Tips for Your 2023 Influencer Strategy 

Alyssa Stevens, Director of Public Relations & Social Media

Learnings from the Influencer Marketing Show London 2022

As an influencer marketing professional, I’m consistently impressed by how rapidly this industry continues to grow and evolve. For marketers who understand the value of influencer collaborations and have the desire to revolutionize the way they collaborate with them, there is no better time to capitalize on the power that the creator economy can have for a brand than now.

While living in Dublin as part of Connelly Partners’ CP Abroad program, I attended the Influencer Marketing Show in London. With panels on topics ranging from how to make your influencer strategy recession-proof to the role of artificial intelligence in creator engagements, one thing was very clear…influencer marketing is no longer a “nice to have” for your 2023 marketing strategy. It’s an essential component for how a brand can effectively reach its target audiences, capture their attention, and foster trust that translates into conversion.

As an industry born out of aesthetically pleasing, well-curated photos, influencer marketing has evolved into a multi-dimensional approach for reaching consumers at every stage of their journey. With 2023 on the horizon, I wanted to share takeaways from the Influencer Marketing Show, along with tips for how you can create an impactful influencer marketing strategy for your brand. 

Let’s Create a Community! 

Web3 is being touted as the “community-based era,” where brands, creators, and consumers can come together to be part of inspiring content and experiences. With so much of our lives being spent on social media, today’s consumer craves a sense of belonging. 

Influencers can help a brand to foster a sense of community with its target audience by creating content and experiences that allow for a better brand-consumer connection. These communities can be built around a singular topic/interest, and they can even function to provide critical feedback to a brand around its own products and innovation. In fact, in a presentation by Maira Genovese, it was noted that businesses who invest in communities can increase their innovation speed by 52%. 

Activating influencers, who possess a loyal following that resembles your target audience, and empowering them to help that audience feel part of the brand’s evolution will foster brand loyalty and trust, on and off line. Simple online interactions are no longer enough, consumers want to feel like they ‘belong’ with the brands that inspire them.  

Interests Trump Social Connections.

The early days of social media were fueled by personal social connections; we regularly logged into Facebook to see what our friends and family were doing. While people still visit social networks like Facebook and Instagram to connect with the people they know, through the rapid adoption of TikTok, we’re beginning to see the primary use of social media shift to people’s desire to connect around similar interests. At the same time, we’re seeing a new crop of influencers emerge across a diverse array of topics.

Now more than ever, consumers visit social media to discover. Whether that’s learning something new (a recipe, money-saving tip, or hairstyle) or seeking inspiration (to visit a new destination, try out a different restaurant, or find a hobby), social media users are actively looking for unique content around specific topics and interests. With users spending upwards of 95 minutes per day on TikTok, brands have a clear opportunity to capture their attention by collaborating with influencers who focus on content creation around their niche. 

This shift from a social focus to an interest focus allows brands to connect with their target audience in an exciting, new way. However, it’s also becoming increasingly important for brands to find the best influencer partners to communicate their subject matter. Navigating TikTok’s creator community around specific interests can be like searching for a needle in a haystack. At Connelly Partners, we’ve invested time and resources to make the search for the best partners streamlined and fruitful. TikTok has shown us that it prioritizes engaging content over follower count, which means that when a brand marries the right creator/influencer with their product or service, magic can happen. 

Don’t Skip the ROI Beyond Social Posts.

There’s no denying that influencers can create amazing social media content for your brand, but it shouldn’t stop there. When influencer marketing campaigns are executed to their fullest potential, influencers are utilized across a brand’s digital footprint, paid media, earned media, and creative programming. That’s because when you select the right influencers for your brand, their creativity and authenticity can help cut through the clutter both on and off line. 

First, beyond a brand’s owned social channels, influencer content should be repurposed across a brand’s website and product pages to increase conversion. People want to see “real” photos of your product or service vs. stock photography of it. Second, influencer content assets can be utilized in paid social media. If you work with influencers who resemble your target audience and brand interests, they can act as a ‘demographic figurehead’ for your brand and offer content that really resonates with your consumers. In fact, in a panel led by the agency What They Said, it was noted that 61% of people trust influencer content over brand content on social media. Third, if you work with a notable macro or mega influencer, you can further capitalize on their influence by using their likeness and association with your brand in media outreach to secure earned press coverage. Last, many influencers are first and foremost creators; brands can leverage the expertise and vision of their influencer partners to inform their creative. Influencers have their finger on the pulse of what a brand’s audience wants to see, so by allowing influencers into the creative process, brands can pressure-test concepts to their target demographic before they commit. 

