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WARC Talks: Three marketing trends for 2024

WARC’s David Tiltman, SVP Content, and Aditya Kishore, Insight Director unpack The Marketer’s Toolkit 2024.

• They discuss political polarisation, generative AI’s evolution into content creation, and masculinity in crisis.
• The Toolkit identifies trends that will disrupt existing global marketing practices and offers insights to help turn these disruptive areas into opportunities for growth.

Listen to the episode in full here 

Timestamps

02:15 – What is the Marketer’s Toolkit?

05:07 – Political, ideological and social divides are growing deeper.

11:03 – AI is evolving from processing to creating.

18:08 – Masculinity is in crisis.

Further reading

The Marketer's Toolkit 2024

What we know about marketing to men

Introducing The Marketer's Toolkit 2024

The Marketer’s Toolkit 2024 has now landed: the thirteenth edition of the report dives deep on five emerging trends for the coming year using a new proprietary methodology alongside an extensive global survey – here’s what you need to know. 

WARC members can read the full report right here.  

If you’re not yet a member, you can find a sample of the report here.

Why the Toolkit matters

Based on a survey of 1,400+ marketers, in-depth interviews with CMOs, and WARC’s GEISTE methodology for trendspotting, the Toolkit provides strategic support for planning and decision-making to understand the challenges and opportunities for the year ahead. 

Why it’s useful 

Not just another forward-facing trend report, the Toolkit identifies five major trends for the year ahead, exploring the quantitative and qualitative data that WARC analysts used to establish these ideas. 

We then put these in context by surfacing highly effective examples of a brand response to each trend, CMO viewpoints, and practical takeaways.

Five trends

1. Unlocking the potential of Gen AI: Nearly three-quarters (70%) of marketers plan to unlock the potential of AI in their marketing. 
2. Preparing for the age of polarisation: 13% of marketers said the best strategy is to “drop all ‘purpose’ driven strategies and political positions”.
3. Masculinity in crisis: Almost two out of three marketers (63%) agree that the way they communicate with young men needs to change. 
4. “Sportswashing” is a growing concern: 61% of marketers concur that it is “very important” for sports organisers and owners to avoid being politically divisive.
5. Sustainability should be locally relevant: Nearly two-fifths (38%) of marketers are investing in local communities.

Taking on economic uncertainty 

“Marketers globally continue to be concerned about the economic picture with 64% of survey respondents seeing it as the biggest factor in 2024 planning. But a majority (61%) of firms expect improved business performance next year, up 10% from last year,” explains Aditya Kishore, Insight Director, WARC, and principal author of the report. 

You can read Aditya’s introductory essay to the Toolkit, Capturing growth in the YOLO economy, on WARC Opinion. 

The evolution of marketing

The Marketer’s Toolkit 2024 is part of WARC Strategy’s The Evolution of Marketing program, offering a series of practical reports designed to help marketers address major industry shifts to drive marketing effectiveness in the coming year. Look out for a series of podcasts and a webinar on the Toolkit in the coming weeks.

How marketers can achieve net zero

The latest climate report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) finds that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are not decreasing fast enough; all industries need to minimise harm, but it isn’t easy and requires radical transformation. Here’s what you need to know. 

What is Ad Net Zero?

Ad Net Zero, a project that aims to achieve carbon net zero by 2030, launched in 2020. Backed by a coalition of UK advertising industry bodies, its mission is to bring about collective, industrywide action to cut carbon emissions associated with advertising. This is across the whole process of development, production, and media placement. Ad Net Zero launched in the US in February this year and plans to expand into other markets.

Why sustainability agendas matter

The climate emergency is the industry’s most important and urgent brief, and marketers and advertisers are well placed to respond. From using creativity to drive behavioural change and reducing the climate impact of advertising production, to ensuring ad investment does not support climate disinformation. The brief requires a radical rethink and means placing equal importance on environmental protection and financial growth.

For a library of WARC’s research and insight on sustainability in marketing, check out our Sustainability Hub.

Explore the best practice on the topic through What we know about sustainability marketing.

