to little Amber, and the little legs that have carried her this far. (It’s also an ode to the White Rabbit Cafe’s vegan chocolate chip cookies).

Trigger Warning: This podcast episode discusses topics of disordered eating, weight, health, calories, and food. If these things are triggering to you, I would not recommend listening to this episode, but I appreciate you nonetheless. 

Transcript: 

The goal of the ‘Tiny Words’ blog has always been to highlight the small truths of life, those that make up our existence and have a larger impact than it might seem on the surface. For this podcast series, I’ll be featuring my own writing as an audio presentation. I’ll be telling my own stories (and perhaps those of others) through a format that is new to me as a creator. Throughout the past few months, I’ve reopened the world of creativity and writing--a realm that has long been boarded up and evacuated. I wanted to reopen that realm in this podcast episode by writing a story that many months of therapy has shown me is one of my own truths. With that said, I present “Just a Little Husky” to you. I hope you find something of myself in this. 

DISCLAIMER: I want to preface this story with a trigger warning. This episode discusses topics of disordered eating, weight, health, calories, and food. If these things are triggering to you, this episode might not be best for you. 

[introduction music fades into the story]

I was in elementary school when I discovered what a body was. I knew that we all had stomachs and arms and legs and chins. I was aware of those things only as they related to being a child. My legs carried me where I needed to go. My arms were used for holding and hugging and gesturing. My stomach was something to be fed and nurtured. But I never knew what those things were supposed to look like. Or that those things were “supposed” to look like anything at all. At that same age, my older sister’s friend--only 2 short years older than myself--lost a significant amount of weight. Our families rallied around her, remarked on her “dedication” and the clockwork-like Wii Fit exercises she was doing. For the first time in my life, thinness was celebrated. 

I became aware of the looks that those closest to me had given plus-size women before I knew what a plus size woman was. The side-eyed glances to a woman in a form-fitting shirt. Scoffs cast on young girls confidently wearing shorts when “they really shouldn’t be wearing shorts that short. Not with that body.” 

When my sister’s friend lost weight, and more importantly when she was celebrated for her weight loss, my innocence began to crack and shatter. A mirror had been turned on myself, and confidence became something you needed to shrink yourself down into. 

My sophomore year of high school, a pediatrician--one who considered himself “traditional” to be exact--told my mother and I that, “it wasn’t a problem yet. She’s not overweight. Just a little husky.” 

Just a little husky. Just a little husky. Just a little husky. 

Not a problem yet, but becoming one. Just a little husky.

He diagnosed me with the feelings of self-hatred that had cast their shadow on my reflection. “Just a little husky” and suddenly I became no more than a number. 

It wasn’t until a year ago, when my therapist furrowed her brows and asked, “He said what?” that I realized my pediatrician’s words were the wrong thing--not my body. Now, I see his comment as a lapse in his judgment. Back then, though, it was a death sentence.

I was raised on diet culture and calorie counting apps and skinny teas and fat-free versions of your favorite snack foods. That day at the doctor’s office, I was prescribed a monster thinly-veiling itself as healthy living. It told me that to be healthy was to avoid. To shrink. To achieve the smallest possible number. 

And, really, the numbers were all I had. Scale in the morning, before breakfast to be the smallest possible weight. “Bare minimum” best describes it. I ate cereal in the morning, exactly one cup-sized measuring cup full of Special-K with no milk. I would eat a  sandwich for lunch, on bread that was strictly labeled “light,” spread with one exact tablespoon of peanut butter-- or perhaps two, on a cheat day. I ate snacks, but never more than 90-calories each. For dinner I would eat with my family, but I “portion controlled” and never took a second serving. I’d eat side salads as a main meal on a bad day, and dessert was a rarity. My pantry was full of green block text screaming “light,” “low-fat,” “diet soda,” “shrink yourself until there’s nothing left”, and wither away faster with this brand of pretzels for a lower rate than the competitor!

The patriarchy packaged up an eating disorder into a glittering pink parcel and sold it to me on a silver scale. Told me I was too fat to feel worthy of a crop top. I was commercialized into a fat kid with a complex about the clothes I wore and the way I sat, constantly aware of  the way my face morphed into a smile and how my body moved around me when I danced. I sewed my worth into the waistband of my pants. I practiced my smile and adjusted my posture. I wore only the size that I wanted to be, and if a store’s clothes ran smaller--forcing me into the next size up--I cried my way to another. I was “just a little husky,” and the diet was not enough to erase those words from the corners of my mind. 

I once heard a slam poem by Blythe Baird called ‘When the Fat Girl Gets Skinny’ that says, “If you develop an eating disorder when you are already thin to begin with, you go to the hospital. If you develop an eating disorder when you are not thin to begin with, you are a success story.” When I first heard Baird’s poem, I tried to pretend that I wasn’t listening to my own existence sung back to me from someone else’s mouth. But it was my own song. When you go from being fat to being skinny through means of an eating disorder, your mental illness becomes a physical celebration. I was fifteen years old being asked what my “secret” was by fully-grown aunts and uncles. I was told “You look great”, a compliment that I’ve learned translates to “You look smaller.” They applauded me even when I asked for no Easter candy, when I asked permission to eat my birthday cake “and even the ice cream, too?” 

To this day, I still ask for permission when eating a fear food, but now I’m able to answer my own question. When I was restricting myself, I thought of progress only in quantitative terms. I was a series of numbers, gradually getting smaller, hoping to never get bigger. Now, I can see my progress cast around my person like light falls through a window. The light does not pick and choose certain objects to illuminate just like my disordered eating did not pick and choose certain aspects to affect while leaving others untouched. When progress came, it could be seen shimmering on every surface. I see my progress in the way I slouch in chairs. In how I clothe myself in patterns that I love rather than vertical stripes because, to quote a dying fashion industry, “horizontal stripes make you look bigger.” In how I laugh without covering my mouth. In how I’m trying to learn to love my smile no matter how it stretches my face. In how I speak without fear of my voice “sounding fat,” though I’m still not sure how fifteen-year-old Amber thought a voice could sound that way. 

In how, even on my bad body days, I buy myself White Rabbit Cafe-sized vegan chocolate chip cookies. In how I sweeten my tea and spice my food. In how I’ve forgotten the number of calories in a single grape and couldn’t tell you the amount of carbs in a bowl of pasta. In how I love my stretch marks as if they were the perfect tattoos. 

My body certainly isn’t a temple, but I’m learning day-by-day to turn it into a warm bed on a rainy day. It’s becoming a place to take comfort, a thing to clothe in loving embraces and swaths of my favorite colors. Or, rather than making it a metaphor, maybe my body is just my body. My means of navigating the world. The vessel used to love and be loved. The thing I carry around with me always. 

Maybe I am “just a little bit husky,” and that’s a thing to be celebrated, too.

[aarondelgaado]

「miguel herran & demi male」⇾ delgado, aaron, the junior horton student’s records show that he is a virgo and 23 years old. they are studying culinary arts, living in moris and can be caring, trustworthy, short-sighted & hedonistic. when i see them i am reminded of the scent of fresh baked cookies, the shining blade of an ice skate & air so cold that you can see your breath. ⇽「drew & 22 & est & he/him.」

trivia. 

born august 30th and always hated the years that they were back in school on their birthday as it’s too close to the start of the school year for their taste. has learned to love it, however, and now uses it as an excuse to convince their friends that they should have a giant party --- and when combined with the fact that everyone is back on campus, it did usually lead to a rage on the horton campus. 

falls somewhere on the aromantic spectrum, though they’ve never been in a rush to label that part of themselves. they have dated in the past & generally just tell people that they’re bi, largely because they think it’s easier than dealing with people who expect them to explain the difference between romantic & sexual attraction and the label mostly fits. had their first & only celebrity ‘crush’ on matt duchene after watching him play at the 2014 winter olympics --- it’s arguable that it was equal parts ‘goddamn i want to be him’ and ‘goddamn he is ATTRACTIVE’ but that’s not necessarily an argument it’s recommended that you start. 

backstory. 

let it be known that neither of aaron’s parents are hockey fans, nor were they ever. but they were both athletes, with their father retiring from major league baseball after a career ending leg injury and their mother leaving professional soccer to settle down and build a new career. they never agreed on which sport he should play, bouncing him between different courts ( and at a young aaron’s insistence: rinks ); hoping that their child would follow in their footsteps. but no amount of parental pressure can turn someone into an olympic athlete.

and that’s not to say that aaron wasn’t good, but he wasn’t about to get recruited to a national team anytime soon. and if they were being honest, they never really wanted to, not when they had grown up seeing just how temporary that dream was bound to be. if their parents sighed and moaned about it, it went mostly unheeded though they never did gather up the courage or desire to quit outright.  

instead, when they floundered over colleges and struggled with the concept of a future outside of the world of sports, they signed to a minor league hockey team --- clinging to the hope that at least for a while they could have that dream. just until they found something else, they told themselves. and hartford wolf pack wasn’t a bad team to play for and the ice still felt solid underneath their feet. 

it was the team’s nutritionist however that handed them a dream that they could grasp onto, a passion outside of the rough sport that they loved. they didn’t need to worry about what they ate, but they did need to make sure that they were eating enough --- and for all that junk food packs on the calories, it quickly became boring when you had to eat so much to keep your body running. so they took up cooking under the suggestion of the nutritionist and allowed the soothing tones of various youtube video instructions to guide them through brand new recipes and techniques. eventually the team could always look forward to some new outlandish thing that they would bring in, baked or fried or covered in enough powdered sugar to make you cough. 

and then, just as it so often does in professional sports --- an injury struck and while aaron walked away still able to play, their captain wasn’t so lucky. a torn tendon spelled the end of his career, and aaron couldn’t help but feel the fear set into their bones as they weighed their options. that’s how they ended up at horton with a recovering captain at their side, ready to start their college athlete career and their college athlete experience. 

from there it’s been a wild ride --- a cursed experience, truly --- the horton hogs were almost lost their division i status on multiple occasions, always hanging on by the barest of threads. and just last spring, they brought home the championship cup, seemingly cementing their place in the division, only for the whole thing to go up in flames. but aaron had made friends & coming to radcliffe, the school that housed the hog’s biggest rivals ( and their new team ) meant that they got to stick around them.

connections. 

rivals / ex-rivals. wld love to see the beef between an ex-hog and a rattlesnake, the clashing of prides, the warring emotions and of course, the epic highs and lows of college sports. developing friendships? maybe. developing into sworn enemies? perhaps. 

horton whos. old pals or even acquaintances from horton. they’re banding together or maybe not, but aaron finds comfort in the familiar faces regardless of how they knew each other back then. enemies? friends? ex-roommates? exes? just the familiar face is comforting, even if they’re screaming at each other. 

give me everything. that’s it. give me it all. 

[fangirlshrewt97]

Venom Meets Goose

For: @lurkerviolin. Chancy I wanted to have this done by midnight but obviously I missed the deadline by a long shot, but I hope you like this!

Author(s): Fangirlshrewt97

Fandom: Venom (2018); Captain Marvel (2019)

Pairing: Venom/Eddie (can be romantic or platonic)

Characters:  Venom, Eddie Brock, Goose (Captain Marvel)

Rating: Teens and Up

Warnings: Lots of swearing

Additional Tags:  Attempt at humor, Crossover, Crack-fic (ish)

Summary: What would happen if/when Eddie and Venom met Goose? My 3k take on it.  

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18429209

“Stop being grumpy. It’s lame.”

“I am not being grumpy, I am angry with you V.”

“Stop being grouchy then.”

“Venom!”

“Eddie, I already apologized for eating all the chocolate Anne got us.”

“Venom, sorry is not enough. It was my favorite kind of chocolate. And you said that even if I eat it, you can still use the calories and taste the chocolate. You also know that that brand of chocolate is my favorite and it is imported. So in conclusion, fuck you.”

“I didn’t know!”

“Bullshit! You live inside my freaking brain. How the hell am I supposed to believe you.”

“...I’m not a mind-reader?”

Eddie growled out loud with enough anger to have Venom doing the equivalent of curling into himself and sending a wave of shame through their bond. Eddie hunched in tighter into his coat as a cool breeze passed through the street. He knew rationally he was acting childish, but could you blame him? He was finally getting his life back together, and after a full year with his stupid symbiote, they had finally figured out they were it for each other. He was happier than he had been in a long while. But he was also more petty than ever. And bloodthirsty, but at least the latter could be wholly attributed to the Symbiote.

“So where are we going?”

“Why don’t you just read my mind?” Eddie bit back.

“Eddie…” Venom whined. And god, how disconcerting was it to have an alien who lived inside him whine. Venom didn’t even have proper eyes, but somehow managed to convey the feeling of puppy dog eyes. Eddie hated him.

“Fuck off parasite.”

“Eddie!” Venom yelled, hurt and pouting. Pouting. His 10,000+ year old alien significant other was pouting at him because he was scolded for eating Eddie’s chocolate. God, when had his life become so fucking weird?

“I’m not apologizing.”

“Apologize.”

“No.”

“APOLOGIZE!”

“Ok, jeez, fine. I’m sorry. Quit yelling, someone is going to notice.”

“Who will notice? It is past midnight on a Wednesday. Everybody who is sane is already in bed. And if someone insane catches us, what is the difference?”

“I….” The more Eddie thought about it though, there was a weird logic to Venom’s point. “Fine, even if there is no difference, I’d rather avoid drawing unnecessary attention. Neither of us have a great history with good luck.”

“Are you going to tell me where we are going?”

“No.”

“Eddie.”

“You are getting repetetive.”

“You are being stubborn.”

“Wow, great observation there V.”

 “What do you mean, no?

“I mean no, wanna hear it in Spanish? No!”

“Eddie!”

“Venom relax. We’ve been cooped up in the apartment for the past week so that I could finalize my article, and we just finished. So I thought we could celebrate by splitting open a certain box of chocolate. But since you already took care of that bit by yourself, we are just doing the second part of this celebration: going to the park for some fresh air.”

“Why are we doing this at midnight?”

“Because I finished the final edits past midnight.”

“Couldn’t the celebration have waited till tomorrow? You need sleep. Your seratonin levels are seriously low.”

“Low seratonin huh? Explains the depression.”

“Not funny.”

“I disagree. But anyways, do you really want to this tomorrow in the morning. In the sun. With a lot of other people?”

“It’d be a Thursday morning. There would not be a lot of people.”

“Still more than now.”

“Why the park?”

“Why not?”

“Because frsh air and going to the park are good for your health. And your history has been a tendency to often do the opposite of what is good for your health?”

“Oh you mean like accept an alien parasite into my body that tried to eat me from the inside out?”

“Eddie!”

Eddie just chuckled, sometimes Venom was just too easy to rile up. He started whistling as the two of them made their way to the lake in the center of the park, Venom liked to see the ducks. Well technically he liked to comment on all the different ways he’d like to eat them, but who’s paying attention to those details?

Eddie made his way to one of the benches on the edge of the lake, just before the bike path and sprawled onto it, spreading his legs and resting his head against the back of the bench.

It really was a quiet night for the city, if he concentrated he could hear faint sirens in the distance, and a screech from where a car skidded on the roads which were still slightly wet from the rain they had had that evening.

Of course, when does quiet ever last when you were part-time hero/part time human magnet for bad luck? Though in hindsight, no one could have predicted the shape this particular disaster was going to take.

Eddie was close to straight up dozing in the bench when Venom startled so bad Eddie spasmed off the bench and braced himself on the ground to ease the fall.

“V, what the fuck?”

“Eddie, Danger!”

Eddie tensed, eyes scanning the area for anything out of the ordinary. “Where?”

“I don’t know.”

“What? What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I just. Damn it, there is something strange in the park Eddie. I don’t like it, but I can’t … find it.”

Eddie took a calm breath to calm down because this was Venom we are talking about, he could feel everything. If something was able to avoid him, they were in such big shit. Damn it, Ann was going to kill him if he died in the park to an alien at 1 in the morning.

But before either could think of a plan, a meow sounded behind them. Venom covered Eddie and launched himself over the bench, mouth pulled back to reveal all his teeth, expanding to make himself look as big as possible.

There on the bench they had just been sitting on was a cat. Just a normal orange cat. It tilted it’s head at the sight of them, but otherwise showed no other reaction. Huh, most cats tended to flee from him when he was masked by Venom. They also had been avoiding him in general since he had bonded with Venom.

“Venom?”

“Yeah?”

“Please tell me that you are also sleep deprived. Because what other possible reason could you have for being so terrified of. A. FREAKING. CAT?”

“Eddie. That is not a cat.”

“What are you talking about?”

“That is not a cat.”

“Yes it is. Look at it. It is orange, it is feline shaped, and it is just sitting there.”

“That doesn’t make it not a cat.”

“What the hell else is it?”

“I don’t know. But I don’t like it. Can we please leave?”

“Are you telling me you’re scared of a stray cat?”

“Eddie shut up. Can we leave?”

“But…”

“Now.”

Eddie debated whether it was worth it to argue, but his exhaustion won out over his curiosity and he agreed. “Fine, let’s go home.”

---

It was almost 2 weeks before they saw the cat again, and Eddie was aware of each day of those two weeks because Venom was doing the equivalent of pacing a hole in the floor in his brain and Eddie was getting a stronger urge by the second to find a way to strangle his symbiote.

“Venom stop that!”

“Eddie I can still feel that strange presence around us. Something is following us.”

“Where? Even in the park all there was was a normal cat.”

“It wasn’t a cat!”

“What was it then?!” Eddie bit back, tired of arguing this point.

“Can we go patrolling tonight?”

“No, I have an assignment due soon.”

“But, please. Eddie. We will be fast.”

“No.”

Venom whined and then started doing his stupid ‘puppy-dog-eyes’ emotion vibe again and Eddie growled because as much as he did have to complete this assignment, he hated to disappoint his symbiote. Venom truly asked for very little. Didn’t mean he was going to go without a fight.

“Why do I keep you around?”

Without missing a beat, Venom replied “Because the alternative would be developing a conscience of your own.”

“Fuck you.”

“I love you too Eddie!”

---

Their patrol that night was a bust, but Eddie knew it would be better to let Venom burn off that energy now rather risk Venom becoming restless again.

“V, stop complaining, it is a good thing that there are less bad guys!”

“You didn’t even let me eat one bad guy tonight.”

“That’s because the only ‘bad guy’ we saw today was a teenager trying to sell weed who pissed his pants the moment he saw you.”

Venom continued to grumble as they made their way to their apartment. He stopped when they reached their landing though, stopped abruptly enough that Eddie froze where he stood.

“What?”

“It’s in our house.”

“What?!”

“The same weird vibe from the park. I can feel that same energy again. Coming from beyond our door.”

Eddie swallowed before he nodded, tightening his hold on his keys and slowly turning the lock.

“Venom, mask.” Eddie ordered quietly. Venom slid over him slowly but completely covered him by the time their door closed behind him.

The two of them looked around the house for the intruder, moving cautiously though the apartment trying to identify the threat. Which was why they startled so hard they almost broke the coffee table they fell on when they heard a familiar meow.

“Ow, what the hell?”

“Eddie it is here?”

“V, how is that even possible?”

“It came in through a window!”

“None of our windows are open. Also we are on the third floor!”

“It’s a cat!”

“You just said it wasn’t.”

“It’s a cat that isn’t a cat.”

Eddie growled as he stood up, Venom having retreated back into him, and made his way over to the wall to flip the light switch. There on top of his kitchen counter, laying as though on its throne was the cat from the park.

Eddie approached the cat which was watching him lazily, one eye open as it swished it’s tail gently through the air. Venom was trying to metaphorically hold him back by the back of his hoodie, but Eddie just shut him down and kept walking till he was right next to the cat. The only acknowledgement he received was the cat turning its head to look at him with both eyes.

And yeah ok, this was definitely not a normal cat. Normal cats did not have eyes that looked 100 years old. Normal cats did not look like they could see into his very soul. Normal cats definitely did not have eyes that seemed to flash a different color. Eddie shook his head to make sure he had just imagined that.

Tentatively he reached out a hand and in full view of the eyes that were tracking his every movement, he laid it on the furry back. Venom had gone oddly quiet now, and Eddie didn’t want to think about it but it almost felt like the quiet someone has in a horror movie where they are quiet because they are about to scream.

Eddie started to pet the cat gently while Venom started doing weird high pitched keening noises in head.

“V, I don’t think she is too bad.”

“We need to give it back to it’s owner!” Venom said, voice higher than Eddie had ever heard it.

“Owner?”

“Yes! Look it is wearing one of those trackers.”

“Tra- Oh.” Hidden under admittedly magnificent fur was a thin collar with a round tag. Tugging it a little forward Eddie saw the word “GOOSE” emblazoned on it. He flipped the tag but the flip side was bare.

“Well so much for that idea. Is you name Goose kitty?” The cat started to swish it’s tail a little faster at the name. “Oh yes you are Goose are you. What a good kitty. How did you get up here though?” Eddie cooed as he started to pet Goose freely. Goose started to purr when Venom lashed out, a flash of inky black tendrils the only warning Eddie had before Goose was sent flying to the opposite end of the apartment and onto a wall.

“VENOM WHAT THE HELL?”

“Eddie that thing was preparing to eat you!”

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?”

“I JUST SAVED YOU!”

“FROM A HOUSE CAT?”

“FROM A FLERKEN!”

“A what?”

“That thing is not a cat, it’s a Flerken.”

“What is that?”

