How marketers can use events to their advantage

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Even though a bill to ban or force sales of TikTok passed the House last month, bringing a sliver of bipartisan unity to a deeply divided Congress, it appeared to be stalled in the Senate. until now. The House of Representatives was working over the weekend to pass a bill that would give billions of dollars in aid to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan. Another bill was added to the package that would impose sanctions on Russia, China and Iran and ban or force the sale of TikTok.. Senators passed the bill last night, and President Biden signed it into law late this morning.

Now is the time for marketers to start asking themselves what happens next. TikTok is an important platform for marketers, content creators, and just about everyone in Gen Z. It also owns China-based ByteDance. According to TikTok's latest statistics released in March 2023, 150 million Americans use the platform regularly. Nearly 5 million businesses use TikTok. And the app is replacing news websites and Google search for young adults and teens. ByteDance and TikTok have spent more than $7 million this year lobbying policymakers and buying ads in battleground states to discourage Congress from passing such laws.

There is evidence that TikTok's owners were not responsible stewards of the data they collected With short form video app. ByteDance has admitted to using TikTok to spy on US citizens. forbes reporters. The company also mishandled sensitive advertiser data. forbes Report found.

The bill gives ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok to a company not under the control of a foreign adversary., including China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. That timeline may be extended as long as the sale is pending. Realistically, it is unlikely that TikTok and the Chinese government would agree to a sale. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told users in a video last month that the company is “doing everything we can, including enforcing our legal rights, to protect this amazing platform we built with you.” We will continue to do so.”

So what happens next? Speculation about who could buy and successfully run TikTok resumes in earnest, while TikTok is expected to fight the bill in court. It's also possible that several U.S.-based developers will quickly deploy TikTok clones, similar to Threads and Mastodon, which launched in 2022 when Elon Musk's Twitter acquisition deal begins to take shape. There is also. Meta's Instagram and Facebook already offer users the option to post short videos and Reels, and Musk could relaunch the short video app Vine, which was acquired by Twitter in 2012 but shut down in 2017. hinted at sex. Perhaps it's time to start considering other content creation platforms, and it's time to expect further audience fragmentation.

TikTok has been hot in recent years, but marketing events have also become more active. According to Splash's research, 77% of marketers say events are their most effective marketing channel. but, Many marketers don't take advantage of the opportunities that events provide. To obtain more information about our customers. We spoke to Kate Hammitt, her CMO at Splash, about effective event marketing. Excerpts from our conversation will be published later in this newsletter.

Brand + Message

We all know that Taylor Swift is a master of marketing. Perhaps she didn't need to do much to promote her new album, which was released last week. tortured poet sectionbut some social media and music promotion companies Partner with her to promote new album and use Swift's fame and notoriety to promote your own platform. Spotify opened a poetry library pop-up in Los Angeles the week before the double album was released. Apple Music changed their profile with X, giving Swifties daily words to decipher from song lyrics and hinting at albums. Apple Music's own platform gave users access to five playlists of Swift's previously curated songs based on the five stages of grief, hinting at heartbreak-fueled songs from the double album. Her QR codes in various locations around the world directed users to her YouTube video, spelling out “for a 2night” and reminiscent of Swift's track with Post Malone. Meta's Instagram and Threads will have countdowns and special post effects, and TikTok will have a “Taylor Swift in-app experience” where fans can now take part in challenges to unlock profile artwork. I did.

The cross-platform blitz has worked well for Swift. tortured poet section It quickly broke Spotify's record for most streamed album in a single day, but there are several other records that could be broken in the coming weeks. The bigger question is: What does Swift's promotion do for social and streaming apps?that will become clearer in the coming months.

