Media & Influencer Hub - August Update
Welcome to the first edition of our Media & Influencer Hub Monthly Update, a snapshot of the top media and influencer trends which are dominating the headlines.
Each month, WE UK’s M&I Hub, our specialist team of industry experts, will share our insight and analysis on the UK’s media landscape and provide our take on what to watch out for in coming weeks. Please get in touch with the team here to subscribe to our mailing list.
TOP STORIES
For a while now, we’ve seen a dominant theme across UK business coverage (we’ll give you a clue, it begins with ‘B’)…
An unlimited supply of Brexit headlines
We refer to ‘Brexit’ several times in this email, which pretty much sums up the biggest trend in the UK media landscape this summer; Brexit-related speculation has become a permanent fixture across the front pages of every UK newspaper. Couple this with the ongoing coverage cycle around the upcoming US election, we can summarise the general sentiment of coverage in one word: “uncertain.” The Brexit vote has placed markets, businesses and communities into a period of extended uncertainty and whilst this won’t hold press back from covering it every single day, we’re unlikely to see a clear direction or trend to emerge for some time yet.
The future of the UK’s fintech sector
Continuing the Brexit theme, we have seen the UK press locked in an ongoing debate around London’s future as a leading global fintech hub. However, according to Business Insider, UK fintech startups raised £40 million in July alone and Reuters recently reported that there may be “light at the end of the Brexit tunnel.” Whilst several fintech firms have stalled funding rounds following the referendum, UK press are yet undecided on the most likely outcome, with coverage ranging from reporting it as a potential casualty to outlining how it will rally to alleviate investor concern.
Technology in travel
With two weeks left of August, UK media are cramming in the travel related stories, particularly the impact of technology on how we travel. This year, we’ve seen travel brands leverage virtual reality (VR)to enable consumers to experience holiday locations without any transportation at all. Not sure if we’re sold on that option for our Summer holiday though!
VR benefits paraplegic patients
Sticking with the VR theme, check out this story in The Guardian which outlines how technology has helped eight paraplegics move their legs and feel sensation again. Combined with an artificial exoskeleton and software, the VR was able to give the patient the sensation of walking over different textures, such as grass or sand. Incredibly, since the training, some of the group have been reclassified as partially paralysed with further improvements expected over time.
2016 Rio Olympics
The 2016 Olympics is happily feeding our appetite for feel-good stories (more gold medals for Team GB please!). We recommend checking out this great ZDNet piece which outlines the technology innovations which are supporting Rio’s success. We’re also intrigued by the Washington Post’s decision to leverage artificial intelligence to report on the event.
DID YOU SEE?
Ikea Takes Aim at Instagrammers
Instagram has given the world another great way to share and digest visual content but Swedish furniture giant Ikea has had enough with foodie Instagrammers and their need to shoot the perfect snap of dinner. This high-production look back in time tells the story of how ridiculous the trend would be back then. Taking the moral high ground on how a meal should help bring people together and relax, Ikea obviously wants to sell more dining tables and chairs with its Let’s Relax campaign.
Actual Reality
When everyone around you is jumping on the VR bandwagon, how do you tap into the hype? Automotive brand Jaguar succeeded by telling the VR story through actual driving experiences – a core element at the very essence of the car brand. Jaguar duped car fans into taking a ride in what they thought was a VR simulator. However, all is not what it seemed as car turned into a real driving experience around a mini circuit with a stunt driver – with the footage recorded to make great content.
Millennial Test Drives
Sticking with the automotive theme, Ford recently took the test drive experience to another level in New York as they tried to tempt the lucrative millennial market. Knowing that New York traffic is counter-productive to a good drive, the brand created its very own test drive circuit in the guise of a life-size game (Escape The Room) to deliver an experiential test drive for the new Ford SUV car.
LAY OF THE LAND
In case you missed it…
- Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington is stepping down from her role as Editor-in-Chief to run a new venture, Thrive Global.
- Rhiannon Williams, former Technology Reporter at The Telegraph, is now a Freelance Technology writer, writing for the BBC amongst other publications.
- Ben Woods, former European Editor at The Next Web, is now a Freelance Technology writer contributing to titles such as Wired UK and Engadget amongst others. He also founded tech website10second.tech.
COMING UP
We’ve given our best shot at the headlines we expect to see over the next month:
- “Team GB grabs ALL the gold” – Continued coverage of Rio 2016 and hopefully the many gold medals Team GB will win this month.
- “What to watch out for at IFA 2016” – August may be a quiet month for many industries but if you’re a technology firm attending IFA in Berlin in early September, there is likely no summer vacation for you!
- “Apple rumoured to launch its iPhone 7” – It’s September which usually means one thing; Apple is supposedly preparing to launch its latest iPhone, which is rumoured to be the iPhone 7.
