Welcome to the April Stoak Report, people – we made it. It’s crazy to think we’ve reached the end of week 7 in quarantine with no definite end in sight. We hope everyone is still staying safe and healthy, as being cooped up inside has been tougher with the weather starting to get nicer.

Taking a look at the marketing and advertising landscaping this month, it seems like things are trending more towards business as usual. In April, there was a blend of COVID-19 and more standard advertisements, which is cool to see as people and companies are adapting to the circumstances that come with our new normal. We saw marketing campaigns that are leveraging new technologies, new sources for content and some that include amazing philanthropy. Let’s do it.

GoPro – #HomePro

A few weeks ago, GoPro started its own hashtag initiative, #HomePro, which sought after the most creative videos developed during these uncharted stay-at-home restrictions. The action sports company promised fans “tons of GoPro cameras and PLUS subscriptions to give away.”

Its community and creators produced some great results:

This was a great way for people to dust off their GoPros during quarantine and have some fun while staying home. It doesn’t stop there, GoPro is also giving back by donating their cameras through Global Impact to help promote organizations on the front lines of COVID-19, helping health care workers tell their stories, raise awareness and inspire fund donations. 

In addition, GoPro donated N95 masks to their local California hospitals and pledged to donate their cameras for virtual learning environments and expand learning opportunities for teachers.

For a company whose main product is intended for people being out and adventurous, they’ve certainly been able make the best of the situation.

Statefarm – The Last Dance

Wild… I think we can speak for everyone who was watching the first two episodes of the The Last Dance, the documentary series featuring Michael Jordan, that this commercial immediately made you pause.

The ad features a young Kenny Mayne, a now longtime ESPN anchor, on the set of a 1998 SportsCenter episode, reporting on the sixth championship for the Chicago Bulls when he begins to predict the future: 

“This is the kind of stuff that ESPN will eventually make a documentary about,” Mayne says. “They’ll call it something like ‘The Last Dance.’ They’ll make it a 10-part series and release it in the year 2020. It’s going to be lit. You don’t even know what that means yet.” As a vintage State Farm logo appears in the background, he adds, “And this clip will be used to promote the documentary in a State Farm commercial.”

This type of “deep fake” is something you hear about on the Joe Rogan Podcast, but never thought it would be used in media this soon. This State Farm commercial will be an iconic advertisement and a stepping stone for other marketers to begin to explore this technology. As this these deep fakes continue to improve, we could see influencer marketing, testimonials and a myriad of other marketing tactics changed forever. 

World Surf League – Athlete Content 

Keeping audiences engaged with your social channels is tough – it gets even harder when you can no longer develop content as regularly scheduled. The main content source for the World Surf League’s social channels has been its competitions, but with its current season paused and 2020 Olympics pushed back, the WSL has had to shift its content strategy.

The WSL is now relying on videos and other content developed by its athletes, include videos featuring them supporting the recent #HomeBreakChallenge hashtag initiative.

This is a natural fit for the brand and its surfers, as most action sports athletes regularly capture and produce their own content outside of competition – unlike most professional sports. Check out any surfer, skateboarder or snowboarder on Instagram and you will find edits and clips they’ve captured outside of organized competition, so this is nothing new to them.

The WSL’s CEO Erik Logan explains this shift in strategy, “We’re exponentially creating more content today than we have done, arguably outside of live competition, than we’ve ever done in the history of the sport… My view is that our athletes are a big part of our business. I view them as shareholders, as the beneficiaries, and the better we become as an organization, the better we become as a business. If the platform grows, that affords more opportunities for our professional athletes.”

This has paid off quite well for the organization. Between March 8 and 27, WSL’s Instagram interactions increased by 35% to 4.26 million from the 3.15 million seen between February 23 and March 8. Total views on IG have also seen a 40% from 22.6 million between February 23 and March 8 to 31.64 million between March 8 and 27. All without any live action in the water!

ESPN – We Miss It Too

ESPN has been running this heart-warming commercial all month and seeing all these touching moments it truly reminds you what sports fans have been missing the past few months.

Sports are intertwined with normal everyday life and this is our longest void without them since their creation. According to StatsPerform.com, these are the other longest stretches without games in NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL:

• 6 Days (1956): End of NHL season and start of MLB
• 6 Days (2001): Result of 9/11 attacks
• 23 Days (1994): Caused by MLB strike
• 58 Days (1981): MLB strike

Assuming the NBA’s timeline of starting in mid-to-late June, we could approach 100 days without at least one game in the four major sports. Don’t worry sports fans (and advertisers who frequent live sports), they’ll be back soon enough.

Budweiser – Checking In, That’s Whassup

Budweiser recreated their classic “Wassup” advertisement that originally aired on Monday Night Football in 1998. The remake features former NBA Dwayne Wade video chatting his former Miami Heat teammate Chris Bosh, who are then joined by WNBA star Candice Parker, DJ D-Nice of Club Quarantine and Wade’s wife Gabriel Union that eventually enters with the classic Budweiser “Whassup!”

Wade then asks, “for real though, what’s up with everyone?” It’s more important to than ever to regularly check in with your friends and family and see how they are coping with the quarantine. Just because you are physically distant, doesn’t mean you have to be socially distance.

To reiterate how the commercial ends with the message, “Staying connected matters more than ever right now. Checking in, that’s whassup.”