Alyssa Stevens, Director of Public Relations & Social Media

In early April, I headed down to the Sunshine State to attend PI LIVE Miami, a conference centered around building profitable partnerships through influencers, creators, affiliates, and more. I spent two days soaking up industry knowledge from top marketers, e-commerce brands, and leading content creators. 

The bottom line is that the consumer journey is no longer linear—in fact, it’s everything but. As marketers, we need to meet and influence consumers at every potential discovery point. What was evident during the conference is that the influencer marketing industry is continuing to grow exponentially. With more than 300 million people worldwide identifying as creators, it’s not surprising that Adobe recently reported that 25% of a brand’s consumers are creators with influence. Could 2023 truly be the year of the creator? 

In order to capitalize on the power of creators beyond their social media presence, you need to be strategic. Integration between cross-functional teams has never been more crucial and marketers need to think outside the box.  

Intrigued to learn more? Here are four key takeaways from PI LIVE Miami this year:

Climb Into the Mindset of Your Consumer

In order to market to your target audience, you have to develop a deep understanding of their mindset. Sounds simple, right? But that consumer discovery should also involve their social media search behavior. How does your consumer look for ideas on social media, find new influencers to follow, and embrace content trends? When marketers look to engage influencers, they should first search for their product/brand/campaign theme on social media to see the type of content and influencers the consumer would naturally find if they were to do this search themselves. From there, they can reverse engineer this process by creating a brief/campaign and choosing influencers that emulate what their target audience would find in the wild. This way, when the content comes to life and is posted on social media, it will resonate with the intended audience. 

Recruit Creators Like You Would Employees

The landscape has never been richer for brands to tap into their existing customer base to find influencers and content creators. But how do brands find them? Take an approach that’s similar to employee recruitment. Existing customers who know and love your brand will always offer the most authentic collaborations. Create a landing page on the brand’s website that invites influencers to apply to work with the brand and be part of their creator partnerships. From there, the brand can evaluate who in their existing customer base has social influence and also wants to support the brand in a more meaningful way on social media. This can cut out the guesswork for the brand while also leveraging authentic partnerships with its most influential customers. 

Use Generative AI to Inspire—but Not Replace—Creators

Chat GPT and its counterparts have taken the world by storm. As we embrace AI technology across various verticals, it’s important to consider how it can aid creators and human workflows instead of replacing them. Generative AI is meant to inspire and provide efficiencies with content generation. Content creators and influencers will still ideate with marketers around campaigns, but as AI evolves, they should also be empowered to bring it into the fold during the concept and content development phases to provide efficiencies. Creators could make one piece of content and then utilize AI to expand that content to multiple platforms, formats, and even languages! The speed at which AI can help create content is unmatched and if done in collaboration with a creator, there is no doubt it will revolutionize marketers’ ability to reach consumers across various content mediums. 

Don’t Be Afraid to Negotiate With Creators

The creator economy is exactly that. An economy. And the delivery of goods and services in exchange for monetary compensation is at the heart of a healthy ecosystem. Just like marketers wouldn’t take a magazine’s rate card at face value, they should also feel empowered to negotiate with creators. Think through the core deliverables that you really want and why, as well as what you can offer the influencer to sweeten the deal. Are you planning to whitelist/amplify their posts and offer them added exposure to new audiences? Will you be highlighting them on your social media or a website with credit to their page? Can you set up a revenue-sharing model based on post performance? All of these additional campaign attributes can help with negotiating influencer rates to ensure that a brand achieves the best deliverables/ROI from a collaboration and that influencers feel that their partnership is valued. 

Aoife Davis, Art Director, ZOO Digital

Like many other city dwellers during the pandemic, I packed up my life in Dublin and moved to the countryside. I landed in Westport, Co.Mayo, a small town in the west of Ireland on the wild Atlantic coast. Pandemic aside, the urge to seek out adventure and a new way of working/living was the driver above all else, something I believe is inherent to Irish people. 

