Stonyfield offers $1,000 to people to stay off social media

Dairy brand Stonyfield is opening the lid on a promo called the “Toxic-Free Election Challenge” that will reward 100 customers with $1,000 if they commit to staying off social media for the month of October — a stunt to make the world a little less toxic.

Why It Hits: Buzzy marketing stunts are a dime-a-dozen, but the rise of paid challenges feels like the evolution of MrBeast’s effect on culture.

Between the Lines: So, how do people get their spoonful of this delicious cash?

• Participants can sign a pledge to stay off social media for all of October on the brand’s site. The company will then randomly select 100 people to give $1,000 to.
• No, Stonyfield won’t be monitoring your progress, opting instead for an honor system (because tracking a person’s social media usage would be next to impossible).
• Why October? Because it’s the month before the presidential election. While social media is always toxic, Stonyfield argues that the month before the election will likely be extra toxic. Full-fat toxicity, if we do say so ourselves.

The Future: Why does Stonyfield care about internet toxicity? The brand says that it’s a natural extension of its de-toxifying efforts overall. Fast Company notes that Stonyfield has spent a good deal of money removing pesticides and other toxins from playgrounds and public parks across the US for decades. In an era when authenticity is key, companies who creatively align products with activism (authentically, of course) may be the best at breaking through the noise.

Go Deeper: How toxic is social media, really? The US Surgeon General is calling on Congress to slap a warning on them.