Amid the current situation, Facebook will now be running a weekly COVID-19 webinar, called COVID LIVE. As a Facebook Premier Partner, we are provided with weekly updates and consumer trend insights which we will summarise and circulate with our current customer base.
Please find below the key developments from this week’s COVID-19 Facebook webinar.
1. Uncertainty is growing, but so is the opportunity to help.
With the progression with COVID-19 situation and its impact on the economy, we have also recorded a substantial lag of that impact on personal finances. However, with the time passing and the uncertainty continuing this lag is expected to get shorter over the next few weeks.
The question that most of the brands are therefore asking themselves is shall they continue to advertise or not. When consumers were asked their opinion on that matter, 29% of UK online adults strongly / somewhat disagreed that brands should carry on advertising as normal. However, a global study by Kantar shows that brands should only keep advertising, but they should also change their messaging to focus more on helping people rather than polishing their price proposition.
Further research by Pattern89, Facebook’s partner revealed also a big shift in the imagery used by brands over the past week. There was a 27% drop in imagery showcasing social-interactions, while the imagery and words around fitness and health increased by 400% just last week. Another shift saw an increased usage of imagery showcasing electronics which was shown to relate more closely to consumers and their current situation.
So what does that mean for you? Think about how you can actively help your consumers, how you can relate to their needs and their current situation.
2. 18-34 least impacted physically, most impacted socially.
When asked about their feeling of getting infected, only 52% of UK’s 18-24-year-olds expressed fear, with that number dropping to 39% in Germany. However, they are also finding staying at home the hardest. The age gap becomes even larger when it comes to keeping entertained, which is why we have seen a significant increase in the number of movies being watched, specifically by this age group.
Interestingly, it looks like the relief can come from shopping for some people. 18-34-year-olds have increased their online spend on clothes by 9% over that 2 weeks both in the UK and in Germany.
So what does that mean for you? It is a clear opportunity for brands and you should explore how to support and entertain customers within that age group.
3. Collaborations cutting through
Interest in going Live is growing on both Facebook and Instagram. What are the benefits of going live? First of all, everyone who follows you is instantly notified about it. You are also able to have an immediate interaction with the audience and it allows you to stay authentic and more up-to-date with your content. Brands are also starting to move into the live space through collaboration. It allows for speed of production (especially now when you may not be able to produce video content), immediate cultural relevancy in messaging and communication and immediate scale. Collaboration can start organically and then be amplified through different voices across both platforms.
So what does that mean for you? Consider if you can go live to connect with your audience and whether collaboration could be your key to Live production at speed.
4. The biggest ever driver of digital transformation
COVID-19 already had a huge impact on our purchasing behaviour and how we consume media. But the influence does not stop there. YouGov UK reported 52% freer organisation of working time and 76% of employees being happier with working from home due to no commute. And yes, we are living in a time of physical distancing but we are also more socially connected than ever before. People are using new technology and they will not go back.
So what does that mean for you? This is year zero – this situation will change society forever, so think what shifts is your company making, both internally and externally.
