Archive for the ‘Social Marketing’ Category

Sephora Announces Third Class Of Its #SephoraSquad Beauty Influencer Program – Tubefilter

Sephora has unveiled the 73 creators it has selected to serve as part of the third annual #SephoraSquad.

The beauty giants yearlong, paid influencer program provides resources and mentorship to emerging creators, who in turn participate in the companys social marketing campaigns.

The digital application process for creators in the U.S. and Canada saw 30,000 influencers apply in 2021. And this years class is particularly diverse, Sephora says, with 79% identifying as people of color 30% of whom are Black, and 24% being Hispanic or Latino. Sephora notes it also sought diversity in terms of tapping LGBTQ+ creators, vloggers of different ages, and male beauty influencers.

Once selected, Squad members not only participate in marketing initiatives but also receive early access to free products and the chance to be featured on Sephoras flagship channels. The #SephoraSquad is also invited to attend industry events for peer and professional coaching, as well as the opportunity to interface with both leading Sephora executives and beauty brand founders.

All told, Sephora says previous Squad members increased their own Instagram followings by 18.5% and YouTube subscribers by 15.11% from May 2020 to Feb. 2021. Squad members have participated in a total of 150 campaigns that comprise over 5,000 social posts to date from Instagram to TikTok to YouTube. This years class placed a particular emphasis on TikTok, Sephora notes, increasing its reach on the platform over last year by 93%, to the tune of 5.7 million total followers among the 2021 class.

You can check out the full 2021 roster including makeup artists Stephanie Glamzilla Valentine, Ndeye Peinda, Sonia Valencia, and skincare guru Mykel Neri on the programs official website.

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Sephora Announces Third Class Of Its #SephoraSquad Beauty Influencer Program - Tubefilter

How YouTube and Facebook video consumption exploded during the pandemic: Datacenter Weekly – AdAge.com

Welcome to Ad Age Datacenter Weekly, our data-obsessed newsletter for marketing and media professionals. Reading this online? Sign up to get it delivered to your inbox here.

U.S. media ad revenue is poised to make a 22% jump in 2021, a far rosier picture than predicted even just a few months ago, according to GroupMs mid-year forecast, Ad Ages I-Hsien Sherwood reports. After a devastating year due to pandemic losses, the March forecast from the WPP agency projected a robust 15% comeback, but strong results from big tech companies have boosted the outlook substantially.

Essential context: U.S. agency revenue tumbled 6.8% in 2020 as fallout from the pandemic pushed the economy and agencies into a deep downturn, according to Ad Age Datacenters annual Agency Report. That was the second-sharpest drop since we began producing Agency Report in 1945. But the agency business is coming back amid a resurgent economy. Read Bradley Johnsons Ad Age Agency Report 2021 executive summary here.

InfoSum wants to improve ad targeting by making the consumer data its clients store easier to share through InfoSum Bridge, Ad Ages Mike Juang reports.

Essential context: The company currently sells infrastructure that can process consumer data stored on a clients system into identity graphs, Juang adds. The graphs, which InfoSum calls bunkers, are then analyzed or passed along, ensuring the consumer data used to build the graphs never leaves storage and protecting user privacy. InfoSum says Bridge now makes it easier to share this information.

Keep reading here.

The Global Video Measurement Alliancewhich includes Tubular Labs (the social video measurement platform that serves as the data supplier for the GVMA), Group Nine, Discovery, Digitas, ViacomCBS, BuzzFeed and other major playersis out with a new report titled Discovering Audiences on Social Video. Among the most striking revelations are the ones that have to do with the explosion of social video during the pandemic. Specifically:

Social video reach across YouTube and Facebook in the U.S. grew by 55% from February 2020 to February 2021.

During that same period, social video consumptionas measured by total watch timeacross YouTube and Facebook grew dramatically across all age groups in the U.S.: 62% for 13-to-17-year-olds,42% for 18-34, 49% for 35-54, and 52% for 55+.

Learn more: You can download a copy of the report here.

Taking on Adobe and Salesforce: Why Zeta Globals co-founder sees opportunity in the shift to digital, from Ad Age.

