Are text-only campaigns dead? The rise of visual content

Visual content is nothing new to PR and marketing practitioners. But have we reached the point where text-only campaigns should be laid to rest?

It’s no secret that strong visual content holds the key to success in the current communication landscape. Whether it’s for social media, email marketing or content creation, brands are increasingly using visuals to entice consumers to engage with their brand. Given the dominance of visual communication, and in particular video, are text-only campaigns still relevant within brand strategies?

What makes visual content so popular?

Consumers are inundated with information every day; from crowded social media feeds to inboxes overflowing with emails. Visual content helps grab consumers’ attention and motivates them to learn more about your brand, as the information is both quicker and easier to process compared to text. And, once a consumer starts engaging with a brand’s visual content, it is likely that they will continue to do so, causing other consumers to also engage, sparking a conversation and a snowball effect. There is clearly benefits to visual content over text-only.  

Visual storytelling

For many brands, a move to visually dominant campaigns requires a change of direction. Visual content marketing is a distinct strategy that requires practitioners to draw inspiration from publishers and storytellers. Take Coca-Cola, whose marketing strategy is built on visual content. To ensure they keep their audience engaged and the brand salient they produce original, fun and interactive content with a focus on cultural storytelling, such as with their “Share a Coke” campaign. Through the use of stories relating to Coca-Cola they initiate conversations about the brand and earn themselves a share of pop-culture. The brand is so invested in their move to visual content (and away from text-only campaigns) they even created a video explaining their efforts.

It’s not just major brands that are implementing changes in their strategies. Research published this month by Brubaker and Wilson monitored the frequency and type of Facebook posts of 100 brands. Visual content dominated across all the brands. While their research showed a year-on-year decrease in the number of overall posts by these brands it also showed an increase in the number of videos being posted. The significance of this is that brands are willing to sacrifice quantity in favour of producing quality original visual content, which – in comparison to text-only content – requires more time and resources to produce.

Share-a-Coke campaign, credit Coca-Cola

Key points to remember

·      Making use of visual content ensures that your brand gets noticed and helps your consumers process your key messages quicker and easier.

·      Placing greater emphasis on visual content, in particular original videos, fosters engagement with your consumers.

·      Ensure you budget for the time and resources that producing original visual content requires.

In other words, don’t be afraid to refocus your content marketing strategy. Lay your text-only campaigns to rest (RIP).

                                                                                                                             
About the author:
Natalie Henshall is a Communication Science Masters student at the University of Amsterdam, specialising in persuasive communication. She has previous experience in communications, marketing and PR gained from working in the UK public sector. Her interests include social media engagement and health communications. 

Green to Gold: How Companies Are Using 'Green Marketing' To Get Ahead

Starbucks, Absolut Vodka, Burberry, Carlsberg. All are large brand names—but with what more in common? 

In 2018, each of these companies developed marketing strategies in line with environmental practices. Some were more extreme, like the Absolut Vodka campaign sporting its' CEO Alexandre Ricard completely naked. Their slogan, "the vodka with nothing to hide," shows they aren't afraid to also expose their ingredients and how they manufacture their products in an environmentally mindful way.

Other brands like Starbucks, Carslberg and Burberry took similar, but lighter approaches promising to phase out the use of plastic straws, plastic rings on 6-packs and the use of fur, respectively.

Relating Practice to Researched Theory

Now, with the rise of international concern for environmental issues, companies are facing the issue of how to implement environmentally-friendly practices into their own marketing strategies.

The issue? Stamping a ‘green footprint’ to their business models can come at a high price. Therefore, instead of focusing on the potential financial drawbacks—many companies have started using 'green for good' and using environmentally-friendly thinking as marketing to turn higher profits.

Already, the brands mentioned above have seen their profits and market shares increase. Absolut Vodka, for example, had its' sales increase by 5% or by approximately 5.1 billion euro during the first 6 months of this year (its' 'Naked' campaign appeared in early February).

This ‘green marketing’ practice in line with research conducted by Dangelico and Vocalelli from 2017. In order to understand how environmental sustainability was changing the commercial market, the two Italian researchers conducted an analysis of 112 previous environmental-related marketing studies looking at: how green marketing has changed over time and how it is best practiced.

Tips From Researchers On Best 'Green Marketing' Practices:

1.  Segment Your Target Audience

The researchers found, in determining the target group, identifying behavioral characteristics were key. To determine this, not only look at how environmentally active the consumer is, but also determine what the client wants. Absolut Vodka knows their consumer desires quality ingredients in order to justify a higher price. That's why they let their ingredients (and bodies) be fully exposed to the public to gain trust.

