If you’ve seen it, shared it or ‘liked’ it somewhere on social media, it’s probably gone viral on TikTok.
With over 2 billion downloads, this short-form video app boasting dance trends, food challenges, and music overlays is a force to be reckoned with. It’s a never-ending variety talent show keeping people entertained – even more so with quarantine measures. Gone are the days of dancing in front of your bedroom mirror belting out Beyoncé into your hairbrush. Today, people’s smartphones are their stage, and everyone is watching.
And whilst the thought of inflicting my awkward dancing on complete strangers unnerves me, it doesn’t matter. I’m not the main target audience. In fact, fast approaching 30, I’m considered by many to be ‘too old for TikTok’, with the platform’s popularity surging among teens and Generation Z. This has caught brands’ attention who want a piece of the action.
But TikTok has its own language and doesn’t follow the same curated content formula as other platforms. Firstly, sound is searchable, allowing users to scroll through similar videos where people have put their own spin on the sound. Adding hashtags can also be a powerful tool to promote engagement and help the content appear in users’ feeds. But the most trending tags are far from the conventional ones that accompany your typical social content calendar – think #ForYourPage rather than #FeelGoodFriday.
Secondly, content really is king. Unlike YouTube or social media’s darling – Instagram – even accounts with hardly any followers can get millions of views. But you can’t appeal to everyone. The trick is to hone in on a clearly defined audience and think about the type of content they’ll engage with. Partnering with the right content creators with an active following can help boost a brand’s profile, but the same rules apply. Their audience must match your target market and try to allow as much creative freedom as possible, so the partnership feels authentic.
Finally, TikTok has a huge trend culture. From the ‘Renegade’ dance to cooking hacks to small dogs carrying big sticks – anything goes. If current trends aren’t the right fit, brands can create their own and it’s often the most basic and fun concepts that are the most successful.
But not every brand is built to quickly jump on trends or poke fun at itself. The trick is knowing when it’s not the right fit and not forcing it – a bit like a great pair of jeans (force it, and you’ll regret it afterwards).
Turning a blind eye to opportunities, jumping on a hashtag because everyone else is, adopting social media platforms that don’t suit your brand personality – none of this is strategic. Knowing your brand means being realistic about which trends are relevant and which aren’t. But to know that means being willing to step outside your comfort zone and being open to new platforms like TikTok.
Brand engagement agency R&T (Richmond & Towers) has been appointed by Brooklyn Brewery to oversee its social media presence in the UK. Following on from a successful year of leading UK PR for Brooklyn Brewery – which saw the launch of its new pilsner – R&T has won the brand’s… Read more
Are you ready to dive into the latest consumer behaviour trends? With the world around us continuing to evolve at pace, it’s more important than ever to keep up with what consumers are thinking, feeling and doing right now – and take a step back to consider the effect this… Read more
Get set to read up on the latest (and tastiest) goings on in the fast-evolving world of PR and social media. November has been a juicy month, so we recommend you grab yourself a snack and a cuppa (or suitable drink of choice depending on the time you’re reading this,… Read more
Being 4”11 with a wardrobe full of VAT-free clothing, my parents drummed it into me from a young age that size doesn’t matter. Rather, “good things come in small packages” which was this year’s unofficial mantra at Fruit Logistica 2020 – the world’s largest fresh produce event.
From mini melons to baby bananas, small
is king. I’d even go so far as to call them cute, had I not spent 27 years
perfecting my death stare for anyone who dared describe me in this way. But the
truth is, people around the world are increasingly opting for food they can eat
on-the-go with zero waste. It’s no longer a new year’s resolution, it’s a way
of life.
The size of the UK snacking market
is hard to determine because everyone measures it differently: do you include
confectionery, an apple grabbed from the corner shop, or only savoury snacks? Even
though we can’t agree on the exact size, analysts are unanimous that it’s one
area growing faster than all the others, with Brits snacking 8.3 times a week,
compared with 3.8 times in France and 3.1 times in China[1].
Coupled with global sustainability concerns, there is a huge opportunity for
fresh produce to come centre stage with a solution that is healthy,
environmentally-friendly and convenient.
That’s where branding can change
the fresh produce game. Gone are the days when growers could rely on just good
quality and smooth logistics. Whilst they remain important, the equity of a
visible and well-executed brand gives a point of difference on retailers’
shelves and a stamp of quality that shoppers recognise.
