Is BeReal a Lucrative Platform for Brands?
Is the photo-sharing app BeReal where marketers should be right now? To appeal to gen Z, this may be the case. The younger generation wants social media to feel more real and authentic, as opposed to heavily curated and filtered.
Besides the fact that the app is more ideologically similar to gen Z's wants, the app has reached "3.3 million downloads globally in Q1 of this year, a 390 percent jump from Q4 of 2021, according to data.ai. It sits in the No. 1 spot for free apps in Apple's App Store," as reported by Marketing Brew. These numbers are telling an important story: Gen Z is tired of promoting stilted selves.
It's time, therefore, to rethink app strategy when it comes to younger generations.
Check out the resources below.
- How Real Is BeReal and Social Media? Civic Science, August 2022.
BeReal, a social media app making waves among gen Z, is all about being authentic on social media. There are no photo filters or edits, videos, influencers, ads, etc., which has given the platform the nickname: "anti-Instagram." BeReal is also capturing the attention of many brands who are experimenting with new ways to market their products to gen Z. With BeReal leading the way toward an authentic social media experience, how do people like the app? Do people find it to be "real" social media? And do people think other social media platforms are authentic? CivicScience has some answers.
- BeReal Marketing for Brands: Should Your Business Be Real These Days? Vista, October 2022.
Past the basics, this article covers how brands can market on BeReal and weigh in all the pros and cons of BeReal marketing to decide whether you should do it in the first place. It says, "If brands want to add BeReal to their social media marketing mix, they need to make sure they are in line with the concept of the platform and aren't ruining everyone's experience on the app. They need to be prepared to show their raw, unedited, and unfiltered, authentic selves. You need to get creative and use the power of storytelling to stand out from the crowd and attract the attention of the BeReal audience. Then and only then do they get a chance to leverage the benefits of this emerging star social media platform and build a strong community of brand advocates around themselves." - Five Creative BeReal Marketing Strategies for Brands To Stand Out. Influencer Marketing Hub, September 2022.
BeReal's goal is to "show who your real friends are" and to foster genuine online interactions. With authenticity as its driving force, BeReal appeals a great deal to gen Z. But is it even possible for social media to be real? When you constantly see ads and sponsored posts, as well as videos and pictures of influencers' lavish vacations, you get jaded with "authenticity" real fast. BeReal doesn't feature ads in line with its mission of eschewing filters, edits, and influencer culture.
Brands typically turn to sponsorship or influencer marketing in lieu of paid social ads, but such alternatives are currently unavailable on the app too. In fact, the app's terms and conditions restrict using the app for advertising or commercial purposes. With ad restrictions, BeReal presents a unique obstacle for marketers. How can you get a foothold on an app that explicitly prohibits direct marketing? If your brand has a "low key" style, Influencer Marketing Hub offers five creative ways to incorporate BeReal into your marketing campaigns. - BeReal For Brands: Should Yours Join The 'Real Life' App? Rock Content, September 2022. In a world surrounded by filters and ads, where everything is well calculated and planned before posting, BeReal goes the opposite way. According to their own statement, they aspire to be "a new and unique way to discover who your friends really are in their daily life." And of course, BeReal's peers wouldn't let this growth go unnoticed; Snapchat, for example, launched a "new dual" camera option, like BeReal, and Meta is currently testing new Instagram features with a little bit of BeReal inspiration, too. If "real life" content is growing to a point where it achieves on giant social platforms such as Instagram (and exponentially boosts new ones like BeReal), marketers and brands must think about how they fit into this equation. Rock Content asks: "If the problem is the excess of edited content, advertising and algorithm... is there room for brands and Marketing at BeReal?"
- Brands are Getting Creative with Being Real. Marketing Brew, August 2022.
Imagine Snapchat with no filters and the rawness of Twitter rolled into one. Now, add a two-minute time limit to the single post allowed per day—that's BeReal. BeReal champions steering away from influencer culture and prohibits advertising, but some brands have gotten creative, especially with real-time posts.
Chipotle has posted promo codes for free entrées (which were gone in about 30 minutes the first day and subsequently ran out almost immediately) to its then-2,000 friends on the app, its director of social and influencer told Retail Brew in May, though its following there pales in comparison to its 1.1 million followers on Instagram and 1.7 million TikTok followers. Trident, PacSun, and Love Island, among other brands, have also hopped on the trend of posting BeReal-style photos to Twitter.
The views and opinions expressed in Marketing Futures Pulse are solely those of the contributor and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the ANA or imply endorsement from the ANA.
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