Two Cents

As consumers’ media choices multiply and fragment, many in our industry fear an increasingly complex media landscape, a higher degree of difficulty in reaching prospects, and a big challenge in capturing attention.  And they’d be dead right in identifying these issues and being concerned about dealing with them.

As consumers’ attention increasingly skips across media channels from television to social networking, to online entertainment and news, to RSS feeds to mobile telephony, to interactive outdoor, we marketers face the real possibility of not being where the eyeballs are and even if we are, then not making a persuasive connection with them.  We’re now dealing with individuals who are often on their Facebook page, listening to a live radio feed, shopping online and ‘Twittering’ all at the same time!

It’s like trying to get an A.D.D. child to stop what they’re doing, listen to us and then change their behaviour based on what we say. It can be done but it takes a great deal of specialist skill.

But like most complex problems, and in tune with Occam’s Razor, the best solution is often the simplest one.

In this case, it’s a one word solution.

Relevance.

A powerful, relevant proposition put to most of us will be quite compelling most of the time.  Then, deliver it in the right place, at the right time with the right approach and you are probably going to make a meaningful connection.  Do it in a thoughtful way which engages the prospect and it’s going to work even harder.

For example, why would an eBay shopper consider listening to a message from an online retailer? They’ll probably listen in the first place if they’re served up a product message in the category they’re browsing, when they’re browsing.  But, when the key message of free delivery is served up to an audience who are only too aware of the costs of shipping products that are purchased on ebay, then they’ll really take notice.

So, what’s happening out there right now is that the media is continuing to fragment into smaller and smaller pieces, but that actually provides an incredibly exciting opportunity to finetune more and more relevant messages to tighter prospect clusters.  Relevance reigns and affinity is close behind.  A pretty powerful combo.

There is no doubt that this environment is more complex, more time consuming and more difficult to plan and manage.  But the opportunity to connect highly relevant messaging, often in the form of entertaining dialogue, is undeniable.

This is exciting. This is a massive opportunity for all of us.

Fragmentation.  Bring it on!

Ah, the heady days of 1998, just a decade ago. The year Australia held a Constitutional Convention, John Howard was re-elected for the first time, and Bill Clinton faced the music over his dalliances. Doesn’t seem that long ago, does it?

In 1998, there was no such thing as Napster, and the music industry was happily resting on its laurels – MP3 was yet to become a household term (the cool kids had discmans, Apple was that weirdo company trailing behind Microsoft, and the notion of storing your entire music collection on a device called an iPod was laughable). To access the internet, you crossed your fingers and hoped your 56k modem would connect, and then not drop out – broadband was but a geek’s wildest dream. You couldn’t attach a photo to an email without it taking hours to send and receive. If you were lucky, your brand new PC might have had a new-fangled USB drive. Your mobile phone was just that – a phone.

Google was born. There was no Myspace or Facebook – social networking involved going to the pub. No Youtube – watching video online was a horrid affair. No such thing as a blog. Nobody knew if sites like Amazon and Ebay would ever turn a profit, let alone survive.

It is by looking to the recent past that we can take stock of the incredible impact that the internet has had on our lives in such a short space of time, and the way in which it continues to change us. It is a phenomenon that everyone is a part of. It is inescapable.

This nostalgia was inspired by the release of a report by Pew this week called Networked Families which highlighted just how much impact the internet is having on our daily lives. One quarter of American adults say they now watch less TV as a result of the internet. 47 percent of households say new technologies have increased the quality of communication between family members. The internet, not TV, is now the hub of conversation for the water cooler – “Have you seen that latest video? Have you seen that cool website?”

Indeed, the very notion of a family sitting down in front of the TV with dinner to watch a show on free-to-air TV may soon seem as quaint as the idea of 56k modems. PVRs, video on demand, IPTV, cheap laptops – all are drawing people away from the TV and into a far more interactive world.

My, how things have changed. Anyone care to guess what the world of 2018 will look like? Good luck!

I’ve been thinking lately how often it’s the little things that make all the difference with a brand experience. Just the smallest customer service ‘twist’ can really get consumers talking, and coming back for more. Often the best ones come with no cost attached either – just a clever angle that makes the brand behave differently. Here are a few that spring to mind…

• Boost Juice – they were the first to ask the customer’s name, and therefore create instant personalisation and personality! So simple, yet so effective. Nowadays, so copied.

• Virgin Blue – it was so refreshing the first time I heard the Virgin flight crew announcement include a bit of life and zing! My favourite was a warning that ‘leftover baggage in the overhead locker can be collected on eBay.’ Cracked me up. Great brand differentiation that makes Qantas feel so 1986.
• Earth ‘n Sea pizza – every time they settle a bill at the till at the Wilston store, someone rings a loud celebratory bell. It can get a bit annoying on busy nights, but makes the point.
• Coronis Realty – I sold a house through them a few years ago and they automatically sent me a congratulatory hamper, plus a framed photo of the property. Nice. Simple. Personal.
  

• Hell Pizza – Not so much a customer service idea, but they take their ‘hell’ theme to the extreme by parking the unique company car right out front of the store. It’s a black hearse with the number plate ‘STIFF’. That alone makes them SO MUCH cooler than Dominos!

Feel free to comment below with some more memorable brand experiences!