👀 Eyes, Lips, Flop: e.l.f.’s Rife Risk & How MTW Plays the Long Game
e.l.f. Cosmetics recently faced backlash after partnering with comedian Matt Rife, who has been criticized for past misogynistic jokes including ones about domestic violence. The brand selected him based on audience alignment data — 80% of his 19.7M TikTok followers are women, 75% under 34 — but overlooked deeper vetting and cultural context. Influencer marketing experts argue this shows why brands must go beyond surface-level metrics like follower demographics and engagement rates. Proper due diligence means combing through years of content, understanding consumer sentiment, and considering cultural sensitivities. The rushed pace of influencer campaigns (often now just one month vs. three in the past) also leaves less room for due dligience. Within hours of the campaign launch, beauty creators, fans, and even Wendy’s publicly condemned e.l.f.’s choice, forcing the brand to apologize. The key lesson: audience overlap ≠ brand fit. AdAge
e.l.f. basically proved the golden rule of influencer marketing: just because someone’s followers look like your customers doesn’t mean they’ll act like your customers. Numbers without nuance are like foundation without blending — messy, obvious, and bound to crack under scrutiny.
Choosing Matt Rife because “hey, lots of women follow him” is like inviting a wolf to brunch because he technically eats meat. Audience data is the starting point, not the whole strategy. Real brand safety means checking cultural context, brand values, and long-term resonance, not just who clicked “follow.”
💄🔥 This is exactly why you’d want to work with MTW Agency: we don’t just count eyeballs, we read the room. Demographics? Check. But also tone, timing, culture, and whether the partnership actually makes sense in this universe. Because in 2025, a bad fit doesn’t just flop — it becomes a TikTok trend you really don’t want to go viral.