Influencer marketing is no longer confined to the social feed, and as we continue to work with brands to maximize their investment in the creator economy, we are keeping a keen eye on out-of-the-box ways we can leverage influencers for an increased ROI.

Let’s All Learn to Talk Like Trott

Eoin Welsh, Creative Director

“Figures show that roughly 90% of the money spent on advertising in the UK is wasted, because it’s neither noticed nor remembered.”

That’s how advertising legend David Trott started his talk at the TAM (TV Audience Measurement) Ireland Long Lunch event.

Which, as an advertising creative, is not exactly what I want to hear. We creatives like to think of ourselves as do-what-it-takes, blood-sweat-and-tears types, forever fighting the good fight.

Turns out, around 90% of that effort is for nothing.

So, what’s the problem?

Well, that’s the beauty of listening to Trott. In a cockney drawl thick enough to be served in a pint glass, he sweeps aside all the industry-speak and double-talk and cuts to the chase: If advertising doesn’t get noticed, everything else is academic.

So, is our industry in denial? Are we afflicted with a severe case of “Emperor’s New Clothes?” Do we put out work that’s so bare of sticking power that it’s barely noticed? Trott makes a pretty convincing case, and he’s got the data to back it up.

But why? Trott believes it’s because we’ve lost sight of who we’re talking to. He defines advertising as “the voice of marketing” – the interpreter who translates the language of marketing into the language of the real world. But we’ve become so wrapped up in the marketing and business side of our industry, that we’ve lost the ability to “talk normal.” To talk, well, like Trott.

We talk to show how clever we are. How much we know. How much research and study we’ve done. To show off, basically. As Tyler Durden said in Fight Club, “We’ve stopped listening and we’re just waiting for our turn to speak.” Problem is, no-one understands what we’re saying. So, it just gets ignored.

Trott then walked us through some of the straight-talking, iconic brands who never forgot who they were speaking to. While all around them were bragging their lips off to little avail, VW asked us to “Think Small.” Avis told us that they “Try Harder” because they’re only No.2. Nike challenged us to “Just Do It.” These were brands that refused to talk down to anyone. That made the effort to learn the language of the locals whose world they were guests in, while others just did that tourist-y thing of shouting louder in their own language, somehow believing that would help make them understand.

Trott is easy to listen to. He makes sense. He keeps it simple. And so he gets noticed. And remembered (I took no notes during his presentation, and didn’t need any to do this write-up).

So, what did I take out of all this?

Well, if we can all make work that “talks like Trott” – simple, engaging and intriguing – maybe we can learn to speak fluent, Everyday-Speak again. And stop talking to ourselves. Which, if memory serves, is the first sign of madness.

 

The Top 5 UX Challenges for Companies

Martin Byrne, ZOO Digital 

The communications revolution has created a world where customer service is more important than ever. Whereas companies in the past could impose their systems, their language and their rules on the general public, the expectation now is that the customer is front and center in everything and it is the job of the seller to meet the client where they are, not the other way around.

This presents challenges for businesses who understand the need to deliver excellent user experiences, but are embedded in an older mindset.

We have helped numerous organizations to embed UX and design thinking into their everyday operations, and to bring their stakeholders along with them. Here, we look at the top five lessons we’ve learned from that experience.

1. Being Customer First

Bigger and more established companies in particular are used to calling the shots. Even typically service-oriented organizations are challenged in today’s customer-first world. But, we are faced with less patience from users and excellent challengers in the field who set a high bar for customer expectations.

UX and more broadly CX is all about the customer. That’s why we test with real people every step of the way,  your idea out to testers using usabilityhub.com, usertesting.com, playbookux.com, and in face-to-face interactions.  

In addition to this, we keep these core tenets in mind when designing service flows for customers:

2. Being Evidence Based

Evidence is more important than opinion when it comes to UX. Evidence gives you the power to ask for a budget and team because you can provide proof that there’s a problem to be fixed. When we map out user journeys, plot drop-off points and are able to show a pain point that is losing the customer business, then we have almost made our case. We gather that evidence from:

The last, and perhaps most convincing, piece of evidence we can present is the voice of the customer.  There is nothing more powerful than video of a system test conducted with a user where they are shown having obvious difficulties with a process. You don’t need to do lots of these – anything more than seven and you’re seeing diminishing returns.  But do them regularly as part of your process.

