Mediaboss Marketing

First off, we must acknowledge that when this drinking game started, it was not called "Smirnoff Icing." No, back in the bad old days of 2010, it was called "Bros Icing Bros." As much as this prank has transcended its frat boy roots, it very much started as a trick that fraternity brothers played on each other.

Unlike most other drinking games, the origins of Smirnoff Icing can be precisely traced back to the very beginning. That beginning, we're sorry to say, was an email from some frat bros at the College of Charleston in South Carolina to the website BroBible. The email laid out the two crucial rules of the game: First, that if a friend surprises you with a Smirnoff Ice, you must immediately drop to one knee and drink it, regardless of the setting. Second, if you happen to have a Smirnoff Ice on your person when somebody attempts to Ice you, that unlucky trickster must drink both your Ice and the one they tried to prank you with.

Although the original email to BroBible hid the identity of Smirnoff Icing's inventor, quite soon after that, a South Carolinian who identified himself to Fortuneas "Joe" registered the brosicingbros.com domain name. Whether or not Joe was the true inventor of the fad, he certainly brought it to the mainstream.

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The Untold Truth Of Smirnoff Icing - Mashed

As we head into the final weeks of 2021, TikTok has shared an overview of some of the top creators and trends of the year, which also serves as a summary of the broader web trends and memes that dominated another COVID-impacted period.

As explained by TikTok:

This year, our community discovered new ways to express creativity, championed the teams and the causes they care about, and found new favorites - from recipes to new music trends and genres. Across the United States, creators inspired others to open a new book, chomp on hot chicken, and treat themselves to a "Bones Day."

There are some interesting, and potentially valuable considerations in here, both in terms of what people are engaging with, and the content styles and formats that work best on TikTok.

First off, TikTok has shared the top videos of the year, starting with Drone Dancing by David Allen (aka @totouchanemu)

The video incorporates several key elements of the most popular TikTok clips, including a pop music soundtrack, a remix of an existing clip (though not direct) and an engaging, creative visual style. The clip is currently sitting on 313.9 million views and 43.9 million likes, underlining the reach potential of viral TikTok clips even with a relatively simple, yet interesting idea.

Other videos on TikToks top clips list include:

Music also plays a key role on TikTok, which has made the platform a key consideration for many artists and publishers, with some new even altering their tracks to fit in with TikTok trends, and maximize sales.

The top songs on TikTok in 2021 were:

TikTok has also shared the most popular AR features among users thoughout the year, with the Psychedelic Clown effect topping the list.

As you can see in these examples, the effect is most commonly used in a self-deprecating way, making fun of your own foolish decisions.

Other popular AR effects were the Inverted Filter which, flips the camera perspective, and lets you see how other people see you in real life, while Versailles Run, which adds your face to an animated effect, and Buffering were also heavily used.

TikToks also shared a listing of products that gained traction among TikTok users, which point to the expanded potential of eCommerce in the app.

TikTok has also shared insights into the top rising stars on the platform, popular food trends, top creators looking to raise awareness of various causes, and emerging communities, like #BookTok and small business tips.

Its an interesting overview of how the platform is expanding its horizons, as it continues to grow, and how people are utilizing TikTok clips in a variety of ways to connect and engage.

If youre looking to get a better understanding of what TikTok is all about, and what works on the platform, the creators and clips listed here provide a good starting point - and if TikTok is on your digital marketing agenda for 2022, its worth digging deeper on each, and getting a better perspective on the key trends and elements.

You can check out TikToks full best of 2021 overview here.

Read more from the original source:
TikTok Shares the Top Creators, Clips, Effects and Songs on the Platform in 2021 - Social Media Today

Influencer marketing continues to grow in the United States, with 2021 witnessing a 26.7% increase in sponsored Instagram posts. Meanwhile, sponsored stories increased by 33.5%, with influencers creating an average 16 sponsored stories a week.

The growing demand for this type of endorsement advertising was unveiled by the 2022 The State of Influencer Marketing report.

The report was compiled by Klear, an influencer marketing platform for Fortune 500 brands and agencies. The study involved the review of more than three million posts across the leading social channels.

The findings are important for small businesses, as they demonstrate the surging demand for this type of marketing. Small businesses not yet utilizing influencer marketing to promote products and services could be missing out on opportunities for sales and growth.

The reports authors note how social media habits are changing and influencers are playing a key role in accommodating for new demands.

2021 redefined the role brands play in consumers lives, and the way in which consumers relate to brands. Consumer habits have forced brands to prioritize digital and adjust budgets, which has dramatically increased the role influencers play in a brands overall strategies, the report states.

The analysis of millions of social media posts found that micro-influencers have dominated the influencer marketing trend. In 2021, 91% of all sponsored post engagement was with content created by micro-influencers.