2.  Positioning Towards The Public

In order for companies to sell green products, they must appear green themselves. The researchers found higher green brand image = higher green brand equity. Burberry's push to eliminate fur products fits this image and the current fashion market perfectly. The veil of green surrounding the fashion industry right now (with the first fur-free fashion week in London this year) is pushing brands like Burberry, Versace and Gucci to fall in line. If they want to sell green products, they must evoke the green image.

3. Differentiation From The Market

The last (possibly most important) tip from the researchers is to use the green image "as a lever" to separate your company from the rest. Not all companies are using green marketing to get ahead and because this, it can make your innovative business model stand out and be memorable. Also, it shows your company is in line with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices and is not only concerned with making an extra dollar (or euro, etc.).

So, the next time you think marketing strategy—also remember to think green.

_______________________________________________________________________

About the Author: 

Nicole Ares is a Political Communications Master's Student at the University of Amsterdam. She has previous experience in journalism as well as strategic communications work for international non-governmental organizations. Her topics of interest include: social reform, US politics, education and sustainability.

Scholarly Sources For This Article: 

Dangelico, R. M., & Vocalelli, D. (2017). “Green Marketing”: An analysis of definitions, strategy 
steps, and tools through a systematic review of the literature. Journal of Cleaner Production, 165, 1263-1279. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.07.184

Betere reputatie door CSR en employer branding: een scheve gedachte?

Public Relations, in de volksmond ook wel PR genoemd, wordt door

bedrijven veelal gebruikt om te communiceren met de verscheidenheid

aan groepen mensen die belangstelling kunnen hebben in het bedrijf. Het is een middel

om er voor te zorgen dat het bedrijf onder de constante aandacht blijft van het publiek,

ongeacht of dat intern of extern is. Daarbij komt automatisch de reputatie van de organisatie

om de hoek kijken: hoe kijken mensen daadwerkelijk tegen de organisatie aan? En daar zit

het hem nou precies in, want hoe zorgt een organisatie ervoor dat ze door het publiek

gewaardeerd wordt? Tkalak Verčič (2018) introduceert daarvoor in haar onderzoek twee

concepten die, mits positief beoordeeld, de reputatie van een organisatie verbeteren: een

goede CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) en een goede employer branding.

Uit het onderzoek, dat gehouden werd onder business studenten, bleek dat

een positieve beoordeling van de twee bovenstaande concepten daadwerkelijk leidt tot een

betere reputatie van de organisatie in kwestie. Een mooi onderzoek met een mooi resultaat,

maar er is een heikel punt dat meer invloed op de bevindingen kan hebben dan gedacht:

de mens. Een breed begrip, en dat is dan ook precies waar de crux ligt.

De mens verandert alles

De mooie inzichten van Tkalak Verčič kennen een lastig nadeel: er is geen onderscheid
gemaakt tussen mannen en vrouwen. In deze tijd kan die fout simpelweg niet gemaakt
worden. Gerelateerd aan dit onderzoek kan gezegd worden dat vrouwen de CSR van een
toporganisatie heel anders kunnen beoordelen dan mannen, waardoor employer branding
door de organisatie op een hele andere manier ingezet zou moeten worden. Het uitkiezen
van een toekomstige werkgever kan dus aanzienlijk verschillen tussen mannen en vrouwen.
In de moderne tijd waar wij in leven speelt dan ook nog steeds het loonverschil tussen de
geslachten, waar door organisaties vaak geen gegronde reden voor wordt gegeven
(artikel NRC).

Source: Big.nl

Mochten organisaties hun gewaardeerde reputatie willen behouden dan móeten zij hun PR
hierop aanpassen. Daar komt echter ook nog bij kijken dat CSR, employer branding en
organizational reputation zulke heterogene begrippen zijn dat elke organisatie ze op een
andere manier zal interpreteren. Het onderzoek van Tkalak Verčič geeft dus leuke
handvatten, maar in de praktijk zullen de bevindingen geen stand houden. Toporganisaties
verschillen (omdat ze uniek willen blijven) dusdanig van elkaar dat de concepten lastig
generaliseerbaar zijn. Daarom is het zaak andere invloeden, zoals de kwestie van geslacht,
goed in de gaten te houden.

Dynamiek, dynamiek en nog eens dynamiek

In een dynamisch veld als dat van Public Relations is het belangrijk rekening te houden met
alle mogelijke scenario’s, ook de scenario’s die je het minst zou verwachten. Zo kan de
kwestie van geslacht zich voordoen en kunnen de verscheidene betekenissen van de
besproken concepten een andere invloed hebben op de praktijk. Zaak is het dan ook om als
organisatie alert te blijven op de omgeving waar het zich in bevindt: wat voor organisatie ben
je, wat betekenen de concepten voor jouw bedrijf en wat zijn je wezenlijke doelen op het
gebied van PR? In een veranderlijke wereld als deze lijkt dynamiek lijkt het toverwoord
te zijn.