As the world started opening back up, the urge to travel again and reconnect with colleagues in person was strong, especially as ZOO was still so new to the Connelly Partners family. In the past, I never got around to pursuing a US Graduate Visa after finishing university, giving Irish graduates the opportunity to live and work in the US for up to one year. I thought the opportunity had passed me by, until the CP Abroad Programme was announced. Instantly, I knew this was something I had to apply for.

Visiting Boston in February and March seemed like a wild move for someone who doesn’t own a pair of snow boots, so landing in the North End at the beginning of February to 16C (60F) temperatures was an unexpected surprise. I spent my first evening watching the sunset on the rooftop of the new company condo, taking in the Boston skyline and waterfront. As my body clock was still adjusting, I was a constant rooftop feature, catching some incredible winter sunrises over the next few days, while also getting familiar with the Italian North End and Downtown Boston.

My working day started slightly earlier than usual, so I could catch the Dublin team before they went on lunch. My Irish clients took precedence and I continued to work on ongoing campaigns and new business tenders, taking calls earlier in the day and making sure Friday close of business deadlines for Dublin were met at lunchtime Boston time. Getting an in-person introduction to one of the Boston clients was hugely beneficial, as ZOO and CP work together on a few accounts. Conversations with the brand team led to valuable insights gained from a Visit Williamsburg case study, proving insightful for our recent Irish tourism tenders. Meetings with the creative team sparked interesting ideas on how best to integrate our teams and spot opportunities for collaboration. Working with the strategy team helped ZOO build a strong research case for a new Irish spirit client.

I was delighted to be in Boston for Women’s History Month, attending an International Women’s Day event organised by The Ireland Funds, with my CP Boston colleague Niamh Marshall. This included an evening of talks with US Attorney, Rachael Splaine Rollins, and Executive Director of the Red Sox Foundation, Rebekah Splaine Salwasser, sisters of Irish descent with roots in Co.Mayo. Rachael and Rebekah spoke so wholeheartedly about their connection to Ireland, their career successes and how their work continues to push through the glass ceiling. It was great building connections with the Boston Irish on the night and witnessing how celebrated and supported the community is. 

I took in my fair share of Boston art museums, visiting the Institute of Contemporary Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Harvard Art Museum and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (twice). The courtyard flower arrangements are changed every few weeks – an exhibition in itself. I visited the Boston Tea Party Museum, caught a concert at Boston Symphony Hall, walked the Freedom Trail from Boston Common to Bunker Hill and sailed on a Boston City Cruise. I took weekend trips to Salem, Portland, Maine, Providence, Rhode Island and fulfilled an American dream at Modern Diner, Pawtucket, the only known surviving streamliner diner still in operation. I still think about the custard french toast! I spent a few days in NYC, exploring Manhattan & Brooklyn and spent St. Patrick’s Day at the Southie parade, which was an experience not to forget.

Spending time in the Boston office and seeing Connelly Partners land the 2023 AdAge A-List award for Best Agency Culture, firmly reinstates our combined, cross-agency, human-centric values. Getting out of my comfort zone, finding new sources of inspiration, building new connections and adventuring while exploring new ways of working/living has been an invaluable experience. Documenting my time through film photography has also inspired a personal print project which I hope to work on over the next few months. 

So put it this way, that urge for adventure I’ve had for the last while, was certainly achieved by taking part in CP Abroad and getting to do it as part of my job was a major plus. Thanks, ZOO and Connelly Partners for the opportunity.

Our work for V Foundation for Cancer Research was recently featured by Ads of the World. The “Halftime” campaign was created for the organization’s 30th anniversary as a way to elevate researchers to the level of the most celebrated celebrity talent to drive awareness and donations to V Foundation. The launch was timed to sync up with March Madness to shift the public conversation from NCAA victories to victory over cancer.

Check out the full coverage here 

How do you broach the subject of encouraging people to leave money to charity in their will? It’s a tricky area, reminding people that they aren’t going to be around forever. This is exactly what Daragh Griffin, Junior Copywriter with our Dublin team, was tasked with and what led to him being shortlisted for the 2023 Cannes Young Lions.  

