We know many of you are personally impacted by COVID-19, and hope you, your teams, and your families are healthy and well. We appreciate that you’ve chosen to spend your time and attention with us as we all continue to navigate and monitor these circumstances. As we all prepare to take on the challenges surrounding the physical, emotional and mental health impacts of COVID-19, we feel it is our responsibility at Mavrck to put the needs of the collective above all else and #CreateForGood. We hope you will join us in this mission, and we look forward to continuing the conversation together.

March 19, 2020: The impact of COVID-19 on the influencer marketing industry; Social media platforms respond to COVID-19; fitness influencers host at-home workouts; collab houses still business-as-usual; esports gain momentum

Here’s what’s worth knowing this week:

 

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Influencer Marketing Industry

The Story

Consumer, marketer and influencer behavior is shifting as a result of COVID-19. Today, we hosted a webinar discussing how these new challenges have also resulted in new opportunities for marketers to engage creators and consumers thoughtfully and authentically. ICYMI – you can check out the webinar here. 

Give me the TLDR.

We surveyed over 254 creators and influencers from our Creator Advisory Board and discovered that only 25% of influencers have decreased their presence on social media in response to COVID-19, leaving 75% who have kept their presence the same or increased it. 

In addition, 47% of influencers recommend that brands focus their current influencer marketing strategy around COVID-19, yet 88% of influencers have not witnessed any brands utilizing influencers to help share information or aid relief for COVID-19. 

What are influencers saying?

“People are anxious and are looking for sources of comfort. As influencers, we have the ability to provide that to large groups of people. And not only that, I feel it is our social responsibility to do so. Our communities rely on us for everything from entertainment to advice to overall well-being.” 

— Jeremy Scott Foster of @TravelFreak

STC POV

This is a period of unprecedented circumstances, but not one we’re entirely unprepared to manage. Brands have an opportunity to adopt influencer strategies during social distancing by shifting to #CreateForGood themed campaign concepts, utilizing influencers to inform, inspire, donate, teach, craft and uplift. Additionally, brands have the opportunity to activate influencers beyond just creating content and can utilize influencers to gather ratings, reviews or research. 

For more ideas for more brands to align with creators during COVID-19, see our top 10 thought-starters and campaign concepts here. 

Social Media Platforms React to COVID-19

The Story

A group of the biggest tech companies in the U.S. say they have banded together in a commitment to fight coronavirus-related fraud and misinformation. The group includes Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter and YouTube. All seven companies sent out a joint statement Monday night announcing the effort. 

What did they say?

“We are working closely together on COVID-19 response efforts. We’re helping millions of people stay connected while also jointly combating fraud and misinformation about the virus, elevating authoritative content on our platforms, and sharing critical updates in coordination with government healthcare agencies around the world. We invite other companies to join us as we work to keep our communities healthy and safe.”  

Sooo, how is each platform responding?

Other platforms have stepped up to the plate too.

  • Snapchat: Snapchat has prohibited partners from sharing misinformation, relying on its closed platform to prevent false news hoaxes that other platforms, like Facebook, have fallen victim to. Snapchat is also highlighting health information shared by its verified Discover partners, like The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and CNN
  • TikTok: Just yesterday, TikTok announced a new content partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) and hosted a live-stream from WHO where users were able to ask questions of experts.

STC POV

As COVID-19 continues to impact society at large, technology platforms have unique opportunities to be at the front lines fighting misinformation and amplifying credible sources and factual information. 

 

At Home Workouts, FTW

The Story

During a time when the majority of gyms are closed indefinitely and millions of people are facing their new realities of at-home life, fitness brands and influencers have come together to provide live-streaming and on-demand workouts.

Give me some examples. 

  • Lululemon x Gabby Bernstein: Although Lululemon has temporarily closed all of its retail locations, that’s not stopping the brand from staying top-of-mind during this time. Lululemon has continued to live its community-driven mission by tapping one of its Global Ambassadors, Gabby Bernstein, to host a meditation on the brand’s IG Live. Leading up to the event, both the brand and Gabby drove awareness by posting about the upcoming session, encouraging followers to tune in and follow the brand for more ways Lululemon plans to bring workout offerings online.
  • Macro-Influencer Melissa Wood-Tepperberg: Melissa Wood-Tepperberg’s on-demand streaming workouts already have a cult-like following and now, her following is expanding even more with subscription sales up 10 percent for the first two weeks in March. Wood-Tepperberg, and many other fitness influencers who own their own fitness studios or brands, have started leveraging Instagram Live to open up workouts to the public, resulting in not only new followers, but paying customers, as well.
  • Micro-Influencer and Equinox Pilates & Fitness Instructor Ali Baldassare: At the micro-influencer level, boston-based Equinox pilates & fitness instructor Ali Baldassare of @mslali1 has begun offering up daily live Instagram classes to replace her in-person fitness classes she teaches. No equipment is necessary for her workouts, allowing everyone at home the opportunity to participate. Like many other micro-influencers who have now started offering live workout classes on IG, Ali asks her followers to contribute what they are comfortable with ($1, $2, $5, etc.) for each class through Venmo.