A (massive) new trove of data for AI: U.S. Launches Task Force to Open Government Data for AI Research, The Wall Street Journal reports.

ICYMI: U.S. advertising employment barely moved in May as ad staffing plateaus, per Ad Age.

Amazon Web Services under threat: Alleged Capitol rioter pleads guilty to plotting to blow up Amazon data center, per Fox News.

Hacked: EA got hit by a data breach, and hackers are selling source code, per the Verge. See also: Ten years of breaches in one image, also from The Verge.

Privacy watch: As ad tech firms test ways to connect Googles FLoC to other data, privacy watchers see fears coming true, per Digiday.

The newsletter is brought to you by Ad Age Datacenter, the industrys most authoritative source of competitive intel and home to the Ad Age Leading National Advertisers, the Ad Age Agency Report: Worlds Biggest Agency Companies and other exclusive data-driven reports. Access or subscribe to Ad Age Datacenter at AdAge.com/Datacenter.

Ad Age Datacenter is Kevin Brown, Bradley Johnson and Catherine Wolf.

This weeks newsletter was compiled and written by Simon Dumenco.

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How YouTube and Facebook video consumption exploded during the pandemic: Datacenter Weekly - AdAge.com

First cruise ship to arrive in Barbados under new COVID protocols – Nation News

Posted on June 6, 2021

Minister of Tourism Senator Lisa Cummins (GP)

The Celebrity Millennium will be the first ship to arrive in Barbados on Monday, June 7, under the new protocols for cruises dedicated to fully vaccinated travellers.

The protocols have been vetted and approved by the Ministry of Health and Wellness, as well as the Social Partnership of Barbados, to ensure the continued safety of all Barbadians and visitors, according to a statement issued by Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. today.

The Celebrity Millennium will be sailing from Philipsburg, St Maarten on a seven-night itinerary, with Barbados as its first port of call.

Its arrival, with over 500 fully-vaccinated travellers, marks the first official cruise passenger ship call to Barbados for the year.

The ship is sailing at less than 50 per cent its usual capacity.

As we reopen our borders and look to restart tourism on island, the health and safety of Barbadians and visitors remains paramount to what we do and how we do things, said Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Senator Lisa Cummins.

These cruise arrangements have come after months of careful planning at the level of our local health officials; the Americas Cruise Task Force, where we considered both the CDC sail orders and the EU Healthy Sail Guidelines; and even the Social Partnership of Barbados which created a sub-committee dedicated to cruise. We are therefore confident that the implementation of these new protocols will give fully vaccinated travellers cruising to Barbados the opportunity to safely enjoy the destination once more.

The statement also said that the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. and the Barbados Port Inc. are working together to steadily rebuild the destinations tour complement under the guidance of the new protocols, as they prepare for the upcoming winter season.

Vice-President, Destination Development at Royal Caribbean Group (RCCL), Josh Carroll, added We are so excited to return to Barbados for the first time in over a year. Every painstaking, carefully measured step was taken to ensure that we protect the health and safety of our guests, crew and the residents of this treasured destination and we are thankful to the Barbados Government for its leadership and support to make this important milestone a reality. This exciting new itinerary offers vacationers so many fresh ways to experience the southern Caribbean and showcase all the splendours of Barbados history, culture and cuisine.

A small delegation of RCCL executives will be met by Government officials on Monday at the Bridgetown Port for a brief welcome and plaque exchange, in accordance with the COVID-19 protocols. (PR)

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First cruise ship to arrive in Barbados under new COVID protocols - Nation News

Games might evolve, but the basics of talking to gaming communities remain the same – The Drum

The Drums social media executive Amy Houston assesses the opportunities within gaming communities and, as part of our gaming deep dive, looks at how brands can prepare for whats next.

If the future of entertainment lies in gaming and the future of gaming lies in online communities, what will brand activations look like in coming years?

The popularity of gaming has reached new levels during the pandemic, with communities becoming a source of entertainment and support for many players. Its a medium that is constantly evolving, with disruptive tech, cultural moments and brand campaigns and it doesnt show any signs of slowing down.

