Curated Guide to Research
MediaPost's comprehensive guide to current research in the marketplace.
Search results for "branded content"
- Some 65% of Gen Z describe themselves as video content creators, according to the YouTube Culture & Trends Report, and 89% describe themselves as fans of someone or something.
- Slack's ad takes the form of musical comedy to highlight the company's latest features focused on streamlining productivity via generative AI, especially with regard to meetings.
- Demand for marketing content grew by one and a half times this year, but marketing teams were only able to meet that demand 55% of the time.
- Scaling high-performing video ad creatives across paid social platforms is daunting at best. PetPlate shares its framework for turning one video concept into five, maximizing the potential of user-generated content (UGC) influencers, and making video-first ads the sole focus of a brand. You, too, can crack the code of scaling paid social through a test, learn and iterate framework. Bringing viewer attention in the first few critical seconds of a pre-roll is an art+science puzzle under any circumstances. But when you are targeting a full funnel of touchpoints across multiple platforms, from social to YouTube to TikTok, the equations get really hard. Amelia Coomber, Director of Acquisition & Performance Marketing at PetPlate, shares their recipe of testing and iterating your way to conversion.
- Suspicions may be warranted because of the possible negative consequences of AI on a brand's reputation.
- Creatives with disabilities are providing brands with an authentic way to connect with an audience that's actively seeking inclusivity, Nielsen said.
- More than half of marketing decision-makers said social media content is valuable, though there are differences in individual industries.
- Ok, so you landed a deal to extend your media brand into an OTT streaming series on Amazon Prime. Now what? AstroStyle's CEO, Ophira Edut, shares her experience creating and filming "Cosmic Love," a Bachelor-meets-astrology reality dating show debuting on Amazon Prime in August 2022. How can publishers monetize these deals most effectively and even transform their content from informational to experiential media in newer Web3 formats?
- As the 90-year-old Krystal restaurant brand looked to appeal to younger demos, the marketing team focused on college towns and some of their strongest influencers - star athletes. Executing on this smart plan took more than posing Quarterbacks with store owners. Krystal Restaurants' Director of Marketing, Kaitlin Stoehr, shares what the company learned about crafting local campaigns around recruiting this special class of social influencers, creating authentic live engagements, and then amplifying this content effectively in the community.
- The all digital wireless carrier, Visible, developed a top to bottom approach for market infiltration via data and market research. The challenger brand's head of brand marketing, Pearl Servat, shares with us how they leveraged a marketing mix of digital and traditional channels to introduce prospects to the brand at various touch points and drive consumers to its digital storefront. Learn how Visibles repeatable & scalable marketing strategy is reshaping what meaningful experiential activations looks like for a digital-first brand.
- Introducing a new brand can be daunting in today's ever-expanding video landscape. Ocean Media's svp, head of media, Jared Lake, talks strategy launching a brand campaign across multiple platforms, how consumers' consumption behaviors and GRP informed the media mix and why certain channels didn't make the cut.
- Avocados From Mexico takes on advertising's biggest stage... the Super Bowl. AFM's Associate Director of Brand Marketing & Strategy, Kelly Burke, talks Influencers, shoppable ads like MikMak and immersive experiences - - all part of their "brandformance" approach to innovate produce marking.
- Well-researched content improves the likelihood that a purchasing manager will take a sales call from a vendor.
- The acceleration of streaming this past year has made video even more critical to a brand's growth strategy. Lexmark's director of marketing operations, Mike Dattilo, shares how he's successfully targeting SMB users to expand their audience and increase brand awareness and conversions through performance video.
- More than half of marketers said their audiences tend to engage more with UGC than branded content.
- Visible Wireless, a retail brand of Verizon, doubled down on social channels to find and cultivate communities that wanted an alternative telecom model. And in turn those communities have informed everything about how the brand grew - from product development even to media planning. Visible's digital marketing lead, Sarah Baker, shows us what a grass roots media strategy looks like?
- How do you grow your brand in an extremely fragmented market? For GetYourGuide [GYG], it took consumer data, timing and making a spectacular splash. Already a market leader in Europe, the travel booking site wanted to boost their brand awareness in the United States, so they turned to out-of-home media to help. In early 2021, with news that domestic travel in the U.S. was expected to open before Europe and the U.K., they knew it was the optimal time to strike. After collecting data on American's newly acquired habits during lock down, GYG created specific messaging on how consumers could experience those interests in real life. Zip-code lookalike technology determined GYG's target geographic areas for the OOH placements; which included billboards to maximize reach and transit and place-based screens to drive website traffic. The campaign cut through the clutter, resulting in a 500% lift in unaided brand awareness, while driving over 42k online conversions - - exceeding GYG's direct response goals.
