‘The Year of Mobile’. Lets have a show of hands to see who has heard this phrase a few times in the past 5 years… …That’s a lot of hands. Why, then I ask, do people such as myself continue to persevere and have faith in the mobile industry? We dedicate hour upon hour reading, researching, writing; yet we have had little to celebrate. The big ‘Year of Mobile’ party has never come, yet we keep adding the candles. What we fail to realise is that the industry involves so many separate stakeholders, that they can never all develop and perform to the same levels. The universal success will almost never come. The past two years have been quite monumental for the industry itself. Two of the most highly celebrated handsets in history nestled in our sweaty palms, yet already we can’t help but feel that the Nokia N95 and Apple iPhone (2G) are outdated. The rate at which technology is accelerating is quite alarming. Just when we thought the be all and end all of Mobile to computer integration was secured by Apple, Google rears its head with Android and threatens to dominate the world. Yet no ‘Year of Mobile’. As far as advertising on the mobile platform goes, Blyk recognised huge success and recognition in the industry for its groundbreaking business model. With screens getting bigger and rich media becoming more readily available on our handsets, agencies began salivating at the thought of the latest and greatest mobile campaign. But still, no ‘Year of Mobile’. There is plenty of support for mobile as a marketing channel. Some of the biggest agencies in the world have their own mobile departments, and major players within the industry are supporting the ‘Every Single One of Us’ movement, which intends to unite a wide cross-section of mobile operators, advertising agencies, big-name brands and (most importantly) members of the public; to educate the industry and encourage discussions about emerging business models and to facilitate a step change in communications. I don’t think I need to say it again… But for me, there will never be a ‘Year of Mobile’. Mobile technology is moving so fast that we cannot all keep up. An innate desire for seamless high powered communication is driving us on to bigger and better things, each and every day. No matter how creative the latest integrated marketing campaign employing mobile, within 3 months the technique will be outdated and there will be a more appealing way to execute the campaign. We mobile people are hungry folk. We have so many resources available, that in the time we take making decisions, there is something new on the scene. And having looked back over the past two years, I cannot see this changing. We could go on the next 15 years preaching the ‘Year of Mobile’ message, but it will never come. The demanding nature of the modern consumer, juxtaposed with creative agency’s passion for innovation will ensure that Mobile marketing will always be ‘the next big thing’ for years to come. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be using Mobile as part of your digital/marketing offering. Take the first step towards incorporating mobile into your business. Forget your clients. Go experiment and make something for yourself. Digital agency Redweb did just that, and by trying to solve an internal problem, came up with the brilliant ‘Wheel of Tea’. For those agencies that think that taking on mobile is ahead of the curve, you couldn’t be more wrong. You’re behind, and will probably always be behind. Catch up with the pack while you can! Year of Mobile? Maybe we should start calling it ‘The Life of Mobile’? Author: Carl Martin - Mobile Advertising Matters
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Straplines have been around for so long, it is easy to lose track of their relevance to the modern brand. Well known straplines are those that we have been bandying around for years and so it is unusual for a brand to suddenly adopt a strapline if it hasn’t recently launched or rebranded, but ITV1 have done just that. So this raises the question – why? Why adopt this particular marketing tool at this time?
The answer is simple: they are effective. Straplines are an excellent way of raising brand recognition and enhancing the values of that brand. They are the perfect tool for a brand such as a TV channel, which encapsulates a lifestyle, going beyond the limitations of programming.
There are a number of things at work in ITV1’s choice to introduce this particular strapline – ‘The brighter side’. Once again, the recession has provided, or developed the perfect reason to, engage consumers as they feel the pressure of the current economic situation. This particular choice is so relevant because consumers are looking for escape from content with the apparent aim of depressing and discouraging consumers. What this strapline does is encapsulate the notion of light relief, with a direct comparison to other channels implied. Of course, it plays into ITV’s hands even more that other terrestrial channels haven’t made a marketing change such as this for a long time, making the comparison instantly favourable as viewers are immediately able to understand what this channel offers.
