Tag Archives: Online Marketing Strategy

Is Mass Marketing Dead?

It’s not hard to imagine a future where interactive marketing messages are nearly inescapable. As advertising increasingly gets incorporated into our every device, brands will have even more opportunities to interact with consumers in every aspect of their lives – and will tailor their messages accordingly. As marketing gets customized to consumers’ particular tastes and interests, it’s worth asking: What future is there for mass marketing?

The Wall Street Journal went so far as publishing a farewell to mass marketing recently. The article envisioned a future in which advertisers will pinpoint the exact moments and needs that users have and supply consumers with the solutions they are looking for in real time. In other words, the more ways we have to reach the masses, the less relevant mass marketing could become.

We’re already witnessing a mass trend toward customization in marketing, aided by new software packages, social media and other technology. But traditional mass marketing hasn’t gone away, either. Marketers won’t stop trying to reach large swaths of consumers in broad geographical areas any time soon, and they’ll probably continue using some of the same methods for doing so.

How To Define Your Brand Personality

Did you know your brand has a personality? At least, it should. And it’s better to define it before someone else does. A given brand’s personality is a set of human characteristics that are relatable to your target audience – just like a person. It’s an important way marketers can control how customers view brands and organizations.

Defining a brand’s personality does require some thought on how you want to be seen. It should be a reflection of your organization’s personality as well as your ideal customers. If they are young, edgy and urban, then you will market to them differently than you would to affluent, settled suburbanites.

Successful brand personalities also frequently tap into our fantasies, whether to connect us with the fierce athletes of Nike or the adventuresome rebels of Harley Davidson.

How B2B Buying is Evolving

Traditional business-to-business buying involved two things: wooing customers at live events and buying ads in hopes of hitting the jackpot. Between the digital revolution and a younger demographic dictating new buying trends, things are not so straightforward anymore.

Now there are more players than ever and many more layers to the B2B buying process. The way buyers conduct their research and make purchasing decisions has changed with the times, as well. MarketingProfs reported that millennial B2B buyers want to interact directly with vendors’ representatives far more than Gen X or baby boomer buyers when researching products and services. If you’ve been out of the game for a while, expect to see three major factors affecting the field:

How to measure digital marketing ROI

In the past, it was notoriously difficult to measure return on investment from online marketing efforts. Today, getting a handle on ROI tracking is more important than ever because marketers are expected to increase their budgets for social media in 2015, according to Newsfactor, citing data from a Salesforce study.

Marketers used to focus on campaigns rather than personalized materials, but a massive shift is underway as brands emphasize the customer experience. Where does ROI enter into the equation? The buyer’s journey needs to be consistent across all channels to drive conversions. As marketing gets more personal, mobile budgets are increasing as well because smartphones and tablets give brands the chance to have one-on-one interactions with potential customers in real time. Mobile and social media engagement are no longer an added benefit; they are a necessity for giving clients the kinds of experiences they want. In fact, the Salesforce report found there was a 48 percent increase in the number of marketers who have integrated mobile into their strategies in the past year.

As mobile and social media take off, marketers need better ways to measure ROI.