Marketing Dojo #85: 🎬 Vertical Video Vortex🌀
Time spent on social media, new Gen Z messaging app is creating waves, Fiverr has the right insight on AI and more.
Curiosity extracts its price.
And lately, I've been paying in hours.
As any curious person would testify, 24 hours feel inadequate. There's always another book to dive into, another rabbit hole to chase, another experiment to try.
A decade ago, I fell in love with The Lost Horizon. The book introduced Shangri-la, a place where time passes slowly and people spend all their time in the pursuit of wisdom.
Some nights, when I'm fighting sleep to finish just one more thing, I dream of finding my own Shangri-la.
But for now, I am looking for a way to manage my saboteur. How do you manage your intellectual FOMO?
Anyway, here's a quick fix for your marketing curiosity. In today's newsletter, we cover:
🎥 Video ate up social media
📲 A buzzy, new social messaging app
🏆 Creative Excellence: Fiverr’s wise insight about AI
😬 Meme-time: FOMU» FOMO
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Now, let's kick off this week's marketing wisdom...
Video Platforms Devour Social Media Time.
Like clockwork, Data Reportal's October Global Statshot delivers a goldmine of insights for anyone curious about the latest internet trends. This time, I set aside a solid hour to sift through its 400+ pages, and one major takeaway jumped out: video-first platforms are eating up more of our online hours.
Here are a few interesting facts,
Global social media usage dropped by 5 minutes to 2 hours and 19 minutes daily.
TikTok users are now glued to their screens for 34 hours and 15 minutes per month. While YouTube sits close behind at 29 hours and 21 minutes.
I compared the same data from these reports over the last three years, and I found something unexpected.
The growth numbers tell an even more compelling story:
TikTok: Up 22.3% year-over-year (apparently, sleep is overrated)
Instagram: Jumped 19.9% (thanks, Reels)
YouTube: Climbed 12% (still the comfortable old shoe of video platforms)
Facebook: 🤐
So, what does this mean? We might be reaching the ceiling in terms of total social media time, but it's clear that video-first platforms are claiming a bigger slice of the pie. It's no surprise that LinkedIn is pivoting to video as well.
The message for marketers is clear: if content is king, video is now wearing the crown. And that crown comes with vertical dimensions.
Dear Phone Calls: Gen Z Found Another Excuse to Ghost You.
Remember 2022? When new social apps were popping up faster than AI startups? BeReal promised authenticity, Artifact wanted to reinvent news, and dozens more vied for our attention. Now they're all digital ghosts.
Which is why the buzz around Daze has me excited.
Set to launch this November, Daze is what you'd get if Instagram Stories and WhatsApp had a baby raised by AI. Think messaging, but make it Gen Z - multicolored text that dances across your screen, stickers that come alive, and yes, even mini-games tucked into your chats.
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"Where can I try this out?" my 10-year-old demanded after watching their promo videos.
And she's not alone. A few numbers:
Daze has amassed over 156,000 sign-ups on its waitlist.
The app's promotional content has garnered approximately 48 million views across TikTok and Instagram, with its most popular video alone reaching 8 million views. Not a single dollar spent on ads or influencers - pure organic buzz.
Their beta test with 1,400 users shows a 60-day retention rate above 50%.
Gen Z already treats phone calls like we treated vegetables as kids - something to avoid at all costs. Gen Zs dominate the messaging app Snapchat. Daze has the Gen Z DNA. It also does not feel like TikTok's second cousin.
Will it be the next WhatsApp? Maybe. But what's more interesting is how it might change how we think about messaging. Because, let's be honest - texting could use a makeover.
Meme-time: FOMO Gets the Applause, FOMU Gets the Purchase Orders
Last week, I witnessed something fascinating at a panel discussion.
The room buzzed with energy and discussions. What started as a discussion about marketing technology slowly morphed into group therapy.
"Companies are stuck in the 2010s!"
"Marketers just don't get cutting-edge technology!"
"Executives are allergic to change!"
Heads nodded. Knowing looks were exchanged. Pain was shared.
