A Look At Pan-African PR and Marketing Trends in 2019
It’s that time of year again when we look back at the past twelve months and plan for what’s to come. In terms of corporate communications and brand marketing, we’ve barely had time to catch our breath as 2019 has passed by at breakneck speed.
The year has been dominated by new social media platforms; changes in influencer marketing approaches and regulations; as well as an increased focus on transparency and trustworthiness from corporates.
As we venture into a new decade full of unknowns, we look back on the trends that have dominated the industry over the past year, and those that are set to continue into the ’20s.
Artificial intelligence and Big Data
Marketing and PR campaigns are rooted in data. While this has always been true, there is now a strong focus on using quantitative data to inform strategies and campaigns.
One of the many benefits of the internet age is that huge amounts of data are now sitting at our fingertips. When presenting a strategy to a potential or existing client, it’s no longer good enough to base the campaign on perceived data and insights – you need to back it up with hard facts and solid insights.
This is also translating to the media. Journalists are after stories that are supported by analyzed data that they can use in turn to inform larger stories. Internationally, we’ve seen decreased levels of trust in the media due to the prevalence of ‘fake news’.
However, the opposite is true for Africa, where news organizations and journalists are often more trusted than governments. People are also engaging more with the news regularly by sharing articles and their views on popular issues on social media.
The impact of Generation Z
Millennials may have been the ones who adopted and created the technology that modern life finds its axis on, but Generation Z was born with access to technology that had been tried and tested by the generation before. Subsequently, they expect everything to be digitized, personalized and optimized.
While the first wave of influencers, most of which are millennials, created hyper-curated and edited Instagram feeds aimed at reaching as many people as possible, Gen-Z is developing minimally edited Tik Tok videos.
According to Sensor Tower, Tik Tok has now been downloaded 1.5 billion times and is outperforming Instagram in terms of new downloads. As the platform is focused on local content and packed with additional features, many see this as a great alternative for young content creators, and it is seeing significant uptake across the African continent, with young Kenyans and Nigerians in particular.
READ: Communication: Is Listening A Skill That Can Be Taught?
While influencer marketing remains a go-to strategy for many brands, this doesn’t look the same as it did a year ago. Rather than working with influencers who have the most followers, brands have over the course of the last year started migrating towards influencers who are the right brand-fit. This involves finding influencers that are already having similar conversations to the brand with their followers and are thus speaking to the right audiences, which means they can convert from interested eyes to customers. Brands are finding more value in influencers with lower reach but higher levels of engagement.
Brand Morality
A trend that piqued everyone’s interest in late 2018 was that of brand morality – brands taking a public stance on important social and environmental issues.
Nike received worldwide attention, both good and bad when it included controversial US football player Colin Kaepernick in an advert while he was protesting against police brutality. The trend continued into 2019 as more brands focused on their environmental impact and started transitioning to renewable packaging.
We’ve also seen brands make social statements in the African context. KFC stood up for the environment by phasing out plastic straws; Unilever committed to making 100 percent of their packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable; and Standard Bank’s chief executive made a public statement condemning xenophobic violence in South Africa.
People are speaking up, organizing, and using their influence to effect change through the most effective means available to them—including influencing their employers to use their influence.
According to the 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer, 75 percent of South African employers believe that their employers need to respond to critical industry, political and national issues. Employees want to work for a company that offers leadership, and one that stands up for them and their shared values.