Zoom Rules Work From Home Life; Nonprofits Support Restaurant Workers: Friday's First Things First

Welcome to First Things First, Adweek’s daily resource for marketers. We’ll be publishing the content to First Things First on Adweek.com each morning (like this post), but if you prefer that it come straight to your inbox, you can sign up for the email here. The Advertising & Marketing World Forges Ahead Amid Coronavirus Keep up with the latest using our coronavirus tracker, which includes event cancellations and other impacts of COVID-19 on the advertising and marketing world. To discuss remote work, business impacts and other professional matters related to COVID-19, join our dedicated LinkedIn forum. How Zoom Became the Go-to King of the Quarantine Economy As the coronavirus quarantine has forced people around the world indoors, no brand has been more emblematic of this new normal than Zoom, which was exceptionally well-poised for the pandemic. As early as 2011 but especially now, Zoom has been able to set itself apart from the pack of competitors that emerged from that trend with a “freemium” pricing model, where anyone can use a limited version of the service, and monthly costs are tiered up based on the size of the client’s team Read more: The company's reach is now extending beyond the enterprise world. But can Zoom's dominance last? Some Staffers Don’t Want BBDO and Omnicom to Get a Pass as ‘the Poster Child for WFH’ BBDO is embracing the work-from-home life with a "BBDO Your Home" initiative, but some at the company think it's too little, too late after the agency was slow to send employees home. A Fishbowl commenter shared, in part, an email for an unspecified BBDO office informing staff, “We will remain open because it’s the right thing to do for our clients and to keep the business moving.” Read more: Some employees felt the agency was putting its clients ahead of its employees. Nonprofits Launch Programs to Support Restaurant Workers as Coronavirus Decimates Industry While restaurant workers wait and hope for government assistance, nonprofits across the country in the food and beverage space are shifting their efforts to help those directly affected by the pandemic as immediately as they can. Organizations in different cities are teaming up to expand their reach nationally, while the public is also supporting the industry through virtual tip jars and buying gift cards. Read more: Many nonprofits, like the Houston-based Southern Smoke Foundation, have experience supporting restaurant industry workers in crisis. Related: Coronavirus crisis has afforded brands a rare opportunity to show their human side—but in giving out freebies, they risk looking opportunistic. Ad-Tech Companies Are Finding Their ‘New Normal’ Amid Coronavirus Uncertainty When the shockwaves of the coronavirus pandemic first hit the ad world, ad-tech firms said they hadn’t yet felt a drastic impact to their businesses. But a lot can change in just two weeks. As marketers evaluate their budgets and the work-from-home life upends typical sales protocols, ad-tech companies have to find new ways to get deals done. Read more: It’s in these uncertain times when the art of the sale comes into play. Can the Coronavirus Crisis Prompt a Correction in Brand Safety Tactics? As this global calamity unfolds, audiences are naturally turning to trusted online news sources. Normally, large audiences generating record amounts of clicks is good for publisher finances, but thanks to keyword blacklisting around coronavirus-related content, difficulties have arisen for publishers to monetize their most popular content with programmatic buys, further compounding a widespread freeze on advertiser spend. Read more: Can these conflicts be overcome as the crisis is set to define the news agenda? More in Coronavirus News: Dr. Anthony Fauci Makes Coronavirus Plea Live on Facebook Airlines Are Asking for Billions in Bailout Money—and So Is Everyone Else How Marketers Can Navigate Branding During Coronavirus Amazon Employees Say Company Should Do More to Protect Them PopSugar Released Its New Fitness App for Free to Keep Us Moving Under Quarantine NHL Takes Care of Its Hockey-Hungry Fans During the Coronavirus Pandemic Even Before Many Bars Closed, Americans Started Drinking From Home To the surprise of no one, Americans are drinking more at home. But it turns out this was already happening before many of the nation’s bars and restaurants were recently ordered to shut down in several states due to the spread of COVID-19. During the first week of March, purchases of beer, spirits and wine at liquor, grocery and convenience stores were all up compared to the same time last year. Plus, widespread quarantining is also presenting an opportunity for alcohol delivery services. [kickout id="1"] News from the TV & Streaming World All American, One of Broadcast’s Least-Watched Shows, Is Now No. 1 on Netflix Pop TV Will Simulcast One Day at a Time Premiere on TV Land and Logo ESPN Revives The Ocho, Hallmark Sets Christmas Marathon as Networks Shake Up Schedules With Live Sports on Hold, Marketers Turn to Athletes for Content Conan Will Be First Late-Night Show to Resume Full-Length Episodes HBO Max Delays Friends Reunion but Still Hopes to Film in Time for May Launch