Marketing Murmurations: Tailoring Campaigns to Dynamic Audience Behavior

In marketing, we're constantly seeking ways to better understand and engage our audiences but audiences keep changing moment to moment. They move in ways that look unpredictable and often resist being segmented. Old-school marketing approaches often rely on broad strokes, casting a wide net in hopes of capturing the attention of a diverse range of potential customers. However, this approach falls short, as it fails to account for the nuances of individual behavior and the mercurial nature of consumer preferences.

I've always been fascinated by the murmuration of starlings. These mesmerizing birds dance in the sky with an incredible level of coordination, seemingly moving as a single entity as they navigate the skies. This ability to self-organize and respond to changes in their environment provides valuable insights that can be applied to the world of marketing, building high-functioning teams, and planning your operational goals.

Behavioral Economics and Murmurations

As you have probably noticed by now, I am a big fan of Behavioral Economics. And, just like Behavioral Economics, at the heart of the murmuration lies a complex interplay of individual decisions and collective behavior. Each starling within the flock is constantly assessing its surroundings and making decisions based on the actions of its neighbors. This decentralized decision-making process allows the flock to adapt to changing conditions in real-time, demonstrating the power of collective intelligence. It's a giant DAO processing as fast as the fastest AI.

This comparison provides valuable insights into the decision-making processes of consumers through the role of mental shortcuts (or heuristics if we're feeling fancy). ust as starlings rely on heuristics to quickly assess their surroundings and make decisions about their movements, consumers also use heuristics to make decisions about their purchases, investments, and engagement. This can even apply to retention. One signal can trigger our audience to flee from our patch of sky to someone else's.

Murmurating by Intent Signals and Buying Intent

(If that's not a word it should be)

Just as starlings rely on visual cues and vocalizations to communicate their intentions, marketers can leverage intent signals to gain insights into the audience's buying journey. These signals, such as website visits, search queries, and social media interactions, provide valuable clues. But dig just a little deeper into sentiment and the role of influencers and we can started predicting what potential customers might be interested in and what actions they are likely to take next. I can't imagine starlings deciding to dive into a well so, for some audiences, we are probably going to find large audience flocks who don't fit perfectly into a funnel either. Focus less on where prospects are, and search out where they're going—that's intent.

Does it work? Yes. A study by Adobe found that companies that use intent data to personalize their marketing campaigns experience a 74% increase in qualified leads. Additionally, a study by Salesforce found that companies that use intent data to prioritize their sales efforts see a 23% increase in win rates.

Birds of a feather, flock together. Follow the birds who have intention.

Improv Content Plans to Keep up with Murmurating Sentiments

One of the most remarkable aspects of the murmuration is its ability to adapt and pivot in a second. As the flock encounters obstacles or changes in their environment, they adjust their movements. This adaptability is crucial for their survival and success.

In the same way, we need to be prepared to adapt our content plans and campaigns in response to changing audience sentiments. Just look at the news and notice how quickly a single sound byte changes entire industries. By continuously monitoring social media conversations, customer reviews, and other sources of feedback, we can identify shifts in consumer attitudes and adjust the messaging accordingly. Remember when the blockchain was the future but a day later it was considered worthless — wait! Bitcoin is climbing again. Murmuration engaged!

A study by Sprout Social found that companies that respond to social media messages within an hour experience a 21% increase in customer satisfaction. Additionally, a study by HubSpot found that companies that use social media to understand their audience's needs see a 16% increase in customer loyalty. Social listening (not just publishing) keeps your messaging on the right wing. (Belabored metaphor but you get it)

As Seth Godin once said, "Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell." Today, we have to tell those stories as fast as improv. Let's look at what the "rules" of improv can teach us about murmurating our messaging.

1. Listen and make choices. Imagine the starlings equivocating about diving or climbing. That's big bird smashup.
2. Listen. Then say: “yes, and..." Always add new information. We are all guilty of the "thumbs up" comment and the blank repost but give your audience something to engage. Part of this is a subset rule, don't block. If someone has made a choice, don't negate it. Rephrase it. Steer it. Take it somewhere new. The Barbie Movie is a great example. Instead of arguing about stereotypes, the move said, "yes, and..." then went somewhere entirely fresh. At about a billion in ticket sales, it's clear audiences mumurated along.
3. Avoid asking questions- unless you’re also adding information.Yes, Twitter polls are fun (I still won't call it X) but make the answer part of a journey, not a distraction. Giving someone a benefit to filling out your SurveyMonkey is the way to get the most meaningful insights. That benefit is most often, the audience feeling heard and learning about the very thing you are surveying.
4. Market in moment. Yes, plan for the future but use RIGHT-NOW. It will keep audiences engaged and throw your competition into confusion. What did your prospect post today? What is the latest company news? Who just got big VC money or who just missed a benchmark? Networks are about NOW. Starlings don't send boilerplate InMails, "I love what you do. When is a good time to turn left? Here's my calendly."
5. Change, Change, Change! Brands should not be static. They are living, breathing relationships. I don't mean just keep randomly changing your logo. Make your messaging part of a lively conversation to capture attention, build relationships, and drive meaningful engagement.

The murmuration of starlings offers a fascinating glimpse into the power of collective behavior and intent signaling. By studying these flocks of birds, we can glean valuable insights that can inform our marketing efforts and help us to understand real-time audience behavior. This lets sales, product, development, and all your teams leverage dynamic strategies.