Takeaways

• Reduce the climate impact of advertising production. This means rethinking how adverts are made: can the ad be made locally, for instance?
• Decarbonise media plans. Advertisers should adopt a lean mindset as the demand for net zero media plans grows, including rethinking ad lengths – a 10-second ad will likely have less carbon impact than a 30-second ad. In this context, brands that can generate quick recall will have an advantage. Do less and do better.
• Drive behaviour change. The industry can use its renowned creativity to tell stories about the benefits of sustainable behaviour and lifestyles, and close consumers’ say-do intention gap,
• Incorporate climate impact metrics. In 2021 the purpose disruptors and econometrics agency Magic Numbers introduced a new metric, Advertised Emissions. The goal is to help the industry measure emissions to establish a baseline, and then track their performance in reducing them.
• Avoid greenwashing. It’s dangerous. As the number of companies setting net zero targets increases, brands must beware the perils of greenwashing, which will be called out by consumers, employees and regulators.
  

The WARC Guide to Net Zero Marketing provides a roadmap to help the industry achieve net zero targets, providing frameworks and strategies that can be adopted and applied.

How major brands are measuring their sustainability performance

Advertising can be effective beyond the ability to measure it, but that’s not going to win it any future support or make an investment case to do more of it; something similar is happening in sustainability, new research finds, with big increases in the use of widely accepted external standards. 

Why sustainability performance matters

A significant topic in the 2024 Marketer’s Toolkit, sustainability is becoming a serious consideration for businesses. Regulatory scrutiny and the recognition of sustainability’s importance means that performance measurement is no longer a nice-to-have. 

What’s going on

• According to WARC’s survey, nearly a third (29%) are working towards measurable objectives in conjunction with recognised external standards – an increase of 12pp from 17% last year.
• External standards allow brands to confidently stand out in a crowded marketplace by offering products and practices that meet widely accepted sustainability benchmarks.

Go deeper

• For a library of WARC’s research and insight on sustainability in marketing, check out our Sustainability Hub.
• Explore the best practice on the topic through What we know about sustainability marketing.

Industry snapshot: Five trends shaping B2B marketing in 2024

The latest WARC industry snapshot report examines key macro B2B drivers, identifying five trends that will shape marketing strategies in 2024, including: influencer marketing, B2B’s transition to hybrid sales, AI-driven personalisation, marketing’s efficiency drive, and ESG as a catalyst for value creation. 

Why the snapshot matters

Based on WARC’s GEISTE methodology, the snapshot reviews the macro drivers expected to impact marketing across six pillars: government, economy, industry, society, technology, and environment. 

The report, which WARC members can read here, combines the analysis of these factors with sector-specific research to generate a comprehensive picture of the trends shaping the B2B industry and charts how marketers can respond. It also contains a series of hypothetical scenarios to help businesses plan and prepare themselves for different potential futures. 

Five B2B trends

1. Doubling down on influencer marketing: Businesses are amplifying their influencer marketing campaigns as customers increasingly turn to third-party sources to inform purchasing decisions.
2. B2B sales are increasingly hybrid: B2B selling will continue to transition to a hybrid model, combining online and offline interactions to meet changing customer behaviours and preferences.
3. Enhancing personalisation with AI: Customers increasingly expect to receive personalised experiences, and businesses are utilising AI in an attempt to meet this demand.
4. B2B marketing’s focus on efficiency: Mirroring a wider trend in the marketing industry of stalling budgets and rising costs, B2B marketers face growing pressure to achieve more with less.
5. ESG as a catalyst for value creation: Businesses are taking a more proactive approach to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) as they link these practices to long-term value creation.

Key statistics

1. Three-quarters of B2B marketers are currently utilising influencers, and 93% of CMOs plan to use influencers more frequently.
2. B2B buyers spend roughly two-thirds of their time engaging with suppliers online – either through digital self-service or remote human interactions. The remaining one-third of interactions occur via traditional channels such as face-to-face meetings or direct mail. 
3. A majority (93%) of B2B executives plan to increase their investment in generative AI within the next 12 months.
4. Less than half (47%) of SaaS licenses are actively used, and roughly three in five (61%) B2B marketers think their current martech stack is too complex.
5. Nearly half (46%) of B2B decision-makers think that ESG has become more important as a consideration in procurement decisions over the past two years. 

Go deeper

• WARC members can read the full report here. 
• See all other reports in the Industry Snapshot series here.

China woos foreign tourists

A political thaw, more visa-free travel and new marketing campaigns are expected to boost inbound tourism to China.