There is so much that brands can learn from these communities, as I explored in last weeks column, but whats in store for the future of gaming community management, and what does it mean for marketers?

Streaming has been a huge aspect of gaming for a while now. And when combined with the popularity of video-based platforms such as TikTok, its obvious that social media is becoming more personal and more fast paced than ever, and that brands looking to get a piece of the gaming pie need to understand this. In coming years, streaming will continue to grow as a very effective way to reach certain audiences whether thats through having streamers play your games or advertising on their streams, says James Gallagher, senior social media manager at Keywords Studios.

The relationship between developers and gamers has got closer over the last few years, partly because of the rise of social channels, but predominantly because of the dedication of community managers. In the coming years, I believe this partnership will continue to flourish and be a blueprint for brand communication. As Oliver Hindle, the community director for Fall Guys at Mediatonic, puts it: A key learning from the last few years has been the sheer importance of authentic communication.

Entertainment and innovation within gaming communities will continue to present huge opportunities. Animal Crossings partnerships with the likes of Lazy Oaf is a prime example of an exciting experience within a game resulting in two separate communities merging, generating a buzz on social channels for both the products and the game itself. Looking forward, we need to keep evolving and being creative in our approach to reaching new audiences, because as Roberto Kusabi, the director of community and social marketing at King, says: They arent easily boxed into one channel or medium, they can flow across and dip in and out of different avenues.

We have to be thinking about where the audiences we want to talk to are spending time online, and then building communities around these areas, bringing new experiences to them, entertaining them and innovating.

Continuing to break down barriers such as gender in the gaming community will see these online spaces thrive as cultural centers, undefined by anything except shared interests. Brand promotion within the gaming sector relies on various tactics and themes, but ultimately, says Stick Click head of performance Jonny Hale, you want to make sure your campaign can truly pull people in and most importantly relate.

The potential for brands within gaming is massive, and as digital communities continue to grow, so is the reach. Theres been a lot of talk in recent years about digital cities and I wondered what that might look like for brand marketing in the future when contemplating investments. About the metaverse, Hindle tells me: Players rarely socialize in just one digital space, but it really depends on the demographic and genre-audience of a particular gaming community.

With any social media channel or community, the technology evolves, so I ask Hindle the best way for brands to keep up with these developments and immerse themselves into their communities. There are always innovative ways to track and learn from these audiences, and brands can take cues from game studios on social media, but theres no substitute to actually swimming in those waters yourself, he tells me.

Keeping up with technological developments is crucial, but the most important job, according to Hale, is understanding the games audience and where they are... digitally.

Games are forever getting more sophisticated, yet the fundamental ways that players engage with them stay mostly the same. As Gallagher puts it: If a player contacts you because of a problem with their NFT, do you treat them differently than if theyre having an issue with a CD-Rom? New online communications channels emerge, but the basics of how to communicate with your customers dont change.

Gaming and social media are more integrated than ever and community managers will continue to nourish this level of interaction. Its my view that new tech, channels, and opportunities will come, but the future of brand marketing lies in placing community at the heart of it all.

From more on what the gaming sectors pandemic-propelled popularity means for marketers, head to The Drums gaming hub.

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Games might evolve, but the basics of talking to gaming communities remain the same - The Drum

The importance of preventive measures to ensure mental wellness – HalifaxToday.ca

Prevention is key to managing the parallel mental health pandemic that has occurred in tandem with COVID-19, researcher says

Imagine our only response to the COVID-19 pandemic had been increasing ICU capacity. Maybe encouraging hand-washing and optional mask-wearing, but no social distancing. And no vaccines.

ICUs would have overflowed long ago, our health-care budget would be drained and many more lives would have been lost. It seems like an absurd approach, and yet that is how were responding to the mental health and addictions crisis that has been surging in parallel to this pandemic.

The current mental health and addictions crisis

In a typical year, 20 per cent of Canadians experience a mental illness and 75,000 Canadians die from substance use. The Canadian economy loses $46 billion to substance use and $50 billion to anxiety and depression.