G’s Fresh Group’s marinated beet
snacks, Love Beets, is a case in point. With a packaging design inspiring
people to eat healthy, fresh beetroot, our ‘Live Colourfully’ campaign mirrored
the branding and has made Love Beets the nation’s must-have accessory via
non-stop national coverage, thumb-stopping social content and an urban lunch
makeover at King’s Cross station.
With the undeniable growth in
snacking, brands don’t want to be portrayed as purveyors of salt, sugar and
fat. All these big boys are starting to get very worried, and it’s quite
possible that with the right branding, the likes of mini melons could be the
ones to take them on.
[1]
Kantar (2018 data)
Brand engagement agency R&T (Richmond & Towers) has been appointed by Brooklyn Brewery to oversee its social media presence in the UK. Following on from a successful year of leading UK PR for Brooklyn Brewery – which saw the launch of its new pilsner – R&T has won the brand’s… Read more
Are you ready to dive into the latest consumer behaviour trends? With the world around us continuing to evolve at pace, it’s more important than ever to keep up with what consumers are thinking, feeling and doing right now – and take a step back to consider the effect this… Read more
Get set to read up on the latest (and tastiest) goings on in the fast-evolving world of PR and social media. November has been a juicy month, so we recommend you grab yourself a snack and a cuppa (or suitable drink of choice depending on the time you’re reading this,… Read more
Goat yoga. Forest bathing. Cow cuddling – honestly, Google it. These are just some of the latest trends that promise to improve our health and wellness (whilst simultaneously making a dent in our bank account). Funny that.
It’s
little wonder then, that consumers are increasingly cynical about products that
promise to deliver ‘wellness’. And who can blame them? One cow cuddling website
suggests it’s like a giant fluffy hot water bottle. I’ll stick to the hot water
bottle, thanks.
In
communications terms, confusion surrounding what wellness means could cause food
and drink marketing campaigns centred on the concept to fall on deaf ears
unless brands clearly define – and back with science – how their products
support consumers’ health. People want to know how their food and drink is
made, the nutritional value and how it will help them achieve a better sense of
wellbeing.
But in an industry besieged by strong competition, it can be tempting for some manufacturers to walk the tightrope between truth and a questionable claim to help make the product stand out from competitors. This is a dangerous game. There are strict rules that govern what is and isn’t permitted when it comes to making health and nutritional claims about products. Remember when Pret breached the advertising code, claiming its products were good natural food, when many contained artificial additives? Take the word ‘natural’, for example – it can mean different things to different people. Pret should’ve better articulated why the brand is natural in more than one all-encompassing claim. That’s where credibility in communications comes into play.
At the core of
any successful food and drink marketing campaign is research to back up your
claims. This is familiar territory for Richmond &
Towers, following the successful launch of Vega®, North America’s number one
plant-based protein brand, into the UK. The account team spent more than a year
preparing for the brand’s arrival, working closely with Vega®’s team of
registered nutritionists to define the UK messaging and tone of voice, and
craft a strapline that would convey a holistic, balanced and inclusive approach
to health and wellbeing. The result was ‘Fuel Your Feel Good’ – a comms message
that played out through in-store channels, as well as PR and digital.
Another example is Richmond & Towers’ recent work with English Apples & Pears to launch our An Apple A Day campaign. Why? Because we worked with Tom Sanders, Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, King’s College London, to provide strong nutritional evidence that we should all enjoy an apple a day. The review identified key health messages that we can confidently communicate to media and consumers.
With
the global market for health and wellness set to reach £632bn by 2021, there is
an undeniable opportunity to leverage health credentials in integrated
campaigns[1].
However, the brands that win shoppers’ trust and avoid scepticism will be those
that root their messaging in strong, substantiated claims. Because, when you’re
told cuddling a cow can help embrace the zen, it’s difficult to know what to
believe…
[1]
Euromonitor International, 2018
Brand engagement agency R&T (Richmond & Towers) has been appointed by Brooklyn Brewery to oversee its social media presence in the UK. Following on from a successful year of leading UK PR for Brooklyn Brewery – which saw the launch of its new pilsner – R&T has won the brand’s… Read more
Are you ready to dive into the latest consumer behaviour trends? With the world around us continuing to evolve at pace, it’s more important than ever to keep up with what consumers are thinking, feeling and doing right now – and take a step back to consider the effect this… Read more
Get set to read up on the latest (and tastiest) goings on in the fast-evolving world of PR and social media. November has been a juicy month, so we recommend you grab yourself a snack and a cuppa (or suitable drink of choice depending on the time you’re reading this,… Read more