3. Not Being Persona Focused

Your systems should be a pleasure to use for human beings, no matter what their demographic is. Marketing personas let you create campaigns and target people with more accuracy and bang for your buck. UX personas, if you need them, are more about function; Checking Account User, Returning Shopper, First Time Onboarder etc.

Our experience has taught us that we can ditch the personas and test with humans.

4. Be Prepared to Be Wrong 

When it comes to CX and UX, being wrong is great. No really – it means you’ve discovered something through your evidenced-based process. If all your assumptions are right, be worried that you’re not asking the right questions. Set up your experiments to find out new stuff, not to validate what you already have in place.  

5. Being Taken Seriously

Embedding UX and design thinking is a huge challenge for any organization and you can’t do it alone. Because the practice will affect everyone, you’ll need buy-in so that you’ve got a whole team behind you and can be effective. 

We begin all of our UX projects by identifying the stakeholders (and blockers) who we will work with. We can then bring them through our process and make the case to embrace the need for a good UX process. That method is to show them evidence.

6 Tried & True Tips to Boost Your Website’s Visibility

Scott Freeman, SEO Manager

When it comes to enhancing your website’s visibility on the internet, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) plays a pivotal role. With a well-optimized website, you can attract more organic traffic and potential customers. Here are six essential SEO tips that can work wonders for practically any website:

Target Relevant Keywords to Your Business

Imagine you’re embarking on a safari, and you want to see the Big Five. It’s vital to know where they are, just like in SEO. Identifying and targeting the right keywords is like pinpointing the best wildlife spots. Knowing that, conduct research on keywords that are not only relevant to your business but are also commonly searched for by your target audience.

It may take time as well as some trial and error, but this is a vital step in the overall SEO process. Without a solid list of keywords to help your efforts, you’ll be lost in the bush. Tools like Google Keyword Planner and SEMrush can help you discover keywords you never thought of and help you put together a comprehensive target keyword list. 

Write Quality Original Content & Often

Just as a thrilling safari adventure requires the right guides, your website needs high-quality, original content. Regularly publishing fresh, engaging content not only keeps your audience coming back for more but also pleases search engines.

Offer informative blog posts, articles, and guides that provide value to your readers. The more compelling your content, the longer visitors will stay on your site. Keep in mind that you want to incorporate keywords from your keyword list within your content. You can’t rank for keywords that aren’t present within the content of your site.  

Optimize Metadata Across Your Website

Metadata is like the compass that guides visitors through your website. Ensure that each page’s meta title (at an optimal length of 60 characters or fewer) and description (at an optimal length of 160 characters or fewer) accurately represent the content within. This not only improves user experience but also helps search engines understand what your page is about.

The more relevant your metadata, the higher your chances of ranking well in search results. Think about metadata as your window pitch to users in search results. It’s your first opportunity to grab them in SERPs (search engine results pages) so do your best to make that first impression a positive one.  

Audit Your Site Regularly

Just as a safari vehicle undergoes regular maintenance checks to ensure a smooth journey, your website needs regular audits. Conduct a thorough audit to identify and fix any technical issues, such as 404 pages, slow-loading pages, or mobile responsiveness problems.

An audit will also identify problems with content such as duplicate content, pages missing meta descriptions, and pages with thin content. A well-maintained website is more likely to earn favor with search engines.

Implement Short, Descriptive URLs

In the wilderness, having a clear trail to follow is essential for a safe and enjoyable adventure. Likewise, your website’s URLs should be clear, concise, and descriptive. Use keywords from your target keyword list in your URLs to give both users and search engines a better understanding of your content.

If your URLs look like gibberish, it’s high time you begin thinking about how to make them clearer. Don’t overcomplicate things either. Keep URLs related to their page and just add a relevant keyword (if possible) and give them some zhuzh. This simple step can significantly improve your overall SEO efforts.

Ensure Your Website Is Relatively Easy to Navigate

Think of your website as a vast savannah, and your visitors as explorers. It’s essential to make their journey as smooth as possible. Create a clear and intuitive website structure with a user-friendly navigation menu.

Include logical categories and subcategories, making it easy for visitors to find what they’re looking for. The more straightforward your website is to navigate, the better the user experience, which can lead to higher rankings.

SEO Is Worthwhile So Start Optimizing Today

These tried and true SEO tips can transform your website into a thriving ecosystem, drawing in visitors and boosting your online presence. Just as a safari through the African wilderness promises unforgettable experiences, a well-optimized website offers endless opportunities for growth and success.