“An alien capable of taking any form and swallowing anything it wants to.”

“...Repeat that last part?”

“There have been rumors of a Flerken that once swallowed a small universe.”

“That is impossible.”

“Like having an alien symbiote live inside you that can heal any injury you have and which extends your lifespan considerably by virtue of being a compatible host?”

“...Fuck. Fine. We have a Flerken in the house. That could swallow us if it wanted.”

“It could swallow this whole building if it wanted.”

“That could swallow this building if it wanted. That you just threw into a wall. You knew what that thing was and you threw it into a wall. What if it is dead? What if it’s not. God Venom, you’re a dumbass for doing that.”

“Is that your way of thanking me?”

“No, that’s my way of calling you a dumbass.”

“I panicked.”

Eddie swallowed before approaching the corner of the room which boasted of a new dent in the wall. That was going to be a bitch to explain to his landlord. When he crossed the sofa that had been blocking his view, the cat was sitting on its hind paws, lickling one of its front paws without a care in the world.

“Good kitty, I am so sorry for my … Venom. He didn’t mean it. You didn’t mean it right V. V? Come on out. Tell the cat we are both very sorry.”

“No way!”

“V!” Eddie bit out.

Slowly, Venom’s head emerged over Eddie’s shoulder, looking as remorseful as it could. The cat- sorry Flerken had put down it’s paw and was now watching them intently.

“I’m sorry Flerken.” Venom said, tone filled with regret. Eddie wondered if the regret was for the action or for being stuck in this situation.

The Flerken tilted its head again before standing up and making its way to them. Both human and symbiote were rooted to the spot as the alien circled their feet before standing and bracing itself against Eddie’s legs.

Exhaling calmly, Eddie bent down to pick up the cat, trying to hold it as far as it could from him. The Flerken let itself be picked up, seemingly aware of how much they were afraid of it.

Once Eddie was standing straight again, the cat - well it grinned. Eddie didn’t really know what else to call it, but it’s eyes looked almost pleased, as if it had been testing the two of them and they had passed. Whatever the reason, he almost felt like collapsing from the relief that coursed through him.

The cat then lifted a paw and gently swatted at Venom’s disembodied floating head, causing the symbiote to yell and try to back away, knocking Eddie off his feet and sending then all falling and landing in a pile on the floor.

“Owwww.” Eddie exclaimed as he sat up, rubbing a sore spot on his back where he had landed. So much for a symbiote cushion.

“Sorry Eddie.”

“Venom can you just come out. This cat is not going to hurt us.”

“Yes it will.”

“I think you’re wrong.” Eddie shifted to look at the cat on his chest that was still looking at them and not moving. “You’re not going to hurt us right?”

Well, Eddie could officially say he knew what a cat would look like with an exasperated look on its face.

“See, it’s not going to hurt us.”

Venom carefully emerged again, still hovering. The Flerken hopped off Eddie’s chest onto a distance about 5 feet from them before opening its mouth and -

 “OHMYGOD WE ARE GOINGTOBE EATEN BYANALIEN CAT!” Eddie screamed as he scrambled to back away from the TENTACLES that were coming out of the Flerken’s mouth.

“No wait, Eddie. Stop.” Venom said, sounding reasonable. Which what the hell, up until this point Venom is convinced they are going to be killed by this cat and the moment when it seems like that act is going to happen, he is suddenly chill? What gives?

Without waiting for a reply, Venom masked Eddie, and leisurely put out tendrils of his own. Then the two met in the middle and did this almost weird dance thing before they came back to normal.

“What the fuck?”

“We are cool now Eddie.”

“What. The. Fuck?”

“Me and the Flerken made an agreement.”

“What?”

“You are being repetitive again.”

“Venom, I am confused. Explain.”

“The Flerken asked if it could stay with us for a while. I said ok.”

“That is not an explanation.”

“It doesn’t matter. All you need to know is that it will be staying with us a couple weeks until its friend comes back for it. And it wants us to call it Goose.”

“When did all this communication happen?”

“During our tentable handshake.”

“Tenta- you know what. I’m too tired for this. Just tell it to stay out of the bedroom. I am going to bed.

“Goodnight Goose!” Venom called back, sounding stupidly cheery.

Eddie wanted this all to be over.

---

The weeks they had with Goose were surprisingly normal, the cat stayed out of their way for the most part, just following them out when they went on patrols, and on one memorable occasion when it ate a drug dealer that had kept shooting at Venom.

Venom had been annoyed at the missed meal.

The other memorable occasion was when Anne came by and found out the cat wasn’t a cat.

She had been rightfully angry. And scared. She had forgiven them eventually though. Thank god. They would be lost without her.

---

Eddie was almost sad when they came back from the apartment at the end of three weeks of cohabiting with a Flerken to an open window and a note thanking them for taking care of Goose, signed on the bottom by a M. Rambeau and an orange cat paw print.

Eddie had to buy a large chocolate box to console Venom who had grown surprisingly attached to the Flerken he had been terrified of. Eddie hoped they got to see Goose again. He had grown fond of the cat too, damn it.

… What even was his life that he was missing an alien with the ability to swallow universeres that almost tried to eat him too.

Maybe he should go visit that therapist friend of Anne’s…

 THE END

[johnboothus]

Nick Jonas and John Varvatos on Fashion Friendship and the Future of Villa One Tequila

It’s not unusual to see collaborations between creative people. In fact, put creatives in a room and often sparks happen from a simple conversation. That’s exactly what happened when iconic men’s fashion designer John Varvatos met worldwide pop star Nick Jonas at a party a few years ago. The two hit it off, bonded over music and fashion, and a friendship began. Then they put it to work.

Their first two projects under the JV x NJ label — a Varvatos capsule collection including leather jackets and knitwear that was followed by a cologne — debuted in 2018. Wanting to continue working together, they thought about their next venture. Clearly, a natural next step was tequila. So, as any pair of celebrities interested in creating a new tequila brand does, this duo spent time in Jalisco, Mexico. They partnered with the Stoli Group’s Fabrica de Tequilas Finos distillery, where they worked with Stoli’s master distiller Arturo Fuentes, who has three decades of distilling experience. He applied his chemical engineering background to making quality spirits, first working with Cognac, Champagne, and rum — eventually focusing on premium tequila in 2000.

In Tequila, they worked with Fuentes to perfect a taste profile that embodied the vibe of what became the brand’s tagline, “Life as it should be.” After the emotional rollercoaster of a year that we’ve collectively experienced, isn’t that something we should all embrace? Sipping a glass of quality tequila, dreaming of life as it should be — why not?

In late October 2019, Villa One launched first in New York, followed by Illinois, California, and Florida with silver, reposado, and añejo bottlings. Since then, it has earned a number of awards and accolades including the SIP Awards 2020 Platinum, Silver, and Double Gold medals for its silver, reposado, and añejo, respectively. Today, Villa One has national distribution in stores, online, and in restaurants. The brand also recently entered the Canadian market.

Here, we talk with Varvatos and Jonas about how they got into tequila, where they see the future of Villa One heading, and Jonas’s new obsession with, of all things, checkers.

1. What’s the drink that made you fall in love with drinking?

Varvatos: I was traveling in Mexico in college and fell in love with Margaritas. It actually really turned me on to tequila in a time where most people thought it was fire water if it wasn’t covered up with mixes.

Jonas: I think a great glass of wine is always wonderful, and was kind of the first introduction I had to the brilliant craftsmanship that goes into creating something like a wonderful wine or tequila.

2. How did you meet and become friends?

Varvatos: We met at a dinner in New York and talked for hours. The next day, we got together to listen to some of Nick’s new music and we knew that day that we would become fast friends and collaborators.

3. How or why did you get into tequila — and so much so that you wanted to launch your own brand together?

Varvatos: I’ve loved tequila for most of my drinking life. Every time Nick and I were together, we shared our love for tequila and were inspired to create an ultra-premium tequila that was best in class, but still accessible in price.

Jonas: I was first drawn to tequila because of the low-carb, sugar, and calorie intake — as a diabetic and a person that cares about fitness and trying to keep a lower calorie count. Then, I learned more about the way it was made and distilled — and then we worked with Arturo Fuentes, our master distiller; he taught us a lot along the way that got us even more interested.

4. What did you like most about the process to create Villa One? What was the hardest part about it?

Varvatos: I loved everything about the process, from growing and harvesting the agave, to the cooking and distilling; but most of all, creating a super-smooth, unique taste profile. I truly enjoyed learning everything we could about tequila.

Jonas: I think the best part about creating this tequila was getting to work with my good friend, John Varvatos, and bringing to life the vision we had based on a few conversations about what we wanted this brand to represent. Obviously, the biggest piece of that puzzle was making sure we did our best to be top of class. Each bottle was made with a lot of care, focus, and attention to detail. The hardest part about the process was just getting the liquid right. We went through about an 18-month process, back and forth between where John was in New York and I was in Los Angeles, and obviously our distillery, and getting the blend just right, to where we were all very happy — and I think we got there.

5. Your tequila is great for straight-up sipping neat, or on the rocks, but also for cocktails. What’s your preferred style? And what’s your go-to cocktail, with which of your tequilas?

Varvatos: My preferred style are simple drinks. I love the taste of our tequila and don’t want to mask it.

Jonas: I love it neat. That’s the purest form, obviously, but during lockdown I got really into making cocktails and making recipes. One of my favorite things was using our silver for a Bloody Maria or a Spicy Margarita. Also, infusing some chocolate bitters into the reposado and añejo to pull out the great chocolate notes.

6. What’s your desert island drink?

Varvatos: Villa One Reposado with a slice of orange and fresh-squeezed lime. Simple, delicious, refreshing, and healthy!

Jonas: Villa One Reposado on the rocks, club soda, and an orange wedge.

7. What do you like to drink when you’re not drinking tequila?

Varvatos: Other than tequila, I like to drink sake.

Jonas: When I’m not drinking tequila, I like wine or beer. Those are my primary drinks outside of tequila, and the occasional mezcal as well.

8. What’s the best and worst bottle in your fridge, bar, or kitchen right now?

Varvatos: I have a bottle of Hakkaisan sake that I had with my grilled salmon last night. Superb!

9. You’re both pretty famous, but what’s something interesting or quirky most people don’t know about you — like a trait or something you’re interested in culturally?

Jonas: I recently got really into checkers and I have an app on my phone that is basically teaching me along the way. I’ve been really loving to get to know more about that; it’s an incredibly tricky game, and complex. But when you play it with friends, you also get to know a lot about the person you are playing with.

10. What’s the best thing that happened to you during Covid quarantine?

Varvatos: The silver lining for me was spending the most quality time ever with my family.

Jonas: I think the best thing that happened was just getting to spend more time with my wife [actress Priyanka Chopra] and our dogs. Being forced to stay home opened up a lot of pathways for me creatively in the music space — and also screenwriting and [other] things I’m doing there.

11. I want to flip things on you:

John, rock ’n’ roll has inspired your designs and you clearly are a music fan. What’s the best concert you’ve ever seen and why?

Varvatos: Best concert was when I was in college and saw Led Zeppelin. Their music and fashion sense truly had an effect on [my] creative senses that lasts until this day.

And Nick, you’re a musician, but also known for your fashion. What’s a piece of clothing you can’t part with or that evokes a special memory and why?

Jonas: I think for me, clothing is all about feeling confident and feeling your best. For me a great suit has a lot of sentimental value; if I wore it to an event, time with friends or family, those can be really meaningful memories.

12. What does the future look like for Villa One? Any special barrel aging or introducing a mezcal?

Varvatos: We are just in the beginning and approaching our second year, but it’s been terrific so far. So, the next step is creating some limited-edition unique barrel-aged runs.

Jonas: The future looks very bright. We’re so excited about the early fan base we have cultivated just having launched about a year and a half ago. The people who have tried it really love it and we’re so excited to continue to grow that and see more and more people make Villa One their top choice.

The article Nick Jonas and John Varvatos on Fashion, Friendship, and the Future of Villa One Tequila appeared first on VinePair.

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[growinstablog]

10 Instagram Predictions to Fire-up Your Strategy for 2020

As we close out December, it’s time for our favorite blog post of the year — and it’s all about Instagram predictions for 2020! 

To help you kick off January with a supercharged Instagram strategy, we’re giving you the low down on all the biggest trends to watch for the next year, and beyond.  

We’re sharing insights from the Instagram pros and industry experts in our top 10 Instagram predictions for 2020: 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #1: Words Will Be More Powerful than Images

Instagram used to be all about the visuals — a cohesive aesthetic, high-quality photography, and on-brand images were a must. 

And while you still need to be thinking about your grid in 2020, we’re seeing Instagram captions take center stage! 

Influencers were the first to jump on the trend — Jenna Kutcher, Elise Darma, Quigley Goode, and Sarah Nicole Landry of @thebirdspapaya all share lengthy captions on their posts to give greater insight into their world or to share their knowledge. 

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6 years ago right before thanksgiving I began my weight loss journey. So when thanksgiving hit, I “fasted” all day (which for me was not a health choice but a way to avoid eating, justified with a wellness word) so I could fit all the calories into one meal. I stared at the food like I was completely crippled by it all. But I didn’t binge eat. I just plugged the food into my app and tried not to cry. ⁣ ⁣ By the next thanksgiving, I’d lost about 80lbs. I looked at thanksgiving food like it was BENEATH me. I was thinner. I was powerful. No cheesecake would take me down. I was in control. ⁣ ⁣ Fast forward some life lessons. ⁣ ⁣ Until now. This thanksgiving. I ate as I would during the day. I enjoyed thanksgiving dinner like I would any other meal. I stopped eating when I was full. I celebrated the post-food bloat without guilt. Because this is just what the body does after it eats (hang out with a toddler and you’ll notice theirs does the same). ⁣ ⁣ I felt present yesterday. I didn’t count the calories. I didn’t panic over eating mashed potatoes. Upon hearing the birthday cake was gluten and dairy free, I had some! ⁣ ⁣ Holidays and food are really hard when you have disordered eating, food fear or body fear, or simply recovering from years of dieting. ⁣ ⁣ I guess I just wanna remind you (and myself) that it’s ok if you don’t get it right. If you binged. If you restricted. This isn’t something you suddenly just understand or unlearn or relearn in a day or a year. ⁣ ⁣ Sometimes, like hiccups, you just notice that suddenly it’s not happening anymore. You’re not counting the calories. You’re not obsessing over the food around you but the PEOPLE around you instead. You enjoy the moments, you take in the memories. And while food is the centre piece of it all, it’s not the purpose anymore. It’s not your why. ⁣ ⁣ This weekend I’m reminded of the power in choosing gratitude. For my body. For my moments. For my people. So much to be thankful for. I have no need to pick it apart anymore. Celebrating victories, and the failures that taught us so much, too.

Later chatted to Sarah Nicole of @thebirdspapaya on how she naturally started to integrate long-form captions into her Instagram feed: 

“The last couple of years have brought about a new way of me using Instagram as my creative outlet,” Sarah Nicole explains. 

“I had always been posting in a “photo first’ way, which often led me to feel frustrated with not knowing what to say. So I reversed it. I started writing mini-blog captions in the moments I was feeling them.” 

Sarah Nicole added that by switching her thought process to “caption first, and image second,” it allowed her to be more journalistic in her approach, while being able to share more vulnerable and authentic moments of her life with her followers. 

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The world of social media can be so funny to me sometimes. We see iconic landmarks and pretty photo ops just swarmed with people ready to take their pic and post it. ⁣ ⁣ And it feels like it’s all a little over the top. ⁣ ⁣ But remember when you were a child and your mom would ask you to stand in front of a landmark or a pretty flower garden? She took that photo and she put it in a book, sealed behind a plastic static cover. She showed it to her friends, had it on the coffee tables, on the shelves to stay forever. We looked back on them for years. The markers of our childhood. ⁣ ⁣ Then we grew up. The photo albums, they got digital. The sharing became in social media. Sure, a lot of it got vain. ⁣ ⁣ But never forget, these are still our memories and our albums. And it’s ok to take the picture, to post it, and remember it. Not all of us are doing it for status. Some of us just want to freeze a moment in time. For the days that memories won’t serve us so easily, anymore. 💕

“I think we are craving human connection more and more,” she notes. “When someone else feels connected to something, they want to share it! So the combination of longer-form posts, and the ability for others to share those posts on Instagram Stories, helped me grow organically.” 

And micro-blogging in captions has really paid off for Sarah Nicole — over the last year, @thebirdspapaya account has grown from 80k to 740k followers! 

But brands are now starting to take advantage of the trend too — especially when it comes to raising awareness for the causes that they stand for. 

Take, for example, sustainable clothing brand and environmental activists, Patagonia. As part of their campaign to highlight the issues around fish farming, Patagonia released an IGTV and film series that discusses the challenges the environment faces: 

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Tasmania is regarded as one of the wildest, most pristine states in Australia. In recent years however that reputation has been tarnished by the boom of the local salmon farming industry. With environmental regulations struggling to keep pace with the industry’s growth, the marine environments that host the industry have been significantly impacted and in some cases have approached collapse. Increased scrutiny of the industry – aided by the mobile nature of ocean pen farming – has forced operators to find new locations. When the industry set their sights on opening up new territory on neighboring King Island – adjacent to the world-class waves of Martha Lavinia Beach – they were unaware they were also picking a fight with surfers worldwide. Join the King Island community in saying NO to farmed salmon and keep King Island fish farm free.@patagonia_surf

Along with sharing a preview of their IGTV video “Saving Martha,” Patagonia also gave insight into their mission and why they need their followers’ support. 

And while you might be thinking that a longer caption might impact engagement rates, you’d be right — but only in a positive way! 

According to influencer research by Fohr, the average caption length has more than doubled since 2016, and those with longer captions got the most engagement! 

And by 2020, our feeds will be filled with an average caption length of 405 characters — which averages out to be 65-70 words!

Not sure what that looks like? Check out how Knix has nailed the perfect caption length with the help of a strong call to action to watch their stories and a nod to a cute cultural moment that their target audience would love! 

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We’re reimagining what it means to be strong, beautiful and badass through ads all over our hometown of Toronto! This morning Team Knix along with @nikkileighmckean, @thebirdspapaya (who rode her first EVER streetcar) and our founder and CEO @joannaknix took to the streets to have our very own Carrie Bradshaw billboard moment👡👛 Check out our stories today to see what we got up to! *hums the Sex and the City theme song on a loop* #knix

Now we’re not saying that every caption has to be thousands of words long, but even writing a full sentence instead of just a few emojis could help you increase Instagram engagement.

Looking for tips and tricks on how to craft the perfect Instagram caption? Check out our free video workshop with Instagram pro Elise Darma and Taylor from Later! 

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #2: IGTV Will Be All About Series Content 

Video is the future of Instagram and a ton of brands are now creating long-form video content for IGTV to drive real business results.

IGTV is super-immersive and, thanks to some recent changes, more closely connected to Instagram so it’s easy to align your Instagram audience with your IGTV content. If you haven’t already, it’s time to jump on board the trend!

But the beauty of IGTV over Instagram Stories videos is that your content can be housed there for as long as you like, making it the perfect setup for a branded video series! 

According to Jon Youshaei, Product Marketing Manager of IGTV, Instagram is building an entire destination right in the Instagram app for people to go and browse. 

“We’ve seen so many people go to this destination and find new content,” Jon says. 

For viewers, this means that they can intentionally browse and pick a video when they’re in the mood to really engage and pay attention.

So our top prediction for IGTV in 2020 is that brands will start using it as a platform for serial content. 

To take advantage of this trend, Jon recommends having a “repeatable theme and style that your audience can expect in every episode.” 

Take Jameela Jamil’s “I Weigh” interview series where the actor interviews celebrities about mental health, body positivity, and more:

Later’s social media strategist, Mel Brittner explains that IGTV is about finding the right format to draw your audience in. 

“IGTV is immersive in a very different way to Instagram Stories — you’re not being asked to scroll for more, tap for the next post or swipe up!” Mel explains. 

“It’s just a ‘sit back and relax situation’, which leaves a huge area of opportunity to build brand affinity.” 

But to make that work, you’ll need to make your videos engaging right off the mark — and that takes testing to figure out what works for your audience in terms of length, topics, and format. 

“If you can find the right IGTV format for your brand, you’ll soon have your audience hooked onto your series!” says Mel. 

Take a look at Lululemon’s Boob Truths series:

The video series features weekly segments on a single topic (how to find the perfect sports bra fit!), and is cohesive in terms of set and format. 

Plus, with the use of the Countdown sticker in Instagram Stories to promote the launch of each new episode, the execution was nothing short of “IGTV genius,” says Mel. 

So if you’re thinking about launching your first IGTV series in 2020, now’s the time to start strategically planning. Consider what your audience wants to learn, or see more of from your profile, and how you can better serve them through video content. 

And don’t worry about budget — Mel explains that some of the best videos series out there are filmed on a low budget, but hook people in with some clever editing thanks to apps like LumaFusion and InShot! 

Want to learn more about building the perfect IGTV strategy for 2020? Get all the insider tips from Jon Youshaei, Product Marketing Manager of IGTV when we chatted to him at LaterCon! 

P.S. We have some very exciting IGTV projects up our sleeve for 2020 — follow Later on Instagram to be the first to know! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #3: Brands Will Favor Partnerships with Micro-Influencers 

Instagram influencer partnerships are by far the best performing platform for brands to reach new audiences quickly. 

