WARC Talks: 3 in 15 – Lessons from the Effective 100

In this episode of the WARC podcast, David Tiltman, WARC's SVP Content, is joined by Amy Rodgers, Head of Content for WARC Creative, to discuss some of the key findings from the Lessons from the Effective 100 report.

Takeaways 

• This year’s rankings show that effective campaigns are innovating in extending reach in social media and gaming, including, for example, by using virtual influencers.
• Food and drink advertising ranked highly in 2023, partly through impactful use of celebrities.
• Campaigns using traditional, non-digital media indexed highly in the 2023 rankings as both lead and supporting channels.

Listen to the full episode here

Timestamps

1:42 – Background to the WARC Rankings and the Effective 100.

3:10 – ‘Peak purpose’.

4:02 – Extending reach in social media and gaming.

6:26 – Innovations in virtual influence.

10:46 – Creating impact in food and drink advertising.

13:51 – Use of celebrity in food and drink.

16:23 – Winning creative strategies include use of celebrities, influencers, emotion and storytelling.

20:00 – Traditional media channels index highly in the Effective 100.

See the full list of WARC podcasts here

WARC Media Platform Insights: YouTube

YouTube continues to command a strong position in the online video advertising market and is actively looking for ways to forge deeper connections with viewers, creators and brands through multi-format video strategies.

Context 

YouTube is prioritising Shorts and CTV engagement, and is innovating with unskippable 30-second ads and “pause experiences” on TV to help marketers engage audiences across screens and achieve both performance and brand-building goals.

Takeaways 

• Ad investment with YouTube is set to rise 4.0% in 2023 to reach $30.4bn

That marks a turnaround from Q4 2022 when ad revenue declined 8.8% year-on-year, as marketers shifted investment to retail media and search. But growth is expected to resume in 2023, at more than double the rate of growth recorded in 2022. WARC Media forecasts YouTube’s revenue growth to accelerate 10.3% in 2024, to reach $33.5bn by the end of that year.

• Commerce brands are expected to spend $4.1bn on YouTube ads in 2023 

This is a 4.6% rise on 2022. Retail remains YouTube’s most important category for ad investment, but growth from other sectors has been harder to achieve. While some categories will see double digit spending increases in 2023, including technology and electronics (+13.9%) and toiletries and cosmetics (+12.1%), figures elsewhere are more modest.

• YouTube advertisers can reach half of all internet users globally. More than one billion hours of video are watched every day on YouTube

YouTube is the world’s most popular online platform, with an adult advertising reach estimated at 2.07 billion people, almost twice as much as TikTok and Instagram respectively. YouTube Shorts (60 seconds or less) will provide more opportunities for marketers to reach new audiences, but its 50 billion daily viewer total is some way behind the 140 billion daily views achieved by Instagram Reels; under-18s, meanwhile, spend on average 60% longer on TikTok than with YouTube content.

• YouTube has overtaken Netflix as the biggest TV streaming platform in the US

YouTube accounted for 22.9% of OTT viewing in March 2023. It is also the most popular channel for US Gen Zs to catch up with sports news, and last year it was the most popular platform for both music and podcast listening in the US.

APAC is a key growth region for YouTube – from live shopping and Shorts to gaming – while in Latin America, YouTube delivers brand impact more cost-effectively than any other video platform, according to research by Kantar.

Platform Insights is a new series of reports exclusive to WARC Media subscribers. These include an overview of platform investments, media consumption and performance insights. More information is available here.

Why Western luxury brands need to understand China's Gen Z

The luxury market in China is very different to that in the West, in part because of the younger buyer demographic. 

Why it matters

Where Western brands have generally tended to focus on older Gen X or Gen Y purchasers, it’s Gen Z which is important in China: the average age of luxury purchasers is just 29. These consumers are hard-working, optimistic, and ready to reward themselves. 

What Gen Z expects

Writing in Jing Daily, Équité’s Daniel Langer highlights five areas to focus on: 

• Digital innovation: The online retail experience needs to be truly engaging. Too many Western luxury brands are failing to deliver the top-level consumer experience that China’s Gen Z now expects on digital platforms like WeChat. 

• Authentic brand narratives: Western brands can’t simply transplant their existing narratives to China. Without adapting to local sensibilities, these won’t resonate with consumers.

• Social responsibility: China’s Gen Z consumers are quick to hold brands accountable for their societal and environmental impact, so Western luxury brands need to communicate their stance on these issues effectively.

• Celebrity partnerships: Western celebrities generally aren’t as effective as local celebrity endorsement. 

• Personalised offerings: Limited editions can cater to a Gen Z desire for individuality and exclusivity.

Key quote

“[Gen Z] consumers seek more than just products; they want their brands to reflect their values, engage with their culture, and provide a digital-first, personalised experience. Navigating these expectations will be the key to thriving in this promising yet demanding market” – Daniel Langer, CEO of luxury brand adviser Équité.

Sourced from Jing Daily

Asia avoids, mostly, the war on woke

The recent experience of Bud Light and its use of a trans influencer highlights how the culture wars can engulf a brand, but the picture is more nuanced outside the particular environs of the US. 

Why it matters

Brands clearly want to be in step with culture and to generally connect with progressive youth – to be more “woke”, if you will – but they also have to be cognisant of the different cultures and politics of the Asia region. Associating themselves with Pride month, for example, could make sense in the UK or US but consumers across APAC are less likely to expect brands to address this issue – they’d rather see a focus on environmental, health and educational issues, according to Ipsos. 

Takeaways 

• Research from GWI indicates that the main reasons APAC consumers say they would boycott a brand are: harmful behaviour directed towards specific communities (57%), unethical manufacturing practices (54%), violating regulations (51%), behaviour that is not environmentally friendly (50%) and transphobic behaviour (50%). 
• The region lacks the sort of far-right news media (cf. Fox News) that actively seek out perceived threats against conservative values and stoke culture wars. 
• “Anti-woke” activity in Asia tends to be led by governments or religious groups; for example, religious groups in Indonesia and Malaysia have encouraged a boycott of Starbucks over the brand’s support for LGBTQ+ rights.

Key quote

“Generally, ‘approved’ issues like sustainability, climate change and female empowerment are safe for brands to engage with through marketing campaigns, while issues like LGBTQ+, race, class or even mental health are decidedly more sensitive” – Zoe Chen, strategy director at Virtue APAC, speaking to Campaign Asia.

Sourced from Campaign Asia