The Future of Communication November 2018

Introduction /Consumer attitudes and behaviour towards brand

communications are changing due to technological advances, law changes and advertising trends.

In our global Futures survey 2018 we found that 75% of Changemakers believe brands dilute messages and

68% believe brands sound alike. They trust brands over the media (86% as opposed to 74%) and they are

looking for them to take bold leaps forwards (89%).

In this session we will explore these shifts in behaviour and why they occur, as well as framing some challenges

and opportunities. We also unpick the industries best practises with Maru Asmellash, Co-Founder of

streetwear brand The New Originals (TNO) and Steph Morrow Head of Strategy at VIRTUE, the Creative

Agency by VICE.

Challenges /

Opportunities /

Panel Takeouts /

Contents /

Challenges /

Trust Chasm / The well publicised trust erosion between consumers and media is making it difficult for marketers to effectively engage with their audience. Whilst creating undoubted challenges, it also presents opportunities for brands to develop alternative ways to engage.

Pew Research Centre found the public struggled to distinguish between five factual statements and five opinion statements. The

majority of the 5,035 respondents correctly identified at least three of the five statements in each set – but Pew said this result “is only a little better than random guesses”, adding that around a quarter got most

or all guesses wrong.

Unilever has already spoken out against fake news and toxic online content. As one of the largest advertisers in the world, they have

promised that Unilever will not advertise on platforms that don’t make a positive contribution to society. In addition, they will only partner

with organisations committed to creating better digital infrastructure, such as aligning around a single measurement system and improving

the consumer experience.

Advertising Wear Out /

Researchers in the 1980s studied TV adverts and found that ‘the overall persuasiveness of an advert declines exponentially’ the more that consumers are exposed to it. Since then, similar responses are

increasingly occurring across multiple forms of media.

Two business school professors, Michael Braun at Southern Methodist University and Wendy W. Moe at the University of Maryland, have

found that the effectiveness of an online advert falls almost 60 percent every time it is viewed. While new adverts are less effective if they are

part of a campaign the user has seen before.

GDPR / In May 2018 we were bombarded with emails thanks to the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) changes. This set of privacy rules served as a cover for another far more concerning

change in European law. One of the worst parts of it all was German MEP, Axel Voss, reinserting a couple of long-abandoned, hugely

controversial rules into the draft regulation.

The rule in question is Article 13, also known as the ‘Censorship Machine’. Under this rule, any public communications platform is

required to ensure that nothing copyrighted is ever posted without permission - even for a brief moment. In short, Article 13 would give anonymous parties the power to block anything and everything from

being posted to the internet.

If the aim of these rules is to reduce the size of Big Tech, it’s highly likely they will disappoint. Google, Facebook, Twitter, Apple and other tech giants are the only companies large enough to be able to afford the enforcement of these new rules. Small competitors in the EU do not have the resources to do so and therefore cannot

compete. Without such competition, larger tech platforms will be able to continue unchecked and may present an even greater threat to

democratic discourse, privacy and competition than they do currently.

Ad Stack Consolidation / This summer saw a mass consolidation of data players, changing the industry landscape and adding more confusion as to whether brands should switch to in-house media capabilities. Many experts predict

the future of the industry could end up being three to four platforms, surrounded by consultancies and agencies that know how to operate

the platforms and create integrations.

Over the last several months, IPG acquired data company Acxiom, Omnicom bought Credera and is building insight platform Omni, AT&T acquired AppNexus and Salesforce absorbed Datorama. Then there are the consultancy disruptors, like Accenture, which is taking media buying in-house. In 2018, every major agency holding company is investing in

its own proprietary technology platform of some kind that solves one or many types of problems in the media marketing chain.

This will make interoperability more difficult and it is important to remember that brands benefit from greater transparency into how media dollars are being spent across the value chain. Be ‘weary’ of closed data platforms or service providers of any kind who are focused on media in

isolation. Remember that time we lived in echo chambers….

Opportunities /

Sensory /

Context /Live /

AI /

Groups /

Flops /

Chats /

Deep /

Crowd /

Live /

AI /

Live content drives three times more engagement on socials than simple image-based posts and it allows brands to connect and communicate with their audiences in real

time. A Smart Insights Study on marketers in 2018 reported, 76% agree that real-time marketing increased audience engagement. 56% said it increased customer satisfaction

and positive brand sentiment. 35% saw increased reach and followers. 25% believe it improves conversion and ROI.

