Media Update: Upfronts, TikTok World, AI Revolution, and Consumer Confidence Rise
Key Highlights:
- TV & Audio: Media, technology, sports, and celebrity collided in New York this month at Upfronts, with publishers fighting aggressively for audience share in an ever more competitive landscape
- Paid Social: Social search continues to grow as more platforms evolve their search narratives, and TikTok announces streamlined product suites at TikTok World
- Display & Programmatic: YouTube takes on Hollywood with creators and the TV screens taking center stage at Brandcast
- Ad Economy: New AI product announcements seem poised to revolutionize creative development
- Consumer Economy: In contrast with the trends we highlighted last time, recent data show a decline in new jobless claims and an unexpected rise in consumer confidence
TV & Audio
Sports viewership bounced back in the tail end of May as the NBA playoffs picked up, while news viewership remained high compared to the year prior. On the news front, CNN and ABC have become big winners, securing the rights to two primetime debates between Presidents Biden and Trump in the coming months. Some advertisers may balk at the idea of airing in such a politically charged environment, but a recent study found that ads placed against news content performed with similar effectiveness compared to ads placed in more “brand safe” environments.
If it’s May, it means celebrities are descending on Manhattan, but while some may just be in town for the Met Gala, others came for something nearly as glamorous – Upfronts and NewFronts. Each year, legacy media publishers and cutting-edge tech providers compete with each other in something like a media world’s fair, a multi-week series of events showcasing new features from each platform in the hopes of securing lucrative upfront investments from advertisers. This year was no different, as many presenters had exciting opportunities to showcase and hefty star power.
Cutting through the pageantry, we saw a great deal of focus on converging audiences across linear and streaming, with NBC promoting its One Platform Total Audience planning and activation tool and Warner Bros. Discovery highlighting its One WBD system for placing ads across all environments. Tools like these are particularly useful in an era where audience dynamics are growing more bifurcated between mediums; recent reporting shows the median ages for many major cable networks has risen to the 50s and 60s while streaming skews younger. As if to further emphasize the need for holistic consideration, Nielsen recently released a new version of its “Gauge” tool – the Media Distributor Gauge, which tracks cross-platform engagement for publishers. It’s clear why publishers like NBCU and WBD would emphasize a cross-platform view: on a streaming-only basis, they pale in comparison to YouTube, Netflix, Prime, and Hulu, but when all mediums are considered, each is a force to be reckoned with.
Many platforms emphasized their sports content: NBC highlighted its access to the upcoming Paris Olympics, Fox and Disney touted Tom Brady and Jason Kelce respectively as new NFL analysts, while Amazon promoted its access to WNBA, NWSL, and NASCAR content as part of its expansive sports portfolio. This comes in the context of other recent announcements, such as Netflix securing rights to Christmas Day NFL games and ESPN, Fox, and WBD launching their streaming sports JV (now named Venu Sports). Live sports remain a key point of access for many viewers across all platforms, making rights deals a critical piece of leverage for publishers.
Bundling was also heavily promoted. We’ve covered in this space recent announcements (Netflix-Peacock-Apple TV+ as well as Hulu-Max-Disney+), with more bundles expected to follow as platforms look to reduce customer churn amid an ongoing trend of service cancellations. While the events may have been lavish, the overall theme of the Upfronts was one of competition. Legacy publishers and new streamers alike are fighting tooth-and-nail for every advantage they can gain over their competition in an ever-fracturing landscape. For advertisers, this means a fast-moving environment with new opportunities coming by the week. Tinuiti will be exploring, vetting, and bringing these opportunities to our partners to maximally capitalize on this dynamic moment. | Nielsen, Nielsen, AdAge, Deadline, THR, Philadelphia Inquirer, WSJ
Earlier this month, we noted that WBD had been left on the outside looking in as the NBA expanded its negotiations to other broadcast partners. While that certainly stung the network, it may also have pushed them to get creative in looking for sports access. To that end, TNT and ESPN have reached an agreement to share College Football Playoff broadcasts over the next five years.
The deal reportedly gives TNT the opportunity to broadcast first round games, as well as quarterfinals games after two years. This comes at a very convenient time for parent company WBD, as the playoff is set to expand from four teams to twelve this year, with high viewership expected. With March Madness already in its repertoire, WBD seems to be looking to use college sports as a tool to maintain audiences. | WSJ, CBS
Paid Social
Searches on social platforms have been growing over the recent years, and 2024 has been no exception to that. In October, TikTok released a report showing that 59% of Gen Z users prefer searching for content on TikTok over traditional search engines.
