360 Articles
Marketing Effectively in a Turbulent Economy ©Lida Citroën, March 23, 2009
In a time when marketing budgets are being slashed across all business sectors, company leaders are looking to innovative “guerilla” marketing strategies to position and market their company, product and services. This article will address customer personalization, brand authenticity and use of Web 2.0 strategies to drive marketing effectiveness in a turbulent market.
In this economy, many of us are asking:
Today’s consumer can be compared to a typical teenage girl – “I want the information I want to see, when I want to see it, in the format I choose, and I reserve the right to change my mind at a moment’s notice!”
As we market to audiences now accustomed to customizing everything from their MSNBC homepage, to the home screens on their cell phones, and their RSS feeds, we have fully entered the “market of one” era of user-based preferences and personalization.
Self-selection means that I (the consumer) tells you (the company) what I want to read/hear/see and receive marketing information on, and then you are responsible for only delivering that content to me, on my preferred scheduled. This is the “Opt-In” method versus the “Opt-Out” form of preference based marketing and gives the consumer much more control over the impact of your marketing. While personalization might seem frustrating in that it limits what we can directly market to customers, the reward is that the customer has already given you permission to communicate with them and provides insight into behavior that allows you to cross-sell and up-sell!
Every purchase is made by a person with individual needs and expectations. Meeting those needs and relating to your customers in an authentic way enables your marketing to drive deep relevance and enhance brand loyalty. This can make your efforts more impactful and less time consuming than the traditional “one size fits all,” shotgun approach.
Market of One Action Items:
With shrinking marketing budgets, today’s marketers need to consider their customers’ individual needs as much as possible.
The Authentic Brand
To say there is an overwhelming amount of communication “noise” today would be a massive understatement. Consumers receive more messages in one day today than they did in a lifetime a century ago. Staying true to your brand marketing strategies, and not just screaming louder and stronger, remains a challenge for all businesses.
Focus on the humanization of your brand as it drives relevancy for your customer at the personalized level. Are you in a people-oriented business (i.e. coaching, accounting, law, marketing, financial services)? If so, I would expect to hear the voice of your company in real language, spoken from the heart, delivered genuinely in the style, character and tone of your organization. Are you in a technical field where human interaction is minimal? I am still curious about the creator, designer and inventor of the technology and what the vision of the company means to them personally. Consumer products companies have mastered the art of connecting a personality with a company. Just look at popular retail brands – Tommy Bahama, Apple, Betty Crocker, Virgin Atlantic, Tommy Hilfiger – they’ve let you behind the curtain to see what they believe and what’s personally important to them.
Customers have demonstrated they are loyal to brands that are authentic (and will allow for marketing even when it occasionally falls outside the scope of permission-based selections). As a business leader, it is your responsibility to be the most authentic brand steward of your organization and promote the brand experience you want the organization to emulate. If customers perceives a disconnect between the values you promote and the ones they encounter, you will spend additional resources to defend your position.
The Authentic Brand – Action Items
Authenticity means making bold promises and living up to them. It means stating your values and building integrity through behavior that is consistent with your beliefs.
The Power of Web 2.0
I’ve previously written about engagement marketing as a cost-effective and rewarding way to bring customers into a participatory relationship with your brand. One of the most efficient ways to engage with customers is by utilizing affordable and accessible Web 2.0 tactics, including online discussion forums, communities of interest, blogs, social media, etc.
Web 2.0 creates the opportunity for a two-way dialogue with stakeholders. It replaces the one-way direction most brands had been focused. It also shifts the power of your brand to the relevance assigned by stakeholders (e.g. customers). Proactively engaging customers with your brand allows companies to improve alignment, gain valuable insight and research, and reduce marketing costs.
For any Web 2.0 strategy to be effective, the organization must be committed to transparency as a practice, not just as a marketing tagline. Opening an online discussion forum, for instance, and inviting your customers to dialogue honestly about product delivery or service and then withholding key information, or not providing full disclosure can damage a brand beyond repair.
Remember when the CEO of Whole Foods blogged under a false name, touting the organization and it’s values, and bashing competitor, Wild Oats? This kind of inauthentic marketing has no place in Web 2.0. On the flip side, enabling customers to get to know your company leadership through discussions, blogs and community forums brings them closer to the human side of the company’s brand and connects with the company on a personal level.
Open source collaboration is another proven successful way to bring thought leaders and experts together to solve technology, engineering, and community-based issues. More and more professional services companies are exploring the use of online collaboration to solve customer issues, provide improved response times and meet customer needs. Providing a forum, through your website, to enable collaboration is a great use of Web 2.0 technology.
Web 2.0 Action Items:
Explore the ever-expanding suite of Web 2.0 tools, including YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, Twitter and others to find the area that supports your customer’s needs and your brand marketing most effectively.
In a time when marketing budgets are being slashed across all business sectors, company leaders are looking to innovative “guerilla” marketing strategies to position and market their company, product and services. This article will address customer personalization, brand authenticity and use of Web 2.0 strategies to drive marketing effectiveness in a turbulent market.
In this economy, many of us are asking:
- How do we deploy effective (less expensive) marketing programs to address unique customer needs?
- How can we remain true to our brand values and still remain competitive and cutting edge in a highly charged environment?
- What Web 2.0 technology solutions allow us to maintain alignment and engagement with our authentic brand values?
Today’s consumer can be compared to a typical teenage girl – “I want the information I want to see, when I want to see it, in the format I choose, and I reserve the right to change my mind at a moment’s notice!”
As we market to audiences now accustomed to customizing everything from their MSNBC homepage, to the home screens on their cell phones, and their RSS feeds, we have fully entered the “market of one” era of user-based preferences and personalization.
