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A four-hour car campaign for house-bound Australians

The Drive by Audi Australia

Australia – Audi’s new campaign, The Drive, is part of its efforts to reconnect with house-bound Australians.

Created in partnership with We Are Social Australia, the four-hour long slow tv ad allows viewers to experience the relaxing nature of a long road trip from the confines of their own home. Showing scenes of Australian landscapes captured from the new Audi A6 Sedan, the film is intended to give viewers the immerse, emotive feel of a scenic car journey during Covid-19 lockdowns.

As people seek ways to enjoy the great outdoors despite being at home, Audi’s campaign provides a sense of calm and escapism in an otherwise anxious climate. To enhance the soothing mood of the film, composer John Hassell created its score in isolation from his studio in Marseille.

Even during this period of isolation, the attention span of consumers is being stretched across multiple digital outlets. In The Focus Filter, we identify ways that brands can help consumers curate their digital consumption.

Thrillist empowers chefs with ghost kitchen series

Ghost Kitchen by Thrillist

US – Food publisher Thrillist has launched a new video series, Ghost Kitchen, which highlights the hard work of takeaway-only restaurants during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The docu-series provides a platform for chefs and restaurants still operating during lockdown, with Thrillist navigating production concerns by encouraging restaurateurs to shoot the content themselves, typically in a mobile-friendly format.

Among the themes of the videos are how restaurants are navigating the coronavirus, and those giving back to their community during lockdown, presenting a raw and honest view from the sector. According to Thrillist chief content officer Meghan Kirsch, with many chefs, bartenders and kitchen workers out of work at present, donation widgets have been embedded in articles that allow readers to support them by donating to the Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation (RWCF) charity and without leaving the site.

In the current climate, around the world restaurants are launching virtual touchpoints to maintain trade and brand interest. For more, read our Media Kitchens microtrend.

Covid-19: Snapchat filters for safe social distancing

UK – Snapchat has released a new augmented reality (AR) lens to help people remain at a safe, two-metre distance from others during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Created with We Are Social UK, the Snap Safe Lens uses proximity AR technology to display how far people need to stand away from other members of the public when outside. As the filter opens in Snapchat, it calculates up to 200cm to help users gain mental awareness of a safe distance. The design of the lens, and its branding, is based on the black-on-yellow motif of physical safety barriers and warning signs.

The filter even alerts users if they get too close to others, displaying a warning sign which states: ‘Stay Back. Save Lives.’ Created as part of a response to the UN international Call to Creatives, the campaign tackles one of six key important messages to the world’s population.

In our Covid-19 Contingency Planning report, we identify some of the other ways that brands can effectively use their services to support people in the global pandemic.

SnapSafe by SnapChat and We Are Social

Stat: The global fashion industry braces for economic loss

The global fashion industry is bracing for the biggest economic contraction since World War II, according to the State of Fashion 2020 Coronavirus Update by Business of Fashion and McKinsey & Company. The new report found that revenues for the global fashion industry are expected to contract by 27% to 30% in 2020 year-on-year, although the industry could regain positive growth of 2% to 4% in 2021.

The personal luxury goods industry, which includes luxury fashion, accessories, jewellery and beauty, is expected to be hit even harder, with an estimated global revenue contraction of 35% to 39%. In order to plan for the future, the study suggest that businesses must reshape the industry’s value chain, shifting to digital-first outputs and sharing insights with competitors. ‘No company will get through the pandemic alone, and fashion players need to share data, strategies and insights on how to navigate the storm,’ reads the report.

With the impact of Covid-19 pushing luxury and fashion brands to think outside the box, key innovators are turning to technology to digitise the runway and buying process.