In 2024, platforms have doubled down on their ad offerings so that advertisers can capitalize on this momentum. Earlier this year, TikTok began testing into their new Search Ads toggle, allowing brands to target relevant keywords to have their content appear in search results. In February, an analysis showed that amongst 10,000 keyphrases in a Google search, discussion forums appeared 77% of the time with Reddit and Quora having 3x greater visibility than other forums. Reddit is touting similar results, seeing a trend in redirected site traffic to Reddit and an increase in searches ending in “reddit.”
Reddit alone sees over 1B monthly on-platform user searches, and the rise of search engines redirecting to the platform further bolsters traffic on the site. As a result, Reddit has been redefining their ad products, leaning into stronger contextual targeting and opening up additional keyword targeting for advertisers. They have also evolved their Mega Thread ad units into Free Form ads, allowing brands to include multiple asset types (static, video, text) to better stimulate engagement on the platform and convey messaging in relevant forums. For advertisers new to the platform, Reddit’s recently released Reddit Pro platform allows brands to more easily see insights and understand any brand-oriented conversations taking place on the platform, allowing advertisers to better cater their messaging strategy on the platform.
Ultimately, we are just scratching the surface of where social search is heading, but brands that are interested in staying contextually relevant have the opportunity today to appear within search results on Meta (Explore), TikTok (Shop and Search), Pinterest (Explore + search), and Reddit (Search). | The Drum, TikTok, EMarketer, Search Engine Land, Reddit, Reddit
Last Week, TikTok held their biggest event of the year, TikTok World, where a host of updates were announced. One of the more anticipated updates was the announcement of TikTok One, a centralized location for all of TikTok’s marketing tools. Previously, TTCX, TTCM, TTCC, and TTCP all lived in separate UI’s owned by separate teams.
TikTok One is expected to roll out later this year, and will be a one-stop-shop for brands looking to tap into TikTok’s creative and creator resources and tools, without the need to log into multiple platforms. Another aspect of TikTok One is Symphony, which will be a creative AI suite where all of TikTok’s AI tools are brought together into one platform.
While the majority of the tools already existed within TikTok and have been previously rolled out, Symphony will make access to these tools much more streamlined for brands looking to develop fast, iterative creative. The tool will even be able to generate video promotions based on existing assets uploaded into the platform, allowing for scaled creative testing. It is worth noting that creative fatigue occurs faster on TikTok (~2 – 3 weeks) compared to other social platforms, so while AI will extend the life of the creative slightly, the need for additional content development will still exist, which is where TikTok One comes into play. The rollout of TikTok One and Symphony will empower advertisers to move faster when it comes to briefing, developing, and evolving content for TikTok. | TikTok, Social Media Today
Display & Programmatic
Harry mentioned that Manhattan has been abuzz the past few weeks as publishers and tech providers took center stage at the Upfronts and NewFronts. One company that has been particularly busy during this time is Google. Last time, we talked to you about the updates Google unveiled at NewFronts. Quickly following NewFronts, Google hosted its annual YouTube Brandcast, spotlighting the latest and greatest from the video platform.
This year, YouTube took aim at Hollywood as creators and brands took the stage each touting the rise of viewership on the TV screen. Neal Mohan, YouTube CEO, kicked off the night, highlighting that one billion hours of YouTube content are consumed daily on TV screens. Nielsen-reported data underpinned the night as YouTube was recently ranked the #1 most-watched streaming platform on TV screens and the second most-watched media distributor overall.
Mohan attributed the success to the authenticity and originality of the creators, dubbing them the “new Hollywood” as they redefine the TV landscape. Creators and brands reaffirmed the importance of the TV screen, sharing that 70-80% of their watch time comes from the big screen.
Continuing the TV focus, YouTube announced a new content partnership with Scripps Sports, making it the exclusive live TV streaming service for national and local WNBA games. While specific advertising opportunities were not disclosed, it’s likely that the ad inventory will be available in the YouTube Select Sports lineup. In addition to the partnership, YouTube also introduced three new ad products:
- Advertisers can now own 100% share-of-voice of the top YouTube creators content with Creator Takeovers, allowing brands to connect with a very engaged and passionate fanbase.
- Non-skippable ads within reach campaigns are now optimized for the TV screen as they expand to 30s spots and will leverage Google AI to deliver on reach and awareness goals more efficiently.
- YouTube is upgrading their QR codes with Branded QR codes, featuring a brand’s logo in the center of the QR code to drive more engagement from viewers on the TV screens.
