Online Marketing and Development

Why achieving a consistent, branded communications strategy is critical in the digital era

I recently came across an interesting article in the Harvard Business Review* (HBR) that I wanted to share with my readers. The article talks about a unique aspect within social media: how it is impacting consumer behaviour (and attitudes), the impact it is having on a company’s brand, and how a consistent communications strategy can resolve consumer confusion and improve your bottom line.

At Sydcam Marketing Communications, we understand that social media is changing the sales and marketing landscape. We hope this article will enable you to better understand this new media and help you devise the necessary strategies to take advantage of this digital phenomenon.

The demise of traditional media

We all recognize that technology, the internet, and most recently social media have all adversely affected both traditional media (newspapers, TV, and radio) and traditional methods of marketing (TV and print advertising). However, many of us don’t realize the extent of the impact.

The online communities created by social media have provided a forum for discussing a company, its brands and products. These discussions often take place after a customer has purchased a product, either in the form of a product review or an online discussion.

Lesson #1: The growing importance of the post-purchase stage

In the article, the post-purchase phase of the buying process is referred to as the “Enjoy, advocate, bond” stage. Social media has facilitated consumer’s ability to advocate for (or against) a brand or product, to bond with it and to disseminate information to a wide audience very quickly. Marketers need to allocate more attention and resources to this critical stage of the buying process.

Lesson #2: Shifting the marketing spend

The research highlights that the conventional approach to using paid advertising in traditional media to influence customers before the purchase decision is not effective anymore. Instead, influencing clients post-purchase will have a much greater impact on their satisfaction with their purchase decision, will expedite their future repurchase decision, and will enable them to advocate for the brand through social media  – positively impacting the purchase decisions for many buyers.

Lesson #3: Keep your “branded” messaging consistent

Today’s plethora of marketing and communications channels creates other challenges for businesses – ensuring product and brand messaging is consistent across all channels of communication, from print to social media to product packaging and PR. One of the key concerns noted by consumers in the HBR paper was inconsistent product information and descriptions across different sources and different media, and how this made the purchase decision more difficult.

It is incumbent on companies that they view product and brand messaging from a strategic perspective, and coordinate it more effectively. Research has proven that centralizing this communications role with marketing results in a clearer and more consistent understanding of the brand by consumers; they are then better able to articulate its attributes.

 Implementing a “branded” communications strategy

If you’re looking for assistance in developing a social media plan to improve your marketing and communications efforts, or you’d like to comment on this blog, please contact us at Sydcam Marketing Communications; we’d love to hear from you.

Together we can work on devising a program that will create consistent messaging across your entire organization, strengthen and grow your brand and your customers’ loyalty to it, while helping you become more profitable.

 * “Branding in the Digital Age: You’re Spending Your Money in All the Wrong Places”, Alex MacLean, Harvard Business Review, December, 2010.

http://hbr.org/2010/12/branding-in-the-digital-age/ar/2

This week’s blog illustrates an important point for all businesses – tough times don’t necessarily mean focusing on the lowest common denominator in the marketing mix – price. At Sydcam Marketing Communications, we truly understand this is often easier said than done, but every business needs to be able differentiate itself to avoid this pitfall.

The Skinny

In the post recession era, where consumers seem to hold all the cards and wield all the power, businesses assume they need to compete on price to be successful. The highly competitive and price-sensitive fitness club industry would seem to be a classic example of such a market, particularly given the recessionary consumer behaviour of shedding discretionary expenses like fitness memberships.

National fitness club chain GoodLife Fitness has decided to buck this trend and instead have turned to aspirational-type advertisements to build their brand and attract new clients. Their new slogan, “The good life. Made easy”, conveys that the “good life” – in all its various shapes and forms, is attainable – when you join GoodLife Fitness.

The strategy behind this campaign is to connect emotionally with customers, and to strengthen and clarify the brand’s image. Their messages, which even encourage people to enjoy pizza, ice cream and beer as part of the “good life” (while also exercising of course), convey a more realistic and balanced approach to health and fitness that is clearly targeted at the average consumer who may not be a fitness fanatic but wants to be healthier, more active and enjoy life and their families more.

Lessons Learned

These so-called “lifestyle” ads attempt to engage audiences by showing them how they can aspire to achieve something that is important to them.

What this says for any business is that connecting on a deeper, more emotional level with one’s clients can be a viable alternative to an all-out battle over price and margins. This strategy may take longer to show results, and often requires a significant commitment to reinforcing the branding messages over time. However, if business owners truly believe in this approach and are willing to stick with it, the end results can indeed be remarkable.