Indeed, the choice of wording is very pertinent to this example. The most important factor when looking to adopt a strapline is that any promise made by a strapline must be delivered upon by the brand itself. For example, ‘Every little helps’ is constantly reinforced by the offers and growing number of services available from Tesco. But are we really ‘Lovin’ it’ at McDonalds? ‘The brighter side’, fortunately, is something that ITV1 can live up to with programming focused on light-hearted celebrity shows and sitcoms, rather than heavy-hitting financial reports and documentaries. It is interesting to wonder where ITV2 now fits however, seeing as its content is even more dominated by similarly jovial programmes.
Of course, ITV’s decision is not completely out of the blue when you look at the digital channels that have adopted straplines. Comedy channel Dave has truly established itself as a leading channel, which is particularly astonishing considering the short period of time that it has managed to do this in and that its primary content is comprised on the whole of repeats from other channels. From the beginning, the channel has positioned itself as ‘The home of witty banter’ and it is not only something that has worked for them but that the channel continues to deliver on. This is a wonderful example of how a carefully chosen strapline can reinforce a brand identity and enhance consumer engagement.
ITV1’s decision to adopt a strapline is one that highlights their use and how crucial they can be to a brand’s success. There is nothing stopping a brand from adopting one, even when already established as a household name, as long as it is honest to what that brand can deliver. As a marketing tool, straplines have been proven to increase awareness and engage consumers for brands in a huge range of industries. However, the importance of choosing the right strapline to fit with a brand and for the right reasons cannot be underestimated.
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The key to striking a balance is to act not as marketers, and not as friends, but somewhere in between. If brands try and act too ‘pally’ with their target audience, then they are seen through straight away; it’s a desperate attempt to buddy up with people when actually, you are offering them a product or service to buy. The solution is to create and maintain a dialogue where brands can be open and honest about what they are offering, but also personalise this connection with consumers so that they feel the brand has taken the time and effort to understand how their habits and needs differ from their next door neighbour or their work colleague. Once this fine balance has been achieved, then relationships can be built, and both the consumer and the brand start to benefit and gain from the situation.The capability of web 2.0 and the social nature of the online environment allows for a more personal interaction with consumers: never before have we had the chance to experience the ‘coffee table conversation’ with our audience, and now that we have this chance, we need to manage it carefully and make the most of it. It’s essential to balance this conversational approach with a solid objective for the brand; after all, social marketing is not just about sales but growing a business in terms of capability and information. For example, Dell has mastered this technique by creating forums which act as both chat facilities and idea factories. The forums allow consumers to interact not only with each other, but to contribute ideas and suggestions which actively add to the product development process for Dell. The result is a useful and enjoyable experience for consumers, and true insight for the brand, as they can learn not only how consumers interact online but also what they really feel about the services Dell is providing. Once a balanced online platform for communication has been established, brands can begin to research their audience. Asking the right questions, and being prepared to listen to the answers, can work in many ways; it establishes trust with the consumer but also allows for the brand to learn vital truths about the way their target market perceives them and their offering. What are the golden rules for getting it right? 1. Use online research and communication alongside data analysis. Open dialogue does not always guarantee a direct or truthful answer, but if answers are compared and contrasted to behavioural analysis of peoples’ browsing habits and frequency of purchase data, then a more insightful picture begins to build up, and the truth comes out. 2. Make sure your user group is a good cross section of your audience. Ages, gender, social situation and type of job can all impact on behaviour and choices and it’s vital you have a wide range of participants. 3. Keep online research broad and open. If people are too restricted, and they are directed to narrow questions, then they will feel obliged to give perfunctory, clipped answers. If they are allowed to openly express their thoughts, interact with others and explore a topic, they can take the dialogue where they want to take it. 4. Planning is key. Conducting this kind of research needs a huge amount of preparation and it’s important you know before you start who you want to talk to and what about – visualise the journey of the research before you begin. 5. As well as taking on board and probing positive comments, be open to negative feedback. When conducting any kind of research into how you are perceived as a brand, people will say things you don’t like, but you must be ready for this, and then investigate and fix the problems. And the common pitfalls for getting it wrong? 1. The mistake many brands make is collaborating and interacting at the start of a campaign, and then dropping off or scaling back, giving the impression that you are no longer interested once you have the information you want. Keeping the dialogue going with consumers is hugely valuable, and will ensure that you keep the consumers’ trust. 2. Not being open and honest about who you are and what you are doing. It’s essential that consumers know what they are being asked and for what reasons. If not, they are not likely to open up and you will not get the answers you are looking for.