Over

Sonny van den Berge is een master student Corporate Communication aan de Universiteit
van Amsterdam. Naast studeren loopt hij stage bij Bynder, een vooraanstaand
technologiebedrijf in Amsterdam en werkt hij bij Philips op de afdeling corporate
communication. Voetbal is zijn grootste passie, wat zich uit in voorliefde voor de voetbalclub
AFC AJAX.

Culture Jamming — Positively Swimming Against the Mainstream

Culture Jamming – a practice for the engaged Public

In the modern world where our social realities are continually shaped by the media—public and commercial bodies are no longer the only contributors. Now, counter organizations and individuals 'swimming' against the mainstream are gaining the increased power of autonomy. One such practice, Culture Jamming, a form of guerilla communication that hijacks a brand’s media presence by parodying their advertisements, has garnered significant interest from the academic field (Harold, 2007; Klein, 1999). Yet only recently have researchers recognized the importance of understanding the practice in a public relations perspective, as the rise of social media has magnified the impact of culture jams on the image of an organization (Janoske, Winkler & Harpole, 2018).  

The Incorporation of Social Media to mobilize the Individual

Culture jamming uses Social Media channels to receive the widest possible exposure but also to provide an outlet for more members of the public to join the conversation. By creating fake websites or a viral post, critical consumers can influence the brand’s online image unchecked by the brands monitoring powers (Edwards, 2018). Yet, there is the danger that instead of productive conversations, culture jamming unleashes a stream of hate messages encouraged by social media’s veil of anonymity. Therefore, I have to disagree with certain academic research that outlines successful culture jamming as dissent packaged in consent (Janoske, Winkler & Harpole, 2018). While it is important to openly question brands’ dubious practices, it can also be done with a positive agenda. In case culture jammers have unleashed a pack of social media users onto a brand, it is vital that they are taken seriously instead of being shut down, an endeavor, which will enrage the pack even more.

Negativity packaged into Positivity

While culture jamming often succeeds to grab attention, it is questionable whether the method is able to extend the public’s attention span beyond a viral post (Janoske, Winkler & Harpole, 2018). Nevertheless, one such post can create a lot of conversation and it is up to the PR professional to decide how to use such a stunt to their advantage. A recent case in a Texas McDonald’s shows how culture jamming can foster important conversations about a brand’s weakness, but also how the brand itself can turn a potential upset into positive publicity.

Two American-Filipino Students felt that their local McDonalds did not have enough Asian representation in their marketing. They created a fake McDonalds advertisement of themselves, snuck the poster into the restaurant and hung it up in the restaurant. After 8 weeks the poster was still up, unnoticed by any of the staff. When the students posted this on Twitter and it went viral, McDonald’s praised their initiative to spread diversity and even encouraged others to do the same.

                                                   Source: Jevh Maravilla Twitter (@jevholution)

For the full article and viral Twitter Post:

CNN Article

Jevh Maravilla Twitter Post

Extra Sources:

Harold C (2004) Pranking rhetoric: ‘Culture jamming’ as media activism. Critical Studies in Media Communication 21(3): 189–211.

Klein N (1999) No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies. New York: Picador.

About the Author

Nathalie Enderle is a master student of communication science at the University of Amsterdam. Currently enrolled in the Pubic Relations elective she aims to embed creative writing into an academic environment through blog posts for PR professionals

The New Nike Campaign

Nike is celebrating the anniversary (30th) of its slogan 'Just do it' with a new campaign, featuring Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick was one the most famous quarterbacks in American football (NFL), when he decided to kneel during the national anthem (at the beginning of the 2016/17 season two years ago), which is played before each NFL game. He did so in protest against police violance against black citizens and racism in general. He gained both huge following - many players followed his example - as well a critique (from many amongst whom president Trump). I should add hyperlinks here, but just google...

Screenshot taken from @Kaepernick7 (Twitter)

Anyway, taking a political stance is not common in professional sports and also goes against (unwritten) rules, rooted in the original olympic value. In Bourdieu's terms, he choose to ignore his habitus and ignore the doxa. Doing so has repurcussions usually, as Giddens (by the words of Falkheimer) warns us. In Kaepernicks case that means that he is without a contract because noone wants to, or dares to offer him a contract.

In that context it is also remarkable that a major sponsor of the NFL, Nike, take a stance by making him the face of their new campaign, because of his protest actions  (repeat doxa, habitus, etc.).


Two links:
A CNN report on the Nike campaign.
Back ground article in the New York Times (online)


NB1: This is NOT a 'good' example of a proper blog post, rather a hasty 'note'
NB2: It is very much okay to add your own (relevant) hasty notes on top of your assignment blog posts here. Especially when you have addressed an actuality in class, or found one that is too juice to safe until the next class.