With an average 3.2% engagement rate compared to 1.5% across all social networks, having a strong influencer campaign strategy is a real asset to brands looking to grow on Instagram. 

So more than ever before, we’re seeing brands and businesses investing a high portion of their budgets to influencer marketing — simply because, when done right, it works!

Even mega-beauty brand, Estee Lauder recently announced that they will allocate 75% of their marketing budget to influencer marketing over the next year!

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How do you wear confidence? For me I have the confidence that my @esteelauder Double Wear foundation is going to stay on the entire day and I have all the time to enjoy the festivities without worrying about touchups, even when it’s hot and humid. With 40+ plus shades to choose from, you can find your shade of flawless! In this look I created a day time look that you could wear during Durga Puja and I hope you guys love it! #WEARCONFIDENCE #DoubleWear #ESTEEINDIA #ESTEEPARTNER

But for 2020, we’re expecting to see much stronger partnerships between brands and micro-influencers! 

Why? Because after influencer marketing platform, Fohr analyzed influencers’ posts, it’s was micro-influencers who had the highest engagement rates (averaging at 7%) on their feed posts in 2019! 

In fact, influencers with

Instagram influencer, Christina Galbato, who has worked with brands like the Las Vegas tourism board, Mazda USA, and Olay, agrees that brands will be more open to working with micro-influencers this coming year. 

“Brands will increase their focus on working with micro-influencers,” Christina explains.

“Oftentimes a micro-influencer’s connection with their communities is much stronger!” 

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umm… can all of my deliveries arrive like this one from @Olay?? i am always looking out for the best skincare products to share with you all, so i am too excited to incorporate the uber-hydrating #Olay Whips Moisturizer into my Fall & Winter routine! go check out my Stories to see how surprised I was by this packaging situation – soooo fun. 🎈 #FeelTheWhip #Sponsored

Art director, Erin Summer agrees that with a better engagement rate, and loyal community, micro-influencer marketing is a good strategy for brands in 2020. 

“I think now is the best time ever to connect with influencers,” Erin advises. 

“Look for the influencer who consistently gets lots of meaningful comments on their posts. In my opinion, that’s the best way to determine whether or not an audience is actually engaging with the content as opposed to likes or followers.”

Ready to jump into level-up your influencer strategy for 2020? We teamed up the Fohr to create this data-driven (and totally free!) State of Instagram Influencer Marketing Report! Sign up below and we’ll send it straight to your inbox! 

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #4: Authenticity Will Lead the Way for Brands and Influencers

Authentic content was a major trend for 2019 — and it’s set to become even stronger in 2020! We’re seeing tons of brands and businesses getting on board and showing a more honest, real, and vulnerable side to their brand and business. 

A high level of authenticity can go a long way in building a stronger connection to your audience. When you can showcase the good with the bad, the struggles along with the wins, you brand will be more relatable to your audience. 

Take for example Jen Gotch. Founder of the ultra-popular Ban.do, Jen shared an honest post about mental health and the unfair protocol of emotional professionalism: 

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This is me after a real Big Cry at ban.do a few years ago right after Andrew moved back to Australia. In thinking back, I realized I’ve cried at every job I’ve ever had and even now there is still a little bit of embarrassment and shame associated with it. As someone who now helps run a company I am dedicated to creating a space where it is safe to express your emotions, but I know that expressing any emotion that brings us to tears (pain, sadness, grief, overwhelm and yes, joy) can still be very awkward when done at work (or any public space for that matter). I came up with the idea for International I Cry at Work Day to reduce the stigma around public expressions of emotions – and hey, maybe not publicly flailing your arms around screaming (been there) or sobbing uncontrollably while shouting obscenities in the middle of your office (been there) – but feeling our feelings without being mortified or even worse, worrying that our professional performance and emotional stability we will be judged. I post pictures like this and cry on my IG stories to normalize something that every human experiences in an effort to say, “it’s ok to cry.” And also to expose people to a range of emotions, because I recognize for many they have been trained personally and professionally to operate with very little range. I hope it helps. I’m happy to see you joining me (and @shopbando ) today in sharing your experiences and eternally grateful for your support in the personal risks I take in a public space. #InternationalICryAtWorkDay 🤗🥴😥😐🙂🙃🤣

Off the back of this, Ban.do then created a slogan tee to mark their now annual celebration of “International Cry at Work Day” — an ode to all the times we’ve needed to shed a tear in the office, and raise awareness for mental health charities in the US. 

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Good morning from this picture of @anastasia.furrow in our I Cry at Work shirt making us wish it was jacket weather in Los Angeles 📷 @nataliemeansnice

Authenticity was once exclusively linked to the Instagram aesthetic, with the no-edit edit trends piquing interest. 

But the authentic aesthetic expands well beyond a pretty filter in 2020. Hayley Zielke, Marketing Coordinator at Artifacts Uprising (a Later customer!) explains that as a brand, their mission is to share images that are beautiful and inspiring, but most importantly, it’s about telling a story. 

“Artifacts Uprising created the hashtag #TellOn to be a space where our community could share their stories and connect with other storytellers,” Hayley says. 

And when it comes to curating their feed from the ~400k posts tagged with the branded hashtag, Hayley stresses that it goes beyond the photo quality. 

“Yes, we look out for color, brightness, and clarity. But truly we look for images that remind us of all there is to be grateful for — everyday moments, that view from your office window, that trip that you’ve dreamed of for years…” 

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“Here, instead of strapping on their street shoes for Black Friday shopping, they would take their hiking boots to White River National Forest in search of the perfect tree… ⁠ ⁠ Maybe this tradition-worth-waiting-for has made me a holiday person after all.” – @lauraschmalstieg⁠ ⁠ Discover 10 ways we embrace holiday traditions as our own → link in bio

So for 2020, having an authentic voice and mission is more important than following the “filtered” crowd. 

“That has been a focus of ours the past few years,” Hayley says. “How can we [Artifacts Uprising] highlight every kind of experience — the imperfect and all? Because ‘aesthetic’ is what you make it and connection is what really matters.”

Want to know more about where the Instagram aesthetic is headed in 2020? Check out this blog post as we predict the trends that will shape Instagram’s future! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #5: Brand x Brand Collaborations Will Seriously Pay Off 

There’s a new type of collaboration in town, and this one is set to be big for 2020. 

Brands are now collaborating with other brands on Instagram to create quality content that drives traffic, boosts sales and creates a perfect marriage of brand affinity for each! 

Think Alfred Coffee x Ritual to create Instagram-ready coffee cup sleeves: 

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Life in LA is telling yourself that ordering a Chagaccino and a Matcha counts towards your daily vegetable goal. Reality check: it doesn’t. So order your drink, take your @ritual and we won’t tell 😉 #AlfredxRitual #AlfredCoffee

We chatted to Jess Ruhfus, founder of Collabosaurus, a marketing tool that connects brands for clever collaborations and partnership, for her insights on the trends. 

“Brand-by-brand collaborations can be incredibly powerful,” says Jess. 

“In our experience, a brand-by-brand partnership can double your organic reach without any monetary spend. And they’re up to 25x less expensive than digital advertising!” 

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➖Goats cheese collaborates *real* well with avocado toast. But is that the same thing?⁣ ⁣ The word ‘collaboration’ gets thrown around a lot. It has so many uses! It’s used with inter-team collaborations, influencer collaborations, ‘collaborations’ that are just straight up advertising, it’s used in those creepy LinkedIn DM’s from complete strangers wanting to ‘collaborate’ to bring you 10000000 followers for $10 and “top rank on google guaranteed” 😂⁣ ⁣ & then there are brand collaborations (oh hii!)⁣ ⁣ When we (at Collabosaurus) are talking collaborations, we are NOT referring to influencers, teams, advertising or creepy LinkedIn DM’s. ⁣ ⁣ We’re talking about complementary brands teaming up for a clever marketing campaign.⁣ ⁣ Think Thankyou x Sarah Kelk, Hey Tiger x Go-To Skincare, Coachella x Calvin Klein, Gorman x so many talented artists – the list goes on!⁣ ⁣ Brand collaborations happen (usually) as one of the following…⁣ ⁣ ✨ SOCIAL MEDIA. Content collaborations, or competitions & giveaways are where it’s at here!⁣ ⁣ ✨ EVENTS. Goodie bag inclusions, venue partners, or promotional partners for events, activations & experiential are awesome collabs⁣ ⁣ ✨ PRODUCTS. Two brands teaming up on a limited edition product release (Chandon x Seafolly, a great example), or Online Products can also fly. Podcasts, ebooks, courses, downloads – if you’re a service based business this is an awesome avenue to explore.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ So if you’re getting any creepy LinkedIn DM’s with the word ‘collaboration’ – we’re pretty positive they’re not talking about the same thing. Unless… the creepy DM is from Jess (in which case, say hi!)

The Collabosaurus team has managed 6,500+ partnership opportunities for brands like ASOS, Sofitel, Red Bull and Topshop, and have seen first-hand how creative collaborations can be.  

Take, for example, Kit Kat’s collaboration with fashion brand, The Daily Edited. 

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TDE x KITKAT Chocolatory ultimate fashion collaboration. Personalised jewellery box, pouch or card wallet- each paired with decadent creations! 🍫 in store & online – link in bio 😍

“At first glance, this would look like quite a bizarre collaboration for the two brands,” Jess says. 

“But it’s getting a lot of attention! It has helped Kit Kat tap into a fashion-focussed crowd, with TDE being well positioned to align with such a well known brand. It’s creative, unexpected and has not only seen fabulous Instagram engagement, but media exposure as well!” 

So what does this mean for Instagram influencers? 

What’s important to remember is that influencer marketing and brand x brand collaborations are two very different strategies for success. 

“For brand-to-brand collaborations, it’s all about leveraging what you have available to you in your business,” Jess says. 

“Businesses, as opposed to individual influencers, have more than just an Instagram account in their bank of assets. Therefore, any collaboration you do together can be leveraged across many social platforms, email lists, event audiences, blogs, media, and so much more.” 

With this in mind, we’re expecting to see tons more creative brands come together to produce engaging content specifically for Instagram! 

Still not convinced? Check out this co-built project by Mailchimp and Vice — even without a physical product to sell, the brands have successfully teamed up to create content that appeals to both audiences and shares an important message that’s perfect for Instagram’s video-rich platform: 

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In this unscripted series co-produced with @vice, we follow five people who decided to change everything about their careers and try something new. It’s Second Act—only on @mailchimppresents . Click the link in the bio to watch their journeys.

Instagram Predictions 2020 #6: AR Filters Are Here to Stay 

Thanks to the launch of Spark Studio AR, we’re seeing a new wave of creators using the studio to create “preset style” filters to edit Instagram Stories.

From fall shades, to perfect replicas of VSCO’s most popular presets, there’s now an Instagram filter to suit your mood: 

For 2020, we’re predicting that a lot of Instagram users will step away from the classic Paris or Oslo filters and start using more sophisticated AR-inspired filter. 

Plus brands and influencers will start creating AR filters for their followers — making it even easier to spread the trend far and wide. 

Check out how travel influencer Angela Giakas from Sunday Chapter jumped on the trend by creating her own “Rose” filter for Instagram: 

She’s even gone on to create a second filter for her followers after the welcome response from her first release! 

If a branded AR filter is in your sights for 2020, you’ll need to do a little bit of research, says Angela. 

“Before you jump into design, consider your target market and what you think will appeal to them. Brainstorm a concept or idea that you think your audience will love, and then start bringing it to life!”

From here, it’s time to get to know Spark Studio AR. 

“It’s not something you can learn overnight,” Angela warns. “Even with prior visual graphics knowledge, it took us a really long time to understand the tools for creating augmented reality. It can feel very overwhelming, so try to keep your ideas simple at the start!” 

That said, Facebook has created tons of online resources including YouTube tutorials to help new designers, or can outsource your project to AR creators via Facebook’s Spark AR partners page to create your filters instead!

And that’s not all — AR filters are now helping people shop with Instagram! 

As reported by Vogue, Scandinavian retailer Carlings is using Instagram to create a digital shopping experience for their followers and fans. 

After creating a sold-out digital clothing collection last year, Carlings has now released the €40 “Last Statement” T-shirt — the logo triggers various designs that appear on Instagram through augmented reality filters! 

When you point the Instagram camera at the T-shirt, a Carlings design appears in the camera screen — it changes and moves along with the camera and the person. 

“This allows the customer to digitally wear and share new designs without buying a new T-shirt,” says Morten Grubak, Northern Europe executive creative director for Virtue, an agency that led the project.

So it’s an exciting time for Instagram and AR Filters — and it’s only set to get bigger in 2020. Watch this space! 

Want to learn more about how brands can use AR filters? Check out our blog post for 8 inspirational ways to use the trend! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #7: Instagram Shopping Will be Bigger Than Ever 

From shoppable AR filters, to one-click in-app purchases, Instagram Shopping is about to become big businesses for all brands on the platform. 

Every month, 130 million people tap on an Instagram shopping post to learn more about products.

For businesses, Instagram shopping posts are a great way to showcase your products and drive more sales. 

Especially now, thanks to 2019’s new Instagram checkout feature, which lets you buy products *directly* on Instagram without ever leaving the app!

But it doesn’t stop there — Instagram has recently invited a select few publishing brands to test the platform as an e-commerce tool. 

As reported by Digiday, “publishers like Group Nine, Condé Nast and Highsnobiety are testing Instagram Shopping as a way to combine their large Instagram followings with their burgeoning e-commerce operations.”

Since it’s acceptance into the test group, Group Nine has been selling Dodo-branded merch, and a collaboration between The Dodo and direct-to-consumer brand Sock Club. Plus, 10% of sales is donated to help critically endangered species. 

ICYMI: Brand x brand collaborations are going to be BIG on Instagram in 2020! 

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Rhinos & Elephants & Orangutans, oh my! 🦏🐘🐒 Have YOU snagged a pair of our @thedodo collection socks yet? 🍃 Fun Fact: 10% of sales go to saving the animals on these socks! Also, get them at a discounted price during our store Sale (which ends tomorrow at 11:59pm CST!) 💚 . . .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #thedodo #dodoxsockclub #collab #animalrescue #sockclub #givesockclub #socks #socksofinstagram #sockhead #sockgame #customer #customsocks #customswag #businesscasual #austin #atx #orangutan #elephant #sloth #rhino #tiger #seaturtles #conservation #awionline #conservationorg #sheldricktrust

Laura Cranfield, social media manger at Lush, told us that for 2020, the cruelty-free skincare brand is looking to better understand the role Instagram plays in their audience’s purchasing journey.

“We want to provide our audience with content that helps them with where they’re at in the funnel. This means not only creating content to drive purchase (though that’s always a great result), we try our best to share our brand stories, elevate the voices of our staff and partners, and educate our audience on our products,” Laura says.

But you don’t have to be accepted into the Instagram test group to optimizing your posts for shopping! 

Just start by taking the first steps to be an approved retailer with Instagram, and then you can begin creating awesome posts with tagged products for easier Instagram shopping for your followers!

Want to learn more about Instagram Shopping? Check out our ultimate guide to help you every step of the way — from setup to first sale! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #8: Get Ready for More User-Generated Content on Feeds and Stories 

User-generated content (UGC) is a killer asset for brands and businesses looking to grow online. 

UGC is an affordable way to share high-quality content that generates sales for your brand — it’s the social media equivalent of a word-of-mouth recommendation! 

In fact, 55% of consumers trust user-generated content over any other form of marketing, making it a surefire way to boost your sales and improve brand loyalty. 

And incorporating UGC into your 2020 strategy doesn’t have to be complicated — it can be as simple as an influencer tagging a product in an Instagram Stories post, or a YouTube beauty tutorial featuring a brand’s new collection. 

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Was not ready for that cold breeze that literally swept the soul out of me. 😩😩 But worth it cause I’m kind of obsessed with this croptop, denim outfit from @americanvintage_officiel, 😍 . . . . . . .. . . . …. . . . . . . . … . . . … . . . . . . … . … . . . #fblogger #fashionblogger #americanvintage #fallfashion #falltrends #fallootd #melaninmagic #melanin #blackgirlswhoblog #blackgirlskillingit #paris #parisfashionblogger #paris #denim #canadiantuxedo #happy #trendy #stylish #color #fashion #style

But regardless of its form, user-generated content has a big pay off for brands and business, with some seriously impressive benefits like: 

Easy gathering and sharing of genuine reviews

Building a loyal fan base and community around your brand

Driving visitors to your site with a strong intent to purchase 

Generating an affordable marketing stream

Brands like Daniel Wellington, Whole Foods, Mejuri, Glossier, and Airbnb have successfully grown their following and their business using user-generated content on Instagram! 

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When you can choose which white-sand beach to go to based on your mood, you might be in the right place. Superhost Dee’s tiny house between the bustling Pensacola Beach and the more secluded Navarre Beach is perfectly situated for long days of sandcastle building and seashell hunting. You can also take the included bikes out for a tour around the peninsula or explore by kayak from a nearby pier. Photo: @citrusdoor

So if you’re looking to grow your business (especially within younger demographics) UGC can seriously help skyrocket your sales and build true brand loyalty. 

In fact, UGC is so important when it comes to successfully marketing your business online, that Later has created some great tools and features to help you find, organize, and schedule user-generated content in minutes!

From easily finding content you’ve been tagged or mentioned in, to reposting content from your brand’s fans and loyal followers, Later has you covered!

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #9: Video Content Will Get a Serious Upgrade 

2019 has been the year for video upgrades — say goodbye to shaky camera work! 

With the popularly of Tiktok, and it’s ultra-easy-to-navigate but super-powered video editor, there’s a new standard set for videos on Instagram 

In fact, we shared a blog post on how your can hack the TikTok video editor or create awesome Instagram Stories for your feed! Check it out here! 

With IGTV, stories, and in-feed video taking off and boosting all round engagement, it’s easy to see why brands are moving to a more “video first” approach. 

Instagram influencer, Elizabeth Gilmore agrees, predicting that video content will continue to be king next year. 

“I’ve found the more authentic, in the moment, and less ‘curated’ the better. It keeps viewers more engaged and a stronger authenticity makes people feel more human and part of the action,” Elizabeth says. 

Christina Galbato told us she plans on adding video into her prodominately image-based Instagram strategy and encourages other influencers to do the same.

“Focus in on your unique niche and create related video content on IGTV — it’s a great way to engage your community on a deeper level and provide a ton of value,” she suggests. 

The good news is that you don’t need to be a professional videographer, or buy an expensive kit to create engaging video content for your Instagram profile. There are tons of great video editing apps that can help you.

From resizing your footage to adding animations, branded assets, and filters to your clips, we’ve got an app for you. And most of them are free!

Want to dive into video for 2020? Check out our round-up of our top video editing apps to help get you started! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #10: Brands Will Optimize on Data-Driven Content 

Audiences love two things — personalization, and data-driven information. And we think 2020 is going to be filled with both these things! 

Brandon Perlman, founder and CEO of Social Studies, Inc. explains that machine learning and personalized content isn’t going anywhere: 

“I foresee quite a bit more data-driven analyses and infographics being shared from real brand advocates, consumers, and fans,” Brian predicts. 

A great example of this is what Spotify launched in mid-December — “their Spotify Wrapped campaign was brilliant, informative, personal. utility-driven, custom, shareable, and just slick.” 

And the integration within the Spotify app to Instagram Stories was just flawless:

And remember when we mentioned brand x brand collaborations? Well, that trend will only strengthen the power of data-driven content on Instagram. 

Take for example Later’s collaboration with influencer marketing platform Fohr. By combining our resources and data, we were able to produce a stat-packed industry report for our users: 

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We’ve teamed up with the experts at 🔥 @fohr.co 🔥 for a deep dive into the current state of Instagram Influencer Marketing, with some serious data to back it all up. Future-proof your 2020 influencer strategy for instagram. 🔮⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ We’re answering all your questions, like:⁠⠀ ‣ Does engagement drop with sponsored posts? 🤔⁠⠀ ‣ What kind of engagement should you expect with macro and micro influencers?⁠⠀ ‣ Are hashtags still relevant, and do they really increase reach?⁠⠀ ‣ What’s the best caption length?⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ ⭐️ Free download: The State of Instagram Influencer Marketing (+ Free Report)⁣ 📊 ⁣⁠#fohryourinformation

Plus from our report, we were able to create some engaging graphic and super-shareable content for our feed and stories posts! 

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Instagram used to be all about the visuals, but now captions are taking the limelight! ✨ According to some serious data-mining from our friends @fohr.co, the average caption length has more than doubled since 2016. 📈 And by *2020, our feeds will be filled with an average caption length of 405 characters — which averages out to about 65-70 words. 😲 ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ And if you’re still reading this, well, case in point! 🎯⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ For 2020, we expect to see the long-form Instagram captions trend grow, with influencers turning to their feed posts to create mini-blog entries for their audience. Because these in-depth captions are successfully competing with bite-size snippets, it gives you are opportunity to tell a deeper story, have a follower spend a little time with you (which doesn’t hurt your odds with the algorithm), and get more personal to build👏that👏brand👏affinity! ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ Want more insight into all the juicy info @fohr.co dug up? 🍊 From changes in caption length and hashtags, to post frequency and which types of influencers get the best engagement, we’re revealing all in our State of Instagram Influencer Marketing Report. Did we mention it’s free? 💥⁠⠀

Even sponsored posts are taking a more data-focused route, like Create & Cultivate’s post promoting Microsoft365: 

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The ingredients to becoming an entrepreneur don’t always include a business degree. 👩‍🎓 We believe that true success comes from passion, hard work, and perseverance. 👊 And with resources like The Growth Center, you have information right at your fingertips to help you start, grow, and scale your business. 📈#Microsoft365 has a library of articles that contain information on productivity, tech, management tips and so much more! Make sure to visit The Growth Center by Microsoft 365 to start putting your ideas 💡 into action. #ad

So if you’re looking at how to level up your Instagram content in 2020, start brainstorming in how you can integrate hard data and fast facts into your feed and stories posts! 