- The COVID-19 pandemic led more U.S. consumers to spend time playing video games to help occupy their time during restrictions on public gatherings. About one-third (36%) of people ages 13 to 74 said they play video games on consoles such as the Sony Playstation or Microsoft Xbox, according to a study by Hub Entertainment Research. Among those console gamers, 51% said they play every day -- up from 39% two years ago. Gaming is popular among male teens and younger men who are more difficult to reach through traditional linear television. About 70% of men under age 35 play console games, compared with 50% of women in the same age group. Gamers also have become more tolerant of in-game advertising, such as branded downloadable content (DLC). Some 70% of regular console gamers play with branded in-game content, up from 61% two years ago. Among those who see in-game ads, 44% said they prefer them to regular commercials, while 72% said the branded content makes games more fun to play.
- What do you do if your company is being described as "stodgy" by Millennials? How do you attract a younger audience without alienating your Gen X and successful Boomer clients? That's what Windermere Real Estate was facing. With a nearly 50 year legacy and flashy brands like Zillow and Redfin invading their space, Windermere needed to step up their game. Easier said than done when your budget is limited, and you're up against VC-backed and publicly traded companies with plenty of money to spend. So they needed to get creative and find a space where they could stand out. That space was Spotify. The music platform, a favorite among Millennials, gave Windermere the space to create their own branded station with home-themed playlists that could appeal to all generations. Spotify also provided branded QR codes to directly engage consumers with Windermere's station in an off-line environment, i.e. OOH, business cards and TV ads. Since launching their branded station, Windermere has earned more than 100K monthly active users and seen an 18% increase in direct traffic to their website. Spotify now plays an integral role in Windermere's media strategy.
- What do you do when a client asks you to produce a video campaign when production is completely shut down? You get creative! When Grammarly approached Stink Studios during the height of the pandemic to create a new brand awareness campaign, that's exactly what they did. How do you produce a video ad campaign without actors, without locations and without crews? The answer: stock footage. But not just any stock video. It needed to be quality, high-resolution footage. By working backwards- beginning with the footage, then character development, then script- Grammarly was able to achieve an entirely production-free campaign. The process proved more cost-effective, flexible, and turned around faster than traditional live action shoots.
- As the importance of influencer marketing grows, especially in the fashion industry, how can a brand approach the space in a way that's driven more by technology and community than celebrity and the number of followers? The womenswear brand Adore Me's solution? Build their own community. VP of marketing, Ranjan Roy, tells us how their "Creators" community allowed micro influencers to seamlessly connect and create authentic brand content that outperformed prior traditional influencer campaigns.
- Timing is everything...especially in personalized messaging. Ochsner Health leverages real-time email responses to patients' online and offline behavioral triggers to build genuinely conversational experiences and keep their members healthier. What can brand marketers learn about customer journeys from the way a major hospital network treats patients? It's all about letting the user drive the conversation, not technology or marketing.
- Thanks to White Castle's QSR roots, social media has long been a significant part of their grocery division's marketing mix. CMO Lynn Blashford talks strategy, and how not only the channel, but the content, plays a crucial role in expanding audience reach to younger consumers. She also shares how embracing the fight against social injustice opened doors for the family-owned brand.
- Every click is a hurdle, not an invitation for users. And every form to fill is a mountain for them to climb. EIS veteran Chester Bullock explains how reducing that friction has increased email's effectiveness in driving qualified leads and at the same time leveraging customer brand loyalty.
- How are digital dollars moving your customers to action? Franchisees need to know exactly where their ad money goes and show results - quickly! Liz Bazner, the director of digital at A&W Restaurants, tells us how in the past few years A&W has been doing just that since moving to a cost-per-visit measurement model for their campaigns.
- SimpliSafe, the category-defining brand of DIY home security, has already succeeded in reaching beyond the digitally savvy base and into general awareness. Company CCO, Don LeBlanc, shares lessons learned as he brings his data-driven marketing culture into awareness campaigns that build brand even as they drive sales.
- When Wakefern Food Corp. set out to redefine their Own Brands, they went to their consumer - and let insights drive every step of the process. From brand positioning to packaging design to brand activation, Wakefern treated the launch of Paperbird with the same respect as a best in class CPG brand. Laura Kind, VP of Brand Strategy, shares how her team translated the consumer emotion around messes into highly relatable Paperbird brand work.
- Cadillac skews more heavy to multicultural buyers than other brands, so a lot of its overall marketing plan has that emphasis. The brand's partnership with Regina King, Diddy and Spike Lee give a clear indication of how important it is for the brand to connect authentically with multicultural customers. Not everyone can hire a-list stars and give Diddy a car but there are key takeaways that Alexis Kerr, head of multicultural marketing at Cadillac, shares to help other brands activate on a smaller scale.
- The sheltering-at-home lifestyle saw consumers watching more video than ever before, including expanding their viewing habits to new platforms like TikTok. Direct-to-consumer contact lens brand, Hubble Contacts, decided they didn't want to be beholding to just FaceBook and took advantage of the new trend. Hubble's Senior Marketing & Creative Director, Dan Rosen, shares how he tested the short-form mobile video platform and discovered a new audience, success and scale.
- Bud Light's Director of Sports Marketing talks esports opportunities for brands, Bud Light's own strategic approach and how (and how not) to suit up for the virtual game.
