How Influencers Became Key to Big Brands During the Pandemic — and Why They'll Continue to Grow
Nov 30 2020
- Influencer marketing has surged during the pandemic as more consumers have moved online and brands have been forced to adapt to new challenges.
- The rise of ecommerce and social media continues to usher in a wave of less formal and potentially cheaper marketing from online icons directly connected to audiences that brands can target.
- Marketers expect the trend to continue, which could lead to more unexpected brand partnerships, like a KFC line of Crocs or Forever 21's Cheetos apparel.
Mix together a cup of cold brew, three pumps of caramel syrup, a splash of whole milk and a generous portion of TikTok and you've got yourself "The Charli" – Dunkin' Donuts' new menu item promoted in partnership with Charli D'Amelio, a superstar social media influencer and the drink's namesake.
Influencer marketing campaigns are not new, but the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated their appeal as companies have been forced to ramp up their online presence. Marketers expect that to continue, due to a combination of changing consumer behavior, a growing sophistication of data and analytics, and tighter ad budgets.
As these forces take shape, subscription streaming services expand and cable's decline continues, could it spell the end of TV commercials?
<h2>The Rise of Influencer Marketing
</h2><p>
Fundamentally, an influencer is someone with a level of knowledge, expertise or social following that enables them to, well, influence other people's decisions. That premise <a href="https://insights.digitalmediasolutions.com/articles/history-celebrity-endorsements" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">has existed for a long time</a>, but the internet and social media gave rise to a new capability for companies of targeting specific audiences with more precision than a television or radio commercial. As a result, <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/03/reinventing-the-direct-to-consumer-business-model" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">niche, direct-to-consumer businesses offering specific products</a>, and online influencers to peddle those products, have bloomed.
</p><p>
Before the pandemic set in, Influencer Marketing Hub, a research firm, <a href="https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-benchmark-report-2020/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">reported</a> influencer marketing was expected to grow to a $9.7 billion business in 2020, nearly a 50% increase from 2019. More recent evidence suggests that companies are still piling in, even faster than predicted.
</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://dot.la/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc3ODkzOS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyOTgyMjA3OH0.xpryQloQoGrDFAS_tPWcgpveDJauJtbJSOMKa2rO4WE/image.png?width=980" id="ff70c" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3dda47e9ab550c3021585f6d6426b260" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image">
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">Influencer MarketingHub's 2020 report, based on a survey of 4,000 professionals, forecasted a massive rise in the growth of influencer marketing. </small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">Courtesy <a href="https://influencermarketinghub.com/influencer-marketing-benchmark-report-2020/" target="_blank">Influencer MarketingHub</a></small></p><p>
In the quarter from June through August, for example, across a sample of 4,500 ecommerce retailers, sales and customers driven to brands' websites through YouTube influencers are up 80% year over year, according to <a href="https://www.magiclinks.com" target="_blank">MagicLinks</a>, an L.A.-based social media marketing company that helps firms track the performance of their influencer campaigns. Applications from influencers wishing to use MagicLinks' sales tools have grown nearly fivefold from the start of the pandemic. And across MagicLinks' retail customers, which include the likes of Walmart, Target, L'Oreal and Best Buy, influencer-driven sales are up 115%.<br>
</p><p>
Several other marketing agencies also told dot.LA they've seen increased spending on influencer content, and an expansion of the types of companies that use influencer marketing, compared to pre-COVID.
