Marketing News Roundup: March 8, 2021
Welcome to another weekly roundup across tech, social platform and marketing campaign news! On the tech front, Square bought a majority stake in Tidal with plans to shake up the artist economy, Netflix is creating a TikTok clone, Arizona is going after Apple, and more. For social platforms, TikTok’s parent company launching its own version of Clubhouse in China, Instagram caused an uproar after “accidently” removing likes, and more. On the marketing campaign front, IKEA has created a digital game to address inequality in our homes, a look at Chipotle and e.l.f’s buzzy makeup collab, Banky’s hilarious new Bob Ross tribute, and more!
Also: I’m mixing up my style of how I write this weekly newsletter and would love your feedback – leave a comment below! With that said, let’s jump in!
China’s ByteDance, is planning on launching its own version of audio chat app Clubhouse for the Chinese market
https://gizmodo.com/what-if-clubhouse-but-with-state-censorship-tiktok-ow-1846409739
After Clubhouse launched briefly in China only to be shut down by the government, dozens of apps emerged cloning the social audio network’s capabilities. However, none have been wildly successful, paving the way for ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to come in and launch their own Clubhouse rival.
Why this is a big deal: ByteDance has the funds, the audience and the relationships to make a Chinese Clubhouse clone fly. However, in comparison to the actual Clubhouse, ByteDance will need to follow Chinese guidelines, limiting free speech on the platform. Clubhouse was shut down in China for not meeting these guidelines.
Will it be successful? My prediction is yes. China has an impressive social media landscape, but social audio is a missing element. Video is very popular, including eCommerce “live shopping” type content, but by eliminating the need to be on camera, it could open the door to more Chinese users to discuss topics of interest and connect with people in real time through their voices. Not everyone wants to be on camera!
Square buys majority of Tidal, adds Jay-Z to its board in bid to shake up the artist economy
Square, a B2B and B2C fintech company, has announced that it purchased a majority stake in Tidal, a music streaming service, to the tune of $297 million.
Why this is a big deal: The play for this deal is around music-based NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, which are a new form of digital asset. With NFTs, it could create new ways for artists to support their work, which Square’s founder, Jack Dorsey, asserts is similar to what Square has done for its sellers. Check out his Twitter thread on the announcement.
Will it work? Success here will be built off of the growing crypto market, of which Square has its business via Cash App, and has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into bitcoin itself. I think it could work, especially for more prominent artists with a huge fanbase. I’d like to learn and read more on how this could help smaller and up-and-coming musicians.
Netflix has created a TikTok clone that lets people scroll through funny clips
Netflix is launching a new mobile feature on iOS called Fast Laughs that feeds subscribers short clips taken from shows and comedy specials. Think of it as a curated edit, of which you could watch and move on, or bookmark that longer form version to watch in the moment or later.
Why this is a big deal: Netflix has said publicly that the popularity of TikTok means that its user base is spending less time on Netflix. As such, the user experience of Fast Laughs is inspired by the scrolling behavior of Tikok, where people flip through lots of shorter form videos quickly.
Will it work? I’m not sold on this one. What makes TikTok amazing is it’s where trends start and rapidly go viral. From a content licensing perspective, Netflix has a huge library of assets that they can slice and dice into TikTok-esque content, but it will be about re-purposing vs. leading and setting the trends. Now, Netflix absolutely does this with their viral shows, which could be an interesting play to let fans re-live the best moments in snackable short form. It makes me wonder if the bigger play would be to start licensing the most viral TikTok moments – if TikTok and its creators would let them, that is.
Arizona’s crusade against app stores moves ahead
This week, Arizona has become the latest U.S. state to threaten Google and Apple’s app store transaction fee policies. We’ve covered this before in this newsletter – multiple states are pursuing legislation to avoid the typical 30% fees Google and Apple collect for transactions that happen on apps in their app stores. Arizona is advocating that developers should be able to use their own payment systems instead of having to use Google and Apple’s as a way to avoid the steep fees.
