Inventory: The top ten things in the marketing industry in 2019

2019 is about to end. There is no doubt that this has been a rather confusing year for the marketing industry, but also a year of a surge of opinions in the marketing industry.

From stopping updates on “Weibo, Weibo and Douyin”, to “From KOL to KOC”, to “The huge wave of new consumption”, to “Adidas’ 3 billion lesson”... the impact of various marketing viewpoints just reflects the disorder and change in the marketing industry. We are at a crossroads in the industry, and today may determine where the future will go.

It is not difficult to find that there are fewer screen-sweeping cases in 2019, but there is a lot more anxiety about brand effect. New terms such as growth, traffic, and fission are losing their luster, and the charm of traditional marketing concepts such as brand, user, and values ​​is being re-exposed. AI, which is not far away, may be the real force that subverts the marketing industry.

We have organized the marketing ideas that dominated the screen in 2019 and the timeline of the TOP35 marketing events in 2019 according to the timeline, and tried to discover the "ten best" in the marketing industry in 2019 by reviewing the marketing industry events throughout the year.

The most painful point: KOL issues are the biggest controversy

There were many marketing ideas that dominated the screen in 2019, but based on the popularity of the discussions, it can be found that the most concerned topics in the industry are actually KOL-related topics.

• In March 2019, there was a view that "KOL will replace advertising companies", which triggered heated discussions among Party B personnel;
• As Li Jiaqi gradually became more popular, in July, some media announced Li Jiaqi's advertising fee, and the public found that Li Jiaqi's advertising fee was equivalent to 10 years' salary of an ordinary marketer.
• By mid-August, the buzzword "KOC" appeared in the industry. The growth of brands such as Perfect Diary is inseparable from the help of KOC, and the industry began to discuss the topic of "KOC replacing KOL";
• In October, a "zombie stage play" by a new media giant was exposed, and the issue of KOL's inflated advertising volume was once again brought to the fore.

KOL communication has become the most important link between brands and users. KOL placement has become a marketing skill that brands must master. However, there are many pitfalls in the implementation of KOL placement. The marketing industry's attention to KOL issues exceeds that to new media operations, brand-effect models, new consumption and other issues.

Most anticipated: Corporate brand awareness is being awakened

At the end of October, an article titled “The Brand Lesson Adidas Spent 3 Billion Buying” went viral, and the topic of “brand and effect” was once again activated.

In fact, a few years ago, the marketing industry was impacted by terms such as "growth hacker", "private domain traffic", and "fission marketing". A large number of advertisers put all their marketing budgets on performance advertising. In mid-2019, some industry insiders exclaimed that "the world has suffered from traffic for a long time." With the disappearance of the mobile Internet demographic dividend and the rising cost of acquiring customers, many companies have discovered that brand power is the company's long-term competitiveness.

At the end of August, Diao Ye published an article titled "The huge wave of "new consumption" is coming", which went viral and was met with backlash from people in the marketing industry. Can continuously obtaining "dividends" really build a brand moat? Can channel ROI be maintained? Why are most Taobao brands in decline? These propositions about "brand" and "effect" are once again being seriously examined by the industry.

The Internet dividends of many years have disappeared. For brands that are accustomed to rapid development, the future may not be easy. Now that they have reached the peak of growth, it is also the starting point for the brand.

Most popular: Cross-border marketing is hot in the middle of the year

It is not difficult to find from the list of TOP35 marketing events that 2019 is still a big year for IP cross-border marketing, but if considered from the perspective of influence, it is obviously not as good as the national trend in 2018.

The most impressive cross-border marketing is probably Starbucks' cat claw cup and Uniqlo's collaboration with KAWS to produce T-shirts that were snapped up, but these two cases are no longer within the scope of "national trend". Cross-border integration is still effective, but it is not necessarily limited to national trends.

In the cross-border trend of national trends, lipstick is still the favorite of brands. 999 Pi Yan Ping and Mayinglong have both launched lipstick products. White Rabbit and the Smell Library have won a lot of praise. Want Want, which has always been very active online, launched the national bottle and adopted the blind box gameplay. The Internet celebrity ice cream brand Zhong Xuegao also invited Luzhou Laojiao to launch a wine-flavored ice cream called "Duan Pian".

In terms of time, cross-border marketing is mainly concentrated in the first half of the year and the middle of the year. After October, it has become difficult to see influential cross-border marketing events in the market . Perhaps the popularity of cross-border marketing is gradually declining.

The most routine: social communication has rules to follow

It is generally recognized that 2019 was a difficult year for screen-sweeping. However, if we look at the specific screen-sweeping events, there were actually quite a few social communications. It’s just that the scale and influence have declined compared to the crazy screen-sweeping in the previous two years, such as the Kindle cover, NetEase’s "Breeding Manual", and the changing of the national flag avatar on National Day. The "bottle cap challenge" that has swept the world is purely spread through social energy, and can be regarded as a typical case of social communication in 2019.

Although greatly influenced by accidental factors, social communication is not something that can be encountered by chance. Social marketing not only has a mature methodology, but also still has rules to follow. For example, changing the national flag avatar appears on National Day, 2017→2019 nostalgic marketing appears at the end of the year, and making a wish for 2020 appears at the end of the year... The public sentiment at a specific time point can be predicted. As long as the brand can use it effectively, this is a marketing opportunity for everyone.

Most active: FMCG and automobile marketing have the most influence

In 2019, most influencer marketing cases were concentrated on fast-moving consumer goods or low-priced brands, such as Wangzai, White Rabbit, Starbucks, Zhong Xuegao, Pi Yanping, Mayinglong, etc. It is not difficult to find that marketing voice has a greater promoting effect on fast-moving consumer goods and low-priced brands.

