Viewers gobbled up 2 billion hours of content on Twitch last month, and brands are taking notice of the social media platform, which focuses on livestream gaming. Brands such as e.l.f. and KFC have tested campaigns on the Amazon-owned platform.
Facebook is launching an ad campaign to tout the benefits of personalized advertising, especially for small businesses. Facebook also is working to make its Ads Manager tool, which lets small businesses manage their ads, easier to use.
Smirnoff is celebrating Women's History Month with a campaign supporting businesses owned by Black women that features Laverne Cox, Megan Rapinoe and Diane Guerrero joining brand-hosted virtual workouts at fitness studio SideBarre in Washington, D.C. Events include a happy hour and Q&A for fans with each star, and the brand is donating $50,000 to support Black female entrepreneurs via Black Girl Ventures.
Instead of relying on Facebook, direct-to-consumer advertisers continue to diversify ad spends, with Snapchat receiving 10% to 25% of media buys. "Snap has been really bullish on AR, and I would say we see some clients leaning into that more than others," says Stef Smith of Dentsu Media.
Luxury retailer Bottega Veneta says it is refocusing its social media presence by deleting all content on Weibo, closing its corporate Instagram account and is instead, moving content to brand ambassadors. "Luxury brands are based on a subtle blend of desirability and exclusivity," said luxury marketer David Sadigh. "Does this move help in fostering this? Absolutely yes."
Twitter has released a report based on billions of tweets sent during the past two years that identifies six trends -- "well-being," "creator culture," "everyday wonder," "one planet," "tech life" and "my identity." The report details statistics and insights about each trend, plus key takeaways for marketers.
PBS has undergone a marketing rebrand including refreshing its logo, renaming stations such as KLRU in Austin to Austin PBS and adding one-click donations via Amazon's Fire TV as it works to market itself better in this era of streaming. PBS has also launched apps on a handful of leading smart TV platforms.
The pandemic put a focus on purpose-led marketing, and companies have been forced to react in ways not seen before, according to a roundtable of Ad Council members. "If you look at last year and the good that in some ways has come from it, it has just put a deeper spotlight on why purpose for companies needs to be a responsibility -- not something that they have a choice on whether or not they want to do," says Alicia Tillman, global CMO of SAP.
Each month, Andrew Eitelbach, senior editor for ANA Newsstand, rounds up can't-miss content from the ANA's four online publications: ANA magazine, B2B Marketer, Forward, and Greater Good. This month, that includes a few items from 2020 he wouldn't launch into the sun.
Due to overwhelming demand, we are extending the final entry deadline for the B2 Awards to March 10.
For over 45 years, the B2 Awards have set the global standard for excellence in B2B, recognizing and honoring B2B marketers and their marketing solution provider partners who understand that in B2B, "Effective is just the beginning." Sound like you? Then enter today!
