What these latest consumer affinity trends tell us about marketing in 2023

Subject material ranged from food consumed at Super Bowl watch parties to instructions for hair extensions — and showed a potential correlation to consumers’ shopping habits across other sites.

These data points might guide marketers on alternative spending options for their budgets that go beyond their business. For example, Food Network’s audience on social media was nine times more likely to visit websites of insurance brands like State Farm and Geico, according to Tubular. Tubular’s recent analysis also showed people who watched beauty videos were 5.84 times more likely to buy Nintendo DS games on Amazon compared to the average viewer.

“With the fast growth of video content across top social platforms, digging into how video behavior relates to shopping affinity gives advertisers what they need to justify social platform ROI in the face of what could be an uncertain 2023,” said Chrissy Werner, vp of marketing at Tubular Labs.

In its latest report on navigating the social video landscape, Tubular covered its predictions on the future of search and marketing and the creator economy in the upcoming year. It also addressed the rise of augmented reality in virtual reality platforms, such as the metaverse or other immersive environments.

Next year, Tubular predicts that creators are poised to become bigger economic drivers. In the past year, influencer content was watched 13.2 times more than media and brand content combined, according to its research. Tubular also expects the influencer market to keep expanding, with 2023 projected influencer viewership hitting some 10 trillion views per month across all platforms. In January 2022, this was around 5 trillion views per month.

Creator marketing — which has been a trend this year — is causing many agencies to rethink their strategies on using content creators and social media influencers. Major holding agencies are also looking to creators when developing a commerce strategy.

“Shoppable livestreams or video content, paired with a credible influencer and raving comments from a community of viewers is an instant recipe for a believable, trusted sponsored social post,” said Amy Lanzi, coo of Publicis Commerce. “With this blueprint, we have built out … creator-led commerce solutions with partners like TikTok and Spotify that offer more personalization and closed loop measurement.”

Tubular also predicted that augmented reality will come into greater focus as marketers experiment with virtual worlds and platforms, an area in which Snap has hung its hat. The social media company is developing its own AR glasses called Spectacles to connect with virtual reality content.

In the past year, 15 million views were tracked across platforms mentioning AR or VR, according to Tubular. This was 38% higher than the previous year, suggesting that social audiences are getting more engaged in the topic. And as some of the technologies, such as 5G and robotics, become more integrated, companies can expect “faster and more nimble solutions” while consumers see improved experiences, said Ian Liddicoat, CTO of AI advertising company Adludio.

The popularity of videos is showing that social is becoming the new place for search — just ask TikTok. When people are looking for answers, they tend to seek out videos more rather than text, which marketers should keep in mind when identifying new audiences, Tubular data suggested. Based on Tubular analysis of popular keyword searches, for instance, those searching for recipes were 204 times more likely to look for Green Giant products on Amazon. Those consuming sports videos were more likely to gravitate toward brands like OREI and Riot Games.

“As the creator economy’s importance continues to grow, brands and agencies need to go beyond just listening to where audiences exist, but also how content influences consumer purchasing decisions,” Werner said.