By now we’ve all come to terms with this new credit crunch world, but we are still getting our heads around some of the wider implications.
Undoubtedly the UK high street is suffering, as are retailers around the globe. However, previous downturns have shown how hard times can lead to real innovation, the signs of which we are already starting to see. For example direct, often street level promotions are becoming common. This is just the beginning.
In principle, this new financial climate should be sending retailers into an e-commerce frenzy, as financial pressures cause everyone to chase new revenue streams. That said this is about much more than simply creating a store online. UK retailers have been accused of being slow in developing their e-commerce capabilities, and the charge is not without foundation. While online was quickly embraced as a retail channel, brands’ offline and online worlds have often remained worryingly far apart. That said, rather than pondering this in an abstract fashion what we should be doing is working to address the obstacles that are standing in the way.
The first barriers are technology and investment. For many brands introducing these functions requires an overhaul of their IT systems, a challenge that many of them are understandably not keen to face. The investment required is currently viewed as a risk too many by some – particularly when evaluation concerns are lingering. No matter how wonderful an innovation may be, if clients can’t clearly see how they are going to measure its success then it is unlikely to get far.
Making your online and offline activities work together, like so much in life, is actually not as complicated as it looks. The service industry led the way, for example hairdressers realised early on the benefits of offering online appointment booking facilities. There have been signs of retail catching up, with Specsavers website providing a notable example. Their online facilities allow visitors to upload images of themselves, so they can pick the type of frame that suits them before visiting the store. As competition for market share intensifies this is exactly the type of innovation we need to be seeing more of.
Technology and investment aside, infrastructure requirements are another area of concern. Historically in-store and online have always been viewed as being competing, rather than complimentary, channels, so a shift in mindset is required. Clearly this will take time, but the examples I’ve mentioned above indicate the type of things that can be achieved, if only brands are willing to take the steps necessary to make it happen. What we must ensure is that financial pressures encourage, rather than hold back, moves in this direction.
It isn’t difficult to see why the UK’s retail market has been slow to grapple with these issues, or why the ‘real’ and digital worlds have been traditionally viewed as competing with each other. That said, fortune favours the brave, and it’s about time we all got braver when it comes to e-commerce. We Brits might take a little while to get going, but once we do I’m sure we’ll be ground breaking!
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It is hard to ignore the current headlines; economic downturn, profits warnings, large scale redundancies in virtually every industry sector. The UK, and world economy is undoubtedly in crisis, and we’re experiencing the worst recession since the 1930’s. When faced with a crisis such as this an instinctive reaction by many businesses is to stop unnecessary spend and dramatically cut overheads. However, I’d suggest now is also the ideal time to review and reflect on where money is invested, so each and every business can put in place a strategy to make the most of the future.
Over the past five years we have seen phenomenal growth in online advertising spend. Now, as we progress through 2009 marketing and advertising spend will be under ever greater scrutiny. As a result brands will want to ensure they are targeting audiences efficiently, and with trusted partners.
A key to this is in an industry-agreed measurement standard, which provides advertisers and media agencies with credible, robust and trusted information on the media channels they are using. Measurement tools based on these standards are vital in proving the validity of claims made by media owners; in the case of online when a website is heralded as ‘most popular’ or ‘biggest’ for example.
A recent Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) adjudication has even upheld a complaint which challenged an online publisher’s claim that its site was the most visited of its sector. As the publisher was unable to substantiate its claim, because it did not produce traffic figures that had been independently audited to industry- agreed standards, it was quickly forced to withdraw the claim.
As more media owners compete to be the leading online destinations, it is increasingly necessary to be able to authenticate any claims made. This in turn provides the market, including advertisers, media buyers and even a site’s regular visitors, with proof of success. In this highlighted case the ASA clearly stated that the publisher could have sought independent verification through ABCe; a simple yet highly effective move, which would have helped it to maintain its reputation in the market and could have even led to greater advertising revenues because of the proof available of the site’s traffic.
