Gen Z
The Importance of Authenticity With Micro-Influencer Marketing and Gen Z Audiences
‘Fake it till you make it’ is a popular phrase in the modern self-improvement culture, but one area this definitely no longer applies is marketing.
For years, brands have thrown advertising money into the furnace of celebrity endorsements. Having a big-name celebrity attached to your brand used to be a sure-fire of gaining attention, but as Gen Z emerges as a major commercial force, this is quickly losing power.
Gen Z is a demographic that has grown up in and around digital marketing and the internet. More than generations that come before it, it understands how the world of advertising works, and it is demanding change.
The idea that a celebrity is using the same products as your everyday person no longer sells. We have more access than ever before to the lives of celebrities and athletes, and we can clearly see our favourite NFL player is not wearing that watch he promised he never took off in the adverts.
There is a demand for authenticity and for a belief that a person selling you a product is, first and foremost, upfront about the fact they are selling it and, secondly, providing a genuine endorsement of a product they use themselves.
This is where micro-influencers can step in. Micro-influencers have huge followers of people who really believe in their brand. Their interests are more niche and much more accessible than celebrities or major influencers.
As such, it is essential that a brand’s values align with that of a micro-influencer. Brands should be looking for micro-influencers that share their beliefs and that have products that will align with their audience instead of just seeking out the ones with the biggest followings. A campaign for a product that is of direct interest to micro-influencers with 25,000 followers will prove to be much more profitable than randomly assigning a product to someone with 200,000 followers with no real connection to it.
Essentially, it is becoming increasingly impossible to fake in-depth knowledge or endorsement of a product. The community aspects of sports and other sectors now mean audiences are quicker than ever to spot something disingenuous and call it out. Micro-influencers, whose success relies on that strong relationship with their communities, are not going to put themselves at risk by endorsing something that does not align with their own values and beliefs.
This authenticity also applies to presentation. We’ve all had that experience where we’re listening to a major podcast, and then, out of the blue, they just start promoting a product totally unrelated to what we are listening to. All this results in is people repeatedly hitting the skip 15 seconds button on their apps until the ad is gone.
Micro-influencers understand their communities, and they understand the products that are going to interest them. They also know how to package these products to them and how to make them appeal without ever appearing pushy or like they are over-selling.
This genuine connection between a product and its intended audience is something people would pay millions for in the past. Micro-influencers have made this affordable, ensuring an excellent ROI for companies on their advertising campaigns.
It has also proven an excellent way of levelling the playing field for small and mid-level businesses. Companies no longer need to have huge advertising budgets to reach their audiences. Gen Z is also supportive of smaller business, especially those that align with their social and political values, and micro-influencers and authentic marketing provides a way for them to connect.
One thing that is clear is that marketing is changing, and Gen Z audiences are going to continue to look for the most authentic endorsements they can find. Working with micro-influencers now allows companies to get ahead of that trend and reap all of its benefits.
By: Troy Paul, Co-Founder and CEO of SGG Media
Rivalry Corp. (the “Company” or “Rivalry”) (TSXV: RVLY) (OTCQX: RVLCF) (FSE: 9VK), the leading sportsbook and iGaming operator for Millennials and Gen Z, today announced a non-brokered private placement offering of convertible debentures (“Convertible Debentures“), and the closing of the first tranche of such offering for aggregate gross proceeds of $14,000,000. The investment comprising this initial closing came from an existing institutional shareholder. All dollar figures are quoted in Canadian dollars.
Under the Offering, each Convertible Debenture will consist of $1,000 principal amount of 10% senior secured convertible debentures of the Company, maturing on November 14, 2027 (the “Maturity Date“). The outstanding principal under the Convertible Debentures will be convertible at the option of the holder, at any time prior to the close of business on the last business day immediately preceding the Maturity Date, into subordinate voting shares in the capital of the Company (“Subordinate Voting Shares“) at the conversion price of $1.40 per Subordinate Voting Share (the “Conversion Price“).
“We are very pleased to receive the support of a long-standing institutional shareholder of Rivalry with this investment,” said Steven Salz, Co-founder and CEO, Rivalry. “Rivalry’s unique product mix and position in the marketplace has brought the business to the inflection point it’s reached today. We’re deeply confident in the underlying trends the business is showing and maintain our expectation to achieve profitability in H1 2024.”
“Strengthening our balance sheet positions the company to maximize the opportunity in front of us. The capital will enable Rivalry to accelerate the development and release of new products, expand marketing efforts, and extend into new geographies and verticals, setting us on a path where we can pursue growth and profitability at the same time,” Salz added.
Terms of the Offering
The Convertible Debentures will bear interest from the date of issue at 10.0% per annum, and will be payable in cash quarterly in arrears on March 30, June 30 September 30 and December 30 of each year (each, an “Interest Payment Date”) commencing December 31, 2025 and will consist of interest accrued from and including the date of issue to the initial Interest Payment Date. Additional tranches of the non-brokered private placement offering may close for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $27,500,000 (inclusive of the initial closing) (the “Offering“).
The Convertible Debentures will be senior secured obligations of the Company, subject to certain exceptions, and will be secured by all of the assets and property of the Company, subject to certain permitted encumbrances, pursuant to a general security agreement, and guaranteed by the Company’s wholly-owned material subsidiaries, and such guarantee shall be secured by a security agreement executed by such subsidiaries granting a first priority security interest on all of their present and after acquired personal property.
The net proceeds received by the Company are expected to be used to fund general working capital and corporate purposes.
The Convertible Debentures shall be offered and sold (i) to investors in Canada on a private placement basis; (ii) to institutional accredited investors in the United States pursuant to available private placement exemptions; (iii) to investors residing in jurisdictions outside of Canada and the United States, in each case in accordance with all applicable laws; provided that no prospectus, registration statement or similar document is required to be filed in such foreign jurisdiction.
All securities issued in connection with the Offering will be subject to a hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance in accordance with applicable securities legislation.
The securities issuable in connection with the Offering have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “U.S. Securities Act“) or any U.S. state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an available exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of the securities referenced in this press release, in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
Rivalry Corp. (the “Company” or “Rivalry”) (TSXV: RVLY) (OTCQX: RVLCF) (FSE: 9VK), the leading sportsbook and iGaming operator for Millennials and Gen Z, today announced details of its planned release of third quarter 2023 financial results.
The Company expects to file its Q3 2023 results the morning of Wednesday, November 29, 2023 prior to the commencement of TSXV trading. Management plans to host an investor conference call that same day at 10:00 am EST to discuss the results.
Conference Call Details
| Timing: | Wednesday, November 29, 2023 at 10:00 am EST |
| Dial-in: | 888-886-7786 (toll free) or (+1) 416-764-8658 (local or international calls) |
| Webcast: | A live webcast can be accessed from the Events section of the Company’s website at www.rivalrycorp .com. |
| A replay of the webcast will be archived on the Company’s website for one year. |
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