GANDT Fireside Chat #011 | Development of LinkedIn and HelloFresh in Q1 2020

True to our motto “Working Out Loud”, we at GANDT Ventures exchange our thoughts and ideas on current news topics in the world of online marketing, digital retail, and e-commerce. This helps us uncover opportunities that can be used for companies and our clients as part of our daily business.

But most of all, it is a lot of fun and a great way to share knowledge. Our podcast-style chats are available to anyone who is interested to find out more about what Google, Facebook, Amazon and the likes are up to. Listen in, learn a little something and get to know the team.

LinkedIn Revenue & Session Growth

The job portal LinkedIn is now testing a new video feature with the help of which companies can request an introduction video of promising candidates.

The idea behind this is that the company can gain a first personal impression of the applicant in advance. This way, LinkedInwants to use this video function to help companies in the corona crisis with the recruiting process.

In addition, an AI-supported feedback function is being rolled out. For this purpose, the applicant records a sample video, which in turn is tested by an artificial intelligence for filler words or phrase errors.

LinkedIn, the development during the crisis

LinkedIn‘s advertising revenues suffered a major setback in the first quarter of 2020 because of Covid-19.

The Microsoft subsidiary recorded a corona-related reduction in ad spending, despite the fact that the engagement remains at a record level. Overall, however, LinkedIn’s revenue increased by 21 % compared to the same quarter last year, while sessions grew by 26 %.

Here too, we see a significant decline in the willingness of advertisers to invest budgets in LinkedIn. However, there is an increase in the active use of the website.

55 % Growth YOY: Hellofresh raises revenue forecast

The current crisis helps the start-up Hellofresh to grow rapidly. The demand for the cooking boxes has skyrocketed due to the closure of the restaurants. Sales increased by 66% in the first quarter – to almost 700 million euros.

Hellofresh is now active in twelve markets and raised its sales forecast for the full year to 55%. In addition, they are also considering the entry into other countries.

In the first quarter, the online supplier of cooking supplies gained about one million new customers, which is an increase of 25% of the total customer base in one quarter. They even had to stop the acquisition of new customers for a limited period of time.

The company’s Ebitda also benefited, especially after a minus of EUR 26.1 million in the same period last year. One of the reasons given by the start-up company for the improvement was that less marketing had been necessary during the crisis.

Agenda | GANDT Fireside Chat Video #011