I currently own a Samsung S24, which is definitely not too far off from the newest iPhones in terms of camera quality and processing power.

The key is capturing that authentic vibe that a lot of gen-z creators embody. No fancy lighting or camerawork. It can be as simple as a phone on their car dashboard, or someone doing their skincare as they talk about something important. Simply put, being relatable and authentic is more engaging than creating a theatric production that ultimately ends up looking over-produced and fake.

A few brands come to mind when I think about ads that actually work on me. Apple is the obvious one. What they do well is sell a feeling and an identity rather than specs, and their ads make you feel like you're already the person who owns the product. On the content side, I pay attention to brands like Liquid Death and Prime because they built massive audiences before leaning hard into selling. They focused on content first, which is what actually earns attention from people my age. For smaller brands, I notice companies that use authentic and relatable people for ads. Seeing someone whose a similar age and in a similar social environment as me grabs my attention way more than someone trained to market a product, as backwards as that might seem.