As we kick off a new decade, Instagram is on track to be a powerful marketing assets for brands, businesses and influencers alike. 

And armed with these predictions and top trends, you can confidently start to strategize for the future and start hitting your 2020 goals! 

Don’t wait til the new year to get organized! Start planning, curating and scheduling you Instagram posts with Later — for free! 

  Like This Post? Pin It! 📌

https://growinsta.xyz/10-instagram-predictions-to-fire-up-your-strategy-for-2020/

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Wimbledon junior champion Noah Rubin on improving mental health in tennis

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/wimbledon-junior-champion-noah-rubin-on-improving-mental-health-in-tennis/

Wimbledon junior champion Noah Rubin on improving mental health in tennis

Noah Rubin (centre) has captured the stories of Grand Slam finalists Bianca Andreescu, Petra Kvitova and Madison Keys (top row), comedian Miranda Hart and LMFAO singer Redfoo (middle row), plus British players Heather Watson, Cameron Norrie and Katie Swan (bottom row)

Recently crowned US Open champion Bianca Andreescu speaks of “feeling worthless” as she struggled to cope with the attention of being a rising teenage star.

Former Grand Slam finalist Madison Keys reveals an eating disorder left her living off three low-calorie bars a day.

British player Katie Swan talks about the impact of her coach’s son falling through a glass window and needing life-saving surgery.

Mental health issues. Sexuality. Financial worries. Leaving home for the first time. Death.

American player Noah Rubin, the 2014 Wimbledon junior champion seeking to fulfil his promise on the ATP Tour, is giving his fellow professionals a platform to open up – whatever the subject.

His Behind The Racquet project, inspired by Humans of New York – a revealing photoblog of the city’s residents now tracked by millions of social media users worldwide, sees current players, former players and celebrity fans including British comedian Miranda Hart pose behind the strings of a racquet.

Accompanying the striking image is an emotive personal story.

“This has never really been done before, something that shows what these people, who are thought of as having perfect lives or doing really well because they are professional players, are really going through,” Rubin tells BBC Sport.

“You really get an understanding of what they’re going through on a day-to-day basis, what their thought process is, what their mentality is, how they are feeling, how their family is, just how difficult tennis is.”

Rubin, 23, is determined to influence change in a sport which he says is “very tough on the body and the mind”.

Belgian player Alison van Uytvanck, in a post published earlier this month, gives a candid insight into the low self-esteem she felt as a youngster when she was bullied at training camps because of her ginger hair.

“I never felt so alone, having no friends and unable to really talk to parents,” she says. “I had no-one to lean on for help and found myself crying in my room day after day.”

Rubin believes a fundamental overhaul of the game is needed to help improve the mental wellbeing of the players, while he also says more support pathways need to be opened up.

Improved access to psychologists and the creation of outreach programmes for youngsters, where a former professional is easily contactable to offer advice, is a key strategy outlined by Rubin.

“The seasons are way too long, the matches are too long, it is not fan-friendly, it is not promotable, it is not TV-friendly. There are so many issues,” Rubin says.

“I think we are a little scared of making true fundamental changes – but we have to.”

The ATP Tour’s 2020 season begins on 2 January with the newly launched ATP Cup, starting just six weeks after some of the world’s leading male players took part in the inaugural Davis Cup finals.

Top female players have a slightly longer break – the season-opening Brisbane International on 6 January comes two months after the WTA Finals finished.

While men’s five-set matches are now reserved for Grand Slams and the Olympic final, the length of matches has still prompted plenty of debate.

Tentative attempts to introduce shorter formats of the game have been made – notably with first-to-four-games sets at the ATP NextGen finals and the creation of the Tie Break Tens events, but are yet to break through on the main ATP and WTA Tours.

Uniform change is difficult, however, with seven governing bodies – the ITF, ATP, WTA and four Grand Slams – rarely pulling in the same direction.

“We’re at a time where we have to break down the sport of tennis, invest, take a hit for a year or two and bring the sport to a place to where it has never been before,” Rubin says.

The WTA says the health and safety of its players – physical and mental – are its “number one priority”.

“The WTA has a comprehensive sports science and medicine and athlete assistance support system in place, which is staffed by experienced and expert therapists within the WTA,” it said in a statement.

“The WTA provides extensive resources and education to [help] players manage the challenges professional athletes may face, such as performing under pressure, international travel, managing health, public scrutiny, public commentary and ‘growing up’ in the public eye.”

The WTA added that players can receive individual counselling and support if needed from qualified mental health care providers, both at WTA tournaments and remotely.

The ATP said it was “continually looking to build on its duty of care towards its players” and had recently carried out a review of this area with players, team members and industry experts.

In a statement, the ATP said: “Tournament physicians and physiotherapists on the ATP Tour are in continual contact with players and their support teams throughout the year. In cases where a player were to express psychological concerns, we have an infrastructure that would refer them to the appropriate consultant.

“In situations where ATP physios and tournament physicians are concerned about a player’s mental, emotional and psychological health, we would recommend that the player seek treatment and assist in the initiation of the appropriate care.”

‘I had dark times. This sport isn’t conducive to happiness’

Passionate, articulate and determined to influence change, Rubin speaks from the heart.

Around the time of this year’s French Open, he almost stopped playing a sport to which he has dedicated most of his life. As an 11-year-old, he was said to have been described as “one of the most talented players” fellow New Yorker John McEnroe had come across.

“I didn’t know whether I was going to stop for good or just some real time off. I was telling my family and friends that I just don’t want to play the sport any more,” Rubin remembers.

“I wasn’t happy – the sport isn’t conducive to happiness. I don’t know if I want to throw the word depressed around, but at moments I felt like that.

“I was really thinking this was the end and the last time I was going to hit a tennis ball competitively.”

What changed for the world number 212 was spending less time on court, addressing his work-life balance and rediscovering the fun which made him enjoy tennis in the first place.

Rubin moved back to New York from Florida, practised about an hour a day, and then qualified for Wimbledon where he missed out on a third-round meeting with Roger Federer by losing to British youngster Jay Clarke.

Rubin repeatedly makes it clear he still loves the sport, and believes a change of focus – he talks of his love for fashion and photography, as well as still having time for Netflix and HBO – can enable him to crack the world’s top 50 next year.

“I started to figure out that it is far more important to put happiness on a pedestal rather than spend eight hours on a court,” he concludes.

“I had dark times where I didn’t know if I was going to make it out as a tennis player.

“This world of Behind The Racquet has opened up my eyes, it has given me another passion and helped take some pressure of the world of tennis.

“Now I understand it is far more important to be happy.”

Rubin pauses as he recalls one story, which he says still gives him “chills”.

“It was Jolene Watanabe, who was a top-100 player and played in the Grand Slams in the 1990s. She had cancer, was in remission, and I thought she was going to make it.

“Then I got a message from her husband on Instagram saying ‘I just want you to know she is saying her final goodbyes right now and it would be very much appreciated if you could post her story’.

“To hear that they’re going through something where she’s not going to make it and he was thinking he wanted me to post her story on Behind The Racquet so people could know about it, be a part of it and inspire them… it leaves me speechless.

“To have that kind of impact was something I could not have fathomed, especially this early on, and that’s why I keep pushing on.”

Jolene Watanabe, who famously beat Jennifer Capriati at the 1997 Australian Open, had her story posted by Behind The Racquet on 2 May this year. She died on 22 June.

How it began… and what next?

It was during a sleepless night after arriving home from Australia that Rubin formulated the concept of Behind The Racquet.

After inspiration struck at 3am, he acquired the name of his new project on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Within three days he had posted for the first time.

Ten months later, Behind The Racquet has about 35,000 followers across the three platforms, along with a podcast and clothing range as Rubin aims to build the brand.

The next phase is already being worked on, with Rubin aiming to link-up with Talkspace, an online therapy platform which boasts legendary American swimmer Michael Phelps as an ambassador, and the National Association of Mental Illness, as he looks to set up mental health camps for players and perhaps film a docu-series.

Sharing the stories of the sport’s biggest names – Rubin hopes seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams and US Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev will feature before the end of the year – is another target.

“Not only are many in a sport where they can’t make money, they’re in a sport where you don’t win very often, so they’re combining failure on the court with failure financially,” Rubin says.

“What I’m really trying to do is pave a way for people that, in five or 10 years from now, are saying ‘this is better because of Behind The Racquet’.”

Noah Rubin launched Behind The Racquet with a post on 19 January where he revealed his “most daunting fear” was letting down family and friends

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[wineanddinosaur]

VinePair Podcast: VinePair’s 50 Best Beers Showcase Craft Beer’s Creativity and Resilience

One of the benefits of building a yearly Top 50 Beers list is that it can help provide some illumination about the various trends within the world of craft beer. In a trying and complicated year like 2020, that kind of clarity is even more valuable. That’s why on this week’s episode of the “VinePair Podcast,” Adam Teeter and Zach Geballe are joined by VinePair senior editor Cat Wolinski to break down that list.

Did a year mostly spent drinking at home mean that higher-ABV beers were even more popular? Were people looking for more indulgent and more premium beers? Did eye-catching can art make the difference between languishing on a grocery store shelf and being wildly successful? Adam, Zach, and Cat discuss those and other topics as they look both backward and forward at this inflection point in the craft beer industry.

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Adam: From Brooklyn, New York, I’m Adam Teeter.

Cat: From Manhattan, New York, I’m Cat Wolinski.

Zach: And in Seattle, Washington, I’m Zach Geballe.

A: And this is the “VinePair Podcast.” Cat, we’re thrilled to have you to co-host this week to talk to you about beer.

C: Thank you very much.

A: Yeah, but before we do, let’s talk about some wine. Are you aiming to cut back on calories and alcohol, but still want to enjoy a delicious glass of wine? Mind and Body Wines are your perfect solution. These low-calorie, low-alcohol wines are only 90 calories per serving and are vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO and made without added sugar. With Mind and Body Wines, you can sip without sacrifice. You can learn more at mindandbodywines.com. All right, guys, so what’s going on this week? What have we been drinking? I’m going to start and say I’ve been drinking nothing because I am doing a semi-dry January.

C: No, you are not!

Z: Yeah, this might be a boring segment, because that was going to be my answer. Well, I do have something to talk about, but yes, I always take January off.

C: Traitors!

Z: Hey, let’s be careful using that term these days.

C: Oh, my God. I’m so sorry.

Z: No, I have immense sympathy to anyone who, upon seeing what’s happened in the country, recently felt the need to drink, despite what they might have said. But no, I have so far held strong.

A: Yeah, I’m doing some, I mean, Josh and I and Naomi, we all said we’re going to do this. We’re just going to have some wine or beer on Fridays and Saturdays.

C: Oh, OK, OK, that’s fine.

A: But I am trying to take a little bit of a break, just because it was like, especially once we got to the holidays, I was like, “Oh yeah, sure. let’s have cocktails every night”.

C: Yeah. It’s funny how that happened. Like even though we didn’t, I mean at least in my household of two, we had no holiday celebrations to speak of, like maybe a Zoom here and there. But somehow I also got into the habit of having a beer every night, having a movie night with friends over Zoom and having a couple of drinks. And it does catch up with you.

A: And it’s a point where it doesn’t feel like it’s unhealthy. But also just like, do I need to always have a bottle of wine?

C: It feels more routine than celebratory, in a way.

A: Right. And so it feels like, again, it’s like mindful drinking, just thinking about — I think I was talking to someone else who said they’re looking forward to, post-pandemic, when you’re going out for a drink to go out for a drink. Right? And not just to drink right now at home because you’re bored and it’s like the only way to really split the day to the night. I think about it when we were going to the office, there were so many nights that I, probably four to five nights a week, I actually didn’t have a drink because I was leaving the office. The hustle and bustle of the transition from work to home. You got home. You are working on a bunch of projects, and then you make dinner and then it’s like 9 o’clock.

C: And you go to bed.

A: You might have a drink right now. Right? Like once unwound through the process of leaving and everything.

Z: Oh man. As I have said to you before, Adam, and this is true for you to Cat, all that s*** changes when you have a kid. Because let me tell you, instead of marking the period of time from when you stop working to when you are in your evening, there is a big “the child is asleep. Now I can relax.” And for me and my wife, that almost always involves drinking something. I would say outside of January, we probably had, even pre-pandemic, but obviously it was more noticeable then, would have at least a bottle of wine basically every night, with the exception of we don’t typically drink on Mondays just to give ourselves a day where we say we don’t. But I actually wanted to ask you guys a question because it’s been it’s been very pertinent in January for me and my wife: So I got into not an argument, of course, but just a conversation with a friend, and I was saying, “Oh, one of the things I drink in January when I’m not drinking is bitters and soda.” And he was like, “well, actually bitters have alcohol in them.” And I was like, OK, yeah, but I mean, they’re relatively high-proof, but I’m putting an eighth of an ounce of bitters in my soda water and so we had a good-natured chat but —.

C: I’m actually curious about that. Like how alcoholic is a bitters Highball?

Z: Well, I mean, bitters themselves have high levels of alcohol. I mean, it’s how you get all the other flavors in there, but on the other hand, you have to use like even a teaspoon of bitters is a ton of it. And that’s like having a teaspoon of whiskey or something, like you’re not going to think of that as “having a drink.” But I was wondering, is bitters and soda something that either of you ever drink or am I just out here on my own? I mean, I know I’m not on my own but that is one of my favorites, like it’s almost like I’m having a drink because it’s got some of the flavor profile, but it’s obviously essentially non-alcoholic.

A: I’ve never had that before.

C: Yeah, I don’t drink that. But I have been wondering about it, it sounds so delicious, or like a splash of Aperol in a seltzer or something sounds really good, too.

A: I’m not the person. I mean I’m going to have a real hot take here. But I know you two will disagree because I’ve heard you talk about it, but I’m not the type of person to drink a non-alcoholic drink. I’m just not interested. I’d rather have water, I’d rather have juice. I don’t drink soda but like iced tea or lemonade or whatever, I’m not interested in non-alcoholic beer. I don’t care. You can tell me all you want that that certain brewery makes good stuff. I don’t care. I’m just not interested in it.

C: You would care if you actually drank it.

A: No, I really wouldn’t. That’s not why I’m drinking it. I’m not drinking it for the flavor, and I think that’s what’s so silly about it. I do like the effects of how alcohol relaxes me and helps me unwind. There’s other things I enjoy drinking that are non-alcoholic. I am not so interested in the brand that everyone knows that’s the really expensive spirit that is non-alcoholic. For me at least.

C: The spirit is a whole other thing. I don’t think spirits are really there yet as an everyday replacement.

A: But for me, I am interested in lower alcohol. Right? Like lower-alcohol cocktails, lower-alcohol beers, wines — that I’m interested in because I don’t want to get like blotto everyday, but that’s just my personal take.

Z: So Adam, what I’m wondering is, does this mean you don’t actually like the taste of beer? I mean, that’s valid to say.

A: No, I love the taste of beer.

Z: But then why is beer that doesn’t get you drunk a bad thing?

C: I love it.

Z: I have not and will not replace the beer with alcohol in my life with non-alcoholic beer, but a good tasting non-alcoholic beer is a thing to me that is a really welcome addition to the lineup, whether it’s interspersed in between another beer or two so that I don’t get as drunk, or just as an alternative on a night where, again, you’ve got to wake up early and do s*** or you’re at a dinner with a kid and you can’t start the relaxation process as early as you can if you don’t have kids. I get where you’re coming from. And we’ll talk more about this probably later in this conversation or another one to come. But I just think the reason I like bitters and soda is I have become accustomed to enjoying the taste and flavors of bitter things. And yes, would I prefer to be drinking a cocktail? Sure. On one level, yes. That’s why Dry January is not fun. It’s not something I’m like, man, January is my favorite month. But I do it for a variety of other reasons, and I still want to have a flavor that I enjoy. And the truth is that outside of coffee and tea, it’s actually really hard to find adult beverages that are non-alcoholic that are bitter. I guess iced tea, which to me is not a thing I want in the middle of the winter. So to me, lemonade is delicious, but then it is sweet and sour. I don’t want just those flavors. Soda is sweet and sour, and I don’t want those flavors. So to me, bitters and soda has the benefit of giving me a part of the taste profile that a cocktail or a beer or even wine might give me. But I don’t have alcohol in it, so I feel OK drinking it in January. It’s not something I drink all the time, year round, but I like bitter and I want bitterness in my drinks. And in January, I get that through bitters and sodas and the rest of the year I get it through almost anything else.

A: Yeah. I mean I like sparkling water and lemon, that’s what I’ll drink.

Z: OK, Adam, you’re sour. I’m bitter. It’s OK.

A: Exactly. You are bitter… But yeah. I mean again I think it’s everyone’s personal preference, like I mean obviously I wouldn’t drink any of these things if I didn’t also like the flavor of them. But just for me, I guess also I see it as like, oh, there’s also added benefits of just drinking water.

C: Well, duh, water is just water.

A: Right, exactly that’s very good for you.

C: It’s not a “water podcast” OK?

A: So that’s how I think about it. We spent a long time now talking about Dry January.

C: If you’re a sour and he’s bitter, then I guess that makes me the balanced one, because I enjoy both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

Z: I was going to go salty.

C: Salty? Maybe sometimes.

A: Yeah. I mean, it is interesting, though, right? We can talk about something else, but I’ve always taken two to three days to a week off. So I guess I’m only really adding two to three more on my week. But it is interesting to recognize how much I guess, like you’re saying Zach, you do miss it. But that is also like a nice reset of thinking much more intentionally about when you have one as opposed to just like, oh, this is really stressful so I’m going to drink.

Z: Here’s my last Dry January thing, and then we should move on, which is, the one other thing I do love about it is I get to spend the entire month of January planning the first few things I will drink on Feb. 1. And that is a lot of fun to me.

A: That’s hilarious. So let’s get into this week’s topic, which is the Top 50 Beers List that we just put out. Yeah, that Cat, you helped spearhead. So obviously we do this list every year, and I think this list is interesting because it shows a lot of trends that are happening right now in beer. I think what’s been really interesting, we talked about this on the last podcast, right, Zach? Which was a little bit about how you’re seeing this continue what none of us really thought was going to happen but did, which is this continued premiumization of beer. I think there was this belief that in the pandemic we were going to start seeing a massive return to like, macros, or just much more affordable beers. And it doesn’t really seem to have been the case. It seems like a lot of breweries have still put out these very high-end, much more expensive beers, and they seem to still be selling pretty well. So do we see that in this list, too? That there’s a lot of premium stuff out there that people are still cranking out?

C: Absolutely. I think it is really interesting to see where it ended up at the end of the year, because I remember you and I were having conversations earlier on in the year thinking like, the list is going to look really different this year. No one is going out, like “I’m not getting beers, I’m not visiting breweries.” And we thought, well, it might just be a list that acknowledges I can only drink brands that are at my grocery store, and then we’ll be celebrating that. But it ended up being a really good mix of some of those, like a couple of legacy brands that really came back into our lives this year, and then a lot of really cool new stuff, too. I don’t want to just go to Other Half again because I know they come up a lot, but I have never drunk so much Other Half in my life than I have this year. And that’s because despite the inaccessibility of so much else in the drinks world, I actually have access to these beers for the first time that didn’t require waiting in line or being in a crowded tap room full of tourists or what have you. I was having it delivered to my door, and lots of other breweries, too. And it’s crazy to be back on that wavelength of how frequently they’re creating new brands and releasing new recipes. And I think what was really cool about them this year was they took that great marketing that they have, the cool designs and labels and their acronyms, and went beyond DDH this year to HDHC, and it seems like it could be a gimmick, but it really isn’t, because they’re actually comparing that with educational information for people. So if you’re buying these beers, you’re probably following them on Instagram. And you can read about what that new hop or new technique is. And they’re starting to, in my opinion, just be more transparent about those kinds of things. “This is where we got these hops from,” they have a pair out right now, actually, that are two of the same beer, it’s called Dank Squares, and it’s a Strata IPA, and it’s two different lots of hops that they sourced from. So the difference will be very minor for someone that doesn’t taste hops for a living. But there’s the two co-brands, with the same label, but one’s pink and one’s green, and it’s “lot 1” and “lot 2”. So you can buy both and compare them. So, yeah, I think we saw a lot of hop innovation, and breweries, despite all this struggle, still digging into their R&D and trying out new things and really perfecting or honing in on some of these techniques and other techniques.

Z: Cat, I have a question for you about the list that I thought about actually earlier in this podcast episode. You talked about early in the pandemic, would the list be all bargain beer and stuff like that. I think the thought for me, heading into this year was: Was 2020, would that have been the year of this growing trend of low-ABV beer, of sessionable beer, of people not wanting to deal with high-alcohol beers. And instead, I think because all of us ended up spending all of our time at home where, with a higher-alcohol beer, you don’t have to deal with getting home, typically. And the list, I think, is interestingly and maybe understandably in that context, actually has a lot of higher-alcohol beers on it, especially at the top. Was that something that was just because people at home wanted, I mean, frankly, as Adam was discussing before, they wanted the effect, the impact, and the depth of flavor that is pretty hard to find in beers that are lower alcohol — it’s just the reality of beer making for the most part, that your more full body, more intense flavors generally come with higher alcohol levels?