STC POV

Even before the COVID-19 outbreak and necessary social distancing, at-home fitness services were picking up momentum — and now for many, it’s the main way they are getting exercise. As a result, this has driven demand for new content and many fitness influencers have begun capitalizing on that need, as seen above. 

As fitness influencers continue to crank out new workouts — both live-streamed and on-demand —we could begin to see a shift away from Instagram Live towards YouTube, as YouTube is more easily accessible and synced with smart TVs. As well, YouTube allows for live videos up to 12 hours, where Instagram Live only supports videos for up to one hour. 

Where influencers are already on the front lines of this shift, brands have the opportunity to tap into individuals to host community workouts on brand-owned channels. Create a schedule for the week and activate influencers to host different workouts each day — either on Instagram Live or YouTube Live. 

A couple tips: 

  • Not sure what times are best for your audience? Leverage Instagram Polls to provide your followers with a few different options for class times and plan to have influencers post classes during the most popular times. 
  • For the 24 hours leading up to each class, have the influencer hosting the workout post Instagram Stories encouraging their audience to follow your brand and tune into the live-stream on the brand-owned account.

Collab Houses in a Time of Social Distancing

The Story

COVID-19 has yet to disrupt business-as-usual for influencers who are part of collab houses. 

Remind me, what are collab houses?

Collab houses, also known as content houses, are an established tradition in the influencer world. Over the past five years, influencers have formed a network of hubs across LA. With a purpose of aiding in influencers’ productivity around content creation, collab houses are usually beautiful mansions with lots of natural light, open space and minimal furniture — ideal for content creation. Oftentimes, these houses are located within gated communities and away from neighbors to keep fans away from interrupting the content creation process. In a way, collab houses serve as modern day artist collectives, equal parts WeWork and Airbnb for creators.

So what’s happening now?

More deals and partnerships. Not only are these houses not shutting down, but influencers in these houses claim they are actually seeing more brand deals come in at an accelerated rate — of course, dependent on the industry. 

Health-Ade Kombucha, for instance, is dropping off product and branded refrigerators at two of the collab houses in return for content creation. In addition, influencers are also using this time to double down on the content they create (sponsored or not), as well as exploring new platforms that maybe they otherwise wouldn’t have. 

What’s the industry saying?

“These houses are largely populated by gifted virtual gatherers. They have been piloting engaging with people, their fans, in quarantine from the get-go… If we can rely on influencers for one thing, it’s to get creative with how they use digital platforms to connect and communicate.” – Sarah Unger, SVP of cultural insights at cultural marketing agency Civic

STC POV

During these times where consumers are confined to their homes, screen time and content consumption will be at an all-time high. As everyone seeks to navigate these incredibly difficult times, influencers and creators are uniquely positioned to provide comfort to the masses in ways that brands, agencies and other institutions can’t. Brands have an opportunity to partner with influencers to connect with an audience that is increasingly searching for content to be entertained, uplifted, informed and inspired. 

Esports to Fill the Sports Gap

The Story

With just about every major sporting league and event canceled due to COVID-19, esports have the opportunity to fill the gap. 

Go on…

Even pre-COVID-19, esports have been #trending. Total esports viewership is expected to grow at a 9% CAGR between 2019 and 2023, up from 454 million in 2019 to 646 million in 2023, putting the industry on pace to nearly double over a six-year period. 

This pre-existing growth, coupled with the fact that there are currently no live sports on TV (and people are stuck inside), positions esports to grow even more. China, for instance, has already seen a dramatic increase in the video game industry during the outbreak. Games like League of Legends and Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds have been twice as popular during the last few months as they were during the same period in 2019. 

What’s the industry saying?

“ESPN and Turner have already broadcasted several esports events. Given the circumstances, with March Madness being cancelled and ESPN being a 24-hour sports network, then it makes sense for gaming and esports content to be picked up instead.” – Rod ‘Slasher’ Breslau, esports journalist

STC POV

While Twitch and YouTube are the primary platforms dominating the gaming space, several of the leading social media platforms have also looked to join the space within the last year. Now, more than ever, brands have an opportunity to partner with esports streamers to really understand what resonates with their audiences and how they can become involved in a stream in a creative, non-intrusive way. 

Streamers on Twitch, for instance, rarely see creative brand integrations and most brands who do “partner” with streamers just have a logo on-screen during a stream (think: a brand sponsoring a Nascar driver). 

ICYMI

Publishers put virtual events to the test as in-person gatherings disappear

TikTok Continues to Gain Momentum, But Challenges Remain in Maximizing the App’s Growth

Coronavirus Is Causing Chaos for Travel Influencers