</p><p>
Part of that is out of necessity. With film production shut down due to the pandemic, traditional commercial advertising was hampered. And with marketing budgets crimped, potentially cheaper advertising routes, such as a well-targeted influencer campaign, grew more attractive.</p><h2></h2>
Influence in the Wake of Ecommerce
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="07f23e0bad020e13c4a64c5c6a12cd87"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VY-vJMb-Dr0?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>The pandemic has also caused ecommerce to <a href="https://www.smartinsights.com/digital-marketing-strategy/online-retail-sales-growth/" target="_blank">skyrocket</a> and led people to <a href="https://www.emarketer.com/content/how-coronavirus-changing-us-social-media-usage" target="_blank">spend more time on social media</a>, both of which have increased the supply of potential customers for brands to target with influencers.</p><p>"Consumers crave real-life stories and authenticity, and influencers are able to highlight brands in a way that feels real and accessible. We are seeing that during the pandemic, this need is further heightened as more consumers are spending more time on social platforms," Grubhub's director of content and social Mandy Cudahy told dot.LA.</p><p>The growing sophistication of data and analytics on the effectiveness of influencer marketing has also helped companies create more targeted ad campaigns likely to reach spenders. For example, tools are improving to help brands find the right influencer, track their ability to drive purchases, and even <a href="https://dot.la/social-native-2647873306.html" target="_self">predict how well an influencer campaign will do</a>.</p><p>"There's been a much bigger push around nailing down the attribution and ROI," said Kevin Gould, co-founder of three L.A.-based ecommerce brands that rely heavily on influencer marketing and collectively earn over $60 million in annual revenue.</p><p>That push, in turn, is helping to nudge brands that have historically shied away from influencer marketing. Part of what has held them back is the fact that the data from traditional channels like television and radio advertising is far more robust than what's available in the influencer space, if only because it is relatively new.</p><p>"You're going up against hard sets of data since like the birth of Macy's, so it didn't become a priority," said Jennifer Piña, MagicLinks' director of brand partnerships. "Now it's being forced to become a priority."</p><p>As a result, bigger, more traditional brands are moving into what has until now been a channel primarily used by smaller, direct-to-consumer brands. Tito's Vodka, for instance, ran its first influencer campaign in August with Brooklyn-based <a href="https://www.firsttubemedia.com/" target="_blank">First Tube Media</a>. Prior to the campaign, "Tito's had never spent a dollar in influencer marketing," First Tube CEO Andrew Beranbom told dot.LA. <a href="https://www.superdry.com/us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Superdry</a>, a publicly-traded British clothing company founded in 1985, is partnering with MagicLinks to launch its first large influencer campaign in advance of the holiday season.</p>How Influencers Change What We Buy, and What They Make
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vbWVkaWEucmJsLm1zL2ltYWdlP3U9JTJGaXMlMkZpbWFnZSUyRkNyb2NzJTJGMDIxMTIwLUtGQy1BbmdsZWQzJTNGJTI0bWt0LWpwZy05MCUyNCZobz1odHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRmltYWdlcy5jcm9jcy5jb20mcz0xMDE4Jmg9YzYzNDVmZTk1OTk3ZjI0NDNkNDAzMzg1YTVhY2VlNGVjOWU1ZTUwMWNlOThhNzg4MjcxMTIxYjJmODBhOWY0YiZzaXplPTk4MHgmYz0yOTMxOTEwMjQ3IiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxODk3OTA5OH0.gx73p3jbM6G95Y4iFZyHzIHpJiuUWfJAr1-reUHd1V8/img.jpg" id="67c4c" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e5d31832c6a8ebce26e0222146f673e6" alt="KFC crocs" />KFC Crocs, an unholy creation of influencer marketing.
<p>Influencer marketing has also given rise to new partnerships between brands that arguably have nothing to do with each other, with influencers as the linchpin linking them together. Examples include <a href="https://www.crocs.com/KFC.html" target="_blank">a KFC line of Crocs</a>, e.l.f. Cosmetics' Chipotle <a href="https://nrf.com/blog/chipotle-inspires-new-makeup-kit-elf-cosmetics" target="_blank">burrito-inspired handbag and makeup kit</a>, and Forever 21's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/forever-21-cheetos-clothing-collaboration-2019-6" target="_blank">Cheetos apparel line</a>.</p><p>"It's this idea of like, a brand is a brand," said Piña. "What they actually sell or what people purchase from them is oftentimes irrelevant. It's more about the packaging and the moment and the feel and that's what social media does: it creates excitement for something that is not necessarily exciting. Like Crocs: Crocs is like your dad's brand. But it can immediately become cool, at the drop of a pin, once you get the right influencers involved."</p><p>Even as data attribution improves and consumers spend more time online in the land of influencers, one key downside to influencer marketing remains: limited control. A company can manage every element of a commercial shoot or Facebook ad, but using an unscripted TikTok or Instagram influencer requires letting go.