What’s more, the analytic software already in use by the said publisher could have delivered a Unique User/Browser figure to JICWEBS agreed standards, via ABCe certification, if the counting tool had been correctly implemented, again to industry-agreed standards. Instead, with no evidence to back up the claim, the competitive site was no longer able to herald itself as ‘the UK’s most visited site’ in the sector within which it operated. In cases like this, and as the internet evolves and new ways of accessing content become available, industry-agreed certification will continue to rise in importance. So, for media owners, what better time to apply this best practice than when such a move can help to secure marketing spend. For advertisers and buyers, what better time to demand this accountability and transparency from digital to underpin a trusted business relationship.
Author: Tom Griffiths, business development manager, CheezeDMG
Twitter’s here. You can't visit a website or turn a page, digital or otherwise, without reading about it. Whether it’s Jonathan Ross’ banter or breaking news stories - Sky has a Twitter correspondent and CNN has the highest following of any user; yet it’s the user who’s breaking news first - the plane dumping in the Hudson River being the most high profile recent example.
Twitter’s being used as a news channel, an information hub, but the user has more power than ever. Of course brands are keen to follow this trend and harness it to their own benefit.So how can brands make their voices heard in a world where the user, your potential customer, doesn’t have to listen? It’s a level playing field, so your brand has to operate at the consumer’s level; don’t simply broadcast offers and ‘news’ - become part of the conversation.
Some brands have been active for a while - smaller ones like eSpares are doing a great job of harnessing the channel, larger brands like Canterbury of New Zealand are just starting; and then you’ve got huge global brands like Dell that have already seen over $1m of revenue from the channel. Charities are at it too - Dogstrust are doing a fantastic job engaging with their ‘followers’, and PDSA are starting to get involved off the back of their Facebook success. All these brands are seeing success through engagement – involve yourself, provide advice, respond to questions, ‘react’ to your customers, and the proactive nature of marketing becomes flipped.
However, the effectiveness of building brand advocates, raising awareness and ultimately promoting your products and services by ‘stealth’ is huge – subtle branding, who would have thought it? Set to grow even further, Twitter may also spin out with the associated growth of similar 'tools' like www.Identi.ca, www.plurk.com and www.jaiku.com - owned by Google. Having a presence on Twitter now will help you understand the medium and benefit your brand and the consumer. So, if you’re looking to harness Twitter, where to start?
Here are five tips to get you going:
1. Get on there! Get involved! There’s no better place to start than with yourself. Sign up for an account, follow some people - you can start with me, I talk about digital marketing, rugby and music - and get tweeting a little. Find some people or brands in your sector and watch what they’re doing. You can gain a lot from interacting and watching before you reveal a brand presence.
2. See what people are saying about your brand using http://search.twitter.com - grab the feed and watch it for a while. Is the conversation positive or negative? This will help you define what your presence on Twitter needs to be. It may also help you quickly find brand ambassadors who can amplify your presence. Don't forget the detractors - connecting with them on Twitter and helping them may create a rapid turnaround in their opinion.
3. Work out what you’re going to say, and who’s going to manage it. In some cases an agency can help get you off the ground and hand over the running once you’re familiar with the process. You can stick to a content theme, or a reason as to why you’re on Twitter, but don’t use it as a broadcast channel. All tweeting and no listening will lose you credibility - very quickly!
4. Get your brand onto Twitter. Grab a name - ideally www.twitter.com/yourbrandname, set up your logo and a template design and start twittering. If you can reference your brand on your own corporate page that will help establish credibility for the brand on Twitter. At this time there are no regulations or checks - it’s up to you to manage your brand on Twitter. Connect it to your other channels - you can feed your Twitter stream into a Facebook Fan Page or your own website.
5. Start talking - follow people you find interesting, have a conversation. If you’re sending links to your site, think about adding tracking tags. URL etiquette in Twitter’s 140 character dialogue is to use a shortened URL via tinyurl or similar, so add your tracking in before converting the url. This can help you understand what value this channel is delivering for you, over and above interaction, enabling you to track traffic from conversation through to conversion. www.cheezedmg.com www.twitter.com/CheezeDMG
www.twitter.com/CheezeDMG