NTWRK is a live, worldwide mobile shopping experience that sells exclusive products during live broadcasts. Could this be the next wave of video commerce? “Like Home Shopping Network, but what the Gen Z, millennial, mobile-first version of that looks

like with highly curated taste and access to big personalities,” said the founder, Aaron Levant. The launch will see two short-format shows over the first year on air between

three and five days a week.

Increasing developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning are having a profound impact on the way brands and consumers interact with each other. Many of

us are becoming familiar with AI principles through the use of chatbots. With the rising desire to communicate via SMS and messaging apps, chatbots have real potential to

create new consumer relationships.

In November 2018, the Financial Times released a bot, She Said He Said, to encourage its journalists to feature more female experts in articles. The bot was developed after

analysis revealed only 21% of quoted sources in Financial Times’ content are women. The bot uses an algorithm which analyses first names and pronouns in a piece to predict a

source’s gender. Data is then shared with section editors who can ensure fair balance. The media outlet has said that in the future, writers will be alerted in real-time if they aren’t

featuring a diverse range of sources.

Context /

Flop /

As geo-targeting becomes mainstream, consumers are expecting brands to include holistic touch points that are relevant to their own situation. Being served adverts that

are out of context can have a hugely negative effect on perception and persuasiveness. This approach is also starting to be applied to brands’ online worlds.

Viscovery has been working on technology that enables brands to display ads in videos based on the content being watched. Viscovery’s AI engine scans the movie or TV

series and surfaces relevant content: if you were watching a sports game, for example, it could pull up an ad featuring one of the players.

People are engaging with claims about the world in a different way and are questioning truthfulness and relevance. Flop accounts are accounts usually found on Instagram -

collectively managed by several teens - often devoted to discussions of hot-button topics such as gun control, abortion, immigration, Donald Trump, LGBTQ issues, YouTubers,

breaking news, and viral memes.

Luna, a 15-year-old admin on @Flops.R.us, said that she and other teens use flop accounts as a space, away from parents, teachers, or people who don’t take them

seriously, to discuss issues and formulate ideas. “Flop accounts are your place where you can get your or other people’s opinions out…. As account admins, we always try to

engage in dialogue and promote discourse”.

Chats /

Groups /

Until recently, technology and storytelling have often been seen as opposites. However, we know that technology can offer new ways in delivering compelling narratives. As

generation WhatsApp becomes more open to interacting with brands over messenger, these platforms can become creative formats.

Walk With Yeshi – an immersive Facebook messenger bot that hopes to encourage people to learn about Ethiopia’s water crisis and donate. Created by AKQA, Yeshi

connects users to the typical experiences of millions of young Ethiopian women who walk for miles each day to collect water. The bot takes users on a 2.5-hour journey, and along the way, Yeshi sends them images, gifs, videos, audio files and interactive maps,

asks them questions, and encourages them to upload their own media.

As the importance of peer reviews and recommendations continues to grow, online communities are becoming huge opportunities for brands to create dialogues with

consumers. Organic brand reach on Facebook took a massive hit last year when algorithms were changed to emphasise posts from users’ friends and family. Facebook Groups are now

becoming a more important way for marketers to engage on the platform.

According to chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, “1.4 billion people use Facebook Groups every month. People want to be a part of meaningful communities,”. So far, media and

publishing brands have been the most active in creating presences on Facebook Groups. For example, in August 2018, Starbucks launched the Leaf Rakers Society Facebook Group

for people who love autumn. It gained almost 25,000 members in four weeks.

Sensory /

Sonic branding has become a consideration in its own right. As smart speakers and voice assistants proliferate spaces, brands move beyond singular-moment voice

commands to create immersive soundscapes that can maintain longer experiences.

Amazon added a library of non-verbal sound effects to its Alexa Skills Kit in March 2018. This accessible library is likely to run stale from overuse and so brands should pursue sonic branding to stand out from competitors on the platform. Just as brand- created emojis have become a commercial opportunity, sound effects could also help

marketers differentiate a brand on voice platforms.

Advances in sensory communication technology are enabling digital marketers to evolve beyond visual elements to keep attention and reinforce emotional connections. As well as defining how they look, brands will soon need to establish how they sound

and even feel. This will be essential in a world where branding is becoming invisible.

Tactile, haptic engagement can reinforce or mediate a wide range of emotions and lead to communication strategies become more hands-on. Physically immersive brand experiences to mobile ads adding haptic feedback drives a 62% increase in feelings of

connection, and a 50% lift in brand favourability (Immersion, 2018).

US fast-food chain Arby’s exploited this phenomenon with its We Have the Beef ad video, which let viewers feel the moment US golf player Andrew “Beef” Johnston sinks a

ball into an Arby’s drink cup.

