Out of Scope Issue 74: Edelman Fist Bumps Saudi Arabia
Plus: BeReal, Twitter bots, and a return to Westeros.
This week, PR Week reported on the new deal between Edelman and Saudi Arabia, which follows a few weeks heavy with news for the Middle Eastern country. Hirsch Leatherwood also dug into the hot social media platform of the moment, BeReal, and the rampant use of Twitter bots. Read on below.
đĄON OUR MINDS: Saudi Arabia & Edelman
Saudi Arabia has recruited PR powerhouse Edelman to improve its global image, which has suffered for years due to the kingdomâs human rights record.Â
Whatâs a country to do? Edelman believes celebrity partnerships and big productions may do help. Saudi Arabia has already been taking this approach to mixed reception. Case in point: the new, controversial, Saudi-backed golf league LIV. With global golf icons like Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson on board and now a plan to host a tournament at one of former President Donald Trumpâs golf clubs in New Jersey, LIV has excited some and angered others.Â
Bloomberg published an article detailing Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman's ambitious new megaproject Neom, a $500 billion city in the desert. Whether the royalâs dream manifests is yet to be seen. A high-tech paradise in the middle of the desert, the likes of which the world has never seen, all powered by a fully renewable electric grid.
Can Saudi Arabia become âa new, modern-minded tourism and culture destination?â Itâs an uphill battle, but who knows? A fist bump today may become a handshake tomorrow.
đ BRAND WIN OF THE WEEK: BeRealÂ
BeReal, the newest social media darling, has finally broken into the mainstream. Driven by the trifecta of social media users (tweens, college students, and the chronically online), BeReal claims to offer a simpler, more authentic social experience. The app developers have emphasized the platform's authenticity, promising "BeReal won't make you famous,â as opposed to today's ad-heavy platforms. There is no share feature, no amount of likes, no friend list counts, no explore pageâ just little moments of you and your friends sitting on the couch, laying in bed, or at work.Â
The app has now been downloaded more than 20 million times, with the highest daily downloads reaching a peak on Monday.Â
Many claim the fad wonât last. Some criticize the appâs notification-driven user interface, suggesting that, akin to Wordle, its time-sensitive functionality might begin to drag with time. While BeReal claims to showcase âauthenticity,â its very existence and buzz on other platforms call into question whether authenticity is genuinely achievable on social media.
Regardless, BeReal is likely to continue to enjoy its popularity for now. Thinkpieces, TikToks, and memes about the app have circulated for weeks and show no sign of letting up soon. Fad or not, BeReal and its two minutes a day are having fifteen minutes of fame.Â
đĄ ON OUR RADAR
The two best-known brands in American politicsâthe Republican and Democratic partiesâare leaning into issues that embolden their respective bases. As midterm campaigning picks up steam, the Democrats have increasingly referenced the Supreme Courtâs ruling on abortion in their ads. In contrast, the GOP has focused on the economy and record high inflation.
Zack Snyder, Johnny Depp, and Elon Musk are all keeping Twitter bots in the news. Just as Musk revoked his offer to buy Twitter (he believes the platform underestimates the amount of fake or spam accounts), Rolling Stone reported that support for Zack Snyderâs version of the Justice League was driven by bots. On the other hand, Bot Sentinel reported that old-fashioned humans supported Johnny Depp and ostracized Amber Heard during their defamation case. This runs counter to the earlier assumption that bots drove the Depp v. Heard narrative. Regardless, these stories paint a larger picture of Twitter as a platform that is easily manipulated and increasingly unable to curb online abuse.
As inflation soars, how much are name brands worth to consumers? Data shows that their loyalty is buckling, and big names like Kraft and Clorox have noticed and are preparing accordingly. Meanwhile, some companies are capitalizing on the opportunity to increase sales of store-brand products.
Remember the pre-pandemic days when QR codes were dead? Those days are long gone. Today, we use QR codes for more than contactless payments and digital menus â theyâve been revamped into meaningful marketing techniques. NBCU is one demonstration of this comeback by leveraging on-screen QR codes to direct viewers to shoppable articles in hit shows like âLove Island USA.â Weâre curious to see if QR codes will continue to evolve and if theyâre really here to stay for good.Â
Did you get the memo? Like many companies, Google is taking stock of economic realities and asking its employees to meet the moment. Google CEO Sundar Pichai sent an internal email stressing that while no layoffs are planned, the company must focus on re-deploying resources to priority areas, bring an entrepreneurial mindset to work, meet uncertainty with urgency, and sharper focus and hunger.
Marshfield, Missouri, is witnessing an ongoing "sign war" between two of the biggest brands in town, McDonald's and Dairy Queen, and the locals are having a ball. The Marshfield Chamber of Commerce even started a Facebook thread to keep track of the dialogue, with more franchises and local businesses joining in. There's no update on how the light-hearted back and forth has affected sales, but as Eve Metheny, Hamra's director of brand marketing, responded, "people just need a good laugh right now."
As ESG becomes increasingly important to investors, the long-term success of one of the worldâs top startups, Shein, is threatened. Best known for selling trendy, insanely-cheap clothes, Shein is also infamous for allegations of environmental damage, worker exploitation, and copyright theft. As Bloomberg writes, âWhile many of its young customers donât seem to care, the people and institutions with real power over Sheinâs futureâinvestors, regulators, and politiciansâhave little choice but to pay attention.â Faced with the pressure to justify its sky-high valuation, Shein hired a team of new executives to change the companyâs image and shed its reputation as an ESG villain. Only time will tell if the fast-fashion giant can reverse a narrative inextricably linked to its core business model.Â
Showcase Cinemas in England offered redheads free movie tickets as air-conditioned shelter from record-breaking heat warnings and increased sun exposure. The offer was met with mixed reviews. Some liked the idea of avoiding the heat with free entertainment. Others were reminded of being bullied for their hair color and thought the marketing effort would only work to ostracize them.
Dracarys! Ahead of HBO Maxâs Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, the streamer partnered with language learning app Duolingo to launch an updated course in High Valyrian, one of the fictional languages in the show. Theyâre promoting the course on billboards that set the Duolingo owl atop the Iron Throne.
đ„QUICK HITS:Â
In case you missed these stories this week.
As venture capitalists pull out of tech startups, another (unlikely) investor emerges - the auction house. London-based Christie's, the world's largest auction house, recently announced a new venture capital arm to invest in tech that helps art collectors.
The film adaptation of the 2018 best-selling novel "Where the Crawdads Sing" hit theaters last week and recirculated questions about author Delia Owen's possible connections to a 1995 murder case in Zambia. Book critics have previously clocked the thematic parallels between the murder mystery in the book and the death of the suspect poacher in Zambia.Â
Consensus college women's basketball player of the year Aliyah Boston made a powerful statement after turning down a late invitation to the ESPYS awards show after feeling disrespected due to her race and gender.Â
Weâll see you here next week! đ
HL
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