Instead of focusing on the darker side of this truth, Daragh looked at it through a different lens. Leaving a donation to GOAL, a humanitarian foundation that helps those impacted by natural disasters is a way to ensure that your legacy lives on. Even though a person is no longer physically with us, their impact is still felt. 

The work focused on the importance of subtlety. A signature turning into a helping hand visualizes the impact that the donor is making. The placement of the ad is also important, just like when the donor’s gift will be made, the ad is placed at the end of the newspaper.

Congratulations Daragh on this tremendous accomplishment and best of luck with the next stage of the competition.

Cannes Young Lions is a global competition for creatives under 30 years old that features categories such as Design, Film, Print and more. The winner of this competition will be celebrated at the Cannes Lions Award Show. For more information, check out the official Cannes Lions website.

Alyssa Stevens, Director of PR and Social Media
Paul M. Capobianco, Cultural Anthropologist 

We hear a lot about creating content with the goal of having it go “viral,” but in actuality, that shouldn’t be what we’re working to achieve. 

Yes, in today’s digital age, it’s more important than ever for brands to have a strong presence on social media, but it really comes down to creating content that moves the needle. Content should not only be engaging and entertaining, but also powerful enough to make people want to be part of it and share it. 

When content goes viral, it gets shared exponentially and reaches a massive audience in a short period of time. And while viral content can be highly effective in terms of brand exposure, it’s almost impossible to predict what will go viral—and if it does, it can also be difficult for brands to control.

Instead, at Connelly Partners, we like to encourage our clients to strive for “spreadable” content. 

Spreadable content is shared by multiple users across different platforms and networks but it is remixed with their own personality or experience. It’s often shared because it resonates with a particular audience or because it sparks a conversation or debate. Spreadable content has the potential to reach a large audience, but it doesn’t necessarily have to go viral to be successful. The sheer idea of people wanting to be a part of the content speaks volumes to its effectiveness. 

As marketers, we’re always trying to conceptualize how to create a memorable and spreadable moment on social media for our clients. This often comes with evaluating the risk-reward factor. Risks, albeit calculated, can often make brands feel uncomfortable, especially when those risks are taken on platforms like TikTok, which can garner high impressions and engagements. But the reward? Well, the rewards can be immeasurable when a social campaign is well-received by the public—especially when an audience is inclined to share their own spin on it!

One of my favorite examples of spreadable content is the #ThousandDollarCrocs challenge on TikTok. In collaboration with the popular artist, Post Malone, the brand asked consumers what their own thousand-dollar Crocs would look like. In turn, they received a plethora of people bedazzling their Crocs with paint, stickers, and other personal touches. So many people posted their creations that the campaign ended up resulting in nearly three billion views—and when the $1,000 Post Malone x Crocs shoes launched, they sold out immediately! 

The book, Spreadable Media, by American scholar Henry Jenkins dives into this differentiation by challenging readers’ notions about what goes “viral” and examining the factors such as audience engagement or participation against the concepts of what “sticks” and what “spreads.”

If we go back to the actual definition of a “virus” and how that ties back to social content, it makes even more sense why this shouldn’t be what we’re trying to achieve. People aren’t just acting as passive host cells by copy and pasting viral content – they are taking part in it creatively. Spreadable content is truly a remix and when someone participates in the progression of it, it has something to do with who they are, which is much more profound. We’re able to glean what resonates with people and reverse-engineer those human reasons or guidelines to then create future social content that is spreadable.

So, why should brands be open to taking risks in order to create a spreadable moment on social media? When brands relinquish some control over the creative process and allow their audience to “co-create,” the audience sees the investment on the brand side around this real and relatable content. It welcomes people into the brand’s community and invites them to contribute, thereby lifting the barrier between the brand and consumer. Authenticity is inherently spreadable, and as humans, we want to be part of something authentic.

Marketers and brands can learn far more from spreadable content than viral content because each person that participates in the content tells you something about themselves, as opposed to leaving it ambiguous through a simple “Share” button. When we encourage this shift in thinking among our clients, we’re unlocking fresh ways to express authenticity and brand values. 

