2021 became the year where many brands adhered to the new rules established in 2020. With technology continually changing, business practices and marketing strategies must also evolve. From ppc management and marketing techniques to employing SEO practices – business owners must employ all methods possible to improve their footing in the business domain.
The result in 2020 was very video-rich, celeb-centric, localized, and value-driven. Take note of how quickly the internet has changed how businesses market their products and services. A few industries managed to weather the storm of 2020, but 2021 would bring resets as consumers settled into their ‘next normal’. Others relied on multi-dimensional engagement, unexpected collaborations, and blurred product offerings to find success. In 2021, we saw an increase in marketing spend in certain channels, a shift in messaging to be more helpful, and campaigns that emphasized credibility, localization, brand awareness, and a consumer-first perspective. Incorporating things like Event Video Production, as well as targeted marketing campaigns that brought in relevant events with current ‘celebs’ in favor, businesses were able to appeal to those who are majorly online, which seems to be pretty much everyone because of the recent pandemic.
All in on Video
In 2021, Comperemedia predicts that video will flourish especially as the flu pandemic continues and as people and companies continue to use the format to connect. Financial services have seen a 10% increase year-over-year in their spending on online video marketing in the first half of 2021, with video being such an important marketing channel. Credit Karma and Cash App, both among the top creatives in the sector (by spending), have been especially successful in adopting the channel to establish themselves in a crowded landscape.
Traditional financial services companies have also invested heavily in online video, with Capital One and Discover on top in terms of financial services online video spending during the first half of the year. In contrast, Discover proved the significance of pre-roll ads, while Capital One reinforced one’s expectation that animated videos would be popular.
It may be necessary to go off-screen in order to engage consumers with video. As an example, Disney+ was able to stand out with an innovative direct mail campaign to enrich the viewing experience. And Peacock dominated its peers in podcast advertising.
Despite the report’s accuracy regarding video trends, one major footnote was missed: the Olympics. Peacock and NBC missed a major opportunity, as viewership dropped by 42% compared to the 2016 Olympics. While NBC could have taken advantage of the event to drive viewership via Peacock, it instead left viewers unsure of how sports were broadcast and, because of the time difference, skipping games altogether.
Social media platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook have consistently been used by brands to promote sales in recent years. In general, when a customer clicks on an image, they’re redirected to the brand’s product page to complete the purchase. Could videos provide details on product purchases if customers click on them?
When brands are no longer able to rely on live interactions to build their brands, shoppable videos offer the spontaneity of live interactions with the convenience of an online purchase. According to experts, shoppable videos will be the next big trend for omnichannel retail. It also includes selling to consumers through social media influencers, who will continue to be reliable sources of information and recommendations. Influencers are an integral part of the digital space nowadays and with businesses such as unrulyagency.com and others like it bursting onto the scene, influencers are able to connect with people on multiple channels.
Fandom as a Cultural Currency
Celebrities played an integral role in many brand awareness marketing campaigns in 2021, as brands chose to reach out to their fanbase by connecting with influencers and celebrities they love. Even though celebrity endorsements are not a new marketing strategy, brands used celebrities in new, innovative ways to boost authenticity and position them as more than mere spokespersons for their brands.
Brands produced videos featuring famous couples who are relatable to viewers in order to capture their attention. As an example, Cheetos’ Super Bowl advertisement capitalized on Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher’s relationship as well as people’s love of the song “It Wasn’t Me.”
Another celebrity phenomenon involved companies hiring celebrities to become part of their companies, such as Jennifer Aniston and Vital Proteins, Taco Bell hiring Lil Nas X as their Chief Impact Officer, and A$AP Rocky becoming Klarna’s CEO for a day. These are basically celebrity partnerships, but brands leverage their popularity and influence to position celebrities as not just fans of a product, but as influencers in the business and it’s decisions.
A report would be remiss if it did not mention that McDonald’s will continue to provide celebrity meals in 2021, like BTS and Saweetie. McDonalds expanding celebrity meals proves that this more personalized approach is effective in reaching audiences through the celebrities they love and want to connect with, as was discussed by Competemedia in its coverage of McDonalds’ success with Travis Barker and J. Balvin in 2020.
Go Small or Go Home
In spite of the lifting of pandemic restrictions in the spring, many brands still looked to local efforts for inspiration and inspiration.
Amazon continued to encourage small businesses on Prime Day 2021, even allowing consumers to choose which parts of the United States they wanted to support. Amazon introduced small business support for its Prime Day 2020, and this shows that Amazon still prioritizes going small.
Many of our product strategies, especially those within the finance sector, include supporting small businesses. Earlier this fall, Square announced two strategic moves aimed at benefiting small business owners: its business banking services, aimed at reaching under-represented business owners, and its acquisition of Afterpay, which will enable Square to offer merchants BNPL services. In 2021, other large banks, such as Capital One, launched new business banking cards to service the evolving needs of business owners.
There was even thought of rural Americans with T-Mobile’s new campaign to provide quality internet in 2021 to rural Americans. Florida Georgia Line’s “Hometown Initiative” included customer testimonials and a statewide outreach campaign to ensure their brand was well known to an underserved market. Director of Telecom Insights Emily Groch said T-Mobile’s broad reach strategy was for reaching potential future rural subscribers, as “an urban customer today could become a rural subscriber tomorrow.”
The Paycheck Protection Program will end in 2021, so many financial services brands are trying to prepare business owners for this transition. Some brands informed business owners about the changes in advance and prepared them for the next step. In addition to email and social media messages, brands used many consumer-facing channels to inform businesses of PPP updates and what to do after the program ended.
Reasonable Responsibility
Many companies began devoting less money to Super Bowl marketing in the early months of the year. By doing so, Budweiser was able to funnel the money it would have spent on a national TV ad — $5.6M — into vaccine-awareness campaigns. A video advertisement instead appeared online (another example of All in on Video!). As part of its vaccine marketing, Budweiser wasn’t the only one; Krispy Kreme, for example, offered a free doughnut to anyone with vaccination proof.
Financial services companies used their own social media channels to denounce hate crimes committed against Asians and Asian-Americans. While this wasn’t a perfect substitute for embedding values in products, it was at least an act of public engagement.
Netflix took a unique approach to the issue by complementing its social media accomplishments with a national television campaign that emphasized the same kind of equity and equality Netflix practices on Twitter, Instagram, and elsewhere. Among Netflix’s product features is its content library, where it frequently showcases diverse voices.
Likewise, other companies have infused their values into their products-at least through marketing. With the #ProudlyVisible campaign, Visible asked people to describe their version of family-and helped the brand promote its flexible Party Pay plans to Pride attendees. This year, Discover made its Pride-themed credit card available to the general public, illustrating the importance of making identity part of a physical product. In a paid Facebook campaign, And Aspiration explained how banking with them would lead to money going to charitable causes.
Areas to Improve On
Upon reading the report, Comperemedia could focus on individuality and customization, which people have seen in Spotify’s customized marketing that highlights individual listening habits. It has also been seen in the financial industry, especially with the introduction of Citi’s Custom Cash Card and Bank of America’s Customized Cash Rewards card.
Or, letting the pendulum swing the other way, the report could focus on simplicity: While personalized rewards can be great, many people are looking for a way to earn that requires less thinking-as evidenced by the ever-growing 2% credit card landscape; simplicity makes an appearance elsewhere, too, as evidenced by the straightforward value proposition of the many buy now, pay later brands.
-Report Summarised by Orobi Bakhtiar