Implement these tips, and watch your website’s search engine rankings begin to tick up and up. Just remember that SEO is a regular touchpoint and not a set-it-and-forget practice. So, go ahead and explore the vast landscape of SEO, there’s plenty to discover!

Q3 Emerging Trends Report

CP’s team of senior strategists and anthropologists regularly release insights on cultural, economic, and social shifts that can impact our clients. Here are their most recent observations.

1. “I bought it on TikTok!” Ecommerce knows no digital boundaries.

Ecommerce app installs, sessions and now purchases are all way up year-over-year (particularly in recent months), including on historically social-focused platforms like TikTok and Instagram. These novel purchases are up so much that experts are exploring new opportunities for native content and stress a heightened need to focus on conversion metrics.

Brands need to evaluate their presence across all digital channels and begin to strategize how and where to expand product offerings and sales opportunities across organic content.

Sources: Forbes, Adjust, Digital Commerce

2. Where have societies’ dependable “rocks” gone?

In the past four weeks alone we’ve seen Walmart, our largest, trusted retail institution announce major layoffs as they anticipate a weakening economy and see profits shrinking due to double-digit inflation. This has fueled consumer outrage on social channels. We’ve also seen an FBI raid of former President Trump’s home to seize classified materials taken when leaving office. News narratives have furthered Americans’ doubt of U.S. institutions creating a heightened sense of instability that we predict will grow into a full-fledged mainstream trend in the next few quarters.

The opportunity for brands is to be more communicative and intentional in curating messages of reassurance – both to internal and external audiences. Messages that reinforce good policies or practices, for example, create a sense of consistency and moral stability that consumers crave.

Sources: Gallup

3. “Limited edition” digital content is all the rage!

Time-sensitive/recency forms of media—i.e. that content which is available for a limited period of time/never to be seen again—is an increasingly common feature, especially when it comes to social media. 

Part of what’s appealing about time-sensitive content is that if you’re looking at it, it’s guaranteed to be current and relevant. That inaccessibility – which is the antithesis of the internet’s main characteristic, creates an exclusivity and specialness to the content. It can also feel authentic and proprietary, which is why WhatsApp has recently been working on a feature to block screenshots of media you’re only meant to view once – adding to its exclusivity and once-in-a-lifetime exposure.

Sources: Social Media Today, Axios, Hubspot, Better Marketing, Android Police 

4. Poetry has entered its own Renaissance – say “hello” to Instapoetry.

Poet Rupi Kaur’s recent world tour is being met with great fanfare, an extension of the growing popularity of poetry’s newest incarnation, Instapoetry. For many, the pandemic inspired more abstract self-reflection and exploration of emotions, which translates well into the “concise and luminous” poetry that’s become so well-received on Instagram.

Instapoetry’s most popular topics reflect shifting cultural priorities as people, especially younger people, call out topics older generations have often tried to sweep under the rug: mental health, romance, feminism, sexuality, and domestic violence.

Sources: The Poet List, Inside Hook, The Outspoken

5. Want to kick-start your creative thinking? Take more risks in life and work!

Have you ever wondered why there’s literally no good ‘new music’ coming out on our streaming channels and airwaves? Well there’s a very good reason.

The music industry today is not as equipped to discover and nurture new talent. There are many reasons: fear of copyright lawsuits in an increasingly litigious industry, moguls who’ve lost confidence in new music, an unwillingness to take risks on new musicians with new sounds, gatekeeper prejudices, and an algorithmic listening environment that promotes standardization. 

Businesses outside the music industry can learn from this creative drought by fostering more risk-taking by employees, getting them outside their comfort zone, creating new outlets, new team-pairings and special initiatives that promote creativity.

Sources: The Atlantic, Wbur

6. Key to future business success? Getting up-to-speed with E.S.G.

Policy changes and mandates surrounding Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) are causing companies to adapt to avoid risk and position themselves for future rewards. Companies including American Express, Google, Ford, and more have recently been acquiring and launching new businesses to address emerging opportunities related to ESG initiatives, creating competitive advantages. 

Companies who have strong ESG are prone to be more successful, have more loyal workers and are more likely to have strong investor interest. Most organizations today are rapidly developing and evolving their DEI initiative, as they should. Being an early-adopter of these initiatives can mean better retention and great business success.

Sources: McKinsey, Nasdaq, Intellizence, Biz Journals, TMF Group

All good things expire. Look out for more trends coming soon.

What Does JetBlue Need to Do to Win?

