Blank Street, beyond the rainbow and brand labels | Vol.8

Welcome to your latest dose of Vit EE, from the team here at Edson Evers. This month our social media and digital experts have been looking at the effective website traffic campaign from coffee company Blank Street and the importance of clear labelling on incentivised influencer social posts. The PR team have looked at the quick reactions from the Ikea marketing team following the MET gala and our creative lead takes a look back at some of the top Pride month marketing campaigns as we head into Pride 2024.

Read on to find out more...

Ikea show how effective it is to be quick off the mark, with its MET gala inspired promotion

Staying relevant in a constantly changing market is essential for brands, as we’ve discussed before being quick to react and keeping on top of current trends is essential.

We recently saw a fantastic example of this at the renowned MET gala. The MET Gala is an annual event which takes place in New York, it’s seen as the world's most prestigious and glamorous fashion event, where the biggest celebrity names come together to showcase some of the most unique and spectacular outfits.

This year saw a very unique outfit from singer/rapper Dojo Cat, who wore a white bath towel wrapped round her body with a large label on the side, with a matching towel around her head, and make up which appeared if she had mascara running down her face. It definitely got people talking!

Swedish furniture brand Ikea was quick off the mark and only days after the event it created an advert which featured a woman in a white bath towel wrapped around her body with a similar towel on her head and the tag on the towel read, “DOJA,”. Posted on the UK Ikea Instagram page it was a great play on the much talked about outfit worn by Doja Cat at the gala and with over 13.5K likes and press coverage globally, it was a fantastic example of how to tap into one of the most talked about events in fashion!

If you want to stay on top of the latest news and trends, we can help. Get in touch today to see how we can help your PR activity.

Top 3 Pride marketing campaigns to inspire yours ?????

Pride Month often sees a in surge in rainbow-inspired marketing campaigns, many of which have been heavily criticised for their 'rainbow capitalism'. But this Pride Month, we're taking a look at the brands that have executed impactful Pride marketing campaigns and those that incorporate 'pride' into their campaigns 24/7.

1. Converse – Proud to be

The campaign promotes authenticity, self-expression and unique identity by embracing the voices of various LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies, which emphasises the diverse experiences within the community. Along with authentic representation using influencers, inclusive design is used in each pair of sneakers, illuminating individuality. Plus, they are available in gender-neutral sizing, extending inclusivity to all consumers. The collection is dedicated to the resilience of queer trailblazers standing in the power of being themselves unapologetically.

2. H&M – Beyond the rainbow

The 2021 campaign aimed to inspire individuals to share their own stories and support the core values of diversity, equality and transparency which are the heart of Pride. Customers and fans could access the stories by scanning any rainbow flag, and could add Instagram filters and share their own stories on social media through the web app. The campaign went beyond surface-level representation to delve into the history and symbolism of the Pride flag, educating the audience. By using real voices from the community, it creates a genuine narrative, adding to the awareness of the campaign.

3. Levi’s – How do you show up?

Last year's campaign launched by Levi’s is a poignant testament to self-expression and authenticity, which features a diverse cast who globally represent LGBTQIA+ individuals. It emphasises the importance of “showing up for yourself”, which empowers you to “show up for your community”. The cast are living as their most authentic selves, and want to pass that onto the audience, which isn’t just surface level as the company make a hefty donation of $100,000 annually to Outright International, an organisation working to advance LGBTQIA+ rights globally.

(Website) traffic in Blank Street

3pm in the office has a new meaning…an afternoon slump that can be quickly resolved with a little treat. The bitter reality of the economy has created a 'little treat' culture where millennials and Gen-Z purchase a small treat to escape 'a decaying empire'.

The hashtag #littletreat has over 3 million views on TikTok, a modern version of a 'Kit Kat Break', where people rally together for a Diet Coke from the vending machine, or a trip to the nearest overpriced latte factory, just to feel something.

Blank Street, a 'cult fave' coffee shop, with its gorgeous greens and minimal branding, aims to beat the 3pm slump with 'Meetings for Matcha', an initiative where customers can send a fake meeting invite and sneak out for matcha.

Blank Street, launched in 2020 has scaled its business from a small coffee cart in Brooklyn to 60 stores worldwide but, they were facing some criticism about the taste of their coffee (not good for a coffee shop). So they pivoted to promoting matcha and created unique flavours to stand out from the crowd.

Amassing over 19 million views under #BlankStreet on TikTok, website traffic may seem irrelevant to a coffee shop, but there was a 500% increase in users to the website from March to May 2024 (UK). It's the perfect combination of digital and in-person, and Blank Street knows exactly how to create a buzz in a busy office. Targeting a diverse group of working professionals, working away at their computers and looking for something to rejuvenate their afternoon is an excellent way to increase footfall.

Their seafoam green branding dominates every corner of the internet and this campaign coincided with the release of new flavours and store openings, boosting chatter and interest across the globe.

It's easy for me to say think outside the box but sometimes, simple is best. Sometimes all you need to do is fine-tune a big idea. Ask yourself questions like, Who is our target audience? Where do they spend the majority of their week? Which device is your website most often accessed by? What times and days are people most active? This information tells a story and can act as a guide to your imagination.

When two letters make all the difference - the importance of #AD

If you're on social media, you will have most likely seen the hashtags #AD, #gifted or the 'Paid Partnership' tag used in an influencer's caption.

A few years back, it may have looked like a blatant way for some creators to show off their latest goodies from their favourite brands, but today it's a necessary requirement for influencers to clearly label how they've been incentivised to post in the clearest, most obvious way.

The ASA, or Advertising Standards Authority, has been hot on the heels of influencers not disclosing their material connection with brands over the years, and in the past few weeks, some particularly high-profile cases have brought this important topic to the forefront once again.

The growth of the influencer market has seen these once small creators grow to a level of 'celebrity status', where their avid followers rush to buy the products they promote in their thousands. In more recent years, these same influencers have gone on to launch their very own brands, often capturing exactly what their audience wants and promoting it to them via their channels - something no brand could ever truly replicate.

And with this rise in influencer-led brands, the need for clearer labelling of incentivised posts has become even more important...

For those of us who spend time on social media regularly, we'll be able to spot a paid partnership or gifted post a mile off. But for those not as au fait with influencer content and are more vulnerable, such as young children on the apps, they may not be able to notice when a creator has partnered with a brand or is just generally impressed with a product or service.

For this reason, the ASA created a set of rules that influencers must put into practice to ensure that whenever someone views their content, they can clearly see that they have been incentivised to post. Of course, that's the #AD and #Gifted labels, and some social platforms have even created their own built-in labels to ensure there are no blurred lines.

From an agency perspective, when working with influencers, we ensure that the creators we work with always include the correct labelling in their content - it must be the first thing a user sees when they read the caption.

From the contract to our correspondence with the influencer, this is something we are very aware of on behalf of our clients.

We stay up to date with all the latest influencer news and guidance to ensure we provide the best partnerships for our clients, and if you'd like to discuss an influencer campaign with us, get in touch today!