At the end of the day, content is the biggest driver of your social media presence, and if you can create content that people want to actively participate in, your potential for success skyrockets. 

How does your social media measure up?

In an interview with PM360, CP’s Chief Creative Officer, Alyssa Toro, shares the lessons that pharma can learn from CPG marketing. Her big takeaway? Embrace human truths instead of medical expertise.

Using her experience with our client, Gorton’s Seafood, Alyssa shows the power – and results – of speaking to people like human beings.

When we began working with Gorton’s, we found that consumers were intimidated to cook seafood. Armed with this knowledge, we built a creative platform around trust. But we couldn’t just tell consumers to trust us, we had to earn it. Enter Poseidon, MerBros, and a Castaway. These fictional characters who know the sea best became the mouthpiece for the healthful benefits of seafood.

By eliminating the barriers and providing information on the benefits of the product through empathy, authenticity, and some fun, consumers were more willing to make the decision to purchase. It gave the brand an 11.6% sales lift.

Alyssa stresses: if we can spend more time talking to people like human beings, we’ll be far more successful in developing work that’s not only differentiating but drives results.

Check out Alyssa’s full interview with PM360.

In partnership with V Foundation for Cancer Research, founded by ESPN and legendary coach Jim Valvano, we launched a new campaign in celebration of their 30th anniversary and Jimmy V’s famous ESPY’s speech. 

In the cinematic tv spot, a cancer researcher gives a “half-time” speech in the NC State locker room, reassuring the world that a cure for cancer is within our reach. Her speech gets the nod of approval from none other than the king of coaching and half-time speeches, Coach K. 

Check out the full coverage here.

Connelly Partners is the 2023 AdAge A-List winner for Best Agency Culture! 

Over the past year, we’ve launched new programs, revisited long-standing traditions and gotten rid of what’s not working. The goal was to help employees do their jobs better, serve clients better, embrace curiosity and find the best balance between focus on CP as a business and as a place that continues to fuel and encourage employee life experience. 

We encourage employees to get outside of the office and their comfort zone, and bring those experiences back to the agency and our clients. That’s why we send employees to live and work around the world, provide a student loan paydown program, celebrate tenure with a sabbatical, and more.

With a renewed focus on our culture, clarity on what it means to us and how we can invest in CP in ways other agencies just don’t think to – we’re proud of the culture we’ve built. 

Read more about our win in AdAge here.

Check out the full list of A-List winners. 

In honor of its 30th anniversary, our client, The V Foundation for Cancer Research, launched a cancer awareness campaign featuring Coach K, the former coach of Duke University men’s basketball.

The spot titled “Halftime” features a cancer researcher delivering an inspiring locker room speech on the advancements made in the fight against the disease and the need to continue investing in cancer research to make progress in the future.

The spot ends with Coach K encouraging her on her speech and leading her out of the locker room. 

The campaign was released just prior to the start of “March Madness” and also coincides with what would have been the late Jim Valvano’s 77th birthday. 

Read more the full MM+M article here.

Additional coverage:
Ads of the World: V Foundation for Cancer Research
The Athletic: Mike Krzyzewski Finds Purpose, Peace in Life After Duke Basketball Retirement
MM+M: 5 Fresh Takes on First-Person Storytelling

Each year, the HSMAI Adrian Awards are held to celebrate achievements in marketing across areas such as advertising, digital, and public relations/communications, with a focus on travel and hospitality. At this year’s 66th annual celebration, our “Life. At Your Pace.” campaign for Visit Williamsburg, won bronze in three categories. 

• Television (Advertising Division)
• Content Marketing (Integrated Campaign Division)
• Social Media Campaign (Digital Division)

In addition to these wins, the campaign has racked up a lengthy list of accolades, including a 2021 Silver HSMAI Adrian Award last year. 

Read more about the HSMAI Adrian Awards here 

Check out some of our work for Visit Williamsburg

Check out the details on last year’s win