Micro-influencers have smaller, more focused audiences, which can generate higher engagement. With high engagement, these types of influencers can offer the best ROI for brands.

Consequently, micro-influencers are a brands top choice for collaboration, the study found.

Klears analysis explored the social channels proving most popular for collaboration with micro-influencers. It showed TikTok generated the most collaborations with micro-influencers, with brands beginning to understand how the platform fits into their social marketing strategy.

However, Instagram remains the most popular social channel got influencer marketing, with 94% of campaigns incorporating the hugely popular image and content sharing social network.

Image: Depositphotos

Link:
Influencer Marketing Continues to Grow in US - Small Business Trends

After experimentation and initial success, advertising on TikTok has gone from a nice-to-have to a have-to-have for Dr. Squatchs media mix.

Over the last year, the mens natural personal care company, has spent big on the platform, carving out between 10-15% of its ad budget to advertise on the short-form video app, according to CMO Josh Friedman. As TikTok has reportedly surpassed 1 billion users with ads that work, Dr. Squatch is leveraging both a paid and organic presence to reach newer, younger customers there.

TikTok had crazy, incredible growth, especially among younger users, Friedman said. We wanted to be able to reach this demo in the right place, with the right content.

Dr. Squatch initially launched its TikTok presence back in 2019 and has since racked up more than 120,000 followers. Per Friedman, half of Dr. Squatchs customers from TikTok are under the age of 25, while about 15% of the brands customer acquisition comes from the app.

Content comes by way of an in-house team, supplemented by influencers, agency partners and brand partnerships, including the current brand partnership with Halo video game. For paid posts specifically, the brand mostly utilizes TikToks self-service ads. Friedman points to Dr. Squatchs investment in both organic and paid strategy as the key to the brands success on TikTok.

Notably, YouTube was the first platform where we really cracked that code [of going viral], he said. In some ways, we were a brand that was ready for TikTok, ready to jump in once it became an opportunity.

Friedman declined to share any details how much Dr. Squatch spends on TikTok. In Q1 and Q2 of this year, Dr. Squatch spent more than $7.6 million on media, down from the nearly $30 million spent in 2020, per Kantar. (These figures do not include social spend as Kantar does not track that. Also, figures for network radio only include Q1.)

Dr. Squatch is just one of a number of brands that are starting to see TikTok as a staple of the social budget, per earlier Digiday reporting. As more brands look to diversify their media spend, TikTok may be a solid alternative, according to Brandon Biancalani, manager of paid advertising at Modifly social marketing agency.

You can really get those fundamentals of advertising down on TikTok. It could be a really powerful platform, where were coming with a marketing plan, he said. You have to be safe and keep the brand in mind. But you also have to be adventurous.

As TikTok continues to roll out shopping capabilities and improve its ad suite, spending big on the platform makes sense, per Biancalani, who noted that before shelling out ad dollars, advertisers need to understand their target audience to see if they mesh or overlap with TikToks niche communities.

Understanding your demographic, not just going after your basic interests, but finding new ones and creating content for it, that would be part of my big spend with TikTok strategy, he said.

When it comes to testing new channels, Dr. Squatch isnt risk-averse. Earlier this year, Digiday reported that Dr. Squatch started to put ad budget toward Snapchat to diversify its media mix. Facebook still eats up the majority of the brands ad spend, per Friedman, but TikTok is seemingly growing as a more credible alternative option.

Its very rare you find things that come close to [traditional digital channels], added Friedman. We see tons of additional potential as TikTok continues to grow and improve their platform. Were going to be looking to grow with it.

Update: After this story was published, Dr. Squatch disputed Kantars figures and said that it is spending more on media in general this year than it did in 2020. Dr. Squatch again declined to provide more specific figures.

‘Looking to grow with it’: How TikTok is becoming a staple in Dr. Squatch’s social spend

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Looking to grow with it: How TikTok is becoming a staple in Dr. Squatchs social spend - Digiday

Furthermore, it wants the country to introduce more comprehensive restrictions to limit exposure to alcohol marketing in line with WHO recommendations.

A report from the organization, released this week, says the constant bombardment of alcohol marketing at celebrations such as Christmas and sports events makes it difficult for those in active addiction and recovery; as well as helping normalise alcohol consumption among children and vulnerable people.

Alcohol brands rely heavily on TV promotions: devoting almost half of their advertising budgets to this (compared to 24% for the average brand), according to the Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) report.

Around 650,000 alcohol adverts are shown on TV a year in the UK. Almost half are broadcast before 9pm peak viewing hours for children and young people according to the report.

Online advertising, however, is the fastest growing advertising medium in the UK.

In events, alcohol also has a strong presence: the alcohol industry accounts for 20% of all sports sponsorship agreements worldwide. Brands often also sponsor music festivals and cultural events.