Why this matters: The vote was tight at 31-29, making Arizona the first state to get close to signing a bill into law. This still needs to go to the Arizona Senate for a vote. From a state perspective, if Arizona can pass this legislation, tech companies and developers will flock to the state. However, this legislation is also important, as it will become a big headache for Google and Apple, as it will create a domino effect with many other states.
Will it work? I think there needs to be a happy medium solution here. It’s fascinating to see the 30% transaction fees being challenged in so many U.S. states and countries abroad – signaling the need for change. For small companies and startups, these fees can really eat into these companies sales and revenue margins. However, there are lots of million and billion dollar companies that stand to make huge profit increases if this legislation goes through. I do also see Apple and Google’s point of view around how this legislation could legally mandate them to give away use of the app stores for free. It seems to me that if the 30% transaction fees get waived, Apple and Google will need to introduce new revenue models, as it’s highly unlikely they’ll give away app store usage for free.
State efforts likely to prod Congress on privacy
https://www.axios.com/privacy-state-efforts-prod-congress-c5c8acbf-5dd2-4f0d-9773-f1318f5e5dcf.html
While this isn’t the sexiest story out there, it is an important one for companies that do business in the United States. The U.S. is already a complicated market to do business in, as states have a lot of power to enact their own laws and policies. Case and point – consumer privacy laws. Virginia became the second state to enact their own consumer privacy law and many other states are considering also creating their own.
Why this matters: Congress has been unable to enact a comprehensive online privacy law for years. Without a national standard, states will enact their own laws, which could create a big challenge for small businesses. To sell nationwide online, they would need to comply with each state’s policies, which can be difficult for smaller companies that do not have large legal teams.
Will this work? My prediction is that this is going to get worse before it gets better. States will create their own online privacy laws in an effort to best protect their constituents. This will put pressure on Congress and on businesses to comply, but it won’t be an easy or fast path to progress.
FiftyFifty – The card game for everyday equality (By IKEA)
https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/campaigns/fiftyfifty-the-card-game-for-everyday-equality-pub7b826150
In celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, IKEA is addressing inequality in the home through a new digital game, FiftyFifty, on Instagram Stories. The game, developed in collaboration with relationship expert Jennie Miller, takes couples and roommates on a journey to explore the roles and dynamics in our homes. The inspiration for this game came from the fact that the division of household chores is always a challenging topic, but as a result of COVID-19, research does that women are doing up to three times more unpaid and domestic work than men.
Why this matters: IKEA’s game launch follows news that COVID-19 economic impacts are hitting women harder than men. As of December 2020, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in the United States reported that 55% of the 9.6 million jobs lost during the year were women and that women’s labor force participation rate is at its lowest level since 1987 (source). While this is not entirely up to the division of labor in the home, heavier responsibilities at home are a contributing factor and for many women who have left the workforce. Although it’s easy to write this off as “temporary,” research shows that the longer a woman is out of the workforce, the harder it is for her to return.
Will it work? While this is positioned as a “game,” it’s really just a clever use of Instagram Stories. However, I do applaud IKEA for leading the conversation and encouraging people to pause and think about if the dynamics in their homes are as they should be.
E.l.f. Cosmetics, Chipotle embrace buzzy digital channels for makeup collab
Ever craved an eyeshadow palette to match the colors of your beloved burrito bowl? Then, the e.l.f Cosmetics and Chipotle collab is for you. The Chipotle Eyeshadow Palette includes 12 eyeshadow colors inspired by classic Chipotle ingredients, including white rice, brown rice, pinto beans, black beans, sofritas, fajitas, mild salsa, green salsa, hot salsa, corn salsa, guac, and lettuce. Bonus: Every palette purchase comes with a free chips & guac offer from Chipotle! As if that wasn’t saucy enough, e.l.f is also releasing a Make It Hot Lip Gloss with a tiny of red-hot salsa color, an Extra Guac Face Sponge set shaped like an avocado and an Eyes. Chips. Face makeup bag that looks like Chipotle’s tortilla chip bag.
