MediaCat Weekly #40 — YouTube audiences, the phygital realm, and online avatars

Welcome to MediaCat Weekly, our short and sweet newsletter featuring some top stories from the past week, recent conversations, and a round-up of industry news.

This week marks the beginning of our October theme, 'Out of Touch'. In 2016 ThinkBox’s ‘Ad Nation’ study found a chasm between media consumption habits and how media professionals think people act. In 2022 they updated their findings, but the trend continues, and the debate on the differences between the public and the ad industry rumbles on. So, this month, we ask just how out of touch are marketers and media with people?

Enjoy the issue and make sure you listen to our October playlist, curated by Editor Mike Piggott.

YouTube is big, but context is key

By Doug Whelpdale

YouTube is impressive in scale — across 4-screens it was 17.4% of Total Identified Viewing in August this year. Only behind all BBC linear channels and BBC iPlayer combined at 22.7%. The picture is different if we restrict to TV screens where YouTube’s share drops to 8.9%, but this scale is one reason why Barb have measured YouTube since late 2021, and why it is important to remind ourselves what Barb data can tell the industry about YouTube audiences. Barb data reveal the devices people use to watch and what the people, who make up that big audience, like and dislike.

Read the article

Self-expression, fashion and online avatars

By Paul White

Not so long ago, online avatars might have been considered a niche interest; the remit of ‘geeks’ (is that even a thing anymore?) and teenagers who should ‘get outside more’, but now, they’re everywhere. Apple has them. Facebook has them. Fortnite, Roblox and VRChat have them. And of course, there are Bitmoji on Snapchat.

Like it or not, online avatars are now mainstream. If you think about it, representations of the self have actually been something we’ve been interested in as humans for thousands, if not tens of thousands of years. Figurative cave paintings are meeting the exact same need as your Xbox avatar. And of course, with representations of the self, fashion is sure to follow.

Read the article

How luxury fashion can preserve its value in the digital age

By Yasmina Stitou

The luxury industry is undergoing a radical transformation. In an era where the lines between virtual and physical experiences are increasingly blurred, luxury fashion is standing at a crossroads. The industry is faced with balancing its heritage of exclusivity and craftsmanship with the pressures of digital innovation, sustainability concerns, and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). The future of luxury fashion lies in the phygital realm — a seamless integration of physical and digital experiences — and for brands to remain relevant and maintain their luxury value, they must embrace this shift.

Read the article

News

• On 30 September, WARC published its annual Future of Strategy report, revealing the top challenges and opportunities for marketing strategists worldwide. According to the findings, strategists must ‘demonstrate their value’ as budget cuts and AI developments transform the industry. read
• On 2 October, the independent creative agency Exposure announced the launch of a new creative technology company, Everything Ahead. The new company is part of The Casbah Group (founded by Raoul Shah and Tim Bourne) and was created to help brands and agencies adopt emerging technologies amid rapid developments in AI. read
• The online printing service VistaPrint has partnered with the partnership management platform impact.com to expand its reach and engagement with influencers and creators. As part of this partnership, VistaPrint will be able to partner with influencers, manage campaigns and control payments through impact.com’s creator partnership platform, impact.com/creator. read

Seen elsewhere

• Tech: Pinterest is the latest tech company to roll out generative AI products to its advertisers, following similar moves by Google, Amazon, and others. At its Pinterest Presents advertiser event on Tuesday, the company unveiled new features for its Pinterest Performance+ suite, which includes both automation and AI. The latter which will now allow advertisers to turn white, blank, or flat backgrounds into lifestyle imagery. (Tech Crunch)
• Media: Reuters and CNN have both announced on the same day that they will introduce a metered paywall on their websites. Both news outlets are rolling out a digital subscription model that will see users able to read an as-yet undisclosed number of articles per month before being asked to subscribe. (Press Gazette)
• Brands: Bloom & Wild urges people to consider their approach to buying gifts after a baby arrives, and is encouraging more people to buy gifts later on. The new advert created by The Or encourages friends and family to show their love and support further down the line when new parents often feel at their most isolated. (Marketing Beat)
• Media: WPP’s Mindshare appears to be the biggest winner in Unilever’s global media review, adding commerce media previously handled by Publicis Groupe to its duties handling the general U.S. media business. (Ad Age)
• Brands: Levi’s stars world famous singer Beyoncé in its newest advert, the move follows on from the release of ‘Levii’s Jeans’, a track from the iconic 2024 album ‘Cowboy Carter”. Drawing on the iconic status held by Beyoncé, the campaign – entitled ‘Reimagine’ – takes its inspiration from a range of classic Levi’s looks and films, with the first film inspired by the hit 1985 Levi’s advert ‘Launderette’. (Marketing Beat)

For more of our content in your inbox, sign up to MediaCat Monthly - a round-up of our best stories every month.