Agile Marketing

Agile marketing is a fairly new concept and wasn’t introduced until 2012. It’s a strategy that prioritizes high-value projects and concentrates all resources on them. The team(s) then work in short, intense bursts to complete goals, assess their impacts, and work toward getting better results next time. At the core of this method, its values are:

·      Reacting to change instead of following a plan

·      Rapid repetitions over larger campaigns

·      Testing data and validated learning instead of “rules”

·      People and interactions over large audiences

·      Customer-focused instead of hierarchy

According to the 2022 State of Agile Marketing Report, “555 of agile marketing teams can release things fast, and 48% can change gears quickly when feedback demands it.” Research from McKinsey also found that “agile marketing increases revenue by 20-40%.” You can see the benefits of this method already, so how does one go about implementing it?

1.     Planning: This is a sprint kickoff meeting to determine the priorities of the project. The project will be divided into tasks that are given deadlines, and assigned to team members. It’s important to show that the customer is most important above all else and emphasize speed, collaboration, data, and accountability.

2.     Sprints: Short burst from 2-6 weeks to finish a project.

3.     Stand-up meetings: Every day all team members should meet to go over what each has completed the previous day so that everyone is on the same page moving forward. This is an important step for problem-solving as well.

4.     Board to track progress: Whiteboards, software shared doc, etc. Whatever means necessary to keep everyone on track in the same place.

5.     Teamwork: This goes for any team in any department. Teamwork makes the dream work!

6.     Retrospective: Run by the scrum master for the scrum team. This is where everyone shares what went well and what didn’t. This meeting is for improving on future sprints.

Now that we know the methodology, let’s look at the individuals who make up the agile marketing teams.

Scrum Method:

1.     Scrum: Responsible for keeping the team on track. They facilitate meetings, solve problems, and ensure collaboration and communication between all members.

2.     Product owner: They’re in charge of the why behind the work and ensuring that tasks are being completed promptly. They’re in charge of understanding the audience of the brand the most to provide them value.

3.     Developer: All others in the team are developers. They contribute unique skill sets from different departments that your project falls under.

Kanban Method

1.     Visualization: This method uses visuals to track progress. A board is used and divided into columns for each stage of work. In simple terms; to-do, doing, and done columns. Whatever the task at hand is will determine how many columns to create to track. 

2.     WIP limits: These are boundaries to outline how team members work on the tasks within each column. This places a limit on how many tasks one person can work on or how much time each task has to be completed. This keeps people focused on one job until it’s completed and moving on to the next.

3.     Meeting cadences:  Similar to scrub, planning meetings, daily stand-ups, and retrospective meetings will occur to make sure everyone and everything is on track. The delivery meeting is absent since Kanban doesn’t work on timelines.

Agile marketing can be a great way for marketing departments to react quickly to changes in the market. They can also try a lot of new things in short campaigns to see what will work for your brand and what won’t. But, how do you know if agile marketing is right for your brand? Is your company seeing high turnover rates? Are your employees folding under pressure from immense workloads? These both might be good reasons to try an agile marketing effort. If your team is willing to change and give it a try it’s worth the trial run. A good example would be a trend or challenge happening on the internet. We can help you gather those moments.  The truth is your brand won’t know if it works unless you test it out.

Marketing for Good: Social Marketing

This style of marketing is sometimes called “marketing for good.” This style of marketing promotes a positive societal transformation that tries to influence positive actions instead of selling a product. Social marketing attempts to change behavior for the benefit of consumers or society. Commercial marketing, on the other hand, will attempt to change behavior for the benefit of the brand, such as sales. Typically, social marketing is used by nonprofits, charities, government organizations, emergency services, police, and fire groups. So, what is involved in social marketing and how do you go about creating a campaign? Here are some things to consider.

1.     What behavior is it that I’m trying to change?

2.     What benefits are there from this behavior change?

3.     Who is the audience?

4.     Are there any barriers preventing this change?

5.     How can I reduce those barriers if so?

Make sure that you test your ideas on smaller groups before “going live” and see how it does. Some benefits of social marketing are promoting greener, more sustainable living, promoting health consciousness, reducing social issues, allowing you to reach a larger audience, and it is cost-effective. If a brand uses social marketing then they will benefit from taking a stance on a topic because people now want to buy from socially and environmentally responsible businesses. In short, some things should happen to have an effective social marketing campaign: create interest/awareness, change attitudes, motivate people to want to change, incite that change, and sustain it. It could take some time to see if the change happened and when we some time, we mean years. It’s not uncommon for social marketing campaign measurements to happen slowly, over time. You will have to be patient but following the right guidelines will almost certainly help you succeed.