Throughout the night, the trends highlighted two key elements for brands to maintain a successful YouTube presence: developing paid and organic content that is authentic, culturally relevant, and tailored for the big screen; and forging partnerships with relevant creators and surrounding their content with relevant ads in order to capture the attention of highly engaged and loyal audiences. | YouTube Blog, Nielsen
Google capped off the busy month with Google Marketing Live (GML), showcasing the latest ad products, formats and updates. Unlike Nadal’s loss in the first-round of the French Open, the theme of GML was not a surprise with AI being the star of the show, which Simon will dive into a bit more in the Ad Economy section. While AI may have been the focus, creators did manage to steal a moment as two new features were announced.
First, Google announced Partnership Ads which allow brands to easily leverage creator videos as ads in a co-branded format, increasing exposure of new or existing creator collaborations. For brands who don’t have a creator engagement, no need to fret. Google will also be able to surface videos where creators have mentioned a product or brand which can then be used as an ad.
Partnership ads complement our Brandcast takeaways. As we discussed above, creators are the foundation of the YouTube ecosystem and are very influential in the consumer journey. By providing a streamlined process to access and amplify creator content, brands can tap into a loyal fanbase and drive increased engagement.
YouTube also announced they are expanding their affiliate shopping program to include all Shopify Plus and Advanced merchants in the US, allowing brands to connect their product catalog directly to the program. With this rollout, verified creators can tag and sell products directly in their videos, Shorts or livestreams, giving viewers the ability to shop while they watch. Brands involved in the program will receive detailed insights on which creators and pieces of content are driving sales.
This is a win for creators, viewers, and brands. The expansion opens a new revenue stream for creators, supplementing their ad revenue; viewers benefit from a streamlined shopping experience that shortens their purchase journey, which, in turn, benefits brands by reducing the risk of consumers shopping for similar brands or products. We are still in early days of shoppable video, but we expect there to be more enhancements in the coming months. | WithGoogle
Ad Economy
Last week, we discussed how AI is rapidly shifting the digital media buying landscape, with a particular focus on PMax adoption ahead of Google Marketing Live (GML), and challenged those of you that remain skeptical to reconsider their position. GML went exactly as predicted, with a near absolute focus on AI solutions. While there was a robust range of announcements, there was an overt focus on the generative creative solutions and the rapid democratization of creative functions beyond the Photoshop expert. In a similar vein, Canva Create also ushered in the era of the ‘Creative Department in Your Pocket’ with AI-charged creative announcements at their annual event.
As we transition from the fun, minimally useful novelty image creation era towards advertising creative that adheres to an array of brand standards and meets the expectation of creative briefs, these announcements will fundamentally change the way marketing organizations operate. If we accept the outsized role creative plays in campaign performance (accounting for between 40% to 70% of campaign performance as outlined by several industry studies), the idea that we have already reached the point where AI creative can align with brands’ expectations is remarkable.
You may be familiar with the phase, “Big C, little c” in reference to the macro & micro forms of creative function. ‘Big C’ refers to the big picture creative brief, standards and core branding, while ‘little c’ refers to much of what has recently been encompassed by performance creative, that is, the rapid iteration of creative variants aligned to the dimensions and user engagement propensities of multiple different advertising platforms.
While the recent announcements largely pertain to the ‘little c’ creative, make no mistake, we are now in the era of creative commoditization. This era will be defined by a raising of the creative bar pertaining to quality of output. While we have yet to truly enter the era of generative AI for video creative, it is simply a matter of time, and likely to happen within the next 12 months. As you consider this moment, think about who will excel in this era – they won’t need to be a Photoshop expert and they may not even be what you’d traditionally think of as a “designer”. Today, we are all potentially creatives, and those that build organizations around functional agility will own the first-mover advantage. | Google Ads GML Recap, Google Ads & Commerce Blog, Canva Create, Think With Google
Consumer Economy
It’s fair to say that macroeconomic indicators are murky at the moment. Last time, we told you about data points from April showing a spike in initial jobless claims, a decline in job openings, and a precipitous drop in consumer sentiment. Taken together, these seemed to paint a picture of an economy slowing down, and specifically of a labor market finally beginning to cool off.
Fast forward just a couple of weeks and newer data points in the reverse direction. Initial unemployment claims dropped by the largest amount since last September, undercutting the notion of a generally weakening labor market and of employers cutting back on staff in any broad-based fashion.
Meanwhile, consumer confidence unexpectedly rose in May for the first time in four months, with views of the labor market and of business conditions improving somewhat. (note: consumer confidence is a slightly different measure than consumer sentiment, which we reported on last time, but they tend to track pretty closely)
As you can see above, the recent increase still leaves confidence, indexed at 102.0, well below its pre-pandemic level of ~130. While consumers seem optimistic about the labor market, business conditions and the stock market, their overall views seem to be dominated by pessimism about inflation and their own families’ financial situation. | Bloomberg, Bloomberg
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