C: I wouldn’t say the high-alcohol stuff was in the top because it was high-alcohol or because people are drinking a lot more.

Z: To clarify my question, Cat, real quick, I think maybe what I would ask is, it seems like maybe in a different time, alcohol content being high would be not a barrier to being highly placed, but would be something that would be more like some people might be turned off by this 10 percent ABV beer. But I think maybe in this time when again, almost all of us are stuck at home, that may not dissuade someone from drinking it at all.

C: Right. Yeah, I think there is a contemplative aspect. The No. 1 beer, Firestone Walker’s Anniversary Ale XXIV, that was the one that stood out above and beyond everything else because the work that went into this beer is ridiculous. I mean it blew us away with its flavor and aroma and everything like that first, and then digging more into the background of the beer afterwards was very revealing. And it’s like that “sit-and-have-a-moment” feeling, it really took us aback. And we’re talking about mindful drinking, that doesn’t just have to be low-alcohol or sessionability. It can also be splitting a 12-ounce, 11 percent alcohol stout or beer with a friend or two and really sitting and enjoying that four ounces. That’s how I typically drink higher-alcohol beers, in like a little tulip or a snifter and you might sit with it if you have the whole thing to yourself, you’ll sit with it for an hour or two, pouring a little bit at a time. So I think that certainly has something to do with it. And at home, too, I always am sharing my beers with my husband, Pat. He’s always interested to try everything, and it’s rare that I would avoid opening up an 8 percent IPA because I’m not going to finish it and I don’t want to waste it — I always split them. Or if something ends up being left over, I’ll evaluate it in some way the next day to see how the aromas hold up. Or I will sometimes use things in cooking — especially lagers. So, yeah. Does that answer your question? There were also a lot of session-friendly beers.

Z: Oh sure. Sure. Obviously the list is not all 10 percent ABV beers. I was just struck at looking at it that I think for me, too, this year when I was drinking, whether it was beer, cocktails, wine, whatever alcohol content was just less of a concern, because I never was going to have to get home afterwards.

C: Yeah, it’s a really good point. I mean, that’s not as much of a concern here because we don’t drive, or at least I don’t. And it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten so inebriated that I couldn’t get myself home. But it is definitely more relaxing and there’s less to worry about. And yeah, I mean, you’re just more comfortable.

A: And I do think it was interesting that two of the top five beers are over 10 percent. And then you have a third beer that’s over 8 percent. Right? So they were higher in alcohol than I think we thought the world was moving. Our sixth beer, Brown’s Brewing, was 10 percent. So it was something where, I think, there was that. I don’t know what I’m trying to say here.

C: Interesting that those stood out so much to you guys. I hadn’t really considered that.

A: I mean, yeah. It’s the same thing sometimes when you talk about whiskey, and we talk about this a little bit with the Top 50 Spirits list. And so I’m curious what your thoughts are here. Like sometimes the higher-proof bourbons and brown spirits win because they are so in your face or they stand out in a tasting. Do you think that’s also what happened? It’s just harder for a really nuanced, lighter-alcohol beer to stand out against the No. 1 beer of the year?

C: Yeah. I mean when constructing a list it’s like the top 10 beers on the list are not my personal favorite top 10 beers or someone else’s favorite beers on staff. There’s a lot that goes into the reasoning behind the ranking, as you know. And for sure, when we go into the spirits tasting, we know in bourbon, there are more flavors and there’s more to contemplate. There’s more complexity, like the Top 50 Wines. It’s going to be a lot more red wines in the top 10 than anything white or even sparkling. And for beers, what I would love to do or to encourage people to do is look at our other rankings or other Buy This Booze lists and our beer rankings on the site because something might be on here in the 20s or 30s or 40s and it might be the best pilsner that I drank this year, and I drink it all the time and love it more than I love a stout that’s higher up in the rankings. But it’s just how it ends up in these kinds of things. It’s really difficult actually to rank things that have so many different styles and so many different things that you’re working with.

A: What do you think is the most surprising beer, some of the most surprising beers on this list?

C: I would say I was really excited about the Pure Project Lief Oak-Aged Sour because I had that once before with my husband. And Adam, I’ve said this when we talk about how we don’t drink a lot of sour beers like on the reg because it’s a commitment and it just doesn’t agree with everything you want it to. So I was shocked by this one, that it really tasted like something I’d be drinking in Belgium. And it also felt, for lack of a better word, a lot more “drinkable.” It wasn’t so acidic that it’s burning my throat. It wasn’t so sour that all you’re getting is that sour taste. Like I said, it’s one of my biggest pet peeves, and that’s really more with kettle sour beers. Not barrel-aged, but yeah, this is just like, awesome. So then I called it in for a sample, and then we tasted it in our legendary, socially distanced outdoor winter tasting at the office. Everyone else was also blown away by it and loved it. So I was like, “f*** yeah.” This is a really cool beer, and it just came out of nowhere. We don’t get Pure Project here, they’re from San Diego. I have had other beers from them, their IPA was awesome. They do a bunch of different styles, and I wasn’t expecting this to be so good, like as good as it was that it ended up the No. 2 beer.

Z: So I have a question. We talked a little bit earlier about some trends and things like that. And I’m wondering, Cat. I remember way back when we had you on a podcast to talk about hazy IPAs and how they came to be? Yeah, I was in the studio — shout out to Nick Patri, our former engineer. And I was wondering, is the sense that you had in putting this list together that the hazy IPA or trend is still happening? I mean, there are definitely some on this list. Is it still as vibrant as ever or in some sense has it been boosted by the increased access to those beers? Everything’s in cans now, or hurt by lack of taprooms and draft houses and stuff. Where does the hazy IPA sit at this moment in your eyes?

C: It still sits on its bright yellow, sparkling throne. No one can take down hazy IPAs. That’s not happening. And of course, every brewery suffered in some way this year. And some larger breweries lost like 40 percent of their sales just because of taprooms and kegs. But no, not even Covid can take the hazy IPA or New England-style IPA, or just IPA back any notches. I think probably 10 or 12 beers in the Top 50 are IPAs, and it’s almost redundant to call something “hazy” or “New England.” If there’s 10 or 12 IPAs on this list, then probably 10 of them are hazies.

A: Yeah, I think the hazy still is the most mainstay style right now. I feel like that’s what I’ve seen throughout the entire pandemic. The one people are drinking the most. By far. I mean, I thought it was interesting that you have the Superhero Sidekicks as No. 7, because it’s available at the Whole Foods down the street from me now, all the time.

C: And how amazing is that?

A: It was crazy. Yeah. It’s a very good beer. I definitely really enjoyed it a lot. Again, I have a hard time with all these, because they’re expensive. I think there was a point when I saw like $22 for a 4-pack and I was like, I just can’t do that. But it is a very good beer. And there were so many. Right? Like there was. I mean this beer is not on the list, but one of their other ones is. But you can get Maine Beer Co. at Whole Foods now very easily. I mean you can get all the different Threes offerings. And it’s just crazy how that happened also because of the pandemic. And as you said, they were just there. They didn’t have the taproom anymore to sell out of. And so they just pushed more into the other channel. And I wonder now what will happen when the vaccine comes, if that will change, because a lot of people have gotten used to it. Do you think these breweries will stop delivery? Because you’ve gotten used to it.

C: Yeah, I really hope not.

A: Right? Because I think they could lose a lot of consumers if all of a sudden it’s like, “Wait, now I’ve got to go to the brewery again to get this stuff? Sorry, I’m just not that interested. Like I became a huge fan when you were delivering it to me, but now it’s like I’ll find what’s easier.” I do wonder if that will happen to a lot of these people.

C: If there’s any consumer feedback under consideration, then a majority of these breweries will continue delivery if they have the resources to do so. Because I don’t know anybody who was like, man, I really wish Threes stopped delivering. And I doubt that there are brewers that are like, “Oh, man, our deliveries are just nonexistent.” It’s like, I would never order beer to my house. That’s absurd, I’ve never done that in my life. But I did it throughout this year, and I normally would not be spending that much money on beer, first of all, I would never order an entire case to myself because I’m not going to drink it fast enough, especially if that’s hazy IPAs. But that is what we did. And I never felt like such a consumer as I did this year. So now I really care about that a lot, like don’t take delivery away — and from a marketing perspective, so many more people were able to have access to these beers that normally don’t. So I think it would be crazy to take that away.

Z: So Cat, I have to ask a slightly difficult question here, which is you and Adam are in New York State, in New York City. And I counted, there are 12 beers from New York State on the list. I am here in Washington State. There are zero beers from Washington State on the list. So what are we doing wrong?

C: It’s really a distribution issue. I will point out that this list has beers from every region. We have beers from probably 25 or 30 different states. Washington is not one of them, really because I don’t have any Washington beers available to me.

A: Or to the staff. Except for you, Zach,.

C: But, as a New Yorker, blame the three-tier system because, or tell me where I can get a Washington-brewed beer. It’s actually absurd because, it’s Washington, it’s Yakima, you’re near the seat of the birth of all the wonderful American hops.

Z: Yeah, that hazy yellow throne that the New England IPA is sitting on is made in Washington State.

C: Yeah, that crop is everything. So you know what, who are the breweries we should be looking for? Who should we be requesting samples from for next year?

Z: Well, that’s an excellent question. And I would say that one of the things that’s fun about this area, like everywhere, is that the answer is ever-evolving. And some of it is also a scale issue, as you mentioned. Not only is it that the beers may not be available in New York, but I know that for you guys, in putting this list together, it is important that to some extent people, readers all over, can access some of these beers, at a minimum. And so there are great small breweries in my neighborhood that I won’t recommend because they’re just too small unless you’re in Seattle or nearby. But a couple of breweries, I think, are doing really cool things here. I mean, Fremont Brewing, which has been a long time mainstay of the industry. Their field-to-ferment beers. Their fresh-hop beers are really, I think, some of the best every year. Again, not just because of proximity, but also because breweries in this area are able to work so directly with the hop growers in a way that a brewery in other parts of the country just can’t as directly. And Bale Breaker, which is actually in the Yakima Valley, is another great example of a brewery that does particularly cool things with hops and a lot of different single-variety hop beers and things like that. I’m also a big fan of No-Li, which is actually in Spokane on the other side of the state. And then Reuben’s Brews, which is also a local brewery here, but a little bigger in size than most of the ones around me. And one of the cool things about this list and I think, actually something that I wanted to say anyhow, is a great thing about the American brewing industry is that there are so many great breweries everywhere. And so obviously, no list is going to be totally comprehensive. It’s impossible. The VinePair team does an amazing job of putting together as comprehensive a list as can be done. But the cool thing about drinking beer in America in this time is you have to work to not find good beer.

C: And this list isn’t like these are the 50 best beers — don’t drink anything else, don’t explore your own neighborhood. That’s the most irritating response to these things. Look at the top beers, and look at styles that you like and then try to find similar beers or breweries in your neighborhood. Look at who they’ve collaborated with. Breweries all have friends all over, there’s a network. It’s so much more a community than any other drinks business or business in general. If you see something on this list that sounds like something you would love, look them up to see who they’re hanging out with. Just go to your local brewery and try some beers.

A: So this is not about the actual beer inside the vessel, but what was the best-designed package?

C: Oh, my God. How can you ask me that? Well, the first thing that comes to mind is “I Voted Today.” That was a pale ale by Non Sequitur, which is a nomadic brand, but they’re in Brooklyn, and they opened a space that’s like a semi-permanent pop-up. But anyway, this was part of a campaign to raise voting awareness earlier this year. And it also happened to be one of the best pale ales that we drank this year.

A: I like that design. I’m looking at it now.

C: Go to their website or go to their Instagram. Non Sequitur is just adorable. A lot of the branding is centered around their lovely dog, Nelson, who is named for a hop, of course. And it’s very lighthearted and whimsical, and that’s one of the ones that stands out among this very beautiful, colorful craft beer label landscape. What’s your favorite design?

A: I was looking. I think I have three on here that I think are really well done in terms of design. I think Wandering Bine is beautiful and very much stands out. I also really like the Grimm just because it’s really nice. And then actually it’s all the way at the top of the list, but I think in terms of modern and very clean design: Fort Point, I think it’s a very well done can. It pops, and again, it would make someone grab it off the shelf. The rest are what you would consider classic craft beer, there are some that are really classic like the Victory, et cetera. But I think those are three that feel very modern to me in a way that I just thought was really cool when I was scrolling through the list and you think like, “Oh, wow.” And I think it’s interesting to ask that question here, because it is the one alcohol that takes design really seriously. It’s always cool to see what the breweries come up with.

C: Everyone’s designs are so cool.

Z: Yeah, well, especially in a year when even more than ever, your ability to pop on a grocery store shelf was the difference between succeeding and failing, in a way that maybe has never been as true.

A: Yeah, totally. Well, guys, this has been a really interesting conversation, as always. Cat, thanks for joining us this week.

C: Thank you so much for having me. Always fun to talk about beer with you guys.

A: I know. And Zach, I’ll see you next week.

Z: Sounds great.

Thanks so much for listening to the VinePair Podcast. If you enjoy listening to us every week, please leave us a review or rating on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever it is that you get your podcasts. It really helps everyone else discover the show. Now for the credits, VinePair is produced by myself and Zach Geballe. It is also mixed and edited by him. Yeah, Zach, we know you do a lot. I’d also like to thank the entire VinePair team, including my co-founder, Josh and our associate editor, Cat. Thanks so much for listening. See you next week.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article VinePair Podcast: VinePair’s 50 Best Beers Showcase Craft Beer’s Creativity and Resilience appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/top-50-beers-list-podcast/

[johnboothus]

VinePairs 50 Best Beers Showcase Craft Beers Creativity and Resilience

One of the benefits of building a yearly Top 50 Beers list is that it can help provide some illumination about the various trends within the world of craft beer. In a trying and complicated year like 2020, that kind of clarity is even more valuable. That’s why on this week’s episode of the “VinePair Podcast,” Adam Teeter and Zach Geballe are joined by VinePair senior editor Cat Wolinski to break down that list.

Did a year mostly spent drinking at home mean that higher-ABV beers were even more popular? Were people looking for more indulgent and more premium beers? Did eye-catching can art make the difference between languishing on a grocery store shelf and being wildly successful? Adam, Zach, and Cat discuss those and other topics as they look both backward and forward at this inflection point in the craft beer industry.

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Adam: From Brooklyn, New York, I’m Adam Teeter.

Cat: From Manhattan, New York, I’m Cat Wolinski.

Zach: And in Seattle, Washington, I’m Zach Geballe.

A: And this is the “VinePair Podcast.” Cat, we’re thrilled to have you to co-host this week to talk to you about beer.

C: Thank you very much.

A: Yeah, but before we do, let’s talk about some wine. Are you aiming to cut back on calories and alcohol, but still want to enjoy a delicious glass of wine? Mind and Body Wines are your perfect solution. These low-calorie, low-alcohol wines are only 90 calories per serving and are vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO and made without added sugar. With Mind and Body Wines, you can sip without sacrifice. You can learn more at mindandbodywines.com. All right, guys, so what’s going on this week? What have we been drinking? I’m going to start and say I’ve been drinking nothing because I am doing a semi-dry January.

C: No, you are not!

Z: Yeah, this might be a boring segment, because that was going to be my answer. Well, I do have something to talk about, but yes, I always take January off.

C: Traitors!

Z: Hey, let’s be careful using that term these days.

C: Oh, my God. I’m so sorry.

Z: No, I have immense sympathy to anyone who, upon seeing what’s happened in the country, recently felt the need to drink, despite what they might have said. But no, I have so far held strong.

A: Yeah, I’m doing some, I mean, Josh and I and Naomi, we all said we’re going to do this. We’re just going to have some wine or beer on Fridays and Saturdays.

C: Oh, OK, OK, that’s fine.

A: But I am trying to take a little bit of a break, just because it was like, especially once we got to the holidays, I was like, “Oh yeah, sure. let’s have cocktails every night”.

C: Yeah. It’s funny how that happened. Like even though we didn’t, I mean at least in my household of two, we had no holiday celebrations to speak of, like maybe a Zoom here and there. But somehow I also got into the habit of having a beer every night, having a movie night with friends over Zoom and having a couple of drinks. And it does catch up with you.

A: And it’s a point where it doesn’t feel like it’s unhealthy. But also just like, do I need to always have a bottle of wine?

C: It feels more routine than celebratory, in a way.

A: Right. And so it feels like, again, it’s like mindful drinking, just thinking about — I think I was talking to someone else who said they’re looking forward to, post-pandemic, when you’re going out for a drink to go out for a drink. Right? And not just to drink right now at home because you’re bored and it’s like the only way to really split the day to the night. I think about it when we were going to the office, there were so many nights that I, probably four to five nights a week, I actually didn’t have a drink because I was leaving the office. The hustle and bustle of the transition from work to home. You got home. You are working on a bunch of projects, and then you make dinner and then it’s like 9 o’clock.

C: And you go to bed.

A: You might have a drink right now. Right? Like once unwound through the process of leaving and everything.

Z: Oh man. As I have said to you before, Adam, and this is true for you to Cat, all that s*** changes when you have a kid. Because let me tell you, instead of marking the period of time from when you stop working to when you are in your evening, there is a big “the child is asleep. Now I can relax.” And for me and my wife, that almost always involves drinking something. I would say outside of January, we probably had, even pre-pandemic, but obviously it was more noticeable then, would have at least a bottle of wine basically every night, with the exception of we don’t typically drink on Mondays just to give ourselves a day where we say we don’t. But I actually wanted to ask you guys a question because it’s been it’s been very pertinent in January for me and my wife: So I got into not an argument, of course, but just a conversation with a friend, and I was saying, “Oh, one of the things I drink in January when I’m not drinking is bitters and soda.” And he was like, “well, actually bitters have alcohol in them.” And I was like, OK, yeah, but I mean, they’re relatively high-proof, but I’m putting an eighth of an ounce of bitters in my soda water and so we had a good-natured chat but —.

C: I’m actually curious about that. Like how alcoholic is a bitters Highball?

Z: Well, I mean, bitters themselves have high levels of alcohol. I mean, it’s how you get all the other flavors in there, but on the other hand, you have to use like even a teaspoon of bitters is a ton of it. And that’s like having a teaspoon of whiskey or something, like you’re not going to think of that as “having a drink.” But I was wondering, is bitters and soda something that either of you ever drink or am I just out here on my own? I mean, I know I’m not on my own but that is one of my favorites, like it’s almost like I’m having a drink because it’s got some of the flavor profile, but it’s obviously essentially non-alcoholic.

A: I’ve never had that before.

C: Yeah, I don’t drink that. But I have been wondering about it, it sounds so delicious, or like a splash of Aperol in a seltzer or something sounds really good, too.

A: I’m not the person. I mean I’m going to have a real hot take here. But I know you two will disagree because I’ve heard you talk about it, but I’m not the type of person to drink a non-alcoholic drink. I’m just not interested. I’d rather have water, I’d rather have juice. I don’t drink soda but like iced tea or lemonade or whatever, I’m not interested in non-alcoholic beer. I don’t care. You can tell me all you want that that certain brewery makes good stuff. I don’t care. I’m just not interested in it.

C: You would care if you actually drank it.

A: No, I really wouldn’t. That’s not why I’m drinking it. I’m not drinking it for the flavor, and I think that’s what’s so silly about it. I do like the effects of how alcohol relaxes me and helps me unwind. There’s other things I enjoy drinking that are non-alcoholic. I am not so interested in the brand that everyone knows that’s the really expensive spirit that is non-alcoholic. For me at least.

C: The spirit is a whole other thing. I don’t think spirits are really there yet as an everyday replacement.

A: But for me, I am interested in lower alcohol. Right? Like lower-alcohol cocktails, lower-alcohol beers, wines — that I’m interested in because I don’t want to get like blotto everyday, but that’s just my personal take.

Z: So Adam, what I’m wondering is, does this mean you don’t actually like the taste of beer? I mean, that’s valid to say.

A: No, I love the taste of beer.

Z: But then why is beer that doesn’t get you drunk a bad thing?

C: I love it.

Z: I have not and will not replace the beer with alcohol in my life with non-alcoholic beer, but a good tasting non-alcoholic beer is a thing to me that is a really welcome addition to the lineup, whether it’s interspersed in between another beer or two so that I don’t get as drunk, or just as an alternative on a night where, again, you’ve got to wake up early and do s*** or you’re at a dinner with a kid and you can’t start the relaxation process as early as you can if you don’t have kids. I get where you’re coming from. And we’ll talk more about this probably later in this conversation or another one to come. But I just think the reason I like bitters and soda is I have become accustomed to enjoying the taste and flavors of bitter things. And yes, would I prefer to be drinking a cocktail? Sure. On one level, yes. That’s why Dry January is not fun. It’s not something I’m like, man, January is my favorite month. But I do it for a variety of other reasons, and I still want to have a flavor that I enjoy. And the truth is that outside of coffee and tea, it’s actually really hard to find adult beverages that are non-alcoholic that are bitter. I guess iced tea, which to me is not a thing I want in the middle of the winter. So to me, lemonade is delicious, but then it is sweet and sour. I don’t want just those flavors. Soda is sweet and sour, and I don’t want those flavors. So to me, bitters and soda has the benefit of giving me a part of the taste profile that a cocktail or a beer or even wine might give me. But I don’t have alcohol in it, so I feel OK drinking it in January. It’s not something I drink all the time, year round, but I like bitter and I want bitterness in my drinks. And in January, I get that through bitters and sodas and the rest of the year I get it through almost anything else.

