Technology is the fulcrum and platform for our future; our lifestyles, how we do business, health maintenance -- everything -- is, and will become exponentially more, dependent upon it. It is necessity that we adapt to this changing landscape, in both marketing ourselves and to others.
GETTING PERSONAL
With the addition of web and application technologies as having an integral space in our lives, we now find ourselves living in a day, where every day, we're drowning, quite literally, under a flood of information. In response to this mass-input, we've adapted by developing, what I call, information-curation: a process by which we, both consciously and unconsciously, select and filter the information with which we're presented.
This makes an advertiser's aim especially challenging: the market has to want to hear you and your product's voice, and in a world of Tivo, pop-up blockers, and browser ad-killing plugins, how do you stand a chance?
The modern successful advertising campaign must get personal. It's 1: targeted, 2: offers value (useful or entertaining), and 3: speaks to its consumer better than competing ads. Fortunately, this daunting age of technology isn't all challenge -- getting personal is now easier than ever.
Lately, in television commercials, all I see is a wide array of 1:1 Marketing methods. They're dominating. Silk's soymilk travels to connect and convert customers in a personalized way, stepping beyond the company to care about 'you.' So is Papa John's, Gillette, and many others. Nationwide, Progressive, and Farmer's insurance pushes the message that they work for you, as servant. In one Nationwide commercial an agent 'sticks it' to corporate headquarters as he definitively rebrands the company, "NationPam," named after his customer. Brands are getting personal; they're adapting.
STRATEGIES
So, what can you do today to help the health of your brand tomorrow? For larger firms this means strengthening your customer relationship management. One way to accomplish this is by restructuring your agency's internal and client management systems, allocating individual customers to individual customer managers. Support those managers with products and tools that will help them increase their customer's lifetime values.
Generally though, this simply means showing your customer that you personally care, which is as easy as sending a card or email to follow-up on a product or service. This is winning over your customer.
CUSTOMER-SHARE
The science behind 1:1 Marketing is based in the Pareto Principle: 80% of your business is likely to come from only 20% of your customers; focus your resources on that '20'. Your aim in the current market isn't to own a share of the Market, as the traditional Mass Marketing methods have been built upon; it's to own a share of customer, for his lifetime value to your product, mutually investing in each other's loyalty. This investment is mutual because if you want to rely upon your customer's loyalty, it's expected that you extend own.
CREATING VALUE
Follow-up mailings create value by making a person feel appreciated by your brand. Incentive-programs can do the same to your brand and promote loyalty. For example, FreeFone, a Seattle telecommunications and marketing firm, pays it subscribers to listen to marketing messages. Or more down-to-earth, Jane, who owns a bakery, hand writes a card saying, "I hope that Johnny enjoyed his birthday cupcakes as much as we enjoyed making those little blue firetrucks. I've included a behind-the-scenes picture for your amusement. We're looking forward to hearing what Johnny's theme is next year!"
Accenture's 2010 Global Consumer Survey found that 64% of consumers have switched companies in the past year due to poor customer service. Also, though fewer than half of consumers, on average, across industries, participate in a loyalty program, the numbers still increased. Similarly, the percentage of consumers who were persuaded to remain with their service providers as a result of loyalty programs also increased.
I've included Accenture's findings and recommendations for convenience:
• Utilize knowledge of your prospect and customer base like never before. Master analytics to turn vast customer data into actionable insights. Use this understanding of consumer segments to deliver tailored product and service offerings that meet segments’ needs.
• Improve the customer experience both before and after the sale. Understand that positive customer service experiences can not only help retain existing customers, but also entice new customers. Offer customers a variety of interaction points for learning about a company’s offerings and obtaining service.
• Leverage technology and digital channels – including social media. Make your organization’s products and services more accessible and customized to customers’ needs by using technology. To be successful, the content and services provided to consumers over the phone, in person and online—whether automated or human—must be integrated, relevant and consistent.
• Extend loyalty programs’ focus beyond retention to encompass an end-to-end experience. To be effective, loyalty programs should go beyond transactional rewards to incorporate tailored, relevant experiences to help strengthen consumers’ trust and satisfaction.
BOTTOM LINE
So you may not have a Madison-Avenue firm driving your brand identity. Truth is it doesn't matter so much in this age, and the marketing strategies of the future exist on a platform that you have complete access to: technology. It's here to help you make a connection, offer value, get personal, and create a lasting customer-share, so get involved, focus on the 20% that matters, and sweet talk your brand to the top. It may be time and energy-consuming, but again, as is required of us, we adapt.