In return, Chipotle will offer the Eyes. Chips. Face. Bowl, a beauty-inspired all-vegan entrée, curated by iconic drag queens Trixie Mattel and Kim Chi, which includes, white rice, pinto beans, roasted chili-corn salsa, tomatillo-red salsa, guac, lettuce, and a side of chips.
Why this matters: Drag Queens, hip hop artists and International Women’s Day, oh my! This collab covers many bases. Chipotle and e.l.f are setting a new bar for product launches and collabs in the era of social media. There will be a Makeup Mukbang on Trixie’s YouTube channel, the famous TikTok viral song “Eyes. Lips. Face,” is being re-imagined with a Chipotle twist and e.l.f CMO, Kory Marchisotto, and Chipotle VP of Digital Marketing and Off-Premise, Tressie Lieberman, are hosting a live on Clubhouse chat at 4pm EST. Join here.
Will it work? My prediction is yes. These kind of collabs have limited stock and are meant to sell out. Especially given all of the hype e.l.f and Chipotle are pouring into this.
Banksy Artwork Gets Purchased… Then Torched To Be Sold As An NFT
https://designtaxi.com/news/413296/Banksy-Artwork-Gets-Purchased-Then-Torched-To-Be-Sold-As-An-NFT/
Following our coverage of NFTs earlier in this post, a blockchain company called Injective Protocol purchased a US$95,000 Banksy piece, burned it, and then broadcasted it on Twitter. Why? To turn the work into a virtual asset called a non-fungible token, or NFT. The original print, one of an edition of 500, was a black-and-white depiction of an art auction with the message, “I can’t believe you morons buy this s**t.” The team then set it on fire and live-streamed everything through the Twitter account, Burnt Banksy.
Why this matters: There’s so much buzz about NFTs for protecting artists, but this use case showcases that might not always be the case. While Injective Protocol argues that the physical piece will be forever memorialized with the NFT, what happens to Banksy as a result of this stunt? Will the artist be compensated? The tokenized version was later sold at an NFT auction for 228.69 ETH or $382,336, a big profit from the $100K spent to purchase the piece. Injective Protocol has said the proceeds will go to charity, but has yet to release the charity’s name.
Banksy Shares Bob Ross-Dubbed Video Revealing His New Work
https://wersm.com/banksy-shares-bob-ross-dubbed-video-revealing-his-new-work/
For some positive Banksy news, I would be remiss if I did not share with you a clever tribute the artist is paying to Bob Ross in a video reveal of his latest artwork: Oscar Wilde escaping a Prison in Reading, UK. Bonus: the video shows a rare behind-the-scene video of Banksy at work.
Instagram Sparked Online Uproar After Accidentally Removing Like Counts
Let’s see if you “like” this last story or not! On Tuesday, Instagram users were surprised to find that like counts had gone missing. This follows news dating back to 2019 when Instagram said it was testing removing likes before it rolled out the change platform wide. Spoiler alert: this was a “mistake,” but it didn’t stop Instagram users from melting down in the process.
Why this matters: Even though this was a “bug,” it shows that the majority of Instagram users are not ready for likes to go away – even though individual users will still be able to see the “like” counts on their posts.
Will it work? I’m personally not in favor of removing “like” counts, but I’m also not comparing myself to others or struggling with mental health issues as a result. Instagram is going to need to do a better job of convincing the general public why removing like counts is necessary before it can roll out this feature more broadly.
Jessica Gioglio is the co-author of The Laws of Brand Storytelling and The Power of Visual Storytelling. Professionally, Jessica has led innovative marketing and public relations programs for Dunkin’ Donuts, TripAdvisor, Sprinklr, and more. Today, Jessica is the founder of With Savvy Media & Marketing, a strategic branding, storytelling, and content strategy consultancy.