Today in Digital Marketing - What Brands Should Say After the Death of a Monarch

Starting point is 00:00:00 Today, Meta stays silent on why they're running confusing ads for brands without their permission. Also, what does your brand say when a monarch dies? Some industry analysis on TikTok's latest ad placements. One company opens up their ad shop in the metaverse. And Instagram is thinking about copying the retweet button. It's Friday, September 9th. I'm Todd Maffin. Here's what you missed today in digital marketing. We start with an update on this story we've been following all week. Meta, as you may remember, has been running real ads under the Facebook page of other brands.

Starting point is 00:00:35 What seems to be happening is they're picking brands which have advertised in the past, then, without the brand's knowledge or permission, running ads for them with creative that the brands didn't approve, body copy they didn't write, and metrics they don't have access to. It's not clear why Meta's doing this, or why they didn't communicate this to brands before, or more importantly, why they didn't ask brands if it was okay to do this. There's been no formal announcement, only a help page on their site. We're not even sure if this help page is related to all this. There's been no formal announcement, only a help page on their site. We're not even sure if this help page is related to all this. When we contacted Meta's media relations, they told us they thought it was a bug. So, absent of any official word, we turned to two places,

Starting point is 00:01:15 Meta's account managers and Twitter. On the former, unofficial word is that some changes to this apparent program may be happening. First, they might be changing the ads to show as coming from the brand's page rather than from Facebook's page, which was terribly confusing for consumers. Second, they might be seeking approval to run these ads now on a case-by-case basis. Third, they might be adding in basic UTMs to their ads, so you'll be able to see performance in external tracking. You'll notice I said might a lot because, as I mentioned, Meta remains completely silent on this. We get these tidbits through a source that I trust who spoke off the record to their account manager.

Starting point is 00:01:55 Second source, Twitter. There are some Meta engineers on Twitter, and the tweets I saw yesterday from those people were, well, less than helpful. One Meta person who didn't seem to understand the concerns about brand perception or creative control said, it's great for clients, free demand generation. I replied telling him about the advertiser we interviewed yesterday who told us this move by Meta, which they didn't want, actually caused them to breach a contract with an influencer. That meta-engineer responded by blocking me. We again asked today for a spokesperson to provide details about what they're doing or even some speaking points about this apparent program.

Starting point is 00:02:35 We did not hear back by deadline. By now you've probably seen some stark marketing examples of how not to respond to the death of a monarch. In this time of international mourning, many brands, influencers and celebrities are tempted to make a statement, whether royalists or not. But is it necessary? According to Tanya Joseph, a Marketing Week columnist, it's not. Quoting a piece from her, in my opinion, a period of dignified silence is required when it comes to public communication. Do we really need to see a social post from a pet grooming service or manufacturers of toothpicks expressing sorrow at the loss of her majesty? I think for holders

Starting point is 00:03:17 of the royal warrant with her household or organizations of which she was a patron, it is slightly different. There is a relationship which can be acknowledged, unquote. A royal warrant, by the way, is an indication that the organization provides services to the royal family. While the death of Her Majesty may not resonate as strongly outside the Commonwealth, for British brands, of course, there's a lot to think about. The British trade body for brand owners recommends that agencies discuss the appropriateness of campaign plans with clients during the mourning period, while the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising is encouraging advertisers to stay up to date on government mourning guidelines. Brands are not required to suspend business during the national mourning period, according to official guidance,

Starting point is 00:03:59 but may consider postponing or cancelling events on the day of the Queen's state funeral. Can TikTok's new ad suite save Christmas? We recently reported that TikTok is releasing a suite of new ad options ahead of the holiday season. If you need a refresh, those three new shoppable ad formats are video shopping ads, catalog listing ads, and live shopping ads. Digiday has a great piece up today looking at what this means for brands, advertisers, and influencers. Quoting their piece, The new shopping ads provide advertisers with a way to promote one or more products in their in-feed video ads to amplify their products, similar to the way Facebook approaches its in-feed ads. Using the tool, called video shopping ads, brands can showcase their shoppable videos to users who are more likely to buy them, as well as create a landing page for those advertised products. The ads will generate a score that determines how likely a user is to purchase, unquote. Digiday that the platform's new ad offering can help navigate rough holiday seasons, especially after last year when a number of issues plagued the shopping season,

