Putting the social back in media, at a safe distance

Gone are the days of aerial shots of hors d’oeuvres and yacht rides on the French Riviera. Covid-19 has every nonessential influencer homebound and wearing a mask.

So what does the future hold for those whose lives involved getting the perfect picture on luxury trips around the world, shopping sprees and spa treatments?

Social media influencer and beauty vlogger Mihlali Ndamase recently shared with her 1-million Instagram followers how she missed her lunch dates in Europe. She said she’s had to cancel international campaigns that were lined up for this year, and that lockdown has given her more time to create content.

“I have more time to do my content — nothing much has changed because I do my content from home anyway. We used to be able to do outdoor content but now we’re confined to do it at home only. I can’t shoot campaigns, any sponsored content I’m doing from my house. I’m hoping brands will find new ways to get work done with us, but I don’t know what the future looks like. Being a beauty content creator it’s easy for me to work in my space,” she said.

Entertainers and performing artists are not going to be performing for a long time. It’s going to take a long time to convince people to gather in big groups.

While Ndamase’s social media views have dropped, comedian and art director Donovan Goliath and violinist Davina Mae Gordon have seen an increase in their social media engagement.

Goliath and Gordon have created parody posters using high-fashion brands juxtaposed with lockdown-related topics, which they make using an iPhone and a music stand, against a plain wall. They’ve also worked with brands such as VW, KFC, Vodacom and MTN.

“Entertainers and performing artists are not going to be performing for a long time. It’s going to take a long time to convince people to gather in big groups, to spend their money and use their disposable income to buy tickets to see shows. Post-Covid we are going to have to keep creating as much content online to keep entertaining people,” says Goliath.

With more people online, he says influencers and content creators need to embrace the “new normal” and think creatively about how they package their content. With everyone online, those whose content is relatable will stand out.

Goliath says the days of “fluff” and meaningless posts about boat trips are a thing of the past — going forward, people will connect to content that is relatable and real.

“If your idea is strong it doesn’t matter if you shot it on an expensive camera or on your cellphone. It’s going back to traditional, old-school communication with a strong idea with clever execution. It’s getting the basics across. We’re seeing it now and we’ll see it in the future too, but people are connecting to content that relates and resonates, and not the fluff ‘look at me on a boat’. We’re being a lot more human and that’s going to be the new normal.”