A: Yeah. I mean I like sparkling water and lemon, that’s what I’ll drink.

Z: OK, Adam, you’re sour. I’m bitter. It’s OK.

A: Exactly. You are bitter… But yeah. I mean again I think it’s everyone’s personal preference, like I mean obviously I wouldn’t drink any of these things if I didn’t also like the flavor of them. But just for me, I guess also I see it as like, oh, there’s also added benefits of just drinking water.

C: Well, duh, water is just water.

A: Right, exactly that’s very good for you.

C: It’s not a “water podcast” OK?

A: So that’s how I think about it. We spent a long time now talking about Dry January.

C: If you’re a sour and he’s bitter, then I guess that makes me the balanced one, because I enjoy both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

Z: I was going to go salty.

C: Salty? Maybe sometimes.

A: Yeah. I mean, it is interesting, though, right? We can talk about something else, but I’ve always taken two to three days to a week off. So I guess I’m only really adding two to three more on my week. But it is interesting to recognize how much I guess, like you’re saying Zach, you do miss it. But that is also like a nice reset of thinking much more intentionally about when you have one as opposed to just like, oh, this is really stressful so I’m going to drink.

Z: Here’s my last Dry January thing, and then we should move on, which is, the one other thing I do love about it is I get to spend the entire month of January planning the first few things I will drink on Feb. 1. And that is a lot of fun to me.

A: That’s hilarious. So let’s get into this week’s topic, which is the Top 50 Beers List that we just put out. Yeah, that Cat, you helped spearhead. So obviously we do this list every year, and I think this list is interesting because it shows a lot of trends that are happening right now in beer. I think what’s been really interesting, we talked about this on the last podcast, right, Zach? Which was a little bit about how you’re seeing this continue what none of us really thought was going to happen but did, which is this continued premiumization of beer. I think there was this belief that in the pandemic we were going to start seeing a massive return to like, macros, or just much more affordable beers. And it doesn’t really seem to have been the case. It seems like a lot of breweries have still put out these very high-end, much more expensive beers, and they seem to still be selling pretty well. So do we see that in this list, too? That there’s a lot of premium stuff out there that people are still cranking out?

C: Absolutely. I think it is really interesting to see where it ended up at the end of the year, because I remember you and I were having conversations earlier on in the year thinking like, the list is going to look really different this year. No one is going out, like “I’m not getting beers, I’m not visiting breweries.” And we thought, well, it might just be a list that acknowledges I can only drink brands that are at my grocery store, and then we’ll be celebrating that. But it ended up being a really good mix of some of those, like a couple of legacy brands that really came back into our lives this year, and then a lot of really cool new stuff, too. I don’t want to just go to Other Half again because I know they come up a lot, but I have never drunk so much Other Half in my life than I have this year. And that’s because despite the inaccessibility of so much else in the drinks world, I actually have access to these beers for the first time that didn’t require waiting in line or being in a crowded tap room full of tourists or what have you. I was having it delivered to my door, and lots of other breweries, too. And it’s crazy to be back on that wavelength of how frequently they’re creating new brands and releasing new recipes. And I think what was really cool about them this year was they took that great marketing that they have, the cool designs and labels and their acronyms, and went beyond DDH this year to HDHC, and it seems like it could be a gimmick, but it really isn’t, because they’re actually comparing that with educational information for people. So if you’re buying these beers, you’re probably following them on Instagram. And you can read about what that new hop or new technique is. And they’re starting to, in my opinion, just be more transparent about those kinds of things. “This is where we got these hops from,” they have a pair out right now, actually, that are two of the same beer, it’s called Dank Squares, and it’s a Strata IPA, and it’s two different lots of hops that they sourced from. So the difference will be very minor for someone that doesn’t taste hops for a living. But there’s the two co-brands, with the same label, but one’s pink and one’s green, and it’s “lot 1” and “lot 2”. So you can buy both and compare them. So, yeah, I think we saw a lot of hop innovation, and breweries, despite all this struggle, still digging into their R&D and trying out new things and really perfecting or honing in on some of these techniques and other techniques.

Z: Cat, I have a question for you about the list that I thought about actually earlier in this podcast episode. You talked about early in the pandemic, would the list be all bargain beer and stuff like that. I think the thought for me, heading into this year was: Was 2020, would that have been the year of this growing trend of low-ABV beer, of sessionable beer, of people not wanting to deal with high-alcohol beers. And instead, I think because all of us ended up spending all of our time at home where, with a higher-alcohol beer, you don’t have to deal with getting home, typically. And the list, I think, is interestingly and maybe understandably in that context, actually has a lot of higher-alcohol beers on it, especially at the top. Was that something that was just because people at home wanted, I mean, frankly, as Adam was discussing before, they wanted the effect, the impact, and the depth of flavor that is pretty hard to find in beers that are lower alcohol — it’s just the reality of beer making for the most part, that your more full body, more intense flavors generally come with higher alcohol levels?

C: I wouldn’t say the high-alcohol stuff was in the top because it was high-alcohol or because people are drinking a lot more.

Z: To clarify my question, Cat, real quick, I think maybe what I would ask is, it seems like maybe in a different time, alcohol content being high would be not a barrier to being highly placed, but would be something that would be more like some people might be turned off by this 10 percent ABV beer. But I think maybe in this time when again, almost all of us are stuck at home, that may not dissuade someone from drinking it at all.

C: Right. Yeah, I think there is a contemplative aspect. The No. 1 beer, Firestone Walker’s Anniversary Ale XXIV, that was the one that stood out above and beyond everything else because the work that went into this beer is ridiculous. I mean it blew us away with its flavor and aroma and everything like that first, and then digging more into the background of the beer afterwards was very revealing. And it’s like that “sit-and-have-a-moment” feeling, it really took us aback. And we’re talking about mindful drinking, that doesn’t just have to be low-alcohol or sessionability. It can also be splitting a 12-ounce, 11 percent alcohol stout or beer with a friend or two and really sitting and enjoying that four ounces. That’s how I typically drink higher-alcohol beers, in like a little tulip or a snifter and you might sit with it if you have the whole thing to yourself, you’ll sit with it for an hour or two, pouring a little bit at a time. So I think that certainly has something to do with it. And at home, too, I always am sharing my beers with my husband, Pat. He’s always interested to try everything, and it’s rare that I would avoid opening up an 8 percent IPA because I’m not going to finish it and I don’t want to waste it — I always split them. Or if something ends up being left over, I’ll evaluate it in some way the next day to see how the aromas hold up. Or I will sometimes use things in cooking — especially lagers. So, yeah. Does that answer your question? There were also a lot of session-friendly beers.

Z: Oh sure. Sure. Obviously the list is not all 10 percent ABV beers. I was just struck at looking at it that I think for me, too, this year when I was drinking, whether it was beer, cocktails, wine, whatever alcohol content was just less of a concern, because I never was going to have to get home afterwards.

C: Yeah, it’s a really good point. I mean, that’s not as much of a concern here because we don’t drive, or at least I don’t. And it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten so inebriated that I couldn’t get myself home. But it is definitely more relaxing and there’s less to worry about. And yeah, I mean, you’re just more comfortable.

A: And I do think it was interesting that two of the top five beers are over 10 percent. And then you have a third beer that’s over 8 percent. Right? So they were higher in alcohol than I think we thought the world was moving. Our sixth beer, Brown’s Brewing, was 10 percent. So it was something where, I think, there was that. I don’t know what I’m trying to say here.

C: Interesting that those stood out so much to you guys. I hadn’t really considered that.

A: I mean, yeah. It’s the same thing sometimes when you talk about whiskey, and we talk about this a little bit with the Top 50 Spirits list. And so I’m curious what your thoughts are here. Like sometimes the higher-proof bourbons and brown spirits win because they are so in your face or they stand out in a tasting. Do you think that’s also what happened? It’s just harder for a really nuanced, lighter-alcohol beer to stand out against the No. 1 beer of the year?

C: Yeah. I mean when constructing a list it’s like the top 10 beers on the list are not my personal favorite top 10 beers or someone else’s favorite beers on staff. There’s a lot that goes into the reasoning behind the ranking, as you know. And for sure, when we go into the spirits tasting, we know in bourbon, there are more flavors and there’s more to contemplate. There’s more complexity, like the Top 50 Wines. It’s going to be a lot more red wines in the top 10 than anything white or even sparkling. And for beers, what I would love to do or to encourage people to do is look at our other rankings or other Buy This Booze lists and our beer rankings on the site because something might be on here in the 20s or 30s or 40s and it might be the best pilsner that I drank this year, and I drink it all the time and love it more than I love a stout that’s higher up in the rankings. But it’s just how it ends up in these kinds of things. It’s really difficult actually to rank things that have so many different styles and so many different things that you’re working with.

A: What do you think is the most surprising beer, some of the most surprising beers on this list?

C: I would say I was really excited about the Pure Project Lief Oak-Aged Sour because I had that once before with my husband. And Adam, I’ve said this when we talk about how we don’t drink a lot of sour beers like on the reg because it’s a commitment and it just doesn’t agree with everything you want it to. So I was shocked by this one, that it really tasted like something I’d be drinking in Belgium. And it also felt, for lack of a better word, a lot more “drinkable.” It wasn’t so acidic that it’s burning my throat. It wasn’t so sour that all you’re getting is that sour taste. Like I said, it’s one of my biggest pet peeves, and that’s really more with kettle sour beers. Not barrel-aged, but yeah, this is just like, awesome. So then I called it in for a sample, and then we tasted it in our legendary, socially distanced outdoor winter tasting at the office. Everyone else was also blown away by it and loved it. So I was like, “f*** yeah.” This is a really cool beer, and it just came out of nowhere. We don’t get Pure Project here, they’re from San Diego. I have had other beers from them, their IPA was awesome. They do a bunch of different styles, and I wasn’t expecting this to be so good, like as good as it was that it ended up the No. 2 beer.

Z: So I have a question. We talked a little bit earlier about some trends and things like that. And I’m wondering, Cat. I remember way back when we had you on a podcast to talk about hazy IPAs and how they came to be? Yeah, I was in the studio — shout out to Nick Patri, our former engineer. And I was wondering, is the sense that you had in putting this list together that the hazy IPA or trend is still happening? I mean, there are definitely some on this list. Is it still as vibrant as ever or in some sense has it been boosted by the increased access to those beers? Everything’s in cans now, or hurt by lack of taprooms and draft houses and stuff. Where does the hazy IPA sit at this moment in your eyes?

C: It still sits on its bright yellow, sparkling throne. No one can take down hazy IPAs. That’s not happening. And of course, every brewery suffered in some way this year. And some larger breweries lost like 40 percent of their sales just because of taprooms and kegs. But no, not even Covid can take the hazy IPA or New England-style IPA, or just IPA back any notches. I think probably 10 or 12 beers in the Top 50 are IPAs, and it’s almost redundant to call something “hazy” or “New England.” If there’s 10 or 12 IPAs on this list, then probably 10 of them are hazies.

A: Yeah, I think the hazy still is the most mainstay style right now. I feel like that’s what I’ve seen throughout the entire pandemic. The one people are drinking the most. By far. I mean, I thought it was interesting that you have the Superhero Sidekicks as No. 7, because it’s available at the Whole Foods down the street from me now, all the time.

C: And how amazing is that?

A: It was crazy. Yeah. It’s a very good beer. I definitely really enjoyed it a lot. Again, I have a hard time with all these, because they’re expensive. I think there was a point when I saw like $22 for a 4-pack and I was like, I just can’t do that. But it is a very good beer. And there were so many. Right? Like there was. I mean this beer is not on the list, but one of their other ones is. But you can get Maine Beer Co. at Whole Foods now very easily. I mean you can get all the different Threes offerings. And it’s just crazy how that happened also because of the pandemic. And as you said, they were just there. They didn’t have the taproom anymore to sell out of. And so they just pushed more into the other channel. And I wonder now what will happen when the vaccine comes, if that will change, because a lot of people have gotten used to it. Do you think these breweries will stop delivery? Because you’ve gotten used to it.

C: Yeah, I really hope not.

A: Right? Because I think they could lose a lot of consumers if all of a sudden it’s like, “Wait, now I’ve got to go to the brewery again to get this stuff? Sorry, I’m just not that interested. Like I became a huge fan when you were delivering it to me, but now it’s like I’ll find what’s easier.” I do wonder if that will happen to a lot of these people.

C: If there’s any consumer feedback under consideration, then a majority of these breweries will continue delivery if they have the resources to do so. Because I don’t know anybody who was like, man, I really wish Threes stopped delivering. And I doubt that there are brewers that are like, “Oh, man, our deliveries are just nonexistent.” It’s like, I would never order beer to my house. That’s absurd, I’ve never done that in my life. But I did it throughout this year, and I normally would not be spending that much money on beer, first of all, I would never order an entire case to myself because I’m not going to drink it fast enough, especially if that’s hazy IPAs. But that is what we did. And I never felt like such a consumer as I did this year. So now I really care about that a lot, like don’t take delivery away — and from a marketing perspective, so many more people were able to have access to these beers that normally don’t. So I think it would be crazy to take that away.

Z: So Cat, I have to ask a slightly difficult question here, which is you and Adam are in New York State, in New York City. And I counted, there are 12 beers from New York State on the list. I am here in Washington State. There are zero beers from Washington State on the list. So what are we doing wrong?

C: It’s really a distribution issue. I will point out that this list has beers from every region. We have beers from probably 25 or 30 different states. Washington is not one of them, really because I don’t have any Washington beers available to me.

A: Or to the staff. Except for you, Zach,.

C: But, as a New Yorker, blame the three-tier system because, or tell me where I can get a Washington-brewed beer. It’s actually absurd because, it’s Washington, it’s Yakima, you’re near the seat of the birth of all the wonderful American hops.

Z: Yeah, that hazy yellow throne that the New England IPA is sitting on is made in Washington State.

C: Yeah, that crop is everything. So you know what, who are the breweries we should be looking for? Who should we be requesting samples from for next year?

Z: Well, that’s an excellent question. And I would say that one of the things that’s fun about this area, like everywhere, is that the answer is ever-evolving. And some of it is also a scale issue, as you mentioned. Not only is it that the beers may not be available in New York, but I know that for you guys, in putting this list together, it is important that to some extent people, readers all over, can access some of these beers, at a minimum. And so there are great small breweries in my neighborhood that I won’t recommend because they’re just too small unless you’re in Seattle or nearby. But a couple of breweries, I think, are doing really cool things here. I mean, Fremont Brewing, which has been a long time mainstay of the industry. Their field-to-ferment beers. Their fresh-hop beers are really, I think, some of the best every year. Again, not just because of proximity, but also because breweries in this area are able to work so directly with the hop growers in a way that a brewery in other parts of the country just can’t as directly. And Bale Breaker, which is actually in the Yakima Valley, is another great example of a brewery that does particularly cool things with hops and a lot of different single-variety hop beers and things like that. I’m also a big fan of No-Li, which is actually in Spokane on the other side of the state. And then Reuben’s Brews, which is also a local brewery here, but a little bigger in size than most of the ones around me. And one of the cool things about this list and I think, actually something that I wanted to say anyhow, is a great thing about the American brewing industry is that there are so many great breweries everywhere. And so obviously, no list is going to be totally comprehensive. It’s impossible. The VinePair team does an amazing job of putting together as comprehensive a list as can be done. But the cool thing about drinking beer in America in this time is you have to work to not find good beer.

C: And this list isn’t like these are the 50 best beers — don’t drink anything else, don’t explore your own neighborhood. That’s the most irritating response to these things. Look at the top beers, and look at styles that you like and then try to find similar beers or breweries in your neighborhood. Look at who they’ve collaborated with. Breweries all have friends all over, there’s a network. It’s so much more a community than any other drinks business or business in general. If you see something on this list that sounds like something you would love, look them up to see who they’re hanging out with. Just go to your local brewery and try some beers.

A: So this is not about the actual beer inside the vessel, but what was the best-designed package?

C: Oh, my God. How can you ask me that? Well, the first thing that comes to mind is “I Voted Today.” That was a pale ale by Non Sequitur, which is a nomadic brand, but they’re in Brooklyn, and they opened a space that’s like a semi-permanent pop-up. But anyway, this was part of a campaign to raise voting awareness earlier this year. And it also happened to be one of the best pale ales that we drank this year.

A: I like that design. I’m looking at it now.

C: Go to their website or go to their Instagram. Non Sequitur is just adorable. A lot of the branding is centered around their lovely dog, Nelson, who is named for a hop, of course. And it’s very lighthearted and whimsical, and that’s one of the ones that stands out among this very beautiful, colorful craft beer label landscape. What’s your favorite design?

A: I was looking. I think I have three on here that I think are really well done in terms of design. I think Wandering Bine is beautiful and very much stands out. I also really like the Grimm just because it’s really nice. And then actually it’s all the way at the top of the list, but I think in terms of modern and very clean design: Fort Point, I think it’s a very well done can. It pops, and again, it would make someone grab it off the shelf. The rest are what you would consider classic craft beer, there are some that are really classic like the Victory, et cetera. But I think those are three that feel very modern to me in a way that I just thought was really cool when I was scrolling through the list and you think like, “Oh, wow.” And I think it’s interesting to ask that question here, because it is the one alcohol that takes design really seriously. It’s always cool to see what the breweries come up with.

C: Everyone’s designs are so cool.

Z: Yeah, well, especially in a year when even more than ever, your ability to pop on a grocery store shelf was the difference between succeeding and failing, in a way that maybe has never been as true.

A: Yeah, totally. Well, guys, this has been a really interesting conversation, as always. Cat, thanks for joining us this week.

C: Thank you so much for having me. Always fun to talk about beer with you guys.

A: I know. And Zach, I’ll see you next week.

Z: Sounds great.

Thanks so much for listening to the VinePair Podcast. If you enjoy listening to us every week, please leave us a review or rating on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever it is that you get your podcasts. It really helps everyone else discover the show. Now for the credits, VinePair is produced by myself and Zach Geballe. It is also mixed and edited by him. Yeah, Zach, we know you do a lot. I’d also like to thank the entire VinePair team, including my co-founder, Josh and our associate editor, Cat. Thanks so much for listening. See you next week.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article VinePair’s 50 Best Beers Showcase Craft Beer’s Creativity and Resilience appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/top-50-beers-list-podcast/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/vinepairs-50-best-beers-showcase-craft-beers-creativity-and-resilience

[dietsauthority]

11 Steps to a Healthier Diet: National Women`s Health Week

It's National Female's Health and wellness Week, so exactly what much better time to obtain revved up and also establish some objectives to lose a couple of pounds or to consume much healthier. Making healthy and balanced changes and keeping them is not constantly so simple to do. However, there are some strategies for incorporating much healthier consuming right into your way of life that are not too cumbersome or require excessive compromise.

A few simple tips to obtain you started:

# 1. Emphasis on Including Not Simply Subtracting

For lots of people who are thinking about eating healthier, their very first idea is to eliminate as many things as feasible from their diet plan. For novice transitioners, it may be simpler to attempt an additive method. If you start your healthy eating regimen by including new as well as various yummy foods to your diet, you might locate on your own feeling fuller, more satisfied and also much less suitable to long for undesirable foods.

#2. Explore New Foods

Start attempting something brand-new every other day of the week. You may desire to add a fruit or veggie that you have actually never ever attempted previously, or you may want to attempt whole-grain bread as opposed to a simple white bread. By attempting new points, you open the opportunities of finding foods that are not just healthy for you, yet that you genuinely take pleasure in, as well.

#3. Start Where You Shop

The old proverb' if it is in your home, you will certainly eat it', could not be any truer. If you earn refined convenience foods, chips, cookies, ice cream as well as cake, you will have easy access as well as less self-control. (I know, because this has actually undermined my healthy objectives on numerous celebrations.) Concealed = Out of mind. So, prevent getting big amounts of junk foods as well as you will certainly be great when you find that you have lacked those 'not so healthy and balanced' treats.

# 4. Incorporate Foods of Different Colors

Examine the food teams as well as see if you could incorporate foods of numerous shades right into your day-to-day menus. Peppers come in a selection of shades as well as if you have not attempted a yellow or orange pepper, now might be an excellent time to do so. If your motif shade of the week is orange, attempt a tangelo, for example.

#5. Use Images for Inspiration

By uploading messages concerning just what various healthy and balanced foods could do for various parts of the body, you will certainly have much more rewards to consume right for the appropriate reasons. Place motivating photos of attractive skin, hair, nails, and also a healthy heart on your refrigerator to produce consistent reminders of the great you are providing for on your own and in addition to your family.

# 6. Change with Healthy Substitutions

If you are aiming to consume healthy however desire to maintain several of your preferred products in your dish plan, assume concerning healthy and balanced replacements. Try air-popped popcorn rather than butter-topped. Or choose wild rice rather than white rice. Use stevia in recipes rather than sugar. Consume raw almonds as opposed to an Almond Delight bar.