Creating a Marketing Strategy That Stands Out

We all know how to create a marketing strategy but with every brand out there doing the same things, how do you make your marketing stand out from all the rest? With advertising overload, it is very important to make your brand stand out. Every brand will start out with the same with usual 7 step guide to create their marketing strategy: 1. Build a marketing plan. 2. Create buyer personas. 3. Identify goals. 4. Select the right tools. 5. Review media. 6. Audit and plan. 7. Create it. Great! Now, you’ve got that same start as every other company out there. So now, let’s talk about some extra things that will help give you that extra push to be different in a sea of similarities.

1.     Mobile Friendly Everything! We’re all on the go a lot nowadays and that means looking at things from our phone most of the time. Your sites must be mobile friendly. If I can’t read it from my phone, I don’t want to read it. Period!

2.     Be Unexpected: put your ads somewhere exciting and new. Think outside of the box. Where do your potential customers hang out?

3.     Hook Em’ & Reel Em’ In: we all know that people have short attention spans. You have to hook the audience in immediately and keep them interested if you want your campaigns to succeed. You can get as creative as you want here. Use UGC, interactive ads, etc. Make your campaigns so temping that someone stops what they are doing just to see what it’s all about!

4.     Flaunt Your Differences: we push everyone to celebrate their difference outside the workplace, so doing this for your brand should be no different. What makes your brand stand out from the rest? Be proud of this and show it off. Why are you the best? Be confident but not cocky. You want your message to be seen as genuine but nobody likes vanity.

5.     Be an Innovator: know what’s happening at the forefront of your respective field. What’s the newest topic that everyone is buzzing about. For example, since we’re in the business of social media to grab good user-generated content, we focus on trending challenges and the like. This helps us stay ahead in our niche about what’s going on in the social world.  

6.     Lead with Creative: leading with overly data driven insights will kill your campaign. People tend to, “prioritize the experience of buying and using a product over the performance of the product itself” (McKinsey & Co.) Focusing on the creative aspects of your marketing campaign will, in turn, lead to good metrics down the line.

7.     Ask Experts: don’t be afraid to ask for help! Ever! Have brainstorming sessions with experts in your company or from outside sources. Find out who has the most knowledge of the product, concept, theme, etc. for your new marketing strategy. Ask: What are the challenges I need to solve? What are 1-3 benefits of the product/service? Any special things to consider when creating the campaign?

8.     Use Emotions: UGC really comes in handy here! When you elicit an emotional response from the audience they are compelled to like and share it, which in turn will increase your engagement. It also humanizes your brand.

9.     Personalization: your audience should come first always. Use their first name in marketing emails, etc. Make sure that they feel seen as a person and that they’re not just another number on your papers.

Lastly, you will want to test and use data to always improve on your campaigns. We say create with the message in mind but always follow the data afterward. If something isn’t working be ready to pivot at any given moment in order to reach the right people in the right ways! It takes a village to create an amazing marketing campaign so be open to new ideas from the team and most importantly, have fun!

Ways to Incorporate UGC Into Your Marketing Strategy

It’s no secret that we love UGC. It’s what we do and we’re passionate about it! We deal with UGC in the advertising campaign spaces mostly. However, there are some other areas of marketing that you can use this powerful tool. First, let’s talk about UGC in advertising since that’s what we specialize in. This is a great way to get consumers to trust your brand seeing real people in real-life situations that your audience can relate to. This type of UGC marketing will increase your ROI immensely. Let’s dive in to the other ways your brand can use it for marketing strategies.

1.     Promote your next product launch. UGC influences purchases so using it promote a new product is a great way to get new customers.

2.     Highlight your customers. Everyone likes to be appreciated. Highlighting your top customers through UGC photos and videos will not only make them feel great but it will increase your brand awareness through reposts and reshares. This is great for increasing brand awareness.

3.     UGC in advertising. As we listed above, UGC is one of the best ways to create an emotional connection with your audience. People trust real people in real-life situations that they can relate to.

