Hello Insiders,
Welcome to another issue of the EU Bubble Insider!
Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss out on future releases of our newsletter.
In this third issue we bring to you:
- EU Bubble Insider Podcast with Ryszard Pawlik, Parliamentary Adviser to MEP Jerzy Buzek
- Posting on Facebook in 2023 – all you need to know
- Whatsapp Communities – what are they and how to use them in advocacy campaigns?
- Performance marketing channels you might not be using – an infographic
- The untapped potential of in-game advertising for political campaigns
- EU Bubble event recommendations
- Links to articles and reports that we find worth reading
Do you have any thoughts or suggestions? Just reply to this email. I would love to hear from you.
Enjoy reading and watching!
Krzysztof Bulski & Molecule Group
In this third episode of the EU Bubble Insider Podcast, we speak with Ryszard Pawlik, Parliamentary Adviser to Jerzy Buzek, MEP. Our conversation focuses primarily on the specifics of the ITRE committee’s work and building good and healthy relationships with various stakeholders. We also talk about good practices for balancing work and family life. Finally, we also look at a summary of what to expect from the ITRE committee and, in particular, the energy regulations will live up to this year.
You can watch the interview on YouTube:
or listen to it on Soundcloud:
My guess is that Facebook is currently not high on your list of priorities. Let me challenge this. As of right now, Facebook clearly is the platform of choice for the 50+ demographic – a demographic which, contrary to what some might think, has been consistently increasing its levels of social media consumption and engagement. However, the majority of Facebook users still fall in the 25-35 age range, making for a diverse demographic to engage with your content. With that in mind, give the platform another go and revamp your Facebook strategy with our best practices for posting:
- Facebook Reels are an overlooked tool for disseminating your message to a wide audience. According to social media expert Gary Vaynerchuk, Facebook currently offers unprecedented levels of organic reach and dominates the user demographic of 50 to 70 year-olds. Hence, Facebook Reels have the potential to offer access to an untapped audience pool – especially if you already create reels to post on Instagram or TikTok.
- Focus on Relevance: When posting on Facebook, it’s important to make sure your content is relevant to your target audience. Some marketers talk about ‘radical relevance’ – a practice where all your advertising content is made with who your ‘ideal’ audience is in mind. By creating content that is tailored to your audience, you increase the chances that it will be shared and seen by more people, while creating high-quality engagement from people who are genuinely interested in what you’re offering.
- Utilise Emotion: Posts that evoke emotion tend to get more engagement. If you have a good understanding of your target audience and their values, this can be achieved through the use of storytelling or by sharing inspiring and thought-provoking content. As marketing expert Neil Patel says, emotion is a key factor in driving engagement on social media, and Facebook is no exception.
- Encourage Interaction: Encouraging interaction with your audience is a key component of a successful Facebook presence. Ask questions, run contests, and respond to comments to keep your audience engaged and interested in your posts. The Facebook user demographic can also be more genuine in their attachment to brands – hence, interaction is key when it comes to advocacy on Facebook. The more you engage with your audience, the more connected they will feel to your cause and be willing to take action.
- Analyse what your competitors are doing. Did you know that you can now visit the Facebook Ads Library and see what your direct competitors and others in your niche are doing. The analysis even gives you an overview of the targeting of each campaign.
- Experiment with different formats (photo, video, live) but at the same time be aware that according to the The Global State of Digital 2022 report by Hootsuite, text posts have the highest average engagement rate at 0.13% out of all available post formats on Facebook.
In the Spring of 2022, WhatsApp introduced a new feature to its platform called ‘Communities’. Back then some people said this might be the end of “old school” newsletters. I wouldn’t go that far. But it is certainly a tool that can prove useful in building the engagement of specific groups.
WhatsApp Group vs Community
WhatsApp groups enable you to bring several contacts into one space for conversations. You can add up to 1024 contacts in a group and start discussions with others. WhatsApp lets you create several groups for different purposes but the communication flow in Groups is more oriented on information exchange as WhatsApp Groups are designed for everyone to join the conversation and share their inputs. On the contrary, WhatsApp Community is a new way to organise many WhatsApp Groups. It is geared towards sharing updates and announcements in WhatsApp Groups from a single channel, keeping everyone up-to-date and informed. The community can connect up to 5000 users and create up to 50 groups and sub-groups that can be very helpful for a larger reach. Additionally, members’ phone numbers are hidden from the Community at large and only visible to Community admins and others in the same group. Communities are still rolling out and are currently available in limited countries but the goal of the company is to make the feature an integral part of the platform.
WhatsApp Community in advocacy
Messaging apps are the most direct way to interact with the public by providing a platform for individuals and organisations to share information and mobilise people around a cause. More and more companies and public figures include messaging apps in their communication strategies. Peer-to-peer sharing was already trending throughout the US political campaigning during the last few years.
There is no doubt that this new feature will help amplify the digital advocacy effect. The platform’s widespread usage and ability to send multimedia messages make it an effective tool for reaching large numbers of people efficiently. Even during the pandemic, WhatsApp has established itself as a powerful tool for activism, outreach and advocacy. For example, In Indonesia, this free encrypted messaging app has united disability rights activists across the country and has helped organise collective actions on key issues – entirely online.
