Hook, Line & Sinker in Marketing 4.0!
Marketing, in its truest essence, if defined with a word would mean a ‘message’.
As we understand, this encapsulates the creation of a compelling signal in the world of ‘noise’ where marketers live on prayer to capture the mindshare of said audience that you have determined would be interested to hear what your brand says.
Let's dissect the construct of a message here,
- Hook – A physical and emotional bait that helps to create a reliable and tested trigger to provide an initial stimulus.
- Story – Delivered through the medium of various communication vehicles, this carries the BULK of the marketing message culminating in a ‘problem solving’ epiphany
- Offer – Often accompanied by a Call-To-Action (CTA) that leads to a potential revenue stream, directly or indirectly.
While the above format works wonders, the onslaught of ‘creative marketing agency’ backed-campaigns has created a need to stand out from the crowd in not just what your message is but when and how is it presented.
Moment marketing is a great strategy to ‘newsjack’ the eyeballs and social media feeds of your target group by tailoring your message around issues that are in vogue.
Taking cues from the Rahul Bose incident, where the actor posted on Twitter citing his grievance as a customer for being asked to shell out Rs.442 for bananas that sent microblogging sites and marketing teams of agile companies into a frenzy to capitalize on this topic! From Oyo Rooms, Pizza Hut, Godrej’s Nature Basket to related competitors of Marriott like The Park, Taj Hotels, etc – moment marketing is evidently the name of the game! Creative communication that helps catapult companies to prominence and creates top of the mind re-call through the identification of topics, trends, and issues that serve as a pedestal for your brand to rise from the clutter and inspire ‘relevance’ has taken shape for many tactical marketing companies! Clearly there are many winners but one loser in this entire charade – JW Marriott whose marketing and customer handling team will surely face a backlash from the management costing them dollars in brand reputation lost over two mere bananas especially coming from a renowned celebrity!
A monumental mistake indeed.
It's an absolute delight to see brands come to terms with how vital the elements of amusing and relatable content are in the current scheme of things when it comes to brand perception.
As the consumer becomes more conscious, intelligent and preference oriented, it is not a setback but an opportunity for brands to innovate and find that bespoke trigger that works.
Taking Whatsapp for example that has crafted a backdoor for brands to enter by creating accessible branded GIF’s and stickers for festivals, occasions etc available in the instant messaging format to create top of the mind recall with popular consumer companies like Tinder, Tide, Reebok finding ways to connect with the brand in an informal, casual and day-to-day setting. Given the ask against the marketing budgets assigned by lean organizations is increasing massively, the onus lies on the creativity of the marketers to create efficient branding mechanisms in a smooth, non-intrusive manner.
Whatta genius move by Ogilvy and Cadbury to leverage the power of cross-cultural sensitivity in marketing communication and using print media to create a meaningful fabric of an ongoing dialogue that entices emotional resonance with the use of vernacular given the diversity of languages (Tamil, Kannada, Marathi) to play around with! Using a Kannada headline in the Mumbai edition, Telugu headline in the Delhi edition and a Marathi headline in the Bengaluru edition - a point well made!
This marks a shift from the use of Hindi as a de-facto language in non-Hindi speaking regions to thoughtfully build a narrative around the product, Cadbury Unity, celebrating the inherent cultural diversity of India by marketing it as an assimilation of multiple flavors (dark, white) into one bar - much like drawing parallels to our country which is very much a melting pot of many shades :)
Intriguing ode to creating a feeling of oneness and using a 'limited-edition' timely launch of a product to capitalize upon the heightened patriotism feeling in the country.
Recently, I came across the #DiscoverMore series by The Ford Motor Company in India which uses ‘poetry’ as a communication vehicle in the backdrop of their ad to talk about a car’s use-case than glorify the model itself!
It uses a heart-warming and poignant perspective to speak about roads that play their role in taking us to a ‘destination’ metaphorical of our lives itself which focuses on the smaller nuances and makes you yearn for the memories you cherish the most! Earmarks the era of a shift in the mindset of marketers are from selling products to topical content and experiential 'value' that goes the extra mile in leaving an indelible positive imprint on your mind and draws upon our innate search for belonging and meaning to create 'space' for the product in our mind!
Contextual marketing really does wonders!
How many times have we craved our favorite snack catching a game on the weekend but did not wish to spend considerable time making a decision?
Swiggy’s UX team hit a masterstroke by integrating the whole Swiggy Pop, which is a specially curated menu entailing price-economical dishes, that features with Hotstar live match screen.
It will not take you to another screen disrupting your viewing experience but keep it seamless and effective.
Nike’s recent tribute to the successful Chandrayan-II launch brings home the point that brands need to continue to be ahead of the curve in terms of their content and embrace technology for connecting with its consumers.
You may ask WHY as a reader since Nike and ISRO operate in two unrelated verticals?
It’s about having a vigilant digital marketing team who’s continually looking to engage with audiences across the world with localized content and celebrate achievements by incorporating their iconic swoosh. Saluting the spirit of #India and sports,
Nike sure gets full marks for this one yet again!
Good copywriting will always be undefeatable. :)
Last but not the least, Ixigo’s recent attempt at moment marketing was noteworthy!
In a category like #travel where we have too many options in terms of bookings hotels, flights and more and more often than not all continually look for the best deals and bargains, it's all the more important for #brands to continually make an impact on consumers.
Taking a cue on the same was Ixigo which at the back of the Rahul Bose incident at the Bali hotel has come up with this rather funny, taking pots shots at traveler's and very insightful video given than most of us would have at some point taken that shampoo bottle or moisturizer from the hotel, more often than not even knowingly. They took the concept of moment marketing beyond memes and twitter exchanges to play to their strengths (Ixigo has won many laurels for their video marketing campaigns). Driven by insights on what the world has been discussing on social media have been discussing, this one is another winner that just cracks you up.
Moment marketing definitely catching momentum but the challenge is always about getting the fitment, context and putting up content that works for the audience.
Its evident that the fight for every inch of market share ground is going to be at least partly, if not wholly technology-driven with marketing teams striving to exercise agile-decision making and freedom in choices.
Earlier, brand equity served as a moat for new entrants but that is no longer the case. The distribution of effective advertising and content can help upstart any customer’s attention with the digital penetration rates soaring in India!
Mindsets and systems, processes need to change to double down on efforts for localized implementations of marketing plans – and those who deliver on this promise land will be the ultimate winners!
There’s a fine line between being relevant and being opportunistic.
Not every #brand should do a “moment-marketing idea.”
Actions will speak louder than words.
Everything you do or don’t do - communicates.
When an organization steps up and knows the right role to play in a moment without making adding to the noise with a 'force-fit' just to ride the wave with an inadequate response for the sake of it!
Hope you guys enjoyed reading this!
In case we haven’t met before, I’m Siddharth Gupta.
Thank you for reading. I hope I could help you smile today. :)
Sources:
?????Trusted IT Solutions Consultant | Technology | Science | Life | Author, Tech Topics | My goal is to give, teach & share what I can. Featured on InformationWorth | Upwork | ITAdvice.io | Salarship.Com
9 个月Siddharth, thanks for sharing!