#7. Hold a Family Meeting

Call a household conference as well as ask others to be considerate of your newfound choice to eat much healthier. Inform them that they are not forced to join you, but it would be great. Let them know that they are to support and also urge you by not consuming undesirable foods in front of you. This demand has a dual benefit-your family could be affected by your great behaviors without being required to do so.

# 8. Employ the Involvement of Close friends at Work

Ask your office buddies to join you on this brand-new adventure of eating healthier. Have every person contribute by generating a brand-new food, fruit, or veggie when a week. Take turns as well as make it enjoyable. At the end of the week, take a ballot as well as provide a small prize or motivation for the most imaginative and yummy food or healthy and balanced treat.

# 9. Hold a Healthy Consuming Potluck

Invite loved ones over at the beginning of your new decision. Have everyone bring a healthy recipe to a dinner design supper. Have them put index cards with the recipes on it that so others can take them home.

# 10. Illustrate the Wellness Benefits

Educate on your own concerning healthier active ingredients and also preparation strategies. By examining healthy and balanced recipe books and placing index cards around the kitchen area showing the distinction in calories in between whipping cream as well as low fat yogurt in a recipe, for example, you will certainly have valuable aesthetic aids that advise you just how you are aiding your body remain healthy and balanced by eating healthy.

# 11. Try Not to Deny Yourself

[sarkarimirror]

Can India become a 'fitness nation'?

Can  India become a 'fitness nation'?   World renowned fitness entrepreneur Jag Chima on latest  16 new fitness trends and how fitness has changed over the years.  INDIA, Mumbai, 24th June 2019:   Jag Chima is serious about his mission to rewrite the rules of fitness and front a campaign to get India into shape.    He  is a global fitness entrepreneur and he has been on a mission on bringing holistic fitness change in  India and has been very successful in recent times. He is also the business partner of Kris Gethin who has transformed celebrities such as Hrithik Roshan, Mahesh Babu, Anil Kapoor, John Abraham, and the list goes on and on.    We humans always do things to move forward. Our technology gets better every passing year. Our daily essentials are better than what they were a few years ago, even our cars and bikes have gotten better, proving that we aim for betterment.  CEO & Co Founder Physique Global and Kris Gethin Gyms, Jag Chima said "India! I know, Here we have trained over 3000 fitness enthusiasts through our educational events. I have been involved in the fitness industry since 2004 and have introduced some of the biggest fitness movements to India from around the world with the biggest names in the fitness and wellness space. We are constantly researching and studying the most efficient way to achieve optimum results and can confidently say that as a result of humans wanting shortcuts to success, the fitness industry continues to see new trends on almost a weekly / monthly basis. However, it is important to ensure each trend is carefully assessed and understood before one assumes it will be the best route to fast results for them. Every person is different and thus its never a case of one size fits all. The one important thing I can say is, becoming your best self and living a fitter and healthier lifestyle has never been easier! You just have to be dedicated. Here are some of the current fitness trends : Wearable technology / Apps - (These include products and services such as watches, Heart rate monitors, workout trackers). If you are one of those people who are easily distracted or lose motivation very quickly then this is something you need to look into. For example, If you use a watch that tracks the number of steps you take via an app which you can also connect with friends and family who do the same, you can create healthy competition which will keep you account and ensure you stay on top. No one wants to be second best. You can also use wearable technology to track your heart rate during workouts, track your quality of sleep and much more. Apps like Strava will help you to connect with likeminded people around the world where you can track your runs, cycle rides and much more. Group Training - If you get bored easily or always look for excuses to get out of a workout then group training is the one for you. Training with others has proven to keep people on track, make workouts more enjoyable and get great results. However it is vital that you choose the correct type of group training for you. Group training is not like personal training, usually the whole group will follow the routine and intensity which can sometimes become demotivating for some who need a little more attention and help with form. E.g. Group ‘cross fit’ style training has proven to create the most amount of injuries for individuals and these classes have a low retention of members rate as a result. Bio hacking - Now this is one of the big ones. Mark my words, Bio hacking is about to blow up big time! But what does this mean? Bio hacking has been part of lifestyle for decades, however with the power of social media, accessibility to smart phones and general media, we now find it easier to access real and verified information hence the sudden rise in the use of the word and its awareness. Always be sure to seek medical advice from at least 3 medical professionals before you decide on implementing any bio hacks. Never take for granted what you see online without verifying the information yourself. Because some of the research and products are very new in this space verifying can be a daunting process but is important. Being Vegan - with the many tests available today, many more individuals have begun to understand the way the human body works. For years people have lived with food allergies and intolerances and with India having the largest population of vegetarians being vegan seems to be the way to go for most. Vegan foods are suitable for vegetarians and are free from dairy. HIIT - High intensity Interval Training. This type of training ideal for people with a shortage of time and for people who want to have a highly effective workout. Ideally used for fat loss programs and conditioning for sports. This is particularly good for heart health. An example of HIIT training would be Treadmill - one min walk and one min at maximum heart rate repeated 20 times. Timed Transformation plans - For years many people have joined gyms with not actual plan of action, any urgency or accountability and eventually fail in achieving their fitness goals. Transformation plans have become extremely popular with gyms like Kris Gethin Gyms where there are approximately 7 structured body transformation plans which have been used by millions around the world including actors such as Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham, Arjun Kapoor, Ranveer Singh and many other actors. These plans range from Muscle building, Fat loss and preparation for events such as Tri-athlons and marathons. Keto Diets - These have been in existence for decades, however with so many people looking for quick results, keto diets have become extremely popular. The Keto diets consist of High fats and very low Carbohydrate intake. The idea is for your body to switch from using Carbs as energy to using fats to function. It’s has been know to have been used by business men and women in the olden days as the brain function and focus improves significantly as well as fat loss. Intermittent Fasting - This is when you have a limited window in the day where you east and for their rest of the time are fasting. The most popular ratio would be 18 hours of fasting and a 6 hour window to consume meals. Type of diet has proven to significantly optimise the functioning of the digestive system, improve focus and quality of sleep. Other benefits include rapid fat loss. Some people have used the Intermittent fasting approach and Keto together which has been highly successful for many. Blue Light blocking - With the number of electronics i.e. gadgets an average person own and the type of lifestyle most have, being exposed to blue light is extremely high. Blocking blue light from as little as one hour before sleep has proven to improve the quality of sleep and thus improve general health for many.Blue light blocking glasses have become a hot seller worldwide as a result of these studies which have proven to improve human health. A lack of quality sleep is the root cause of many illnesses. Organic Foods- There has been a rise in illnesses which are directly connected to how food in today's times is produced. From farmers using highly dangerous pesticides and fertilisers to poultry farms using steroids & synthetics to enhance and speed up processes.Organic foods have become highly sought after due to the high quality and health benefits.

Hot yoga - Often referred to as Bikram Yoga, has become highly popular across the globe. This is yoga carried out in a controlled but hot environment. Often temperatures almost as warm as a sauna.

Bhangra fitness classes A fun way to burn calories! Bhangra fitness classes have spread throughout India like a storm. Most international brands have also incorporated these as a result due to their popularity and now are also conducted in fitness facilities across the west of the world in countries like UK, Canada and the USA. Virtual Spin classes - These are classes on a spin bike where you have a huge screen in front of you and can see cyclists cycling in different terrains and your position displayed according to your performance in the group. Often these classes do not need a physical instructor as on screen instructions can easily be followed. Ideal for the competitive individual.

Meditation classes - Mental health awareness and its importance has been well received in India, with the busy lifestyles many live, we often forget the importance of taking care of our mental health. The quality of our life is dependent on the quality of our thoughts. To help the very busy individuals, mind therapy has become a huge hit for many fitness and wellness facilities where you would be required to disconnect from the world and focus on the theme within the class. Many high profile people in India have taken this very seriously and even hire coaches to provide services at the comfort of their own homes. A huge revenue generator for fitness professionals. Cryotherapy- Recovery is a huge issue for many. That could be recovery from physical training or from injuries. The inflammation in the human body has a process to reduce and with the proven studies of this process being sped up with Cryotherapy, it is not a hot trend for many of the who is who with the budgets. Cryotherapy is a process where you would enter a chamber where you would be exposed to an extremely low temperature for a short period of time. These treatments have proven to be very successful for professional athletes around the world where recovery in an optimal time is highly important and improves performance when most needed. International Personal Trainers - It has now become fashionable to employ an personal trainer from abroad. With high profile individuals having huge budgets there is no limit to what people are willing to spend. I have seen budgets which range from just 1 lac per month to 50 lacs per month! Unbelievable in most cases as some of the trainers who are very popular in social media have no clue in realty.ALWAYS seek recommendations and check real life track records if you are considering hiring a trainer from foreign countries. There are many educated and competent trainers available in Remember, the worldwide web is available to everyone! Always research before you follow any trend and always seek professional advice. Stay fit! Read the full article

[growinstablog]

10 Instagram Predictions to Fire-up Your Strategy for 2020

As we close out December, it’s time for our favorite blog post of the year — and it’s all about Instagram predictions for 2020! 

To help you kick off January with a supercharged Instagram strategy, we’re giving you the low down on all the biggest trends to watch for the next year, and beyond.  

We’re sharing insights from the Instagram pros and industry experts in our top 10 Instagram predictions for 2020: 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #1: Words Will Be More Powerful than Images

Instagram used to be all about the visuals — a cohesive aesthetic, high-quality photography, and on-brand images were a must. 

And while you still need to be thinking about your grid in 2020, we’re seeing Instagram captions take center stage! 

Influencers were the first to jump on the trend — Jenna Kutcher, Elise Darma, Quigley Goode, and Sarah Nicole Landry of @thebirdspapaya all share lengthy captions on their posts to give greater insight into their world or to share their knowledge. 

View this post on Instagram

6 years ago right before thanksgiving I began my weight loss journey. So when thanksgiving hit, I “fasted” all day (which for me was not a health choice but a way to avoid eating, justified with a wellness word) so I could fit all the calories into one meal. I stared at the food like I was completely crippled by it all. But I didn’t binge eat. I just plugged the food into my app and tried not to cry. ⁣ ⁣ By the next thanksgiving, I’d lost about 80lbs. I looked at thanksgiving food like it was BENEATH me. I was thinner. I was powerful. No cheesecake would take me down. I was in control. ⁣ ⁣ Fast forward some life lessons. ⁣ ⁣ Until now. This thanksgiving. I ate as I would during the day. I enjoyed thanksgiving dinner like I would any other meal. I stopped eating when I was full. I celebrated the post-food bloat without guilt. Because this is just what the body does after it eats (hang out with a toddler and you’ll notice theirs does the same). ⁣ ⁣ I felt present yesterday. I didn’t count the calories. I didn’t panic over eating mashed potatoes. Upon hearing the birthday cake was gluten and dairy free, I had some! ⁣ ⁣ Holidays and food are really hard when you have disordered eating, food fear or body fear, or simply recovering from years of dieting. ⁣ ⁣ I guess I just wanna remind you (and myself) that it’s ok if you don’t get it right. If you binged. If you restricted. This isn’t something you suddenly just understand or unlearn or relearn in a day or a year. ⁣ ⁣ Sometimes, like hiccups, you just notice that suddenly it’s not happening anymore. You’re not counting the calories. You’re not obsessing over the food around you but the PEOPLE around you instead. You enjoy the moments, you take in the memories. And while food is the centre piece of it all, it’s not the purpose anymore. It’s not your why. ⁣ ⁣ This weekend I’m reminded of the power in choosing gratitude. For my body. For my moments. For my people. So much to be thankful for. I have no need to pick it apart anymore. Celebrating victories, and the failures that taught us so much, too.

A post shared by Sarah Nicole Landry (@thebirdspapaya) on Oct 13, 2019 at 10:31am PDT

Later chatted to Sarah Nicole of @thebirdspapaya on how she naturally started to integrate long-form captions into her Instagram feed: 

“The last couple of years have brought about a new way of me using Instagram as my creative outlet,” Sarah Nicole explains. 

“I had always been posting in a “photo first’ way, which often led me to feel frustrated with not knowing what to say. So I reversed it. I started writing mini-blog captions in the moments I was feeling them.” 

Sarah Nicole added that by switching her thought process to “caption first, and image second,” it allowed her to be more journalistic in her approach, while being able to share more vulnerable and authentic moments of her life with her followers. 

View this post on Instagram

The world of social media can be so funny to me sometimes. We see iconic landmarks and pretty photo ops just swarmed with people ready to take their pic and post it. ⁣ ⁣ And it feels like it’s all a little over the top. ⁣ ⁣ But remember when you were a child and your mom would ask you to stand in front of a landmark or a pretty flower garden? She took that photo and she put it in a book, sealed behind a plastic static cover. She showed it to her friends, had it on the coffee tables, on the shelves to stay forever. We looked back on them for years. The markers of our childhood. ⁣ ⁣ Then we grew up. The photo albums, they got digital. The sharing became in social media. Sure, a lot of it got vain. ⁣ ⁣ But never forget, these are still our memories and our albums. And it’s ok to take the picture, to post it, and remember it. Not all of us are doing it for status. Some of us just want to freeze a moment in time. For the days that memories won’t serve us so easily, anymore. 💕

A post shared by Sarah Nicole Landry (@thebirdspapaya) on Nov 21, 2019 at 6:49am PST

“I think we are craving human connection more and more,” she notes. “When someone else feels connected to something, they want to share it! So the combination of longer-form posts, and the ability for others to share those posts on Instagram Stories, helped me grow organically.” 

And micro-blogging in captions has really paid off for Sarah Nicole — over the last year, @thebirdspapaya account has grown from 80k to 740k followers! 

But brands are now starting to take advantage of the trend too — especially when it comes to raising awareness for the causes that they stand for. 

Take, for example, sustainable clothing brand and environmental activists, Patagonia. As part of their campaign to highlight the issues around fish farming, Patagonia released an IGTV and film series that discusses the challenges the environment faces: 

View this post on Instagram

Tasmania is regarded as one of the wildest, most pristine states in Australia. In recent years however that reputation has been tarnished by the boom of the local salmon farming industry. With environmental regulations struggling to keep pace with the industry’s growth, the marine environments that host the industry have been significantly impacted and in some cases have approached collapse. Increased scrutiny of the industry – aided by the mobile nature of ocean pen farming – has forced operators to find new locations. When the industry set their sights on opening up new territory on neighboring King Island – adjacent to the world-class waves of Martha Lavinia Beach – they were unaware they were also picking a fight with surfers worldwide. Join the King Island community in saying NO to farmed salmon and keep King Island fish farm free.@patagonia_surf

A post shared by Patagonia (@patagonia) on Aug 11, 2019 at 2:51pm PDT

Along with sharing a preview of their IGTV video “Saving Martha,” Patagonia also gave insight into their mission and why they need their followers’ support. 

And while you might be thinking that a longer caption might impact engagement rates, you’d be right — but only in a positive way! 

According to influencer research by Fohr, the average caption length has more than doubled since 2016, and those with longer captions got the most engagement! 

And by 2020, our feeds will be filled with an average caption length of 405 characters — which averages out to be 65-70 words!

Not sure what that looks like? Check out how Knix has nailed the perfect caption length with the help of a strong call to action to watch their stories and a nod to a cute cultural moment that their target audience would love! 

View this post on Instagram

We’re reimagining what it means to be strong, beautiful and badass through ads all over our hometown of Toronto! This morning Team Knix along with @nikkileighmckean, @thebirdspapaya (who rode her first EVER streetcar) and our founder and CEO @joannaknix took to the streets to have our very own Carrie Bradshaw billboard moment👡👛 Check out our stories today to see what we got up to! *hums the Sex and the City theme song on a loop* #knix

A post shared by Knix (@knixwear) on Nov 4, 2019 at 1:22pm PST

Now we’re not saying that every caption has to be thousands of words long, but even writing a full sentence instead of just a few emojis could help you increase Instagram engagement.

Looking for tips and tricks on how to craft the perfect Instagram caption? Check out our free video workshop with Instagram pro Elise Darma and Taylor from Later! 

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #2: IGTV Will Be All About Series Content 

Video is the future of Instagram and a ton of brands are now creating long-form video content for IGTV to drive real business results.

IGTV is super-immersive and, thanks to some recent changes, more closely connected to Instagram so it’s easy to align your Instagram audience with your IGTV content. If you haven’t already, it’s time to jump on board the trend!

But the beauty of IGTV over Instagram Stories videos is that your content can be housed there for as long as you like, making it the perfect setup for a branded video series! 

According to Jon Youshaei, Product Marketing Manager of IGTV, Instagram is building an entire destination right in the Instagram app for people to go and browse. 

“We’ve seen so many people go to this destination and find new content,” Jon says. 

For viewers, this means that they can intentionally browse and pick a video when they’re in the mood to really engage and pay attention.

So our top prediction for IGTV in 2020 is that brands will start using it as a platform for serial content. 

To take advantage of this trend, Jon recommends having a “repeatable theme and style that your audience can expect in every episode.” 

Take Jameela Jamil’s “I Weigh” interview series where the actor interviews celebrities about mental health, body positivity, and more:

Later’s social media strategist, Mel Brittner explains that IGTV is about finding the right format to draw your audience in. 

“IGTV is immersive in a very different way to Instagram Stories — you’re not being asked to scroll for more, tap for the next post or swipe up!” Mel explains. 

“It’s just a ‘sit back and relax situation’, which leaves a huge area of opportunity to build brand affinity.” 

But to make that work, you’ll need to make your videos engaging right off the mark — and that takes testing to figure out what works for your audience in terms of length, topics, and format. 

“If you can find the right IGTV format for your brand, you’ll soon have your audience hooked onto your series!” says Mel. 

Take a look at Lululemon’s Boob Truths series:

The video series features weekly segments on a single topic (how to find the perfect sports bra fit!), and is cohesive in terms of set and format. 

Plus, with the use of the Countdown sticker in Instagram Stories to promote the launch of each new episode, the execution was nothing short of “IGTV genius,” says Mel. 

So if you’re thinking about launching your first IGTV series in 2020, now’s the time to start strategically planning. Consider what your audience wants to learn, or see more of from your profile, and how you can better serve them through video content. 

And don’t worry about budget — Mel explains that some of the best videos series out there are filmed on a low budget, but hook people in with some clever editing thanks to apps like LumaFusion and InShot! 

Want to learn more about building the perfect IGTV strategy for 2020? Get all the insider tips from Jon Youshaei, Product Marketing Manager of IGTV when we chatted to him at LaterCon! 

P.S. We have some very exciting IGTV projects up our sleeve for 2020 — follow Later on Instagram to be the first to know! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #3: Brands Will Favor Partnerships with Micro-Influencers 

Instagram influencer partnerships are by far the best performing platform for brands to reach new audiences quickly. 

With an average 3.2% engagement rate compared to 1.5% across all social networks, having a strong influencer campaign strategy is a real asset to brands looking to grow on Instagram. 

So more than ever before, we’re seeing brands and businesses investing a high portion of their budgets to influencer marketing — simply because, when done right, it works!

Even mega-beauty brand, Estee Lauder recently announced that they will allocate 75% of their marketing budget to influencer marketing over the next year!

View this post on Instagram

How do you wear confidence? For me I have the confidence that my @esteelauder Double Wear foundation is going to stay on the entire day and I have all the time to enjoy the festivities without worrying about touchups, even when it’s hot and humid. With 40+ plus shades to choose from, you can find your shade of flawless! In this look I created a day time look that you could wear during Durga Puja and I hope you guys love it! #WEARCONFIDENCE #DoubleWear #ESTEEINDIA #ESTEEPARTNER

A post shared by Debasree Banerjee (@debasreee) on Sep 17, 2019 at 11:42pm PDT

But for 2020, we’re expecting to see much stronger partnerships between brands and micro-influencers! 

Why? Because after influencer marketing platform, Fohr analyzed influencers’ posts, it’s was micro-influencers who had the highest engagement rates (averaging at 7%) on their feed posts in 2019! 

In fact, influencers with

Instagram influencer, Christina Galbato, who has worked with brands like the Las Vegas tourism board, Mazda USA, and Olay, agrees that brands will be more open to working with micro-influencers this coming year. 

“Brands will increase their focus on working with micro-influencers,” Christina explains.

“Oftentimes a micro-influencer’s connection with their communities is much stronger!” 

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umm… can all of my deliveries arrive like this one from @Olay?? i am always looking out for the best skincare products to share with you all, so i am too excited to incorporate the uber-hydrating #Olay Whips Moisturizer into my Fall & Winter routine! go check out my Stories to see how surprised I was by this packaging situation – soooo fun. 🎈 #FeelTheWhip #Sponsored

A post shared by Christina Galbato (@christinagalbato) on Oct 18, 2018 at 9:55am PDT

Art director, Erin Summer agrees that with a better engagement rate, and loyal community, micro-influencer marketing is a good strategy for brands in 2020. 

“I think now is the best time ever to connect with influencers,” Erin advises. 

“Look for the influencer who consistently gets lots of meaningful comments on their posts. In my opinion, that’s the best way to determine whether or not an audience is actually engaging with the content as opposed to likes or followers.”

Ready to jump into level-up your influencer strategy for 2020? We teamed up the Fohr to create this data-driven (and totally free!) State of Instagram Influencer Marketing Report! Sign up below and we’ll send it straight to your inbox! 