Self-selection means that I (the consumer) tells you (the company) what I want to read/hear/see and receive marketing information on, and then you are responsible for only delivering that content to me, on my preferred scheduled. This is the “Opt-In” method versus the “Opt-Out” form of preference based marketing and gives the consumer much more control over the impact of your marketing. While personalization might seem frustrating in that it limits what we can directly market to customers, the reward is that the customer has already given you permission to communicate with them and provides insight into behavior that allows you to cross-sell and up-sell!
Every purchase is made by a person with individual needs and expectations. Meeting those needs and relating to your customers in an authentic way enables your marketing to drive deep relevance and enhance brand loyalty. This can make your efforts more impactful and less time consuming than the traditional “one size fits all,” shotgun approach.
Market of One Action Items:
With shrinking marketing budgets, today’s marketers need to consider their customers’ individual needs as much as possible.
- Test presumptions and ideas before deployment. Are you sure this is what your customer wants? Have you asked them? Surveys and questionnaires, combined with Opt-In features, give you great insight into customer preferences.
- Consider your audience’s need for information delivery – how do they prefer to be communicated (Email? Phone? Direct mail?) How often does your customer want to hear from you?
- Enable your customer to change preferences as they desire, and provide feedback and input to your company. This will provide insight into marketing and messaging effectiveness.
The Authentic Brand
To say there is an overwhelming amount of communication “noise” today would be a massive understatement. Consumers receive more messages in one day today than they did in a lifetime a century ago. Staying true to your brand marketing strategies, and not just screaming louder and stronger, remains a challenge for all businesses.
Focus on the humanization of your brand as it drives relevancy for your customer at the personalized level. Are you in a people-oriented business (i.e. coaching, accounting, law, marketing, financial services)? If so, I would expect to hear the voice of your company in real language, spoken from the heart, delivered genuinely in the style, character and tone of your organization. Are you in a technical field where human interaction is minimal? I am still curious about the creator, designer and inventor of the technology and what the vision of the company means to them personally. Consumer products companies have mastered the art of connecting a personality with a company. Just look at popular retail brands – Tommy Bahama, Apple, Betty Crocker, Virgin Atlantic, Tommy Hilfiger – they’ve let you behind the curtain to see what they believe and what’s personally important to them.
Customers have demonstrated they are loyal to brands that are authentic (and will allow for marketing even when it occasionally falls outside the scope of permission-based selections). As a business leader, it is your responsibility to be the most authentic brand steward of your organization and promote the brand experience you want the organization to emulate. If customers perceives a disconnect between the values you promote and the ones they encounter, you will spend additional resources to defend your position.
The Authentic Brand – Action Items
Authenticity means making bold promises and living up to them. It means stating your values and building integrity through behavior that is consistent with your beliefs.
- Use your brand as a filter – ask, “Will this option/idea/relationship further our position in a genuine way, or could it detract from our values?”
- Think long term brand strength rather than reactive, short-term financial gain. The organization that prides itself on being exclusive and hard to gain entry to can pay a long term price for dropping membership standards just to capture more short term market share.
- Allow your customers to get close. Showing them who you are as a living, breathing organization will allow them to connect with you on a personal level. They will reward you with brand support, praise and tolerance.
The Power of Web 2.0
I’ve previously written about engagement marketing as a cost-effective and rewarding way to bring customers into a participatory relationship with your brand. One of the most efficient ways to engage with customers is by utilizing affordable and accessible Web 2.0 tactics, including online discussion forums, communities of interest, blogs, social media, etc.
Web 2.0 creates the opportunity for a two-way dialogue with stakeholders. It replaces the one-way direction most brands had been focused. It also shifts the power of your brand to the relevance assigned by stakeholders (e.g. customers). Proactively engaging customers with your brand allows companies to improve alignment, gain valuable insight and research, and reduce marketing costs.
For any Web 2.0 strategy to be effective, the organization must be committed to transparency as a practice, not just as a marketing tagline. Opening an online discussion forum, for instance, and inviting your customers to dialogue honestly about product delivery or service and then withholding key information, or not providing full disclosure can damage a brand beyond repair.
Remember when the CEO of Whole Foods blogged under a false name, touting the organization and it’s values, and bashing competitor, Wild Oats? This kind of inauthentic marketing has no place in Web 2.0. On the flip side, enabling customers to get to know your company leadership through discussions, blogs and community forums brings them closer to the human side of the company’s brand and connects with the company on a personal level.
Open source collaboration is another proven successful way to bring thought leaders and experts together to solve technology, engineering, and community-based issues. More and more professional services companies are exploring the use of online collaboration to solve customer issues, provide improved response times and meet customer needs. Providing a forum, through your website, to enable collaboration is a great use of Web 2.0 technology.
Web 2.0 Action Items:
Explore the ever-expanding suite of Web 2.0 tools, including YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, Twitter and others to find the area that supports your customer’s needs and your brand marketing most effectively.
- Create tools for a two-way dialogue with customers. Creating online surveys, feedback tools, discussion areas and blogs allows customers to share their experiences, needs and concerns about your brand.
- Monitor other online dialogues to hear what your customers are saying about your brand. Have a plan to respond to inaccurate information correct market misperception.
- Set guidelines for how and where your company engages in online conversation. For the dialogue to be authentic and transparent, ensure brand principals are adhered followed.
- Explore the evolving suite of Web 2.0 tools, including YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, Twitter and others to find the area that supports your customer’s needs and your brand marketing most effectively.
Today’s consumer can be compared to a typical teenage girl – “I want the information I want to see, when I want to see it, in the format I choose, and I reserve the right to change my mind at a moment’s notice!”