In the past year during the COVID-19 pandemic, 25 per cent of Canadians have experienced anxiety, 10 per cent of Canadians have had suicidal thoughts and 74 per cent of adults, and 70 per cent of children and adolescents, have experienced worse mental health.

As a result, mental health wards and waitlists have overflowed. In Ontario, children are waiting up to 2.5 years for services.

In response to this crisis, governments have made much needed investments to increase equitable access to mental health care. However, missing from current plans is a long-term strategy to reduce the number of Canadians who will end up needing costly mental health services.

How to promote population mental health

At present, many non-profit agencies, schools and workplaces in Canada implement advocacy campaigns, skill-building workshops or violence-prevention programs to promote the mental well-being of their patrons.

However, many Canadians do not have access to programs and services that meet their needs, especially people from historically marginalized communities such as Indigenous, LBGTQ+ and low-income people, and refugees. Most Canadians receive only a fraction of the resources needed to reduce their risk of experiencing mental illness: the COVID-19 prevention equivalent of maybe one free mask, but certainly no vaccine.

What would a more comprehensive prevention strategy for mental health look like? The Canadian Mental Health Association recommends increasing research, funding and social marketing for the implementation of culturally safe, population-level mental health programs. Since between 50 and 75 per cent of mental illnesses have their onset during childhood and adolescence, prevention programs tend to target these developmental periods.

However, children learn to regulate their thoughts, emotions and behaviours from the things they hear, the behaviours they see modelled and the way adults respond to their emotions. That means programs that improve the well-being of adults also often have intergenerational benefits. Three examples of evidence-based mental health promotion programs include:

1. Parenting and family support programs

Programs that provide psychoeducation and support to parents and caregivers are one of the most effective ways to reduce emotional and behavioural problems among children and youth. Many also have positive effects for parental well-being. Examples include the Nurse Family Partnership, Incredible Years and Family Check-Up.

These programs can be cost-effective, culturally safe and implemented effectively online. Indeed, the pandemic has sped up a pre-existing trend of delivering services virtually to increase access and decrease costs, and preliminary research suggests it is working.

2. Mental health literacy and skill-building

While it is not always possible to control peoples environments, it is possible to equip people with skills and strategies to process stressful experiences in positive ways. For example, hundreds of studies have confirmed that universal, school-based programs that focus on building students mental health literacy, exercise habits, mindfulness, socio-emotional skills, resilience, media literacy or substance awareness improve child and adolescent mental health. There is also evidence that they are cost-effective.

Workplace mental health programs, such as the Canadian-based Working Mind program, can also improve employee mental health. And initial research on skill-building mobile apps also suggests they have a lot of promise. Across settings and across the life-course, there are many low-cost, evidence-based opportunities to help Canadians build skills that support their mental well-being.

3. Social connection and stigma-reduction

To thrive, people need to feel respected, accepted and connected. Programs that help meet these needs are an effective approach to mental health promotion. For example, there is strong evidence that anti-bullying programs in schools promote positive mental health outcomes. Programs that foster positive connections between children and adults in their communities such as teachers and mentors are also proven to be effective at promoting mental well-being, as are programs that enhance the quality of adults social connections.

Finally, while robust research on interventions is lacking, current evidence suggests psychoeducation programs that reduce stigma and racial discrimination, or increase sense of belonging, are also likely to have a positive impact on mental health.

A 360 approach to prevention

To slow the spread of COVID-19, we have had to distance, wear masks, improve ventilation and develop vaccines. To reduce the prevalence of mental illnesses, we will need to take a similar, multi-targeted approach, as there is no single solution that addresses all the social determinants of mental health.

To maximize impact, this approach will need to be systematic, with a focus towards choosing evidence-based, cost-effective, culturally safe programs and making them equitable and accessible. It is by extending support, skill-building opportunities and a sense of belonging to all Canadians that well ensure our mental health beds, and budgets, dont overflow forever.

Lets not be left facing a third wave of the mental health crisis years from now because we didnt create a preventive public health strategy early enough.

Nina Sokolovic, Doctoral Candidate, Developmental Psychology and Education, University of Toronto

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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The importance of preventive measures to ensure mental wellness - HalifaxToday.ca