Sonic /

Tactile /

Deep /

Crowd /

It has been said that data is the new oil. Business have often too much of it, which can often be debilitating and stunt creativity. Progressive brands are creating deep targeting. Instead of repeating a creative that declines in persuasiveness over time, they are making creative work smarter for them, pushing ads with the same featured

talent in order to increase awareness and interest.

To drive interest in this year’s Winter Olympics, NBC Sports used quantitative and in-person research to dissect the audience into attitudinal segments, including

Heartstrings (who love an emotionally driven backstory), Stargazers (followers of high-profile competitors), Highlight Heroes (tuning in for competition highlights) and half a dozen more. At the same time, NBC developed “athlete persona plans” for likely

competitors in the Games, and targeted commercials featuring each personality type to the relevant audience segments to gain awareness.

In a world of homogenised advertising (72% of Changemakers feel brands all follow the same strategies) how do you get your communications heard? More confident brands are

following the trend for obscenity in an attempt to get their work banned. This helps to create a viral moment and so use the audience to spread the creative.

Iceland’s animated Christmas 2018 short film advert was rejected by Clearcast, the body who moderate adverts, for breaching rules banning political advertising. The ban

prompted a public outcry and has since gone viral globally. Apart from the brand using its TV spot to talk about a real issue, which if approved would have been admirable, many are debating if the creative team knew it would be banned and designed it to be so to

create a viral moment.

Panel Takeouts /Organic Messages /

Share information and stories that are truly of interest to your audience and allow them to find it themselves. TNO do not pay for served adverts on any platform, but they have a good grass

roots community which helps crowd broadcast their narrative. This also heavily links to context, seeing communications in settings

that have links to the brand increases the perception of the brands’ understanding of their audience.

“We believe in organic advertising (as) it has the biggest impact. We create stories for us, which in turn are for our community and that

they share further for us. When we first launched we wanted to target the youth, we covered Amsterdam’s student area with flyers, which

created an illusion we were a brand to take note of. That was a huge success for us.” Maru Asmellash, TNO Co-Founder.

Digital vs Physical / There is always the need for tangibility, something that can be

difficult in digital formats. Many brands forget that digital is a tool. Yes, it makes things quicker, but not always more resonant. There

are benefits: changes can be made more easily and therefore communications can be more reactive. VR headsets are a divisive

topic: they can allow for the creation of greater empathy and experience, but there are concerns over them removing humanity.

“People come to Vice because we are a digital publisher and we are reactive. It is sometimes difficult to encourage physical comms, as they cost more, and balancing both realms is the sweet spot. I am excited about AR/VR and the way we can put people literally in other people’s shoes. It also offers the exploration of multiple

identities.” Steph Morrow Head of Strategy at VIRTUE, the Creative Agency by VICE.

Opting ln / GDPR though is causing concern and challenges, it also contains a silver

lining. It gives power back to the user and the opportunity to control and opt in to what they are consuming. This could potentially mean

consumers are more receptive to the communication they are served.

“Back in the 70’s adverts weren’t an interruption, they were part of the format. Now most comms interrupt our experience, they don’t

enhance or compliment them. GDPR opt in allows consumers to feel more comfortable with what they are exposed to. I now use Brave as a browser which has hugely changed my online viewing experience.”

Sarah Johnson, Co-founder of The Akin.

ROI Definitions / Definitions of ROI to brands is a key issue. The industry doesn’t allow you to measure the true effect of a campaign or piece of communications based on short term thinking. The real impact

often can’t be measured or extracted as a simple data read out on sales. The last decade’s obsession with ‘always on’ communications

strategies has created too much noise, making it hard to truly connect.

“This November THIRDLOVE’s CEO took out a full-page advert in the NY Times. This was a reactionary statement to Victoria Secrets’ VP of PR comments on “trans and plus size women not being a fantasy”, in which THIRDLOVE beautifully celebrated all forms of people who identify as a woman. This type of communications can’t be measured but has created a moment and societal impact in the industry.” Steph Morrow Head of Strategy at VIRTUE, the Creative Agency by VICE.

“If ROI is about real impact, Nike’s past grassroots activations in the city were super successful and have decades of value. Creating these types of connections with the youth creates a real long-term impact. I am not sure they are doing it so well anymore: where are the courts and events? Where is the proof they really understand them? Once

you are comfortable you need to work even harder to stay connected to this group.” Maru Asmellah, TNO Co-Founder.

Thank you!www.theakin.com

The Akin /The Akin /

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