What’s happening

• Earlier this month, Presidents Xi and Biden agreed on the need to improve air connectivity between China and the US and to hold “a high-level dialogue on tourism”. 
• Following a recent visit to China by Australia PM Anthony Albanese – the first such visit in seven years – travel agencies in Australia are offering huge discounts on package tours to China, the South China Morning Post reports. 
• Passport holders from more than 50 nations can now stay in most parts of China for up to six days visa-free as transit visitors. 
• Trip.com, China’s biggest online travel firm, is investing in marketing and product integration over the next three years, and is teaming up with the government-affiliated programme ‘Nihao China’ (Hello China) which features promotional videos and digital communications.

Why Chinese tourism matters

Foreign tourism spending will be a welcome boost to the local economy: before Covid-19, overseas tourists were spending $130bn a year. 

“The Chinese inbound travel market has substantial growth opportunities, as it currently accounts for 0.3 per cent of China’s GDP,” said Trip.com in a statement. “This leaves ample room for expansion, which will ultimately boost various sectors such as hospitality, transport, retail and entertainment, leading to an increase in our business growth in the future.”

Sourced from South China Morning Post, Skift

Towards a new sponsorship agenda

Brands can make more use of sponsorship to drive sustainability and social equity, according to the WFA.

What happening

The WFA’s Evolution of Sponsorship* report found that: 

• Around half of brands surveyed (49%) say they are using sponsorship to promote sustainability or social equity.
• Four in ten (42%) are not yet using their sponsorships to advance and demonstrate their sustainability and/or social equity agendas; 9% don’t know what, if any, use is being made of sponsorship to drive values. 

Why sponsorship agendas matter

There’s a gap between values and engagement, a space brands can inhabit to demonstrate how they can be a force for good. 

Further, as traditional consumer connections splinter, it has grown more challenging for brands to reach particular audiences, such as the younger Generations Z and Alpha. Sponsorship is an opportunity to establish an emotional connection with audiences by engaging with their passions and enhancing their experiences.

Key quote

“Sponsorship offers brands a unique chance to connect with consumers while they’re doing what they like the most … It’s a great opportunity for brands to pave the way for a better world, live up to their purpose, and lead positive change rebalancing inequalities” – Laura Forcetti, Director of Global Marketing Sourcing at WFA. 

 * The report is based on responses from 34 multinational companies with a total global advertising spend of US$51.3bn. 

Sourced from WFA

Children take to Gen AI

Teenagers and children in the UK are far more likely than adults to have embraced generative AI, according to a new study from regulator Ofcom.

Online Nation 2023 looks at all aspects of the nation’s online lives and finds that: 

• four in five (79%) online teenagers aged 13-17 now use generative AI tools and services;
• a significant minority (40%) of younger children aged 7-12 are also adopting the technology. 

Why generative AI trends matters 

Generative AI provokes a combination of curiosity (the most common reason for using it is simply to explore the technology: 48% of 16+ internet users) and fear (58% are concerned about its future impact on society). Brands may need to address these differing views when using AI in their marketing strategy. 

Interestingly, the most prolific users of generative AI among this broader group – the online 16-24-year-olds – are also most likely to be worried about its societal implications (67%).

Takeaways

• Adult internet users aged 16 and above are more reluctant users of generative AI (31%). 
• Among those who have never used this technology (69%), nearly one in four have no idea what it is (24%).
• Snapchat My AI is the most popular generative AI tool among children and teens, used by half (51%) of online 7-17-year-olds; online teenage girls are its most avid users (75%). 
• ChatGPT is the most widely used generative AI service among internet users aged 16 and above (23%). Among online youngsters aged 7-17, boys are keener users of ChatGPT than girls (34% versus 14%).

Sourced from Ofcom

The missed sponsorship opportunity for brands

Sponsorship accounts for a significant chunk of the marketing budgets of multinational brands, but this activity remains relatively unmanaged and unmeasured for many, according to new research from the WFA. 

The WFA Evolution of Sponsorship study, produced in partnership with Lumency, notes that global sponsorship spending is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.7% from 2022-30 and reports that sponsorship accounts for, on average, 11% of a brand’s marketing budget. 

Why sponsorship ROI matters

That level of spending is second only to media spend for many brands, yet just 5% of brands surveyed* said they feel “very confident” that the investments in their sponsorship portfolio are addressing the right audience, with the right assets and for the right spend. 

But while most brands said measuring ROI of their sponsorship is their most significant challenge related to sponsorship activity, they are spending on average 1% or less of their sponsorship budget on post-evaluation/impact measurement (a fifth of brands spend nothing). Clearly, there is a lot of work to be done in this area.

