From bidding farewell to that iconic blue bird logo to watching CGI stunts pop up outside every iconic street, it’s safe to say that 2023 was nothing short of eventful for marketers across the world.
As we welcome the new year with open (well, slightly apprehensive) arms, the Hatch team has done some reflecting – sharing our very own ins and outs for 2024.
Let’s get into it.
Social Ins and Outs
When was the last time you saw a reply under a tweet on X that was actually relevant to the original tweet? The answer is most likely just before Elon Musk gave blue tick paying accounts free rein to ruin conversations on the platform. With the social media landscape continuing to evolve, from ownership to audiences, social media managers will be hoping 2024 is less chaotic than last year.
Head of Social, Jack Moore, shares his ins and outs for the wonderful world of social media below…
Ins
- Using social listening to identify content creation opportunities
- Long term and collaborative relationships with creators
- Community management that adds value to users’ social experience
Outs
- Calling social media managers “interns”
- Blue tick X users spamming the replies of ‘viral’ content with generic responses
- LinkedIn humble brags
PR Ins and Outs
As we move into yet another year of digital, it’s becoming more important than ever for PR professionals to expand on traditional PR tactics for their messages to be seen in front of the right audience.
Senior Account Director, Alex Halls, is up next sharing his ins and outs. I think we can all agree that ghosting should officially be out…
Ins
- Creative freedom for content creators for better authenticity – content creators have built engaged audiences who follow them for their own style and advice, they’re not puppets or mouthpieces and should be allowed to be part of the creative brief to deliver best results.
- More time to collaborate and work on briefs and ideas together – being an extension of the team is key to success, working in collaboration where ideas can flourish is much more conducive for amazing results.
- Open and honest communication.
Outs
- Less rigid briefs – this kills creativity, end of!
- Less last minute briefs with unrealistic deadlines – good ideas and good execution need time and not to be rushed – sacrificing the need to be immediate will lead to better thought out ideas and results in the long run.
- Ghosting – we’re all grown up enough to deliver bad news, if it’s a no tell people no, don’t leave them on read anymore it’s not a first date gone horribly wrong, it’s the working world.
Design Ins and Outs
It’s no secret that good, well-thought out design can make or break a marketing campaign across all platforms. Brands are beginning to understand that consumers can smell bad design a mile off – and with the need for impactful design only getting stronger, it’ll certainly be interesting to see how brands adapt their design process to the increasingly sharp eye of their target consumers.
Hatch’s dynamic design duo, Beth Butler and Lauren Evans, give their take on what we can expect to see from the world of design in 2024…
Ins
- Visually, more brand carriers, layered visuals and creative freedom.
- Creating true connections with brands to build loyalty and increase engagement
- Less copycat and “pretty and stylish” creative
- More collaborative design projects
- Clients trusting designer expertise/comments and ideas
Outs
- Comic sans.. always
- Hopefully Canva!
- “make it pop”
- “can you make the logo bigger”
- Using the wrong design software for the wrong thing
Experiential Ins and Outs
What do you mean we shouldn’t float our latest product down the Thames???
From an experiential point of view, 2023 saw a caution and pessimism plague an industry still getting back on its feet post-Covid. This feeling seems to be now sweeping away, replaced with – dare we say it – one of optimism about what the coming year will bring. It’s going to be interesting to see how many brands unleash the shackles and once more delve into the world of activations and stunts and reap its potential rewards.
Head of Experiential, Nick Lee-Rogers, gives his take on the ins and outs of activations for this year – with a key focus on harnessing the power of digital and PR success to enhance real-world accomplishments.
Ins
- More confidence from clients to invest and scale up activations
- Proper planning to allow time for genuine creativity and innovation
- Genuine integration with other marketing channels to amplify reach and maximize ROI
Outs
- Out-there CGI content masquerading as IRL pop-ups
- Integrating needless tech just for the sake of it
- Clients over-extending themselves by taking on too many parts of the process in-house in a bid to save money
So, that just about wraps up Hatchs Ins and Outs for 2024! We’ll be back at the end of the year to see just how accurate we were…
Get in touch with us today at hello@hatch.group to discuss how we can bring you results that matter in 2024.