Social media

Elon Musk has said he wants X to be an “everything app,” and CEO Linda Yaccarino posted yesterday about the next steps in that direction. The X TV app, scheduled to be available on smart TVs, will feature customized algorithms To feed content to users based on overall popularity and user preferences. This app has been started with a focus on the customer, so no ads will be displayed on launch. hollywood reporter However, it will eventually be monetized. There's no information on when the TV app will be released, but that shouldn't come as a surprise. X has announced several video partnerships with celebrities, including Tucker Carlson, Jim Rome, and former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard. Former CNN commentator Don Lemon was also scheduled to appear on “X,” but the show was canceled after Lemon interviewed Musk. X told Bloomberg that users have watched 23 billion minutes of video on the platform in the past 30 days.

artificial intelligence

Meta brings AI to its social media family, launching new standalone AI chatbots on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger apps. AI chatbots are now part of the search bar in each of these apps. Available to any user at any time. (Also available as a standalone app from your own URL.) Get data from Meta's upgraded Llama 3 large language model to quickly answer questions, create images, and search your own feeds . Meta touts Llama 3's openness as a differentiator in the increasingly crowded consumer AI space, but it will also create another way for users to find marketing and influencer content. There is no doubt about it.

Adobe has been steadily adding AI features to Creator Tools, and recently Added some new features Photoshop flagship product. A text-to-image creator has been added that allows users to start from scratch and get some generated image from the prompt they type. We also added text-generated AI background replacement for him, automatic removal of people in the background of images, and the ability to copy the style of a “reference image” using AI.

About messages

Splash CMO Kate Hammitt talks about how to use event marketing

Event marketing is a useful tool, but few brands and marketers take full advantage of it. Recent research on splash. Splash CMO Kate Hammitt and her events, both in-person and virtual The evolution of her marketing and how to better plan to collect valuable data and build lasting relationships with your customers We talked about.

This conversation has been edited for length, clarity, and continuity.A longer version of this conversation is available here.

This study showed that even though there are many events happening now, many marketers are not collecting data on the prospects who attend. Why are these details sidelined?

Events are tough, aren't they? We've all tried inviting people over for dinner, throwing a birthday party, or taking the stress out of a wedding. I think we can all personally relate to the challenges that events present. Event marketers find it very difficult to capture key metrics when using in-house solutions because they don't have the right tools to measure properly. Events are often not necessarily considered as seriously as other marketing. If you want to start your digital advertising journey, you'll either hire a digital marketer or acquire partial skills. It is cost-effective to invest in the tools and skills to perform accordingly. I think in many cases events have been held together with duct tape, using a lot of in-house solutions.

I think events are starting to get the recognition they deserve in terms of how they drive revenue and expansion. It's not just anecdotes that say, “Wow, that was a great event, everyone had fun.” That's true, and if you look at it in the category of how events have been evaluated, it's event management. It's about large conferences, large tent pole events. There are many events with different tastes. To deploy the right tools and succeed, you need to consider your use case.

What advice would you give to marketers who attend more events so they can better understand and get the most out of everything they have to offer?

For marketers, why not ask yourself, “Do we have a solid strategy in place?” Sometimes we start with the idea of ​​“let's do an event,'' and everyone is thinking about the experience they will have on the day of the event. Have you made sure you know where your man's ICP is, what meets them where they are, how to best engage with them, and base your strategy on it? Starting with a strategy will give your ICP what it needs.

Next, what results do you want to have with a post-event flip? What is the business of making this event a success? What is the ACV you can get out of it? What kind of pipeline are you trying to create? What's the meeting? Start iterating on these metrics and improve that way.

This move is very difficult to implement, but I encourage marketers to start putting it together. So they can say, “If I can get my sales team up and running two weeks in advance and give him certain information and a certain list, he'll be able to drive X number of additional meetings.” This automatically creates a more successful event case and perhaps more data to invest in the elements needed to drive broader business strategy and align events as a truly valuable marketing channel. start.

facts and comments

Former President Donald Trump's 2024 campaign is asking campaigns and committees that use his likeness in fundraising appeals to: share some of what you receivedPolitico reported.

Five%: How much does the Trump campaign want to receive from fundraising efforts?

100 million dollars:As of the end of March, President Biden's campaign has a lead in cash on hand.

“Looked favorably by the RNC and President Trump’s campaign”: How donations over 5% to the Trump campaign will be considered, according to a letter from President Trump's co-campaign managers Susie Wiles and Chris Lacivita

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quiz

Ashanti and Nelly The couple announced that their first child is soon to be born. In an interview with essence last week. What new ventures have they also announced?

A. Baby clothing and accessories brand

B. Photo sharing app

C. Pregnancy Luxury Product Line

D. Infertility and Hormone Diagnostics Company

Please check if your answer is correct here.