Takeaways

• Brands need to measure outcomes (eg improved consumer awareness) rather than outputs (eg the number of attendees at an event).
• Brands need a model or framework to determine the commercial value of the rights and entitlements they secure with their sponsorships (31% say they have such a framework, 38% are developing one, 31% have no plans in this regard).
• Activation is a missed opportunity: two in five brands surveyed (43%) say they do not know what they are spending on the activation of sponsorships. Almost the same proportion (39%) are spending less on activation than on rights fees.
• Procurement teams can bring structure and add value to the organisation’s sponsorship activity, well beyond negotiation of rights and contracting. 

*The report is based on responses from 34 multinational companies, with total global advertising spend of US$51.3bn. 

Sourced from WFA

Elderly Chinese embrace short-form video

China’s senior population are spending an increasing amount of time online, embracing short-form video apps and becoming influencers themselves. 

Context

In the past, older people tended to avoid expensive gadgets, but Covid-19 lockdowns were a turning point as smartphones and social media became important new points of connection for them. 

Older people are now spending more time online, as the prices of both phones and data have fallen. Academic studies suggest that while this could help in alleviating loneliness among this age group, it could also be contributing to internet addiction. 

Why social media habits matter

Earlier this year, the Cyberspace Administration of China suggested limiting the amount of time children and teens could spend on their phones, but it might equally have questioned the habits of older people. Whatever the rights and wrongs, it’s clear that marketers can find this age group – which has significant spending power – on social media platforms; Wired notes, for example, that many elderly are shifting media consumption from TV to Douyin.

Takeaways 

• China has become a post-cash society in which a smartphone is essential for everyday living.
• Leading phone brands are targeting older people; one, for example, promotes a product as “the phone for your grandpa”. 
• Social media is a lifeline for many older people whose children have moved from towns and villages to cities. (Or they may have moved to the city with them and have limited IRL social interaction in their new environment.) 
• There’s a growing number of older Chinese influencers (eg Glamma Beijing – pictured above – advertise fashion and beauty products).

Sourced from Wired, Deutsche Welle, Taylor & Francis, Frontiers, Reuters

[Image: Glamma Beijing, Deutsche Welle]

Ozempic-maker experiments with pricing to reframe buyer value

Novo Nordisk, the maker of the popular if controversial drug Ozempic, is attempting to innovate on pharma pricing models for its Wegovy product, proposing a ‘risk-based’ pricing model that allows healthcare providers to spread the cost of the drug over a longer period with the promise of eventual savings down the line. 

These savings would come through a reduction in obesity-related problems and costs. 

Why Novo Nordisk’s pricing strategy matters

Across media, the medium is so often the message. For Novo Nordisk, it’s the pricing model that acts as the message to would-be buyers. The lesson – that the big price of a service or product will eventually deliver savings through its use – has great potential across the B2B marketing space. 

The story is deeper, however, as Novo Nordisk faces competition from rivals using a similar medical technology: will it be able to reframe its offer to the point that it can protect its first-mover advantage and the price premium that it’s established?

What’s going on

Danish pharma firm Novo Nordisk is adapting how it talks to healthcare systems as it seeks to increase the uptake of its effective but expensive weight-loss drug Wegovy. 

• The company is best known for its semaglutide drug, which is the active ingredient in the diabetes treatment Ozempic. An insulin regulator that also causes dramatic weight loss, it exploded into public consciousness when several celebrities like Elon Musk credited the product with helping the SpaceX CEO shed 13kgs. 
• In recent years, #Ozempic has blown up on TikTok to the point of causing shortages of the drug for type 2 diabetes patients to whom it is typically prescribed. Wegovy is the formulation specifically for weight loss.
  
• Very simply, it reduces people’s appetites while also slowing the rate of digestion to keep patients feeling fuller for longer.

Why now?

Such hype has boosted the profile of both the company and product but it remains expensive to buy. 

• In an interview with the Financial Times, CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen explained the company’s new thinking about selling an expensive product that promises savings down the line, with recent trials suggesting that Wegovy can cut the risk of serious cardiac events by around a fifth.
  
• “How can healthcare systems justify making a large one-time payment upfront that leads to significant savings down the road? I think we need to share that risk to get going,” he tells the paper.
  
• In the US, the drug costs over $1,300 per month and many insurers don’t cover its costs. It is slightly cheaper in Europe, but healthcare systems – often taxpayer funded – have typically only prescribed the drug for patients with extremely high body mass index. 