Starting point is 00:05:08 such as supply chain shortages, iOS updates, and platform volatility overall. The article also points out that this holiday season, marketers predict inventory issues will be a big problem, which is something they should consider with shoppable ads. Do you have business insurance? If not, how would you pay to recover from a cyber attack, fire damage, theft, or a lawsuit? No business or profession is risk-free. Without insurance, your assets are at risk

Starting point is 00:05:37 from major financial losses, data breaches, and natural disasters. Get customized coverage today, starting at $19 per month at zensurance.com. Be protected. Be Zen. From TikTok ads to Roblox,

Starting point is 00:05:52 the online gaming platform announcing today it will launch an advertising platform next year and will soon start testing new types of 3D immersive ads. According to Adweek, the company will be experimenting

Starting point is 00:06:04 with a couple of new ad formats, including billboards, which will be static images dynamically placed on billboards or plastered onto buildings within a metaverse world, and portal ads, which will function as portals that transport users to a separate branded experience. The company's already begun testing this with Vans and Warner Brothers. According to Richard Simm, Roblox's senior product director for monetization, the ad platform's creators worked to make its ads blend seamlessly into the worlds in which they're placed, while making it easier for developers to use. The platform will also offer advertisers some basic targeting parameters.

Starting point is 00:06:42 Simm also explains some plans for brand safety. First, the ad platform will function as a walled garden, never directing users to websites outside its virtual worlds. The company is also vowing to not use third-party tracking or data gathering like other social networks might. And finally, ads will only be shown to those who are 13 years of age or older. In terms of revenue, Roblox said it will share ad revenue with the developers of the experiences and games within which they're placed, but declined to reveal exact terms. You might be able to finally get rid of that third-party Instagram repost app now.

Starting point is 00:07:23 Instagram has confirmed it's working on a repost feature that will let brands and social marketers reshare other users' posts and reels. The platform told TechCrunch it is exploring the ability to reshare posts in feed, similar to how you can reshare stories. And by using the tool, original creators will be credited for their work. According to screenshots we've seen, the new tool features a reposts tab alongside other tabs on your profile like posts, reels, tagged photos, and so on.

Starting point is 00:07:53 It's likely this new tab will be home to all the content that users have reshared on their accounts. Instagram says it will start testing repost with select users soon. New to tweet campaigns or need a refresher? Twitter has announced a new series of business marketing workshops as part of its Flight School education program. The courses are free and will focus on two areas. First, how to establish your business on Twitter.

Starting point is 00:08:21 This looks at how to make best use of Twitter's more recent business additions, like professional profiles, shops, and so on. Thank you. You can do that and get more information at twitterflightschool.com. So if you have news you think our listeners should know about, something your company's launched or whatever, let us know on our news page todayindigital.com slash tips or look for Pitch Us a Story in the show notes. That'll do it for the week. Today in digital marketing is produced by EngageQ Digital on the traditional territories of the Tsunamik First Nation on Vancouver Island. Our associate producer is Steph Gunn. Production coordinator, Sarah Guild. Podcast music licensing by Source Audio. Ad coordination by Red Circle.

Starting point is 00:09:22 And our theme composer, Mark Blavis, is deep in thought about this whole meta phantom ads thing. I asked him what he thought about it. He was confused, too. He told me, I got to take a little time, a little time to think things over, and I better read between the lines in case I need it when I'm older. I'm Todd Maffin. Have a restful weekend, friends.

Starting point is 00:09:39 I'll see you on Monday. My heart's calling I'm free-falling Straight down to a little listener you on Monday. It's the season for new styles and you love to shop for jackets and boots. So when you do, always make sure you get cash back from Rakuten. And it's not just clothing and shoes. You can get cash back from over 750 stores on electronics, holiday travel, home decor, and more. It's super easy.

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Today in Digital Marketing - What Brands Should Say After the Death of a Monarch

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