2023 has been another big year for Hotglue and the industry as a whole. Following the pandemic, we have seen brands and companies re-emerge and discover new ways of working, and new priorities when marketing.

We asked some of our senior leadership team for their thoughts on how the areas of production, social media, digital media, and media strategy evolved in 2023, and the predictions and priorities we’re looking towards in the new year.

Lewis, co-founder:

As the year comes to a close, there is certainly no question 2023 has been a challenging year and one that was hard to predict, but a rewarding one nonetheless.

Some categories and channels have been more affected than others, resulting in a very short term market caused by the volatility and uncertainty. Conversely, it has also been great to see positive growth in media channels hit hard by COVID and the investment in digital from traditional platforms. This now offers brands more opportunities and alternative communications platforms to reach audiences and that will play a key role in how we plan and buy media in 2024.

There's a feeling of optimism from our partners, albeit slightly cautious as businesses and brands prepare for the potential of changing economic conditions ahead.
Cost of living will continue to impact consumers, heightening the importance of smarter decision making, campaign impact and ROI across every channel in the media mix.
The priorities as we move into 2024 will be to:

• Increase campaign effectiveness by using data and technology to become more efficient and drive higher engagement and greater business outcomes for our clients

• Work collaboratively, providing connected services that deliver end-to-end campaign solutions

• Retaining, growing and investing in our talent

• Test and learn new technology and platforms for not only speed to market, efficiency and reporting but also to personalise content, distribution and communication experiences

What is clear is that the agency of tomorrow needs to structure in a way that provides streamlined ways of working, efficiencies, collaboration across teams and experience that delivers effective and unique solutions for its valued partners.
2024 will be an exciting time to be in the media industry and an even more exciting time for Hotglue.

Kylie, Head of Digital Media

2023 has been a big year for digital media with the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI). Beyond the excitement of ChatGPT, Bard, Midjourney, and others, behind the scenes, AI has added an incredible opportunity for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of digital media campaigns through reaching new audiences with new creative based on AI signals.

Nowhere has this been more notable than with both Meta and Google campaigns. They are both doing this incredibly well, and we are seeing the results of their technology investment. Meta’s Advantage+ has leveraged the power of automation and AI, and delivered exceptional results for many of our performance campaigns with lower cost per conversions.

Our team is now adding Google Skillshop AI certifications to their repertoire to keep up to date with the changing landscape of digital media performance. It is important to remember that despite this evolution in technology, it still requires strategic human input. I’m really proud of the growth of our team to adopt and leverage new tools and placements and to generate really interesting case studies for our clients. 2024 is going to be exciting as we watch the AI space continue to evolve and refine!

Chavvah, Head of Creative Production

The balance between creativity with technology in the advertising space has always been a challenging one. The shift toward automation and everyone’s favourite buzzword, AI, has left everyone guessing what’s next. But I believe that 2024 will be a renaissance in redefining creativity, exploring what it really holds in this modern world adjacent to tools and tech advances.

Creative thinkers will write new rules and an attitude of non-conformity will drive differentiation. Purpose will be brought into the spotlight more than ever, responding to the call for greater authenticity. Creating emotional connections through storytelling will drive strategy. And all these factors will launch us into a new era of renewed faith in content.

2023 saw a 100 million dollar sci-fi film shot on a mirrorless camera you could fit in your pocket and buy at most camera stores. The iPhone made headlines (again) when it introduced video features typically reserved for expensive video cameras. Content advertising was breaking the ATL and BTL distinction by blending the mediums and tools that are typically associated with them. But no matter the platform, what you choose to film or capture content with, and what tools you use in post-production, the one central thread that cannot be replaced is the power of storytelling and creativity – or the human behind the tool. Constantly placing human emotion at the forefront of all your strategies and finding new ways to cut through a cluttered landscape of noise is vital.

For that challenge, 2024 is going to be an exciting year for Hotglue and our production team as we resist recycled ideas and category clichés, and charge the brains for some new and exciting challenges.

Hayley, Head of Media Strategy

Australia’s media landscape continues to be shaped by technological advancements, shifting consumer behaviours, and a relentless pursuit of content. I could continue to talk about the blurred boundaries of traditional and digital media channels or the relationship between technology adoption and content consumption patterns, but that would be nothing you hadn’t heard before (more than a few times).

The third piece of the ‘C’ puzzle is the one which I find the most crucial and influential: consumer. Again, this lends itself to talking about the impact of cost of living pressures on consumer behaviour and how this relates back to their purchasing and consumption trends. Instead however, I want to reflect on a statement I heard from a CMO at a marketing conference earlier this year: “Remember to pay attention to what is unchanging.” Sometimes in this industry, we get caught up in the future, the predictions for what’s next, jumping on a trend, getting ahead of the curve. The danger is that in doing so, we focus too much on the early adopters and less on the masses — the bell curve exists for a reason.

So, what do I know about the unchanging media consumption behaviours which we can rely upon going into 2024? Consumers are spending more time with media, facilitated largely by their mobile phones and lifestyles that demand constant connectivity. On paper this provides us with a greater opportunity to reach our audience. Conversely, their attention is fragmented across more channels (and devices) which requires a nuanced approach to messaging delivery, ensuring cohesive storytelling across multiple formats, placements and executions that are fit for platform. Assuming these stories are both meaningful and relevant for our audience, they require more exposure and repetition in order to drive long-term recognition and develop ongoing emotional connection.

Bea, Head of Social Media

2023 was a year where social media shed the filter and became a truly authentic space where connection was driven by common interests rather than follower counts. In the industry, the term influencer was sometimes overshadowed by the term creators. These people with less followers had, seemingly on occasion, more impact. Many brands also prioritised community management like never before, deeply considering how we speak to the consumer. As we sought this layer of “realness” online, our team at Hotglue fostered our own connection and creativity here in Melbourne. For me, some key achievements this year are broken into two areas. They come from our ability to relate to our consumer and prioritise them in every content plan.

1. By creating what we have termed “social-first” content, we have opened the door for our clients to relate to the consumer on their level. Rather than disrupting user behaviour online with ads, we aim to drive consumers down the funnel by sparking conversation instead. At Hotglue, we have implemented a social-first lens to content strategies to do exactly this. For example, with consistent mobile produced content, we went viral with over one million organic views with our automotive client Walkinshaw. We also strengthened our partnerships with creators and real people. Our 2023/2024 ambassadorship with Olympian Ariarne Titmus for Simply Wize shows the power of connection through common interests: gluten-free products paired with a respected figure with a gluten intolerance.

2. Our team has also worked with our social media clients to, what I term, “close the insight loop”. We follow always on and campaign work from ideation, to creation, through to publishing, community management, reporting and then social listening. It is no longer enough to just look at the numerical results of content. We need to listen to our consumers, what they’re asking for and what they want to see. By producing bespoke reports for our clients with these insights, we can evolve our social strategies throughout the year. This ensures future content takes these consumer considerations into account and prioritises them to drive tangible results. I anticipate that in 2024, consumer-led content, whether it be in the first or third person, will produce the most effective, meaningful results. Community management will also continue to be more proactive rather than just reactive. In other words, rather than just responding when consumers reach out, brands will keep finding conversations to participate in even if they aren’t initially mentioned.

   Our social team has loved nurturing the social presence of our client’s brands throughout the last 12 months. We can’t wait to see what 2024 brings!