To learn how you can implement a lifestyle branding strategy for your business, speak to us at Sydcam Marketing Communications. We will work with you to devise the right plan to enable you to compete on something better than just price. You can contact us by emailing us at info@sydcamcommunications.com.

Update for our readers: after posting this article, I came across news recently that Amazon.ca has reduced the threshold for purchases that incur the shipping fee down to $25, from the original $39 order amount. Chapters-Indigo soon followed suit as well!

At Sydcam Marketing Communications, we’re always on the lookout for new trends in the world of marketing. I recently came across some very interesting research from The NPD Group that I wanted to share with my readers. For those of you that regularly use the internet to purchase items, you may be surprised how quickly this channel of distribution is evolving.

The “early” days of e-commerce

In the early days of the internet (1990’s), e-commerce was rarely thought of as a critical component of a business’ website. Instead, businesses were more focused on building so-called “brochure” type sites that provided information on their products and services, enabling clients to do research in advance of a buying decision.

They would then go to their traditional distribution channels (retail store, 1-800 number, etc.) to complete the purchase. In research completed by this author at that time, many small business owners expressed concern about cannibalizing their existing channels and upsetting their distribution partners by selling online.

Early in the 21^st century, this attitude began to change as businesses realized that clients were clamouring for increased convenience to cope with the time pressures in their busy lives. Selling online was the perfect solution to this problem. Many manufacturers, retailers and wholesalers developed e-commerce portals to meet this need. The common thread with most was they were merely extensions of their existing distribution channels, offering the same products at the same prices (with shipping fees to boot!).

e-Commerce Today

Fast forward to today where attitudes and expectations have again changed dramatically. The NPD Group’s research indicates that Canadian consumers who shop online do so because they expect to pay less – 60% of Canadians polled said they shop online to save money. More than 50% also said they expected online prices to be lower than those found in a store. As well, 71% said they enjoy the convenience of shopping online as it makes price comparisons that much easier.

Interestingly, this heightened price sensitivity is also reflected in Canadians apprehension to paying the shipping and handling costs associated with online shopping. This was sighted in the survey as the number one reason why purchasers didn’t follow through with their online purchases. It was also found that high shipping costs often drove the customer to browse elsewhere for the products and services they wanted.

Taking Action

So what does this all suggest? First and foremost, business owners and marketers should realize that this shift symbolizes an increased sophistication on the part of the consumer. They have finally figured out what we knew all along – that the costs of distribution through the online medium are much lower than through more traditional channels – and they expect that those cost savings should be passed on to them as opposed to padding a business’ bottom line.

What should businesses do with this newfound information? Clearly, operating your online business as a mere extension of your traditional business will not suffice. Instead, your e-commerce strategy needs to be differentiated and focused on “online” specific niches, such as promoting new and innovative products, as well as providing value to customers by using your website to promote clearance sales and special “VIP” events. Providing reasonable and flexible shipping options and their related costs would also go a long way to decreasing consumer apprehension with purchasing from your site.

Roots Canada is an excellent example of a company that has devised a unique strategy for its online/e-commerce channel, using email marketing to leverage the online shopping experience for their customers. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic, so feel free to drop me a response with your thoughts to info@sydcamcommunications.com.

Find out more about how Sydcam Marketing Communications can assist you with your e-commerce strategies or with any marketing initiative you want to get off the ground successfully.

I’m writing this post from a veranda with a great view of the north-west Adriatic coast of Croatia, where I’m currently on vacation. This trip is different from our previous vacations in that we’re staying a full 5 weeks, so I needed to bring my laptop to stay in touch with my clients (after I finish this post I need to send an email newsletter for a UK-based client).

Although I did a pretty good job of making sure I have all my passwords with me, I was given a shock by Facebook when I tried logging in for the first time after we landed here. Although I entered my user ID and password Facebook recognised I was trying to log in from a different geographical location and, as a security measure, forced me to confirm my account. At first I thought, great, I like this, but then the trouble started: Facebook used a very unusual method of confirming my account – it asked me to give the names of seven of my Facebook friends! Although I only have a few hundred FB friends, I certainly can’t remember all of their names!

Facebook showed me pictures of no fewer than seven of my friends – but not their default profile photos, but random images from their photo albums, where my friends were sometimes pictured from the side, with other people, or in poor image conditions.

Somehow I managed to confirm my account after two tries, so now I am OK. The moral of this story for you: know thy Facebook friends if you’re planning on traveling abroad.

Please follow this link to book an appointment with me if you’d like to explore ways how to use Facebook to promote your business

Boris Mahovac R.G.D.

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