By mid-December, my Instagram feed is overflowing with my pals’ Spotify Wrapped playlists.
So I began my festive, well timed dialog with Spotify’s Head of International Enterprise Advertising, Grace Kao, with a simple one: What’s on her Spotify Wrapped?
“I positively channel my 12-year-old daughter proper now,” she advised me. “So feminine energy singers: Chappell Roan, Olivia Rodrigo… Beyoncé, clearly.”
Within the spirit of reflection, I provide you with “Advertising Wrapped”: Kao’s prime advertising methods of 2024, and what to deliver into 2025.
Lesson One: Personalization creates connection.
If Kao had to decide on a cornerstone of 2024’s Advertising Wrapped, she’d select “Connection.”
Which is why Wrapped is such a powerful advertising tactic. It isn’t about simply personalization — it additionally fosters connection.
As Kao advised me, “Spotify Wrapped does so nicely as a result of it is private, but it surely’s additionally about group. All we need to do is share our Wrapped with others. I need to hear about your Wrapped as a result of it is a connection we each share.”
Whereas I will admit my very own Wrapped is barely embarrassing (I do not hearken to something post-2020, so my Wrapped is caught in a time-loop of Taylor Swift’s Folklore… As an apart, I am dangerous with change), there’s one thing deeply gratifying about seeing all my social media connections on the identical web page for as soon as.
Whereas discussing how personalization creates connection, one other marketing campaign sprung to Kao’s thoughts: The current Coke and Oreo “Bestie Mode” collab, wherein customers might obtain curated Spotify playlists that mixed their fav hits with their greatest pals’ prime songs.
“In 2024, we noticed individuals wanting extra music and extra connection, so this was an excellent alternative to deliver two iconic manufacturers collectively and do one thing enjoyable that introduced worth to our prospects.”
Lesson Two: Do not sleep on podcasts as a lead gen alternative.
Gen Zers do not similar to listening to podcasts — they like shopping for from them, too.
In accordance with one report launched in October of this 12 months, 82% of Gen Z listeners have taken motion on a model after listening to a podcast advert.
This does not shock Kao. As she places it, “Gen Z trusts podcasts greater than they belief influencers on social media proper now.”
This is sensible to me. I lately bought a Ninja blender as a result of I heard a podcaster within the well being area rave about it. (I am additionally a infamous shopaholic, although, so take be aware: I require minimal convincing.)
Kao boils the reasoning all the way down to authenticity: “I believe it is as a result of podcasts are unscripted in a sure sense. It is like listening to an natural dialog.”
If you happen to assume this advertising lesson applies solely to B2C, assume once more: Spotify’s 2024 Tradition Subsequent report discovered that one of many prime podcast genres for Gen Z is enterprise and expertise.
So in 2025, Kao’s suggestion is to lean into podcasts as a lead gen alternative, particularly in case your target market consists of Gen Z.
Lesson Three: Be the primary.
“Spotify is a day by day companion all through your life. We’re there in your first dance at your marriage ceremony, your first kiss, your first job interview, or the primary music you play in your new automobile,” Kao quips.
“And that first expertise is what drives model loyalty.”
She’s not mistaken. I am nonetheless loyal to Lululemon years after Alo Yoga, Vuori, and Outside Voices hit the scene as various athletic attire firms. For no motive aside from the only one: I shopped there first.
“A whole lot of model loyalty comes from being first to market. And so when manufacturers take into consideration 2025, it is necessary to think about: How will you be first, or at the least a part of a person’s first expertise?”
Whether or not you promote software program, collaboration instruments, or automobile tires, the purpose holds: You won’t be top-of-mind throughout somebody’s first dance, however you can be the model they discovered first, and the one they select to stay with due to the small, measurable affect you’ve got had on their first moments — be it a primary advertising job, first staff undertaking, or first large advertising marketing campaign.
And that is one thing to rejoice.