It is also worth noting that despite the poor macroeconomic situation in the automotive industry in recent years, this year's automotive brands have also had a lot of social voice. In the first half of the year, Mercedes-Benz and BMW formed the best CP and were forwarded crazily, and then an oil leak incident triggered a crisis public relations for Mercedes-Benz.

In the second half of the year, in October, Yiche.com's targeted elevator advertising caused controversy, as did Cadillac's brainwashing ad "It's not an ad without brainwashing". In November, an advertising blunder by Audi and Infiniti attracted industry attention, but fortunately it was successfully transformed into a social marketing campaign.

The most explosive point: Top TV series and movies drive public attention

Top film and television dramas can not only create a new generation of traffic stars, but also have a huge influence on social topics. In 2019, many new celebrities became popular due to the popularity of film and television dramas.

• In March, he gradually became popular in the TV series "All Is Well", which not only brought up topics such as the original family, but also made the middle-aged actor Ni Dahong, who played Su Daqiang, popular again. Since then, Ni Dahong has continued Su Daqiang's character and filmed many commercials;
• In June, the hit drama “The Untamed” made Xiao Zhan famous, and “The Longest Day in Chang’an” also made the audience take a new look at Yi Yang Qianxi;
• In July, the TV series "Dear, Beloved" became popular after it was broadcast. The leading actors Yang Zi and Li Xian formed a couple, and "Xian Boyfriend" became a fan symbol;
• In August, Huang Xiaoming's dialogue in "Chinese Restaurant 3" set off a wave of "Mingxue" fever on the Internet;
• At the end of October, "Better Days" made many people become fans of Yi Yang Qianxi.

Entertainment films and television have always been a key factor influencing the public's attention. Many niche vertical categories have also emerged in entertainment variety shows, such as "This is Street Dance 2" and "Summer of the Band"... In short, as the current social atmosphere becomes more and more entertaining, entertainment marketing is an effective way to capture users' attention.

The most opportunities: Summer vacation is the main battlefield for brand marketing

Judging from the distribution data of marketing events, most marketing events are concentrated in the first half of the year and the middle of the year. The summer vacation period from July to August is the explosive period of marketing, and marketing events decrease rapidly after September. The reason may be that the economic situation has led to less marketing investment by companies in the second half of the year, or it may be that 2019 is the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, and brands are more cautious in marketing.

For brands, in addition to important nodes such as May Day, National Day, New Year's Eve, and shopping festivals, summer vacation will be the main battlefield for major brand marketing. There are also more film and television entertainment topics that are aroused during the summer vacation. Marketing or taking advantage of the trend during the summer vacation may have a greater chance of becoming a hit.

The most frustrating thing: brainwashing ads are more frequent

The brainwashing advertisements of the 2018 World Cup sparked heated discussions in the industry. In 2019, many brands are still going further and further down the road of brainwashing advertisements. Judging from the annual inventory data, brainwash advertisements became more frequent in 2019.

• In February, the advertising film of Platinum Travel Photography continued the style of Boss Direct Hire and once again became the focus of debate in the industry. The content of the debate was nothing more than how to balance forced brainwashing and brand quality;
• In August, SoYoung launched a brainwashing elevator advertisement. The characteristics of the medical beauty industry made SoYoung's advertisement more controversial.
• In October, Yiche.com launched a brainwashing elevator ad. Unlike previous ads, Yiche.com’s 15-second ad was not only direct and crude, but also looped non-stop throughout the day.
• In the same month of October, Cadillac released a brainwash advertisement that said “It’s not an advertisement without brainwashing”. Perhaps this was created with a joking mentality, but it also means that major international brands have also joined the brainwash advertising camp.

Most sudden: PR crisis is everywhere

Public relations crises are occurring more frequently and more unpredictably.

• In April 2019, the discovery of the black hole photo caused Visual China to experience a copyright public relations crisis;
• Also in April, a video of a female Mercedes owner crying was posted online, and the Mercedes oil leak incident created another public relations crisis.
• In July, Robin Li was splashed with water at an offline conference for no apparent reason;
• In October, Li Guoqing smashed a cup on the show;
• Audi and Infiniti’s blunderous marketing in November also sparked heated discussions.

For brands, public relations crises are obviously difficult to prevent, but how to transform public relations crises into social communication opportunities is what is worth thinking about .

In the Audi Infiniti advertising incident, the protagonist brand's Weibo interaction allowed the public, who originally came to watch the joke, to see social marketing in action. The key is how the brand speaks out and communicates with the outside world. As long as the public relations crisis can be properly handled, it will not only gain the public's forgiveness, but also turn haters into fans.

Most efficient: Live streaming of product arrivals triggers the internet celebrity economy

The biggest highlight of this year's 618, Double Eleven and other e-commerce shopping festivals is actually live streaming sales. After Li Jiaqi gradually became popular on Douyin in January, live streaming hosts with sales have slowly entered the public eye.

Taobao invested heavily in live streaming sales in 2019. Li Jiaqi and Wei Ya have become the male and female CP in the anchor world. In addition, a large number of celebrity artists such as Li Xiang have also started their anchor careers.

Live streaming with goods is a product of the internet celebrity economy, but unlike previous picture and text promotions and anchor rewards, live streaming with goods is currently the most efficient form of monetization. This is why live streaming has been welcomed by a large number of brand merchants, and even many brands are building their own live streaming teams.

Li Jiaqi, Wei Ya and others therefore have strong bargaining power when facing brands, and can almost always get the lowest price on the entire network. In the future, the power of internet celebrity anchors may be further amplified.

Author: Time Fun

Official account: SocialTouchST (ID: SocialTouchST)