I gathered all my courage to be the buzzkill:
"In large organizations, Fear Of Messing Up (FOMU) crushes Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) every single time."
When adopting new technology, especially those requiring hefty investments in people and expertise, the buying committee will almost always pick the safe bet. Nobody ever got fired for choosing Google Analytics, Adobe Photoshop, or Salesforce.
But champion that brilliant new startup's solution? Now you're signing up for:
Six months of convincing the buying committee
Endless meetings with the CFO, who questions every decimal
A CEO who wants to know why you're not going with "industry standard."
Training sessions with reluctant users who were used to the old system
Sleepless nights wondering if it'll all work
Best case? The solution delivers a 10% improvement in customer retention. By the time those results roll in, you're too exhausted to celebrate, already eyeing your next role or updating your resume.
Worst case? Well, let's just say your LinkedIn profile suddenly becomes very active.
It's fundamental human psychology - loss aversion bias. The emotional punch of failure hits about twice as hard as the high-five of equivalent success. We're wired to avoid losses more than we're motivated to chase gains.
The result? We've created a perfect paradox: Everyone wants change as long as someone else risks their job to pioneer it.
FOMO might fuel passionate discussions about digital transformation. But when Monday morning rolls around, FOMU quietly leads us back to our safe spaces, familiar tools, and comfortable processes.
If you're one of the rare brave souls championing new solutions in your organization, I'd love to hear your story. How do you fight the FOMU?
Creative Excellence: Your AI Flex? Nobody Cares.
Toys "R" Us made a splash at Cannes with an ad created by the text-to-video AI model Sora. The result? A slightly creepy experience, with the protagonist's face changing in every frame.
Motorola's Hello Moto on the runway ad… Too dull to even talk about.
Strava thought runners needed an AI chatbot telling them their hearts stopped for 10 minutes and their legs fell off. (Spoiler: Neither runners nor reality were consulted in this decision.)
Enter Fiverr, dropping truth bombs in their musical "Nobody Cares (that you use AI)."
In the musical Nobody Cares, the team at Fiverr references several memes and AI models and attempts to use AI for the sake of using AI.
Fiverr nails the one insight that seems to have escaped boardrooms worldwide: Your customers don't care that you use AI.
They care if you solve their problems.
They care if you make their lives easier.
They care if you deliver value.
But the fact that you used AI to get there?
Nobody. Cares.
The message is refreshingly clear: AI is a means to an end, not a marketing strategy. It's the solution behind the solution—the backstage crew, not the headline act.
Short Stuff:
Federal Trade Commission banned writing, buying, or selling fake reviews online. (Fines up to $51,744)
SNL shared the average experience of mindless scrolling on TikTok (It’s a bizarre world).
DC Entertainment is teaming up with GlobalComix to make their comics easier to read on phones in a vertical format like on TikTok or Instagram. (Will this make comics great again?)
That’s a wrap on this week. Thank you for your time and attention. If you liked this week’s newsletter or found something interesting, please give me a like ❤️ or drop a comment🗨️. Your support helps drive the newsletter's discoverability.
Regards,
Garima Mamgain
P.S: Happy Diwali.
As a child, Diwali wasn't just a day - it was a season of anticipation. The countdown would begin with what felt like the world's most thorough house cleaning operation.
But then came the fun stuff.
We would get new clothes, the house would be filled with the aromas of the snacks, and cousins would arrive.
And sometimes, a generous relative would press crisp notes into my eager palm. The joy of that moment! Even if mom's "I'll keep it safe for you" meant those notes would vanish faster than the sweets. But for those brief, precious seconds of holding actual wealth... priceless feeling.
These days, we rarely wait for Diwali to buy clothes, and I avoid sweets, given my terrible metabolism.
But Diwali is always a magical time of the year for me. I might be doing the bare minimum, yet the lights are up, our traditional wear is ironed, and it feels festive. Different from childhood? Yes, but special in its own way.
I hope you get the chance to savour the festive spirit as well.
Here's wishing you a festival full of light, joy, and maybe even a few moments that make you feel like that kid with crisp notes again.
Happy Diwali from my family to yours. 🪔