Please find below the key developments from this week below.
1. Consumers are spending more time on Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube
Last Tuesday Facebook reported a 70% increase in traffic due to COVID-19, consumers are spending more time online and watching longer videos. In conversation with our Facebook Account Representative last Monday, she shared that they are seeing the lowest CPMs since 2018 due to decreasing budgets from big brands and an overall less competitive auction.
This does present a key opportunity for most SME’s to experiment with Facebook advertising, especially with messaging that will meet their current needs.
2. New Consumer Behavioural Shifts
Media is surging
- Facebook reported a massive shift in consumer media usage: in the countries hit the hardest, total messaging has increased more than 50% over the last month
- Voice and video calls have more than doubled on Messenger and WhatsApp
- Instagram and Facebook Live views doubled in a week
- Messaging increased over 50% and time in group calling increased by over 1000% during the last month
A massive shift in people’s app usage
- CityMapper has seen a 70-80% usage decrease
- Uber rides decreased by 60-70%
- Germany saw a reduction in the usage of trams, trains, and buses, with only cycling remaining unchanged
- All home media usage has been increasing across Europe with the graphs below highlighting an increase of usage in the UK and Germany
3. Creators are adapting and leading the way
- With more people staying at home, the question is ‘how do you make more out of this time?’
- Based on the global data, Instagram post engagement has increased, with home cooking seeing a 569% increase WoW and fitness classes seeing a 223% increase WoW
Other initiatives include online concerts, meditations, West End Shows and School Lessons. Creators are adapting and leading the way. So what? We need to learn from how creators are pivoting for our category and audience.
4. High street loss isn’t necessarily online gain
With physical stores closing and experiencing financial losses, we would expect online to pick up. However, both physical and online claimed expenditure reducing.
- With people becoming wearier about their spending, even categories which we might have expected to see an increase, have suffered.
- Groceries have seen an increase, showing how people’s priorities have changed but entertainment and clothing categories have both declined.
Ordering food delivery also sees claimed reduction in spending as more and more people turn to home cooking. This shift is again driven by younger age groups.
High street loss isn’t necessarily online gain. So what? We need to adapt to a world of sustained uncertainty.
5. As a brand, change your messaging and marketing plan, fast
Much is unknown, therefore we would like to provide some key insights into what is currently known. What consumers need has changed rapidly, and therefore as businesses, we need to change our messaging, product offering and budget focus fast.
eCommerce
Stay top of mind:
- In-stream standalone to reach consumers where they are
- Poll Ads to understand consumer’s preferences
- Host live stream events to stay engaged with consumers
Enhance business results
- Run consideration campaign for Pre-order promotion if not having enough stock
- Run conversion campaigns promoting health care products
- Retarget health care product buyers with dynamic ads to increase discovery of other products that may also meet consumer needs
Retail
Stay top of mind:
- Craft your story around consumer reassurance rather than product messaging
- In-stream standalone to reach consumers where they are
- Poll Ads to understand consumer’s preferences
- Host live stream events to stay engaged with consumers
Enhance business results
- Highlight channel choices online vs. In-store and range of options
- Run consideration campaign for Pre-order promotion if not having enough stock
- Shift budgets to online – people are inside
As an SME ourselves, we have been adapting these changes in the last week, so feel free to reach out to us if you want to know how it is working!