JoAnne Borselli, Group Brand Director

Lately, when it comes to disruptions in the airline industry, the headlines speak for themselves. “More than 2,000 flight delays last Monday.” “American Airlines cancels 31,000 flights from its November schedule.” And recently: “JetBlue and Spirit Airlines Announce Merger Plan.” According to earnings reports, airlines are losing billions right now. Why would an airline choose now to buy another airline? And what does JetBlue need to do to come out of this on top?

By purchasing Spirit Airlines, JetBlue would become the nation’s fifth-largest airline, with a share of more than 10 percent of the market (behind United, Delta, American and Southwest). In addition to solidifying its presence in its existing markets, the deal would also open more routes in Las Vegas, Dallas, Houston, Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta and Miami. 

While there are a lot of potential benefits to JetBlue by merging, they’ll still have four hefty airline players in front of them. How do you win when you’re starting in fifth place?

Double down on your brand 

Now more than ever, JetBlue needs to embrace the brand attributes that got it here in the first place: by being the most “human” of all the airlines out there. Anyone who travels even a little these days knows how impersonal the entire process has become. You’re being scolded in security like a child. Boarding takes forever. You’re squashed like sardines next to total strangers in seats built for a pre-teen. JetBlue alone can’t change the entire industry, so go ahead and poke fun at it. Have some fun. Everyone knows the problems with flying right now. Don’t hide from them or pretend they don’t exist. Embrace them and laugh at the situation. The other airlines are too “corporate” to do that and their brands are too “vanilla” to be willing to take risks in messaging. Your customers will appreciate the honesty and would enjoy some laughs for a change. 

Make sure that brand personality extends to your staff

During the typical airport experience, by the time you get where you’re going, you’re a shell of a human being. So when someone talks to you like a real person, it stands out. Service that includes a solid dash of humanity. Flight attendants that (usually) enjoy their jobs. Pilots that talk to you like a peer instead of a number. They are your walking billboards. From restaurants to retail, good employees are worth gold right now—so treat them that way. It all makes the difference that will create loyalty from customers in a world where loyalty no longer exists. 

Invest a little in some “extras” that will pay off

Every airline is charging for every small detail right now. Seat choices, luggage, food. If you have to play that game to compete, fine. But look for small things that you can do that don’t cost a lot but mean a lot. You know when my birthday is—it was in my reservations when I booked. On my birthday, shoot me a note with a $50 credit toward my next flight. And don’t make me join your loyalty program to get that. If you treat me right, I’ll likely join your loyalty program anyway. Give employees the power to do whatever they think to make me happy on my next flight. A quietly complimentary beer given to the guy who’s sitting behind the crying baby will be a story he will tell to everyone once he gets off the flight. 

What’s Next

At this point, there are many miles (and legal hearings and union meetings) to go before this merger is confirmed. And many in the industry think it won’t happen. If it DOES happen, JetBlue has the opportunity to differentiate itself from the “big four” on a much bigger playing field than it was playing on before. And maybe even break into the top four. As a brand, it already has the ingredients. It’s just time to dial them up more than ever before.

Cannes It Get Any Better? Takeaways from Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity

Alyssa Stevens, Director of Public Relations and Social Media

Set in the beautiful South of France, the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is one of my favorite industry events to attend. While the Côte d’Azur is certainly a magnificent destination to visit, the speakers, content, and networking opportunities that this conference brings are also unmatched. Due to the pandemic, 2019 was the last time that Cannes Lions was hosted in person and judging by the undeniable energy of attendees and the all-star lineup of speakers, it was clear that I wasn’t the only one who was thrilled to be back!

This year’s visit marked my third time attending Cannes Lions, and as I reflect on all of the sessions and conversations, there are several recurring themes and topics that were woven throughout the conference. As marketers, especially those of us who specialize in the social media and influencer marketing industries, the future is bright. With Web 3 continuing to gain traction, TikTok dominating the social media landscape, and social commerce riding the coattails of ecommerce, I couldn’t be more energized by my experience at Cannes Lions.

While I wish I could have teleported you to the Mediterranean to soak up the knowledge and trends that Cannes Lions imparted, the next best thing is sharing a few of the key takeaways from my time on the Croisette…

Consumers’ expectations for brands are higher than ever before

Consumers are becoming more and more discerning about the brands they want to align themselves with, and as a result, we’re seeing a shift in how brands are approaching innovation. In a “CMOs in the Spotlight” series featuring chief marketing officers from L’Oreal, The Lego Group, and Marriott International, the focus was on how today’s shopper wants quality services/products that also help to change the world and the effect that mindset has on a brand’s internal innovation process. Brand purpose is more important than ever before, but those efforts and innovation have to start within the company before trickling down to the consumer level. Consumers want to feel like they are part of a solution when they invest in a product or service, and in turn, brands are working harder than ever before to use creativity and innovation to drive progress. This shift in the consumer mindset will continue to evolve, so it’s up to marketers to decide what their brand stands for and how that affects their upcoming initiatives and launches. It’s not just about what a brand says they do, it’s about what they actually do and how consumers can get involved with it. 