</p><p>"Brands in some categories historically have been super fearful of letting influencers tell their story because it is so important to the sanctity of the brand to keep the messaging really succinct and in line with the brand guidelines," Piña said.</p><p>Yet that informality is part of the appeal of influencer marketing.</p><p>"Brands get stuck on needing to be perfect or scripted, whereas influencers talk to you like they're your next-door neighbor," said Brian Meert, chief executive of L.A.-based <a href="https://www.advertisemint.com/" target="_blank">AdvertiseMint</a>, a digital advertising agency. "It's very organic; it doesn't feel like a pushy ask. I think those kinds of elements have enabled us to grow sales for our clients using more of these influencer- and consumer-generated type videos."</p><p>Piña noted that while Ralph Lauren, a premium fashion retailer, has been wary of using influencers because of "brand safety," the company recently approached MagicLinks to build out a year-long TikTok strategy. Even as the social video giant's fight with the White House <a href="https://dot.la/celebrity-economy-2647441974.html" target="_self">threatened to upend the living of its influencers</a>, TikTok's hold on the traditionally elusive younger demographic – along with other user-generated video platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Twitch <a href="https://dot.la/snap-spotlight-2649022645.html" target="_blank">and Snap</a> – has become increasingly hard for companies to ignore.</p><p>"Any brand that wants to connect with Gen Z, and sell whatever product or service they have, has to engage (with these platforms)," said Glenn Ginsburg, SVP of global partnerships at influencer marketing agency <a href="https://www.qyoumedia.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The QYOU</a>. "Moving forward I think we'll see brands start to build deeper relationships with influencers."</p><p>Not every brand is poised to get the same value from an influencer campaign, however. An influencer is unlikely to save the day for a travel and tourism company ravaged by the pandemic, for instance. And it remains a challenge to reliably execute an influencer campaign, notwithstanding the emergence of new tools to do so.</p><p>"A lot still depends on relationships, conversations and trial and error," said Darren Litt, chairman and co-founder of L.A.-based talent marketplace <a href="http://www.marketerhire.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MarketerHire</a>. "A successful influencer campaign requires a detailed understanding of an influencer's brand, and that's hard to do with tech and AI alone."</p><p>Achieving the cost-efficiency of a well-targeted campaign also remains most viable for companies that are best positioned to drive online purchases. Using Kim Kardashian to sell clothing that flatters one's figure, for example, is more likely to drive trackable sales than, say, pushing Pepsi.</p><p>"For mass-market products looking to reach a broad audience, TV advertising remains effective because you get the upside of wide reach with the downside of limited targeting," said Litt. That's especially true for products that people don't typically purchase online.</p><p>But much like a song that goes viral on TikTok can <a href="https://musically.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Report-429-4692555.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">drive a listening bump on streaming platforms</a> like Spotify, so, too, it appears, can an influencer campaign drive offline purchases.</p><p>After all, Dunkin' Donuts <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2020/09/23/charli-damelio-dunkin-donuts-drink-cold-brew-sales-boost/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">saw sales surge</a> following its D'Amelio partnership, even though the girl with over 100 million TikTok followers <a href="https://www.elitedaily.com/p/the-reason-charli-damelio-hasnt-ordered-her-dunkin-drink-makes-sense-38410234" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">has reportedly never ordered "The Charli" herself</a>.</p><p>--- </p><p><em>Sam Blake primarily covers media and entertainment for dot.LA. Find him on Twitter @hisamblake and email him at samblake@dot.LA.</em><br></p>From Your Site Articles
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- L.A.-based Genies is expanding beyond creating and managing avatars for celebrities; consumers can now create their own avatars on partner platforms that use Genies' software development kit.
- Initial partners are Gucci and Giphy, with more expected in the coming months.
- Genies' pivot is an effort to capitalize on the 'digital goods economy' and the ascendance of the metaverse.
Justin Bieber made Crocs cool again earlier this month, when he partnered with the footwear company, known more for function than fashion, to release a limited edition pair that reportedly sold out in 90 minutes.
Imagine now that those shoes were meant to be worn not on human feet, but on the pixels of a consumer's digital avatar.
This is the vision of L.A.-based Genies, which announced Tuesday it is now integrating its avatar-creation technology into other companies' digital platforms via an updated software development kit (SDK).
