Clubhouse: What’s All the Fuss About, and What Does It Offer?

Four experts explain the great potential and opportunities Clubhouse offers creatives, as well as its limitations

If you've been surfing the net over the last few weeks, you'll have probably heard about Clubhouse, a new audio-based social network that’s currently overshadowing all other social media platforms. It brings several people interested in talking about the same topic together in a “room” or “small club” as if they were sitting down together at a table in a bar.

What makes this platform stand out from other networks is that it doesn’t have an endless feed of content where anyone can participate, interact, or contribute to the debate. The sense of connection is intensified by having more intimate, personal, and meaningful exchanges. The way Clubhouse structures its content consumption makes it possible to exchange ideas and information in much greater depth.

Although Clubhouse was launched in April 2020, it only recently went viral during the first few months of 2021. This is thanks to big names hopping on board, such as Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla and SpaceX) and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Another factor that has contributed to this platform receiving so much attention, both positive and negative, is its exclusivity: it is only available for iOS devices and by invitation.

To demonstrate the great potential, limitations, and opportunities this social network presents for creative professionals, we spoke to four experts who have already gotten to grips with Clubhouse:

Dot Lung, social media expert

Dot Lung (@dotlung) is a social media expert born in Los Angeles (USA) who currently lives between Barcelona and Israel. She has developed Instagram campaigns and strategies for clients such as Facebook, Wix, Motionographer, Sonar+D, OCB, and Nipple Magazine.

Dot teaches the Domestika course, Instagram Strategy for Business Growth.

Ana Marin, publicist

Ana Marin (@anamarinen) is a creative strategist with over a decade of experience working at advertising, digital, and creative agencies. She has won over 50 awards in Latin America and is director of digital integration for Latin America at McCann Worldgroup.

Ana teaches the Domestika course, Introduction to Community Management.

Nayara Ruiz, social media manager at Bradesco

Nayara Ruiz is an experienced social media manager with a proven track record in the banking sector and digital marketing.

Pedro Alvim, brand and social media manager at Magazine Luiza

Pedro works at Magazine Luiza, one of the largest and most important stores in Brazil. His team is responsible for overseeing the brand's image across every channel, as well as managing customer relations on social media and influencer marketing strategy. Pedro Alvim helped create the world's largest retail channel on YouTube and the first virtual influencer in Brazil, named Lu.

Why is Clubhouse experiencing so much hype right now?

Dot Lung: During lockdown, people have needed to have a place to talk, listen, and share. That's how Clubhouse came about. Also, I think people were tired of Zoom and spending all day at work having video calls. Clubhouse is great because it's audio-only, and you don't have to show your face and put on makeup to use it.

Ana Marin: My first answer would be its exclusivity. Also, its organic reach. There aren’t many invitations available, so if you’re lucky to receive one, you can immediately become an influencer. That's the magic of this new social media platform; also that celebrities are coming together to chat live with whoever’s around to listen.

Nayara: I'm going to ignore the novelty and exclusivity factors when answering this question. Aside from the euphoria brought about by its newness, Clubhouse is giving us what we felt we were losing over on other networks: close connections.

Here, everything is accessible. Not only a range of topics but also the minds that debate these topics. You can enter a room with an expert in a field, someone who has experienced real-life situations, and, above all, someone you would otherwise never be able to listen to and learn from (for free). It's real, it's live, it flows. There’s no script, at least for now. Plus, it's a great listening exercise, something that was being undervalued, as people are constantly talking through posts, videos, and texts.

Pedro: In my opinion, Clubhouse’s success comes down to two main factors. The first is, during a pandemic, it gave people a way to make friends through conversations similar to those you would have in a bar. Until then, this was something that the digital world was missing.

The second factor, as Professor Fabio Mariano said in a recent text, Clubhouse feeds our "now syndrome.” Being live and unscripted, there is this immediacy that also creates a sense of "exclusivity" (and all that this term can encompass). It feeds our FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and at the same time makes us feel part of a community where the authenticity of the content is very valuable.

What opportunities does it offer creative professionals?

Dot Lung: For any creative professional looking to build their personal brand, Clubhouse is the fastest way to do it. It's all about building your audience, and you don't have to build your followers. After all, the followers are already there, live. You just need to provide content, master the art of good dialogue. If you wanted to publish tutorials or visual content, this is more challenging.

Ana Marin: Creative professionals generally have audiences that are bored and reserved and expecting to be surprised. Therefore, injecting some creativity into an interview format, or telling a story using live sound, will freshen up your content.

Nayara: Exchange references. Soak up references. Share references. The best thing about this network is that you can wear one hat in one room and then immediately enter another and wear a totally different hat. The speaker is not limited to teaching (perhaps to the disappointment of the lecturers in the house). Being a speaker is more about being open to dialogue.

Being able to exchange, soak up, and share references are some of the advantages Clubhouse offers creative professionals.

Pedro: It is still early to know how the platform will be used in Brazil and what opportunities will arise as a result. However, I am sure that this platform will make it possible to explore new creative strategies and marketing strategies, from interacting with chatbots with audible interfaces to covering the launch of new collections with voice audio.

What are the limitations of Clubhouse?

Dot Lung: Clubhouse is ideal for live conversations, podcasts, or audio-based content. Any content of a visual nature will not work.

Ana Marin: What you produce cannot be stored or reused on other social media platforms. It's not on-demand, so you either have to enter live rooms or risk FOMO. There are also concerns about misinformation and violence, as there is no moderation or algorithms to ban fake news or hate speech within clubs.

Nayara: Like anything new, there is still room for improvement. The app isn’t fully accessible (it is currently only available for iOS); this is even more so for people with hearing disabilities. There are still lots of weaknesses in terms of security, conversations being recorded, and a lack of support for users who do not feel safe, for example.

Pedro: We’re in the early stages: the platform is still a baby in terms of maturity. We are seeing various limitations, not only in terms of availability on different operating systems but also opportunities for interaction between users. There are issues related to brand safety, making social listening more complicated. There’s also a lack of a clear culture of good practices: I still see a lot of manterrupting and a lack of diversity among Brazilian speakers.

Who do you recommend following on the app?

Dot Lung: Chris Doe, to keep me informed on business and design. I'm also following the rooms about NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) and how it's changing the art world.

Ana Marin: Melanie Deziel, author of The Content Fuel Framework. I also want to warn people about some things that have been happening: for example, a lot of people were fooled into thinking that Kanye West was being interviewed live when it was actually a recording of one of his interviews. So, if you take this on board along with what I've said about fake news, it’s important to be vigilant about what you hear and believe.

Nayara: Rosana Hermann, Dandara Pagu, Manu Carvalho, and Elena Crescia.

Pedro: I recommend following people you admire and believe can contribute to your personal or professional development. Look out for them on the platform. Here's a tip: Brené Brown, who I love, is on it!

English version by @eloise_edgington.

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