Influencer 3.0 focuses on “Join Me” vs. “Watch Me”

When influencers first became a thing, it was all about visually pleasing photos and perfectly curated feeds, but as the industry grows and more global brands invest significant budgets towards influencer marketing, we’re beginning to see a shift in both brand and consumer expectations around influencer content. During a session led by content creator @AlexisRen and the VP of Marketing and Communications (Americas) at Burberry, the idea of influencers building a community for a brand vs. just posting photos was a main theme. Influencers are held to a high standard by their followers to share authentic content because their audience craves a story around the products/experience that they post instead of just seeing a nice image. Brands can help influencers build audience trust by truly collaborating with them instead of just renting their ad space and reach. Influencer 3.0 is expected to place a higher emphasis on the “substance equation,” encouraging influencers and brands to create collaborations built around reliability, passion, humility, and vulnerability. These are the type of influencer programs that are expected to best resonate with today’s consumer. 

The customer journey is shortening and social media is leading the way

Brands are realizing that as consumer attention spans shrink, they need to maximize the time they have with shoppers and meet them where they are…and that’s on social media. 81% of shoppers were already using social media to discover brands/research experiences before the pandemic and now the customer journey has been shortened, allowing them to convert directly from social. With social media platforms evolving their shopping capabilities, we will see more brands play in this space and put additional marketing dollars into converting consumers directly from social. In a session led by WARC, the speakers acknowledged that while social commerce is exciting, it also puts a larger onus on the brand to make their social media and influencer collaborations compelling enough to entice consumers to click through to purchase within moments of seeing their product/service. As a consumer, I’ve personally done this and love the ease and instant gratification of the transaction, but as a marketer, I feel the increased pressure to ensure that my clients’ social presence is working as hard as it can to resonate with its target social media audience. 

NFTs may be here to stay

NFTs…a topic that everyone wants to discuss, but one that most people don’t know much about. According to executives from Vayner Media, NFTs are here to stay, and in order for brands to maintain cultural relevance, they need to begin evaluating a strategy. Right now, the majority of consumers are looking to buy NFTs for four main reasons: status, participation, trading, and collecting. But as this matures, it’s anticipated that NFTs will become less about collectibility and more about utility. Brands who want to join the fold as early adopters can mint NFTs that provide utility for consumers. For example, NFTs can offer access to an experience, build upon a brand’s loyalty program, showcase innovation, and give back to philanthropic causes. While only 0.09% of internet users currently have NFTs, it’s expected that this number will increase significantly over the next 12 to 24 months, and as a result, we’ll see price stabilization and the utility aspect of NFTs beating the collectibility. 

Q2 Emerging Trends Report

CP’s team of senior strategists and anthropologists regularly release insights on cultural, economic, and social shifts that can impact our clients. Here are their most recent observations.

1. People still dream, the scale is just getting smaller.

In the U.S., purchase decisions are shifting as people adjust to their shrinking disposable incomes. With inflation at heights unseen in four decades, cost of living has become a major concern. Although costs like driving to work and buying groceries are impacting people most, attitude and behavior changes are the most dramatic when it comes to larger expenditures like home improvement and remodeling. Even with home values soaring today, consumers fear embarking on bigger home projects due to higher cost of materials and a shrinking contractors universe. But we expect homeowners will still aspire to improve their homes, and will reframe those dreams with more scaled-back, practical approaches.

Sources: Bloomberg, CNBC, IPSOS

2. A reawakening for ‘accessible luxuries.’

Inflation in Q2 and beyond will affect household finances. People are most concerned about energy and agricultural markets and their associated rising costs. Over the past two decades, luxuries and indulgences have evolved in perception from a human want to a human right, perceived to be reward necessities to counter stress and depression. As such, when it comes to tightening the budget belt, we expect consumers to trim their spending on essentials in order to still afford their ‘new need’ indulgences.