While alcohol marketing codes do exist, they are insufficient, says the AHA, which is a coalition of more than 60 organisations working to reduce the harm caused by alcohol.

A number of countries have alcohol marketing restrictions, including France, Estonia, Iceland, Lithuania, Norway, Russia, Sweden & Switzerland.

In 2015, Finland became the first country to restrict alcohol marketing on social media. In 2018, Ireland passed the Public Health (Alcohol) Act which includes measures to restrict alcohol marketing, including a 9pm broadcast watershed, banning advertising on public transport, and prohibiting alcohol advertising on the grounds of sporting events and at events aimed mostly at children.

France & Norway also restrict alcohol marketing with sports; while the Scottish Womens Football refuses alcohol sponsorship.

Currently, alcohol marketing in the UK is regulated by a complicated system of self and co-regulation with the alcohol and advertising industry,says the AHA.

Various codes and different bodies are responsible for different parts of marketing. This has led to an inconsistent and ineffective system, which fails to protect children and vulnerable people.

The UK plans to introduceadvertising restrictions for high fat, salt and sugar food(such as a 9pm watershed on TV and prohibition of paid-for advertising online) in April through the Health and Care Bill: but alcohol is not included in these plans.

The AHA which represents more than 60 non-governmental organisations is now calling for the UK Government to take urgent action against overexposure to alcohol marketing.

It wants to see alcohol included in the Health and Care Bill; as well as calling for more comprehensive restrictions to limit exposure to alcohol marketing in line with WHO recommendations.

The World Health Organization recommends restricting alcohol marketing as one of the most effective policies to reduce alcohol harm.

"While comprehensive bans are the most effective, a good place to start to reduce children and vulnerable adults exposure to alcohol marketing is to introduce restrictions on alcohol advertising on TV, on-demand services and online alcohol advertising policies the UK Government is currently proposing for junk food.

The advertising of tobacco has been severely restricted since the early 2000s and the current Health and Care Bill aims to extend advertising restrictions to unhealthy foods. Yet alcohol, which is a harmful and addictive product, is exempt. Excluding alcohol from the proposed restrictions is a missed opportunity to protect children and vulnerable people from alcohol advertising.

The Portman Group, however, says that alcohol misuse is complex. The group is the industrys self-regulator: funded by members including AB InBev, Asahi, Bacardi, Diageo, Heineken and Pernod Ricard.

"For 25 years the Portman Groups Code has ensured that alcohol marketing is responsible, directed only at adults, and in the last revision we extended the remit to ensure that marketing does not particularly appeal to those who are vulnerable, said Matt Lambert, CEO of the Portman Group.

The reasons that a small minority of people drink at the highest harm levels are particularly complex, so it would be a mistake to say that marketing in and of itself will result in increased drinking when it is targeted support that is required.

In terms of childrens exposure to alcohol advertising, the evidence is that children are seeing less.

"The Advertising Standards Authority shows that childrens exposure to TV ads for alcohol is falling at a faster rate than their exposure to all TV ads, making up just 0.9% of the adverts seen by children.

"Companies also ensure responsibility in the digital sphere, where the industry have worked closely with social media companies to create Digital Guiding Principles to improve age screening, enabling users to opt out of alcohol marketing, and allowing content creators to age-gate posts.

Tom Harvey, co-founder of drink marketing agency YesMore, agrees with the Alcohol Health Alliances finding that many people can be triggered by seeing alcohol marketing.

"Just as the marketing industry has restrictions on targeting children within their advertising, there should be an agreed set of 'do not target' audience groups for things such as paid social media targeting. This could include people who are members of Alcoholics Anonymous, etc. Social platforms should have opt-outs' for anyone that doesn't want to see social content, advertising or programming that could trigger an alcohol relapse. Brands and platforms need to work more closely to ensure age gating is universally implemented too.

But as with the Portman Group, he notes the issue of alcohol abuse is complex.

Marketing doesnt stand alone. TV and film entertainment is terrible for glamourising alcohol abuse and self-medication with alcohol. How many grizzled detectives pour themselves a large whisky? How many frazzled mums need a large glass of wine at the end of the day? And its not just broadcast media - half the greeting cards in gift shops make jokes about booze, and you can even buy interior decor, soft furnishing and gnomes making jokes about gin and wine. Once you notice it, you realise its everywhere.

"My point is that that marketing could be better, yes - but it is improving, and continues to - and we need to hold it to high standards. But it exists in a society where I can struggle to find a greeting card for members of my family that doesnt make a joke about getting drunk- especially at Christmas. Its easy to point the finger at marketing. We could fix it completely, but this world would still exist without making changes elsewhere in society too.

See original here:
Alcohol Health Alliance wants more UK alcohol marketing restrictions - BeverageDaily.com