<p>To Genies chief executive Akash Nigam, the goal is to create new marketplaces where users can design their own avatars and adorn them with purchased digital goods.</p><p>Genies' two initial SDK partners are luxury fashion brand Gucci and Giphy, a visual tool and resource owned by Facebook that allows users to find, create and share short, looping videos.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://dot.la/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDU0MjEyOC9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2OTI2NjMwNX0.h6Qfby4toiGqGCSK1zqEZUpNiHSoo67yxTiZdMCG15k/image.png?width=980" id="f9f58" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="14458039069d1ba25c1518714ab6d014" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image">
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">Luxury fashion brand Gucci is one of one of Genies' initial SDK partners.</small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">Courtesy Genies</small></p><p>To date, Genies has worked primarily with celebrities. The company runs an agency to deploy the avatars it has created for over 2,000 celebs, including musicians Shawn Mendes, Rihanna and Justin Bieber. Clients have employed their avatars for tasks like announcing newly released songs and albums on their social media accounts, as well as to endorse brands. A company representative said the avatars have been deployed "thousands of times" and have generated "millions" of dollars.<br></p><p>Genies is now allowing consumers to build their own avatars for the first time. And, by integrating with other platforms, the company is doubling down on digital goods. </p><p>"Our big bet is on the digital goods economy," Nigam told dot.LA. "If it works well, we'd want it to be 99.9% [of our revenues]."</p><p>Those who are skeptical that anybody would want to purchase a digital umbrella, spacesuit or pair of sandals may want to look at "Fortnite," Epic Games' <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/6/21249497/fortnite-350-million-registered-players-hours-played-april" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">increasingly popular</a> virtual world where people go both <a href="https://www.technologymagazine.com/digital-transformation/fortnite-more-game" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">to play games and to socialize</a>. Although Fortnite is free to play, in 2018 and 2019 it generated over $1 billion from in-game purchases of cosmetic upgrades to players' virtual characters – <a href="https://edm.com/industry/fortnite-one-billion-in-game-sales" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">on mobile platforms alone</a>. Fortnite is also available on computers and gaming consoles, which also <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-11/fortnite-skins-are-key-to-the-future-of-global-trade?sref=4Kf8RwDw" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">generate substantial revenue from selling digital-goods</a>. </p><p>Gucci, for its part, has increasingly turned to tech as a useful complement to high-end fashion in the 21st century. It has previously <a href="https://www.clickz.com/avatars-advertising-genies-gucci/254450/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">partnered with Genies</a> to tap the company's celebrity avatar agency, <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/10/how-ar-is-redefining-retail-in-the-pandemic" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">used augmented reality (AR)</a> to allow potential buyers to "try before they buy" and <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90546878/would-you-spend-10000-on-a-virtual-dress-gucci-is-betting-on-it" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">already begun developing items exclusively for digital use</a>. </p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://dot.la/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDU0MjEzOC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1ODY1MzMwOX0.UHjei6GB4_6cR2uL7EZxhKJITctFMK38G-0RqXou0Co/image.jpg?width=980" id="1aca8" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="0f84049c033dac6d7de3c43e5c6ada71" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Genies CEO Akash Nigam.
Courtesy of Genies
<p>It's a natural partner for Genies' SDK, which will allow users of Gucci's digital platform to "attire their avatars in the latest Gucci apparel...while adding a revenue generator through the sale of digital goods," according to a statement from Genies.</p><p>Genies' SDK relies primarily on a revenue split, with Genies and the hosting platform each taking a portion of the transaction income.</p><p>More partnerships are in the works.</p><p>"We've been having tons of conversations with other large partners that we will make public over the coming months," Nigam said, adding that Genies plans to encourage its celebrity network to sell digital goods on these partner platforms. In those cases, the celebrity (and/or their rights holders) will earn a percentage, too.</p><p>In advance of today's announcement, Genies has been growing its technical team. At the start of the pandemic, Nigam said the company had 16 employees in Los Angeles. It now has 50, 40 of whom are technical workers. Another 15 or so work outside of L.A., he said.<br></p>
<p>The team has been working on upgrading the look of Genies' avatars. As of today, those characters can be deployed in 3D, affording 360-degree views and allowing them to live in AR and VR worlds. They are also more expressive, with more detailed physiognomy.<br></p><p>Genies has raised $38.8 million to date. The company would not disclose its valuation nor share whether it is profitable. </p><p>Today begins its transition from focusing on tastemakers to preparing for a new age of virtual characters running around digital worlds.</p><p>"Over time, these SDK partnerships will create a digital identity ecosystem where consumers can transport their avatar from platform to platform," the company said in a statement. </p><p>"Avatars are a prerequisite for the <a href="https://dot.la/metaverse-2647861781.html" target="_self">metaverse</a>," Nigam said, referring to the parallel virtual world some expect will combine of gaming, social networking and ecommerce, and which some have described as the next iteration of the internet. </p><ul class="ee-ul"></ul><p>It remains to be seen, of course, whether metaverse avatars will opt to wear Crocs.</p>From Your Site Articles
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Grammy-winning record producer Jaycen Joshua was in the middle of working on Ricky Martin's newest release, "Pausa," when the Puerto Rican superstar decided to change course.
"He sent me this song that was done in this technique and said 'Jaycen, I want to do this but I want it to be bigger'," Joshua told dot.LA.