Sources: Mintel, Financial Review, Retail Detail

3. She-flation is real and it’s being felt in a big way.

The recent spikes in goods and services is disproportionately affecting women (referred to as “she-flation”). Women tend to do most of the household purchasing of goods and thus are more often reminded of inflation in their everyday lives. People’s individual experiences with inflation depend on their purchasing habits and gender. But brands can identify customer sentiments like optimism or pessimism based on these factors and, in this case, account for the heightened emotional toll of the “pink tax” women feel right now. Brands should assess who’s most affected by inflation and do something about it.

Sources: NBC News, WNYC, UChicago

4. Treats and rewards as today’s self help. 

People are re-evaluating what is a necessity and what is an indulgence. Many people are turning to treats and indulgences as a form of reward and coping or self-help. COVID and lockdown heightened our consciousness on the importance of mental wellness and self care. A brand who encourages people to put their well-being first and encourages treating one’s self is destined to earn affinity.

Sources: Financial Times, The Baffler, AFR, Financial Times, Happiness By Design, Adobe

5. Standing up for something means defying something else.

Alignment against Russia is one of the most extreme alignments among consumers in recent history. People don’t want companies selling to Russia, buying from Russia or maintaining operations in Russia. Younger generations in particular are contributing to effectively canceling a whole country. People want brands to act on their values in ways that may be risky in the short-term, but represent a commitment to personal and organizational human values and equity. Any imaginative brand can find a way to do something similar to create natural affinity.

Sources: Yale, The Hill, The Atlantic, The New York Times, eMarketer

6. People don’t save for a rainy day when it’s raining.

Lockdown and the pandemic provided the chance for many people to consider what was a priority in the short and longer term. Inflation has now made a lot of our longer term goals seem derailed or unattainable in the present day. Consumers need to be reassured by credible sources that they shouldn’t let go of longer term goals. The economic ebbs and flows are normal and in every environment, there are opportunities to take, and plans to be made or to stick with. Reassurance from a bank to go forth with goals and plans can be very inspiring and reinforce those discovered priorities established during lockdown.

Sources: Fidelity, PR Newswire, CNBC, The New York Times, Forbes, Accenture

All good things expire. Look out for more trends coming soon.

The Next Chapter of Google Analytics: Preparing for Google Analytics 4 (GA4)

Brian Kastelein, Director of Data & Analytics 

So it’s official. On March 16, 2022, Google announced their intention to sunset the current version of Google Analytics, called Universal Analytics (UA), that has been the go-to web analytics tool for more than 30 million websites for the past 10 years. It will be replaced by a completely new Google Analytics environment, called Google Analytics 4 (GA4), by July 1, 2023. 

Should you care? Absolutely! Google Analytics 4 will usher in an entirely new era of web analytics that moves away from a dependence on cookies, a tracking mechanism that has come under scrutiny in recent years as concerns over consumer privacy, along with corresponding legislation, have gained traction. In Google’s own words, GA4 is “privacy-centric by design, so you can rely on Analytics even as industry changes like restrictions on cookies and identifiers create gaps in your data.”

In my August blog post, “10 Things to Know About Google Analytics 4 (GA4),” I said the launch of GA4 was a BIG deal. Now with the deadline of July 1, 2023 clearly in view, it is an even BIGGER deal and organizations need to begin to prepare for what will be a major shift in website measurement and marketing campaign tracking.

Start using Google Analytics 4 immediately

Google is making every effort to ensure that no one is caught off guard. For anyone using Google Analytics with some regularity, you’ve no doubt received multiple emails, in addition to the now persistent reminder of the approaching deadline in the blue alert bar across the top of your Google Analytics account every time you log in. 

Now is the time to heed that alert bar. There are ample technical considerations in planning the migration from UA to GA4. Everything from how to best export, store, and reference historical UA data to determining how to most effectively leverage new GA4 standards and functionality for event tagging, UTM conventions, and attribution models will need to be reviewed and configured in order to adapt to the new environment.

If you haven’t done so already, I strongly recommend setting up your GA4 property and running it in parallel to your existing UA account(s). This will allow data to begin to be collected in GA4 and provide a launching point for gaining familiarity with the new environment and exploring the many differences when comparing it to UA.

Begin to climb the steep learning curve

Beyond the technical considerations of GA4, one of the biggest challenges to be faced over the coming months is to effectively communicate to a more general and non-technical marketing audience the various impacts and implications of the shift from UA to GA4.

Complicating factors abound – and it’s going to require dedicated time, as well as a concerted effort, to navigate the UA to GA4 transition.