The question, then, is whether a new pricing model can reframe the investment case away from saving individual lives and toward a system-wide investment in reducing obesity (42% of US, and 17% of EU populations). 

This goes far further

The Ozempic effect isn’t just a pharma story, but a full blown macroeconomic conundrum the likes of which we rarely see. Recently, the maker of Krispy Kreme doughnuts saw its securities downgraded on analysts’ assumption that widespread Ozempic use is going to hit demand. 

Walmart has registered some behavioural change among users of the drug who shop at the supermarket, with fewer food products sold as a result. 

Sourced from the Financial Times, Euronews, Lloyds Pharmacy, Bloomberg 

[Image: Novo Nordisk]

Cultural hybridity and the future of glocal branding

As Asian cultural influences grow and populations hybridise, people are becoming more culturally diverse and interconnected, leading to new challenges for brands operating in a glocalised world. 

Why cultural hybridity matters

Amid the rise of Asian national pride and cultural influences, there is lower tolerance for Western examples of cultural insensitivity, and global brands can resonate with local markets only by embracing cultural hybridity to ensure relevance and creativity.

Takeaways

• Create a genuine conversation between geographies, time periods and world cultures to be more inclusive and renew creativity.
• Authenticity remains the key, and brands must first draw inspiration from their own cultural identity and legacy.
• To hybridise branding in a genuine way, overcome the dichotomy of local and global while developing multicultural intelligence.

ABM picks up in APAC

Account-based marketing (ABM) is gaining momentum in the Asia Pacific region as a new study shows not only a solid base of existing practitioners but an even higher proportion of recent adopters.

The latest State of ABM in APAC from B2B marketing agency xGrowth outlines how the B2B marketing strategy is increasingly going mainstream and that’s being accelerated by recent market and technological shifts.

Why account-based marketing matters

Bringing marketing and sales teams onto the same page is the top motivation for companies to leverage ABM to target a set of accounts, as the economic downturn emphasises the need for targeted and cost-effective marketing approaches. 

While ABM can help in this regard, there are still challenges around attribution, metrics and reporting.

Takeaways 

• A majority of those surveyed (86%) have either already adopted an ABM approach (35%) or started adopting it in 2023 (51%).
• 59% of ABM practitioners surveyed plan to increase their ABM-related investments in the coming year.
• The one-to-one ABM tier is popular in APAC, with 50% of marketing and sales teams leveraging it.
• Australia, New Zealand and Singapore are the top three geographies where marketing teams direct their ABM programs.
• 60% of long-term ABM practitioners use direct mail to engage their target audience.
• Popular channels included email marketing, paid ads and outreach by sales teams.
• The majority of ABM marketing leaders (55%) say generative AI is either currently impacting their marketing decisions or will influence them in the future.

Sourced from xGrowth

How marketers can navigate Gen AI complexities

As marketers embrace the capabilities of generative AI, they must strike a balance between efficiency and the ethical use of these technologies, argues a marketing professor in a WARC exclusive.

Why Gen AI matters

Marketers might be tempted to use generative AI tools like ChatGPT to create content at scale, but they must balance saving time and resources with minimising the potential for harm to brands, people and the planet.

WARC members can read the full exclusive here.

Artificial intelligence will be significant for this industry, but the new technology won’t be an unalloyed good: risks include the inadvertent creation of harmful content, inconsistent brand tone of voice, erosion of creativity due to over-reliance on automation and the environmental costs of producing more advertisements, not to mention the energy usage of the technology itself.

Takeaways

• As the climate crisis intensifies, marketers should be looking at doing better by doing less. Reduce ad clutter to minimise environmental impact. 
• Translate the unintended consequences of AI-generated content into wider company functions so that they can be managed, looking at it through the lens of brand/reputation management, CRM, sustainability/ESG goals and regulatory compliance.
• Deploy a human-AI collaboration approach with pre-screening tools and content filters to minimise the risk associated with the use of Gen AI tools. 
• AI literacy and diversity training in Gen AI is essential for modern marketers.

Key quote

“An internal policy and a planning guide for Gen AI can help ensure marketers and business leaders are empowered to navigate the complexities of evolving Gen AI, while also minimising the risks of the unintended consequences of AI in their marketing efforts” – Kimberly Hardcastle, Assistant Professor in Marketing at Newcastle Business School (AACSB), Northumbria University.