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #4: Authenticity Will Lead the Way for Brands and Influencers

Authentic content was a major trend for 2019 — and it’s set to become even stronger in 2020! We’re seeing tons of brands and businesses getting on board and showing a more honest, real, and vulnerable side to their brand and business. 

A high level of authenticity can go a long way in building a stronger connection to your audience. When you can showcase the good with the bad, the struggles along with the wins, you brand will be more relatable to your audience. 

Take for example Jen Gotch. Founder of the ultra-popular Ban.do, Jen shared an honest post about mental health and the unfair protocol of emotional professionalism: 

View this post on Instagram

This is me after a real Big Cry at ban.do a few years ago right after Andrew moved back to Australia. In thinking back, I realized I’ve cried at every job I’ve ever had and even now there is still a little bit of embarrassment and shame associated with it. As someone who now helps run a company I am dedicated to creating a space where it is safe to express your emotions, but I know that expressing any emotion that brings us to tears (pain, sadness, grief, overwhelm and yes, joy) can still be very awkward when done at work (or any public space for that matter). I came up with the idea for International I Cry at Work Day to reduce the stigma around public expressions of emotions – and hey, maybe not publicly flailing your arms around screaming (been there) or sobbing uncontrollably while shouting obscenities in the middle of your office (been there) – but feeling our feelings without being mortified or even worse, worrying that our professional performance and emotional stability we will be judged. I post pictures like this and cry on my IG stories to normalize something that every human experiences in an effort to say, “it’s ok to cry.” And also to expose people to a range of emotions, because I recognize for many they have been trained personally and professionally to operate with very little range. I hope it helps. I’m happy to see you joining me (and @shopbando ) today in sharing your experiences and eternally grateful for your support in the personal risks I take in a public space. #InternationalICryAtWorkDay 🤗🥴😥😐🙂🙃🤣

A post shared by jen gotch (@jengotch) on May 31, 2019 at 1:48pm PDT

Off the back of this, Ban.do then created a slogan tee to mark their now annual celebration of “International Cry at Work Day” — an ode to all the times we’ve needed to shed a tear in the office, and raise awareness for mental health charities in the US. 

View this post on Instagram

Good morning from this picture of @anastasia.furrow in our I Cry at Work shirt making us wish it was jacket weather in Los Angeles 📷 @nataliemeansnice

A post shared by ban.do (@shopbando) on Oct 23, 2019 at 9:53am PDT

Authenticity was once exclusively linked to the Instagram aesthetic, with the no-edit edit trends piquing interest. 

But the authentic aesthetic expands well beyond a pretty filter in 2020. Hayley Zielke, Marketing Coordinator at Artifacts Uprising (a Later customer!) explains that as a brand, their mission is to share images that are beautiful and inspiring, but most importantly, it’s about telling a story. 

“Artifacts Uprising created the hashtag #TellOn to be a space where our community could share their stories and connect with other storytellers,” Hayley says. 

And when it comes to curating their feed from the ~400k posts tagged with the branded hashtag, Hayley stresses that it goes beyond the photo quality. 

“Yes, we look out for color, brightness, and clarity. But truly we look for images that remind us of all there is to be grateful for — everyday moments, that view from your office window, that trip that you’ve dreamed of for years…” 

View this post on Instagram

“Here, instead of strapping on their street shoes for Black Friday shopping, they would take their hiking boots to White River National Forest in search of the perfect tree… ⁠ ⁠ Maybe this tradition-worth-waiting-for has made me a holiday person after all.” – @lauraschmalstieg⁠ ⁠ Discover 10 ways we embrace holiday traditions as our own → link in bio

A post shared by Artifact Uprising (@artifactuprising) on Nov 29, 2019 at 7:00am PST

So for 2020, having an authentic voice and mission is more important than following the “filtered” crowd. 

“That has been a focus of ours the past few years,” Hayley says. “How can we [Artifacts Uprising] highlight every kind of experience — the imperfect and all? Because ‘aesthetic’ is what you make it and connection is what really matters.”

Want to know more about where the Instagram aesthetic is headed in 2020? Check out this blog post as we predict the trends that will shape Instagram’s future! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #5: Brand x Brand Collaborations Will Seriously Pay Off 

There’s a new type of collaboration in town, and this one is set to be big for 2020. 

Brands are now collaborating with other brands on Instagram to create quality content that drives traffic, boosts sales and creates a perfect marriage of brand affinity for each! 

Think Alfred Coffee x Ritual to create Instagram-ready coffee cup sleeves: 

View this post on Instagram

Life in LA is telling yourself that ordering a Chagaccino and a Matcha counts towards your daily vegetable goal. Reality check: it doesn’t. So order your drink, take your @ritual and we won’t tell 😉 #AlfredxRitual #AlfredCoffee

A post shared by Alfred (@alfred) on Aug 23, 2019 at 8:15am PDT

We chatted to Jess Ruhfus, founder of Collabosaurus, a marketing tool that connects brands for clever collaborations and partnership, for her insights on the trends. 

“Brand-by-brand collaborations can be incredibly powerful,” says Jess. 

“In our experience, a brand-by-brand partnership can double your organic reach without any monetary spend. And they’re up to 25x less expensive than digital advertising!” 

View this post on Instagram

➖Goats cheese collaborates *real* well with avocado toast. But is that the same thing?⁣ ⁣ The word ‘collaboration’ gets thrown around a lot. It has so many uses! It’s used with inter-team collaborations, influencer collaborations, ‘collaborations’ that are just straight up advertising, it’s used in those creepy LinkedIn DM’s from complete strangers wanting to ‘collaborate’ to bring you 10000000 followers for $10 and “top rank on google guaranteed” 😂⁣ ⁣ & then there are brand collaborations (oh hii!)⁣ ⁣ When we (at Collabosaurus) are talking collaborations, we are NOT referring to influencers, teams, advertising or creepy LinkedIn DM’s. ⁣ ⁣ We’re talking about complementary brands teaming up for a clever marketing campaign.⁣ ⁣ Think Thankyou x Sarah Kelk, Hey Tiger x Go-To Skincare, Coachella x Calvin Klein, Gorman x so many talented artists – the list goes on!⁣ ⁣ Brand collaborations happen (usually) as one of the following…⁣ ⁣ ✨ SOCIAL MEDIA. Content collaborations, or competitions & giveaways are where it’s at here!⁣ ⁣ ✨ EVENTS. Goodie bag inclusions, venue partners, or promotional partners for events, activations & experiential are awesome collabs⁣ ⁣ ✨ PRODUCTS. Two brands teaming up on a limited edition product release (Chandon x Seafolly, a great example), or Online Products can also fly. Podcasts, ebooks, courses, downloads – if you’re a service based business this is an awesome avenue to explore.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ So if you’re getting any creepy LinkedIn DM’s with the word ‘collaboration’ – we’re pretty positive they’re not talking about the same thing. Unless… the creepy DM is from Jess (in which case, say hi!)

A post shared by Collabosaurus (@collabosaurus) on Apr 28, 2019 at 1:19am PDT

The Collabosaurus team has managed 6,500+ partnership opportunities for brands like ASOS, Sofitel, Red Bull and Topshop, and have seen first-hand how creative collaborations can be.  

Take, for example, Kit Kat’s collaboration with fashion brand, The Daily Edited. 

View this post on Instagram

TDE x KITKAT Chocolatory ultimate fashion collaboration. Personalised jewellery box, pouch or card wallet- each paired with decadent creations! 🍫 in store & online – link in bio 😍

A post shared by KITKAT (@kitkatanz) on Dec 5, 2019 at 3:43am PST

“At first glance, this would look like quite a bizarre collaboration for the two brands,” Jess says. 

“But it’s getting a lot of attention! It has helped Kit Kat tap into a fashion-focussed crowd, with TDE being well positioned to align with such a well known brand. It’s creative, unexpected and has not only seen fabulous Instagram engagement, but media exposure as well!” 

So what does this mean for Instagram influencers? 

What’s important to remember is that influencer marketing and brand x brand collaborations are two very different strategies for success. 

“For brand-to-brand collaborations, it’s all about leveraging what you have available to you in your business,” Jess says. 

“Businesses, as opposed to individual influencers, have more than just an Instagram account in their bank of assets. Therefore, any collaboration you do together can be leveraged across many social platforms, email lists, event audiences, blogs, media, and so much more.” 

With this in mind, we’re expecting to see tons more creative brands come together to produce engaging content specifically for Instagram! 

Still not convinced? Check out this co-built project by Mailchimp and Vice — even without a physical product to sell, the brands have successfully teamed up to create content that appeals to both audiences and shares an important message that’s perfect for Instagram’s video-rich platform: 

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In this unscripted series co-produced with @vice, we follow five people who decided to change everything about their careers and try something new. It’s Second Act—only on @mailchimppresents . Click the link in the bio to watch their journeys.

A post shared by Mailchimp (@mailchimp) on Jul 22, 2019 at 8:11am PDT

Instagram Predictions 2020 #6: AR Filters Are Here to Stay 

Thanks to the launch of Spark Studio AR, we’re seeing a new wave of creators using the studio to create “preset style” filters to edit Instagram Stories.

From fall shades, to perfect replicas of VSCO’s most popular presets, there’s now an Instagram filter to suit your mood: 

For 2020, we’re predicting that a lot of Instagram users will step away from the classic Paris or Oslo filters and start using more sophisticated AR-inspired filter. 

Plus brands and influencers will start creating AR filters for their followers — making it even easier to spread the trend far and wide. 

Check out how travel influencer Angela Giakas from Sunday Chapter jumped on the trend by creating her own “Rose” filter for Instagram: 

She’s even gone on to create a second filter for her followers after the welcome response from her first release! 

If a branded AR filter is in your sights for 2020, you’ll need to do a little bit of research, says Angela. 

“Before you jump into design, consider your target market and what you think will appeal to them. Brainstorm a concept or idea that you think your audience will love, and then start bringing it to life!”

From here, it’s time to get to know Spark Studio AR. 

“It’s not something you can learn overnight,” Angela warns. “Even with prior visual graphics knowledge, it took us a really long time to understand the tools for creating augmented reality. It can feel very overwhelming, so try to keep your ideas simple at the start!” 

That said, Facebook has created tons of online resources including YouTube tutorials to help new designers, or can outsource your project to AR creators via Facebook’s Spark AR partners page to create your filters instead!

And that’s not all — AR filters are now helping people shop with Instagram! 

As reported by Vogue, Scandinavian retailer Carlings is using Instagram to create a digital shopping experience for their followers and fans. 

After creating a sold-out digital clothing collection last year, Carlings has now released the €40 “Last Statement” T-shirt — the logo triggers various designs that appear on Instagram through augmented reality filters! 

Image: @vogue & @vice

When you point the Instagram camera at the T-shirt, a Carlings design appears in the camera screen — it changes and moves along with the camera and the person. 

“This allows the customer to digitally wear and share new designs without buying a new T-shirt,” says Morten Grubak, Northern Europe executive creative director for Virtue, an agency that led the project.

So it’s an exciting time for Instagram and AR Filters — and it’s only set to get bigger in 2020. Watch this space! 

Want to learn more about how brands can use AR filters? Check out our blog post for 8 inspirational ways to use the trend! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #7: Instagram Shopping Will be Bigger Than Ever 

From shoppable AR filters, to one-click in-app purchases, Instagram Shopping is about to become big businesses for all brands on the platform. 

Every month, 130 million people tap on an Instagram shopping post to learn more about products.

For businesses, Instagram shopping posts are a great way to showcase your products and drive more sales. 

Especially now, thanks to 2019’s new Instagram checkout feature, which lets you buy products *directly* on Instagram without ever leaving the app!

But it doesn’t stop there — Instagram has recently invited a select few publishing brands to test the platform as an e-commerce tool. 

As reported by Digiday, “publishers like Group Nine, Condé Nast and Highsnobiety are testing Instagram Shopping as a way to combine their large Instagram followings with their burgeoning e-commerce operations.”

Since it’s acceptance into the test group, Group Nine has been selling Dodo-branded merch, and a collaboration between The Dodo and direct-to-consumer brand Sock Club. Plus, 10% of sales is donated to help critically endangered species. 

ICYMI: Brand x brand collaborations are going to be BIG on Instagram in 2020! 

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Rhinos & Elephants & Orangutans, oh my! 🦏🐘🐒 Have YOU snagged a pair of our @thedodo collection socks yet? 🍃 Fun Fact: 10% of sales go to saving the animals on these socks! Also, get them at a discounted price during our store Sale (which ends tomorrow at 11:59pm CST!) 💚 . . .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #thedodo #dodoxsockclub #collab #animalrescue #sockclub #givesockclub #socks #socksofinstagram #sockhead #sockgame #customer #customsocks #customswag #businesscasual #austin #atx #orangutan #elephant #sloth #rhino #tiger #seaturtles #conservation #awionline #conservationorg #sheldricktrust

A post shared by Sock Club (@sockclub) on Dec 11, 2019 at 4:27pm PST

Laura Cranfield, social media manger at Lush, told us that for 2020, the cruelty-free skincare brand is looking to better understand the role Instagram plays in their audience’s purchasing journey.

“We want to provide our audience with content that helps them with where they’re at in the funnel. This means not only creating content to drive purchase (though that’s always a great result), we try our best to share our brand stories, elevate the voices of our staff and partners, and educate our audience on our products,” Laura says.

But you don’t have to be accepted into the Instagram test group to optimizing your posts for shopping! 

Just start by taking the first steps to be an approved retailer with Instagram, and then you can begin creating awesome posts with tagged products for easier Instagram shopping for your followers!

Want to learn more about Instagram Shopping? Check out our ultimate guide to help you every step of the way — from setup to first sale! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #8: Get Ready for More User-Generated Content on Feeds and Stories 

User-generated content (UGC) is a killer asset for brands and businesses looking to grow online. 

UGC is an affordable way to share high-quality content that generates sales for your brand — it’s the social media equivalent of a word-of-mouth recommendation! 

In fact, 55% of consumers trust user-generated content over any other form of marketing, making it a surefire way to boost your sales and improve brand loyalty. 

And incorporating UGC into your 2020 strategy doesn’t have to be complicated — it can be as simple as an influencer tagging a product in an Instagram Stories post, or a YouTube beauty tutorial featuring a brand’s new collection. 

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Was not ready for that cold breeze that literally swept the soul out of me. 😩😩 But worth it cause I’m kind of obsessed with this croptop, denim outfit from @americanvintage_officiel, 😍 . . . . . . .. . . . …. . . . . . . . … . . . … . . . . . . … . … . . . #fblogger #fashionblogger #americanvintage #fallfashion #falltrends #fallootd #melaninmagic #melanin #blackgirlswhoblog #blackgirlskillingit #paris #parisfashionblogger #paris #denim #canadiantuxedo #happy #trendy #stylish #color #fashion #style

A post shared by Lamic Kirabo (@lamickirabo) on Nov 11, 2018 at 1:32am PST

But regardless of its form, user-generated content has a big pay off for brands and business, with some seriously impressive benefits like: 

Easy gathering and sharing of genuine reviews

Building a loyal fan base and community around your brand

Driving visitors to your site with a strong intent to purchase 

Generating an affordable marketing stream

Brands like Daniel Wellington, Whole Foods, Mejuri, Glossier, and Airbnb have successfully grown their following and their business using user-generated content on Instagram! 

View this post on Instagram

When you can choose which white-sand beach to go to based on your mood, you might be in the right place. Superhost Dee’s tiny house between the bustling Pensacola Beach and the more secluded Navarre Beach is perfectly situated for long days of sandcastle building and seashell hunting. You can also take the included bikes out for a tour around the peninsula or explore by kayak from a nearby pier. Photo: @citrusdoor

A post shared by Airbnb (@airbnb) on Dec 9, 2019 at 11:55am PST

So if you’re looking to grow your business (especially within younger demographics) UGC can seriously help skyrocket your sales and build true brand loyalty. 

In fact, UGC is so important when it comes to successfully marketing your business online, that Later has created some great tools and features to help you find, organize, and schedule user-generated content in minutes!

From easily finding content you’ve been tagged or mentioned in, to reposting content from your brand’s fans and loyal followers, Later has you covered!

  Instagram Predictions 2020 #9: Video Content Will Get a Serious Upgrade 

2019 has been the year for video upgrades — say goodbye to shaky camera work! 

With the popularly of Tiktok, and it’s ultra-easy-to-navigate but super-powered video editor, there’s a new standard set for videos on Instagram 

In fact, we shared a blog post on how your can hack the TikTok video editor or create awesome Instagram Stories for your feed! Check it out here! 

With IGTV, stories, and in-feed video taking off and boosting all round engagement, it’s easy to see why brands are moving to a more “video first” approach. 

Instagram influencer, Elizabeth Gilmore agrees, predicting that video content will continue to be king next year. 

@elizabethgilmore

“I’ve found the more authentic, in the moment, and less ‘curated’ the better. It keeps viewers more engaged and a stronger authenticity makes people feel more human and part of the action,” Elizabeth says. 

Christina Galbato told us she plans on adding video into her prodominately image-based Instagram strategy and encourages other influencers to do the same.

“Focus in on your unique niche and create related video content on IGTV — it’s a great way to engage your community on a deeper level and provide a ton of value,” she suggests. 

@christinagalbato

The good news is that you don’t need to be a professional videographer, or buy an expensive kit to create engaging video content for your Instagram profile. There are tons of great video editing apps that can help you.

From resizing your footage to adding animations, branded assets, and filters to your clips, we’ve got an app for you. And most of them are free!

Want to dive into video for 2020? Check out our round-up of our top video editing apps to help get you started! 

Instagram Predictions 2020 #10: Brands Will Optimize on Data-Driven Content 

Audiences love two things — personalization, and data-driven information. And we think 2020 is going to be filled with both these things! 

Brandon Perlman, founder and CEO of Social Studies, Inc. explains that machine learning and personalized content isn’t going anywhere: 

“I foresee quite a bit more data-driven analyses and infographics being shared from real brand advocates, consumers, and fans,” Brian predicts. 

A great example of this is what Spotify launched in mid-December — “their Spotify Wrapped campaign was brilliant, informative, personal. utility-driven, custom, shareable, and just slick.” 

And the integration within the Spotify app to Instagram Stories was just flawless:

And remember when we mentioned brand x brand collaborations? Well, that trend will only strengthen the power of data-driven content on Instagram. 

Take for example Later’s collaboration with influencer marketing platform Fohr. By combining our resources and data, we were able to produce a stat-packed industry report for our users: 

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We’ve teamed up with the experts at 🔥 @fohr.co 🔥 for a deep dive into the current state of Instagram Influencer Marketing, with some serious data to back it all up. Future-proof your 2020 influencer strategy for instagram. 🔮⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ We’re answering all your questions, like:⁠⠀ ‣ Does engagement drop with sponsored posts? 🤔⁠⠀ ‣ What kind of engagement should you expect with macro and micro influencers?⁠⠀ ‣ Are hashtags still relevant, and do they really increase reach?⁠⠀ ‣ What’s the best caption length?⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ ⭐️ Free download: The State of Instagram Influencer Marketing (+ Free Report)⁣ 📊 ⁣⁠#fohryourinformation

A post shared by Later: Social Media Scheduler (@latermedia) on Dec 9, 2019 at 11:48am PST

Plus from our report, we were able to create some engaging graphic and super-shareable content for our feed and stories posts! 

View this post on Instagram

Instagram used to be all about the visuals, but now captions are taking the limelight! ✨ According to some serious data-mining from our friends @fohr.co, the average caption length has more than doubled since 2016. 📈 And by *2020, our feeds will be filled with an average caption length of 405 characters — which averages out to about 65-70 words. 😲 ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ And if you’re still reading this, well, case in point! 🎯⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ For 2020, we expect to see the long-form Instagram captions trend grow, with influencers turning to their feed posts to create mini-blog entries for their audience. Because these in-depth captions are successfully competing with bite-size snippets, it gives you are opportunity to tell a deeper story, have a follower spend a little time with you (which doesn’t hurt your odds with the algorithm), and get more personal to build👏that👏brand👏affinity! ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ Want more insight into all the juicy info @fohr.co dug up? 🍊 From changes in caption length and hashtags, to post frequency and which types of influencers get the best engagement, we’re revealing all in our State of Instagram Influencer Marketing Report. Did we mention it’s free? 💥⁠⠀

A post shared by Later: Social Media Scheduler (@latermedia) on Dec 11, 2019 at 8:21am PST

Even sponsored posts are taking a more data-focused route, like Create & Cultivate’s post promoting Microsoft365: 

View this post on Instagram

The ingredients to becoming an entrepreneur don’t always include a business degree. 👩‍🎓 We believe that true success comes from passion, hard work, and perseverance. 👊 And with resources like The Growth Center, you have information right at your fingertips to help you start, grow, and scale your business. 📈#Microsoft365 has a library of articles that contain information on productivity, tech, management tips and so much more! Make sure to visit The Growth Center by Microsoft 365 to start putting your ideas 💡 into action. #ad

A post shared by CREATE & CULTIVATE (@createcultivate) on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:16am PST

So if you’re looking at how to level up your Instagram content in 2020, start brainstorming in how you can integrate hard data and fast facts into your feed and stories posts! 

As we kick off a new decade, Instagram is on track to be a powerful marketing assets for brands, businesses and influencers alike. 

And armed with these predictions and top trends, you can confidently start to strategize for the future and start hitting your 2020 goals! 

Don’t wait til the new year to get organized! Start planning, curating and scheduling you Instagram posts with Later — for free! 

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