The Shoppe - Live Streaming, Like Buttons & More
Thanks for tuning in to The Shoppe! This week, we’re talking about the tactics brands are using to reach audiences at home, design changes to Facebook, consumer expectations of advertisers for this year’s Super Bowl and more. Be sure to subscribe to stay up to date on the latest marketing news.
As consumers continue to stay home amid the pandemic, brands are beginning to turn to new methods to reach them. In the last year, we’ve seen companies start experimenting with the video live streaming app, Twitch. The interactive app, owned by Amazon, primarily focuses on video game streaming but has expanded to non gaming content like music and art related broadcasts. Last month, popular hard seltzer brand, White Claw, took to Twitch to host their Winter Games event. In an effort to reach those at home and encourage online sales, the seltzer brand hosted various online games for viewers to participate in for a chance to win prizes. The event lasted for three nights and brought in thousands of viewers, helping White Claw to continue the success they’ve seen online this year. For White Claw, and many others, Twitch has become a way to reach audiences stuck at home in a fun, interactive way. While this unprecedented past year has forced brands to change their marketing mix quickly, there has proven to be an abundance of new tools to take advantage of.
This week, Facebook announced the redesign of creator and public figure pages. The update will introduce a designated News Feed to follow trends and join conversation, a new layout and a text based Q&A feature for engaging with fans, as well as a completely new look and feel. Influencers and celebrities will be able to toggle between personal pages and their public pages with greater ease, receive more relevant notifications and detect fraudulent accounts. The biggest change we will see with this update is the removal of the “Like” button. In an effort to give users a better understanding of the people receiving updates from their page, the redesign will have a stronger focus on Followers rather than Likes. The update will roll out in the upcoming months, you can learn more about it here.
While the Super Bowl remains the most watched live event on television, the recent events of 2020 have left advertisers feeling apprehensive. In a recent study performed by market researcher Morning Consult, it was found that sixty percent of adults in the United States will be tuning into the Super Bowl this year. Additionally, the study found that sixty percent of those tuning in think it would be appropriate for brands to state their support for social justice movements in their advertising, and seventy-seven percent approve of advertising with messaging that encourages viewers to wear a mask. Despite the study showing approval of social justice messaging, fifty-four percent said they consider “political” ads inappropriate. While consumer expectations of brands taking a stance on social issues are increasing, the same does not apply for politics. With the optimism surrounding post-pandemic recovery, sixty-three percent of those planning to watch the Super Bowl claim funny, lighthearted ads are their favorite. It will be interesting to see how tone varies brand to brand, and to what extent advertisers choose humorous messaging after a challenging 2020.
With 2020 behind us and the potential of pandemic recovery looming, we are left wondering what the coming year will bring, and how it will impact marketing. With the tumultuous events of 2020 and the forced adaptation to e-commerce, we have seen drastic changes to the digital atmosphere and the way marketers connect with consumers. New trends have emerged from the ways we have adapted throughout the year, many of which we can expect to continue in 2021. From live streaming and working with influencers, to prioritizing inclusivity and social consciousness, advertisers have produced content for completely foreign platforms in entirely new formats. We’ve seen advertisers adapt to a rise of interest in long-form audio content like podcasts, and the increased use of voice activated search. While 2020 proved to be unpredictable, it has taught us how to adapt. Expecting the consumer preferences for online shopping, streaming and socializing to persist, it’s important to keep new trends at the forefront of our minds throughout 2021.
Need help developing your marketing strategy in 2021? Contact the SparkShoppe team to get started.
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