If you’re interested in learning more about how UGC can help your brand grow contact us today. The benefits of UGC marketing and advertising just keep growing. Every campaign that we’ve ever done for advertising agencies has been successful to say the least. Don’t wait to get UGC into your marketing and advertising strategies. Trust us. We know a little something about this one.

Outbound vs Inbound Marketing

Outbound marketing: traditional form of marketing in which the company/brand initiates contact with potential customers. Inbound marketing: attracts customers by creating valuable content and experiences personalized for them. Both have a place in the marketing world but we do favor inbound over outbound in today’s world. Outbound marketing would be considered the traditional way of marketing, such as cold-calls, emails, tradeshow presentations, T.V., radio, print, and online ads as well as person-to-person contact IRL. Everyone knows all too well the annoying pop up online ads. It’s that kind of marketing. The uncomfortable, disruptive kind. This style of marketing is produced with a wide spread reach in hopes that it will gain new leads through putting their brand in front of lots of people repeatedly. “Spray and Pray,” as they call it. Inbound marketing strengthens the relationship you have with your customers and increases your brand’s reach through valuable content. It empowers your customers with information that helps solve problems and can be applied through attracting, engaging and gratifying.

1.     Attracting: providing valuable content that establish trust and create conversations. This can be done through blogs, social media, etc. You can offer them how-to guides or testimonials.

2.     Engaging: solving problems and key tips for your niche that align with their goals. Selling solutions rather than products is a good way to think about this. Deal with potential customers communications to entice them to want to build a relationship with your brand.

3.     Gratifying: supporting and empowering your audience to find success with purchases of services or products. We all love to feel that dopamine kick in when we’re satisfied. This can be achieved through listening on social media through providing feedback, asking questions, or sharing customer experiences. Making sure your brand responds to each individual. Also, it’s important to assist customers through every part of the journey. Using surveys can help your brand get an idea of what your audience wants and needs from you.

 Now that you understand the difference between the two, let’s look at the pros and cons of each type of marketing strategy.

Inbound Marketing

Pros:

1. Non-invasive

2. Educational/Valuable

3. Quantifiable

4. Organic reach

Cons:

1. Continuous maintenance

2. Much time and effort required

3. Holistic strategy

Outbound Marketing

Pros:

1. Promote brand awareness

2. Immediate results

3. Consumers are used to it

Cons:

1. More generalized

2. Consumer blindness

3. Less quantifiable

4. Costlier

Inbound marketing has long-term solutions while outbound is more short term. You can see that inbound benefits outweigh the cons and vice versa for outbound. It’s easy to see why inbound marketing is the way to go in today’s world. It produces longer lasting results in an organic way. Being a user generated content agency, we will always favor natural connections with audiences to create stronger bonds that will last a lifetime!

Content Marketing: The Why, The How and The Where

What in the world is content marketing exactly? What makes it different than traditional marketing? Well, “it’s a strategic approach that focuses on creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience” (Content Marketing Institute). Think of it this way. It’s much less spammy than traditional ads and doesn’t really pitch your product or services. Instead, it presents your audience with content that helps them solve their issues through the use of videos, blogs, social media, infographics, etc. with the intention of stimulating interest. But why is this type of marketing more prevalent now than it was 20 years ago? Well, for one thing, the internet has changed the market drastically since the 90’s, but another reason is that people cannot stand pop up advertising anymore on the web. Today, over 200 million people have installed pop-up blockers that, in turn, reduces the number of eyes on paid advertisements online, according to The Content Marketing Institute. Content marketing gets your brand out there without having to produce online pop-up ads. Here are some other key reasons why content marketing is on top today.

1.     Higher website traffic. Content marketing leaders get 7.8x’s more site traffic than non-leaders (Neil Patel)

2.     Increased Brand Recall. 56% of marketers believe that personalized content promotes higher engagement rates (IMB Digital Experience Survey) High-quality content that is relevant will increase the amount of time that consumers spend on their sites. Thusly, increasing engagement as well.

3.     Cost effective! Content marketing costs 62% less than outbound marketing and generates 3x’s as many leads (Demand Metric)

4.     Higher conversion rates. It’s nearly 6x’s higher than traditional marketing, according to Julia McCoy.

Now that it is obvious why content marketing has taken a seat in the front row, let’s talk about where your content marketing strategy fits into your business plan. Try to think of content marketing as something that sits alongside your other tactics, not separate from them. Therefore, there is no place that content marketing does not fit in. Some examples of what I mean are social media, inbound marketing, outbound marketing, pay-per-click, PR and even SEO.  All of these strategies should include high-quality content marketing that is relevant for your audience.

