Before COVID-19 hit, marketing through video was already in an upward trend, and historically we know that storytelling sells. But also historically, we have seen brands try to establish connections with their customers through highly produced, beautiful looking advertising. Since the pandemic, we have watched brands across every industry try adjust to the new normal along with the rest of us. Commercials get made with actors over Zoom, ads are released that are totally digitized with no filming required, and some brands have recycled old ad content or dusted off never-released ads in order to maintain some presence and remain top-of-mind with consumers during this time. But another trend is emerging, and that is DIY marketing.
We are in a time when some of our basic needs are at cross-purposes. We are unable to do many things in person, and therefore need digital solutions to help us stay home and safe, but at the same time we crave connection now more than ever, and that is difficult to achieve in a virtual environment. What I have noticed, personally, is that I feel more drawn in by advertising that is relatable and doesn’t feel removed from our global shared circumstances. In other words, when I see a commercial made on zoom, or ad ad with crowd-sourced UGC, and our circumstance is recognized, it doesn’t feel tone-deaf. The marketing story seems authentic, and it is good to see brands meeting me where I am rather than showing me something that I cannot have, given the state of things.
The American Marketing Association (AMA) and video marketing leaders like Wyzowl and others have gathered insights to confirm that video is vital to modern marketing strategy and only growing in popularity and necessity. It is also clear that ad spending has increased since the onset of COVID-19, particularly in video. Given the statistics, might it be optimal for brands to reallocate a higher percentage of their ad spend to DIY marketing? Or should they keep spending ad dollars on high production value ads? DIY marketing is a space where production is cheaper and safer, and the stories generated/collected can be much more authentic and relevant to the times than traditional advertising. AMA has provided some great tips and guidance on how to optimize and execute DIY marketing (shared in sources), making the idea that anyone can be a DIY marketer with the right tools more digestible. Whether it's crowd-sourced UGC or internally generated content, brands can use the style of DIY marketing to set more of a "we're all in this together" tone with their customers.
My thought is that maybe we don’t need all the bells and whistles in this moment. Maybe what we need is a collective shared “scrappiness”, and with extra ad dollars to spend, brands have an opportunity to set the scrappy, relatable tone, while executing campaigns with expert precision in targeting and storytelling.
Sources:
https://www.wyzowl.com/coronavirus-marketing-statistics/
https://www.ama.org/marketing-news/diy-video/
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