For instance, there is a “session” metric in both UA and GA4, however, the methodology for calculating a session in the two platforms is completely different making any year-over-year comparisons of “sessions” a bit like apples and oranges. By contrast, other standard metrics in UA, such as “bounce rate,” go the way of the dinosaurs and are replaced by new metrics, in this case “engagement rate,” in GA4.

Explaining these often nuanced differences to time-pressed and results-oriented marketing professionals, who don’t have a high tolerance for having caveats attached to their performance metrics, is going to have to be done methodically and incrementally. But the reality of a move to GA4 is that there are going to be inherent challenges to conducting cross-platform trend analysis and setting benchmarks based on historical performance levels. GA4 is truly a brand new world.

So with plenty of hurdles ahead, the upcoming months will be a true test of organizational fortitude. All marketers, from the more technical to the more creative, will need to collaborate and communicate to successfully navigate the transition to GA4. We are on the steep part of the learning curve, but the potential reward of mastering what will likely prove to be a more robust solution built for the impending cookie-less future must serve to motivate our efforts moving forward. 

It’s yet another interesting chapter for modern marketing.

Check out Brian’s article published in Siliconrepublic.com.

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Keeping it Real: All Ro(ads) Point to Authenticity for Gen Z

Neal Malone, PR and Social Media Management Supervisor

Four hours. That’s the average amount of time that Gen Z users spend on social media per day.

Once you layer in working, eating, and sleeping, there isn’t a whole lot of time to do much else.

This isn’t a generation that spends time reading articles in the morning, they don’t watch a ton of TV…and the shows or movies that they do watch are through streaming platforms or YouTube. Heck, there’s even data out there now that tells us members of Gen Z are ditching their email in favor of social DMs.

Talk about a hard advertising target, right?! Let’s put it this way…if you’re a brand trying to reach Gen Z – a generation that is already playing a big role in shaping our society and culture – investing in traditional ad formats would be like setting a pile of money on fire. Sorry, it just isn’t going to work.

So that brings us back to social media – quite literally the epicenter of all things Gen Z. There are plenty of ad formats across the various social media platforms, but the more traditional ones are quickly losing their luster. Gen Z users are experts at sniffing out ads and will quickly scroll past anything that feels too promotional. Instead, these users gravitate towards edgy, raw, authentic content featuring real people, real stories, and very little “sales speak.”

Because today, consumers are tired of being sold to. They’re over logos flashing everywhere, voiceovers that cram in talking points, and hired talent that isn’t representative of them or their communities. Consumers in 2022 are savvy and the expectations they have for brands are at an all-time high.

At Social Media Week – a three-day conference hosted by AdWeek in New York City – PepsiCo Chief Marketing Officer, Todd Kaplan, may have summed it up best when he said that “brands should make consumers feel invited, not chased.” Now, you could argue that a company with the history, scale, and brand recognition of PepsiCo doesn’t really need to sell itself to consumers anyway, but Todd’s point is an important one – and all brands should take note.

It’s not that Gen Z (and younger Millennial) consumers are allergic to all marketing and advertising – they just want brands to engage them in a different, more personalized way. The word “authentic” was mentioned more than any other word at Social Media Week (to the point where it started to generate some laughs from the crowd), but the reason why it came up so often is because consumers today demand authentic, relatable content. If it’s anything otherwise, it’s not worth their time.

So what does this mean for brands who want to reach Gen Z and other like-minded consumers?

It means engaging with influencers who can bring a trusted voice to their products, it means leveraging user-generated content to power their brand channels, and it means using social listening to identify trends and keep a pulse on evolving consumer conversations. In a general sense, it means rethinking and modernizing everything we’ve been taught as marketers over the years.

Speaking at Social Media Week, Hootsuite Chief Marketing Officer, Maggie Lower, encouraged brands to be “courageously creative” with their social media strategies and campaigns. She acknowledged that it isn’t easy for some companies to take this leap of faith into a more organic and less buttoned-up content world, but it’s a critical step that brands must take if they want to grab the attention of younger consumers.

If one thing was clear at Social Media Week across all the companies and brands that presented (you may have heard of a few: Google, Meta, Twitter, Snapchat, Glossier, Anheuser-Busch InBev, PepsiCo, and others), now is the time to dive head-first into the world of short-form video, influencers, and creator-driven marketing. After all, Gen Zers will soon be the key decision makers and content curators at our favorite brands, and this type of content won’t be a choice…it’ll be an expectation.

Now, onto the Metaverse and NFTs…just kidding! Next time, maybe.