According to aQuellé, research has shown that social media overuse and addiction can cause mental health problems. These include anxiety, depression, fatigue and loneliness. A digital detox is widely considered the antidote.

"When we're on our phones, we're so busy scrolling, pressing and answering that we miss out on so much," says aQuellé's marketing manager Suzelle Stegen. "It's time to switch off so that we can experience all the joy around us — spending quality time with family and friends, for example, or just getting active outdoors."

The brand will log off from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube until Tuesday, 31 December, with no postings and activity. The platforms will, however, still be monitored to ensure customer service queries are picked up and escalated.

"Business at aQuellé will continue as normal, and all customer queries will be dealt with promptly," adds Stegen. According to the brand, the summer campaign is centred on the proposition of 'Joy for Real'. It prompts customers to 'make real memories instead of posting them online' by joining the company in logging off over the holidays.

Social media messages ahead of the big switch-off coaxes people to 'flip through photos instead of scrolling through Instagram', 'surf the waves instead of the web' and 'smile for real instead of sending the emoji'. "When we come back online in January, we will ask people to share their 'real joy' experiences with us," says Stegen.

aQuellé's digital agency Conversation LAB says that the company going offline to walk the talk is not only unique but brave. "Not many brands would switch off their social media presence over the holiday period," says Christian Anstice, executive creative director at Conversation LAB. "It's a mark of aQuellé's integrity, [and the campaign] gets to the very DNA of the brand."

aQuellé will go offline until midnight on Tuesday, 31 December. The 'Choose Joy for Real' campaign will run until the end of April 2020.

For more information, visit www.aquelle.co.za. You can also follow aQuellé on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.