The feature of communities, by reaching out to an even bigger audience, will keep groups of people more engaged, better organised and mobilised around the specific topics that matter to them. It will facilitate discussion and collaboration among advocates making it easy to navigate and coordinate.
Concisely, WhatsApp Communities can be used in advocacy in the following ways:
- Building Networks: The community feature allows the creation of groups of like-minded individuals to discuss and coordinate advocacy efforts.
- Sharing information: Advocates can use WhatsApp groups and sub-groups to share relevant news, articles, and updates related to their cause, keeping members informed and engaged.
- Mobilising Action: WhatsApp communities can be used to mobilise supporters for events, campaigns, and other advocacy initiatives.
- Conducting Surveys: Advocates can conduct surveys within the group to gauge opinions on certain issues and gather valuable data for their advocacy efforts.
- Raising awareness: Advocates can use the community feature to spread awareness about their cause and engage with the public, using multimedia content like photos and videos.
But people engaged in advocacy should take into consideration that while the influence of messaging platforms like WhatsApp Communities can be tremendous, it might be difficult to track the engagement and overall success of advocacy.
Performance marketing is all about getting results that matter. If you’re spending money on ads, you want to see real, tangible results from your efforts, and performance marketing makes that possible. However, popular advertising systems from platforms such as Facebook and Google are not always the best way to reach your audience. What is more, less popular advertising channels can often prove to be much more cost-effective.
To help you understand the many different alternative performance marketing channels we prepared this infographic with 10 examples of performance marketing platforms. While the industry is very competitive and prices for ads keep going up, these platforms might inspire you to take an out-of-the-box approach to reaching your target audience, find new, cost-effective and impactful solutions, and differentiate yourself from your competitors by creating more personalised messages.
You can download a high-quality version of the infographic here.
Digital advocacy and political campaigning have come a long way in recent years, but one area that is often overlooked is in-game advertising. As a political communications professional, you might be wondering why you should consider learning about this form of advertising.
First of all, it’s important to understand the scale of the gaming industry. The global gaming market is valued at $197 billion and is larger than the film and music sectors combined. Furthermore, video games are played by more than 3.2 billion people worldwide, making it a huge and rapidly growing market.
One of the reasons why in-game advertising is so effective is the high level of engagement that gamers bring to the table. According to research from Oxford University, time spent playing games is good for well-being and happiness. A study from Tapjoy also found that when gamers were asked to describe how they feel when playing mobile games, the most common response was “relaxed” followed by “interested”, “focused”, “engaged” and “happy”. This means that when gamers are playing, they are in a positive state of mind and more likely to pay attention to advertising messages.
In-game advertising also offers a unique opportunity for brands to actively engage with their audience and build meaningful connections. Traditional advertising is often passive and intrusive, but in-game advertising allows players to be part of the narrative. This is why levels of engagement with in-game media are shown to be higher than for other forms of advertising. According to the TapJoy study, 41% of people said they were likely to pay attention to ads in mobile games, compared to 17% for internet advertising, and 15% each for magazines and billboards.
You can leverage these benefits to reach a large and engaged audience, especially among younger generations who spend a significant amount of time playing video games. The young generation is the electorate that most public officials try to reach but often unsuccessfully. It is hard to professionals engaged in political communication to be on top of the events that drive the younger generation as the trends are continuously changing. Political campaigns can use in-game advertising to promote their candidates, platforms, and events taking into consideration the demographics and regions of the targeted audience.
In addition to the numbers of reach, creating branded content, such as characters or environments, can help the campaign build a strong presence in the game world. This can help establish the candidate or cause as a familiar and trusted presence to players. In-game ads can be integrated with social media platforms, allowing players to share the ad and participate in discussions about the campaign. This kind of discussion can help spread the campaign’s message and build momentum among players and their networks.
As we presented all the benefits that come from in-game advertising, professionals creating political campaigns should definitely consider entitling this strategy into their agenda and modify their messages consequently.
We would like to remind you that the EU GR Forum is right around the corner! The conference taking place on the 23rd and 24th of February – the programme is packed with highly interesting contributions tailored for public affairs and government relations professionals from the EU. You can participate in person or online, according to your preference!
As #EUBubbleInsider subscribers, you receive an exclusive promotional code for 20% off the ticket price! Find out more about the event, and get your tickets now on the GR Forum event website!
- As businesses face increasing pressure to communicate effectively and build strong relationships with stakeholders, the role of the Chief Communications Officer in today’s business landscape is ever more important. In this PR Daily article, you will find out why 2023 is the year for CCOs to step up and lead the charge.
- This Digital Native article takes a closer look at the attitudes and beliefs of Gen Z towards work and college. Based on research and interviews with members of this generation, the article offers a unique perspective on the future of the workforce and the role of education in shaping it.
- As QatarGate is on everyone’s lips, this Substack publication provides a comprehensive overview of the scandal and its impact on the global economy. From data analysis to expert opinions, the article provides a fascinating insight into one of the biggest stories of recent months.
- What is the future of TikTok and how are the EU and US approaching the topic of regulating the platform? Find out this and much more from Martens Centre’s latest interview with Brendan Carr, member of the US Federal Communications Commission.
- The Mack Institute at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania interviewed Christian Terwiesch, a renowned expert in the field of innovation and operations management. The interview explores his thoughts on the future of technology, including the potential of Chat GPT and its impact on businesses and society.
