Branded Entertainment

Everyone talks about short form content. I’ve been preaching it on behalf of Facebook for years.

‘Millennials have little or no attention span’. Storytelling in ‘3 seconds, 6 seconds, 15 seconds’…

Bunkum. Let’s think about ‘Lego Movie’.

I have teenage children. They have no problem writing off a weekend watching an entire series on Netflix.

 Of course, social assets have to be created with the platform in mind, but there are many different ways to tell compelling stories.

There was a golden age when people enjoyed ads. They were funny, culturally relevant, useful.

 Now with the proliferation of digital platforms ‘ads’ are seen as annoying. People don’t watch live TV so much. News, sport and Love Island maybe exceptions, should it ever return.

 85% of people skip the ads on YouTube. 40% of people are using ad blockers. Traditional advertising is broken.

 I’m a firm believer in the idea that we need to stop interrupting what people are interested in and be the thing people are interested in.

But here’s where it starts to get interesting.

Our industry and brands now have an amazing opportunity.

When the world’s largest retailer became a broadcaster, everything changed.

The launch of Amazon Prime has shifted the goal posts.

Although many brands and media companies seem oblivious to the fact.

The reality is that soon you’ll be able to buy and receive everything you see on your screen.

‘Making the cut’ a format based on ‘Project Runway’ launched in March 2020 is Amazon’s first foray into shoppable tv.

Imagine watching the likes of Jamie Oliver touring the Amalfi coast, discovering wines, delicious recipes, hotels, meeting fashion designers and awesome experiences and having it all at the click of a button.

Branded entertainment that actually sells stuff? Love it.

I saw the post below on #theincumbentagency.

It made me question my purpose.

Everyone has been talking ‘purpose’ for a while now. In a world of Covid (19) the idea is surely more important than ever.

Over the past 12 years I’ve worked on various projects for M&S (Plan ‘A’), Unilever (All - Sustainable living), RB (Durex) Diageo (Talisker) and NGOs such as Project Everyone, supporting the UN’s Global goals, to help tell their stories and bring their purpose missions to life.

These global companies have seen success from doing the right thing. In 2019 Unilever saw 30% more growth for their brands in their Sustainable Living programme.  

It makes sense for the world and sense for the planet. Win, win.

Today, in order to survive and maintain relevance, brands clearly have to have a purpose beyond commerciality.

It stems from a simple principle.

Any brand is fundamentally all about trust.

No longer can brands rely on advertising to tell people what to think. Now they have to earn that trust.

Green-washing, simply doesn’t wash.

Trust is now gained peer to peer.

Bloggers and Vloggers, review sites from ‘Trip Advisor’ to ‘Trust Pilot’ will out the truth.

 So, my plea to any brand is straight forward. Please don’t go trying to do good where you’re not necessarily involved. Clear up your own mess and people will love you for it.  

 Play in places where you have permission to play.

 Fast food restaurants, tackle childhood obesity. Car hire companies, plant forests with every hire. Credit card companies educate kids on APR’s and pensions and FMCG’s, clean the oceans of your plastic debris…The list goes on. And on.

 As I see it, the best marketing strategy may not be running ads at all but simply doing something relevant that makes the world a better place.

 In the words of Bill Bernbech. ‘A principle isn’t a principle until it costs you money’.

 In the long run it’ll be money well spent.

Working with Facebook

There are now more than 2-billion people on Facebook, over 25-million business using Instagram. On average people scroll the height of the Statue of Liberty on their mobile every day.

Mobile has changed the way we consume and revolutionised the way we shop, bank, work.

 ‘The digital – media industry has effectively become a duopoly in which Google and Facebook win almost everything, advertisers have to play by their rules.

 Jay Sears, CMO Mastercard US. And aptly put.

This is today’s reality.

For the past 4-years I’ve been working alongside the ‘Guild’ team within Facebook to help bring the stories of how businesses, from SME’s to Global enterprises are making the most of the data and ad formats to connect to their audience.

We created both case studies of Specific businesses, and tactical campaigns aimed at agencies, creatives, CMOs and Media planners to bring best practice to life using the principles of ‘best practice’ itself.

Each ad format Facebook offers needs to be crafted with best practice in mind. From a single post to a carousel to video to an instant experience to a ‘Story’, to integrating e-commerce.

The work has been designed to capture attention instantly, reversing the traditional story arc, with key messaging and brand featured in the first 3 seconds, formatted to an aspect ratio that works on mobile, thinking 9:16 rather than 16:9. Designed to work with and without sound. Understanding the optimum length of a video. And all formats using creative typography to amplify key messages.

It’s amazing to still see how many brands still miss the mark and continue to produce work born from traditional legacy TV and print formats.

With a little smart thinking and guile, existing assets can be repurposed to make sense in social, connecting a brands message to their audience and making their budgets work harder.

Working with Facebook

Working with Facebook