The track Martin sent employed a spatial audio technique that renders sounds into more dimensions than the typical stereo format.
<p>Alongside computer scientist and electrical engineer Michael Seaberg, Joshua – who boasts over 60 number one hits including Beyoncé's "Single Ladies" and "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Justin Bieber – searched for ways to get Martin what he wanted. </p><p>"You can't say no to Ricky," Joshua said. "He's one of the nicest human beings ever." </p><p>But they couldn't quite find it. So they developed it themselves. </p><p>The new technique can be heard in Martin's re-release of "Pausa," dubbed the "<a href="https://smarturl.it/PAUSA-OAAV" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">headphone mix</a>." </p><p>"We struck gold, and called Ricky immediately. He came to the studio and heard what we came up with and his mind was blown," Joshua said.</p><p>The effort resulted in the formation of Martin Music Lab Inc., and the development of a <a href="https://uspto.report/company/Martin-Music-Lab-Inc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">patent-pending immersive audio technique</a> the startup calls Orbital Audio. </p><p>"This whole thing came about because of being cooped up at home during the pandemic," said Martin. "I was going out of my mind and what usually helps in those instances is music. I always say that music heals and that's the idea with Orbital Audio."</p><p>The technique builds upon earlier audio innovations, giving users a multidimensional listening experience accessible through headphones. For example, a song's vocals may sound as if they are slowly circling a listener's head, backed by a distant-sounding electric guitar far ahead and to the left, as a whispered voice comes in from behind. </p><p>Although the team believes it has achieved a breakthrough in a technology that has in one form or another <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/pgka5z/why-are-we-still-listening-to-music-in-two-dimensions" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">been around</a> <a href="https://hookeaudio.com/blog/music/best-binaural-albums/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">for quite some time</a>, that remains to be seen. Just this year, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5ooPGEiXkg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a Billie Eilish track</a> recorded with "8D" technology made the rounds to great fanfare among audiophiles. </p><p>Audio technologist and entrepreneur Sharooz Raoofi told dot.LA he found the Eilish track to be "sonically much more impressive" than the "Pausa" Orbital Audio recordings. </p><p>To be fair, Orbital's team said the version that is currently available was rushed to re-release because Martin, whom Joshua described as "very spiritual," wanted it out by the end of July as he "felt it was pivotal to release for the transfer of energy to the masses." Joshua says the technology has since improved. </p><p>The pending patents do not list many details, but after listening to the "Pausa" recordings, Raoofi surmises that the team has created digital signal processing technology that enables it to create "audio illusions." </p><p>"It's a neat way of mixing and adds a fun dimension to listening to music on headphones," Raoofi said. "But if there is little beyond this, I don't believe it's truly innovative." </p><p>There may yet be something beyond, however. Seaberg noted that one big improvement to the tech since the "Pausa" re-release has been to increase the volume threshold the technology can reach, which he said "is very important in perceptual audio because the ear naturally thinks that louder is better." </p><p>Joshua said the company has made special efforts to ensure that listeners need not own specific hardware or software — such as expensive headsets or stereo systems —that might put the technology out of reach for some. </p><p>"Ricky wanted a kid in Colombia walking barefoot with the headphones he found to be able to hear it," Joshua said. </p><p>"This to me is like the evolution from black-and-white TV to color and I want everyone to be able to experience it," Martin added.</p><p>The company will provide a "concierge service" to work with artists who want to use the technology. Tapping their extensive industry connections, Martin and Joshua have plans to work with several other artists, including A$AP Rocky, Bad Bunny and Rosalia. Joshua and Seaberg are excited by the creative output that could result from planning upfront to use Orbital Audio, rather than retroactively applying it as they did with "Pausa". </p><p>The L.A.-based startup has ten employees and plans to grow, Joshua said. It has "already turned down multiple offers to sell the technology" and is "in talks with several VC firms" to raise funding. It plans to generate revenue through royalty-based agreements with artists and potentially an upfront fee. </p><p>The team currently works out of Joshua's studio in North Hollywood but, he said, "[we're] looking for spots and places where we can expand immediately." </p><p>Though music is the beachhead application, the company hopes to expand into other areas.</p><p>"What we've created here can be beneficial for everything ranging from music to gaming to sports to health care," Martin aid.</p><p>"Imagine meditating and hearing the Tibetan mountains around you and having 100 monks chanting around you at the same time," Joshua said. </p><p>Quite a departure from "Livin' La Vida Loca" and "She Bangs."</p>
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