We’re sure you’re starting to understand why and where content marketing fits in, so let’s now talk about how to develop your content marketing strategy. According to The Content Marketing Institute there are 3 key questions to ask yourself before you begin.

1.     Who will be viewing the content?

2.     What benefits does the content give the viewers?

3.     What content experience can we consistently deliver?

Once you have the answers to these questions, it’s time to set your SMART goals and determine Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s). For your goals, are you trying to increase brand awareness or boost engagement? There are so many goals to choose from so your brand will need to determine the main reason why you’re creating this content. This will also determine what KPI’s will be important to track based on the initial goals of the content. For example, if your goal is to increase engagement, then a good KPI would be looking at the engagement numbers for the campaign. Now that you’ve set your goals & KPI’s, it’s time to decide what type of content to create. What does your audience need from you and what problem are you trying to solve for them? After you have determined this, you must decide where you want your content to go: social media, print, etc. Most importantly, what is the budget for this content marketing campaign? This can alter what you create. For example, if your budget is smaller, then you may consider using a user generated content ad to save money while still getting a great connection with your audience. Once this has all been determined it is time create, distribute and track the analytics. Some things to look out for in a good campaign are:

1.     It receives a lot of engagement

2.     It provides worth within the framework of your field

3.     You haven’t lost your brand voice

With an effective content marketing campaign, you can increase your conversation rates through building lasting relationships with your customers. Providing value with something other than just your service or products will create a sense of trust with your audience and will engage them with your brand. Also, using this inbound way of marketing are much more effective as a more organic way to gain new customers. And let’s face it, natural is always better!

Marketing Myopia

You might be asking yourself right now, what in the world is myopia let alone marketing myopia. The term originated at Harvard Business School by Theodore Levitt who was a professor there in the 1960’s. The term, coined by Levitt, is defined as a short-sighted and inward approach to marketing that has little imagination, foresight, intellectual insight while focusing on the needs of the business rather than on the needs of the customer. There are a few key reasons why this happens within a business. First, there is a disconnect between the brand and their customers. A business can get so caught up in what they’re doing that they forget why they are in business in the first place. What you do for your customers is what keeps you in business. Second, a brand will focus too heavily on the past instead of the future (short-sighted) and are unwilling to change when their audiences’ needs’ have changed. A good example of what “not to do” would be the locomotive industry. They thought they were in the train business and not the transportation business and fell into steep decline when their travelling customers went elsewhere for their transportation needs, such as cars. So, how does a brand stay away from the pitfalls of marketing myopia? First, they should stay away from these unreliable ideologies:

·      That an increasing population means increase growth industry

·      That their products cannot be threatened by competition

·      Mass producing because they think the supply will lead to demand

·      Lack of proper research that can cause them to misjudge the quality of the product/service

Now that we’ve discussed what ideology to steer clear of, let’s talk about some ways to avoid marketing myopia all together.

1.     Prioritize customers' needs!!!!! We cannot stress this point enough no matter what industry you are in! Never forget why you are in business and what you have to offer your customers. Your customers’ needs will not always remain the same so it’s important to constantly do brand research to meet them where they are.

2.     Research research research!! Review data and take the time to gain insights. This can help you come up with ways to improve and see what is also going well. Don’t get too comfortable! You can always optimize and grow. The use of first party data will come in very handy here.

3.     Know your competitors. Like we stated above, if you believe that your brand is not at risk from your competitors, you are really at risk for marketing myopia. There is always someone out there who is trying to be newest and next best thing! Understanding your competitors will keep you on top of your game!

4.     Innovation. To be doing something just because that’s the way it has always been done is an outdated mindset. It’s important to create innovation within your company. Don’t be afraid of failure and taking risks. If you stay open-minded as a leader, you can create an innovative team that helps lead your brand to success.

If you’re a business, chances are you want to be successful. I mean, isn’t that the point? Avoiding marketing myopia is one way to help your brand stay on top in its industry. Will it happen overnight? Probably not. Will it happen without mistakes? Most definitely not. But if you keep an open mind and strive for greatness, then your company will overcome any obstacles. In time, it will be an innovative leader!

Neilson Global Marketing Report 2022

The 2022 global annual marketing report was released recently. This report surveys marketers across various industries in media globally to understand the behaviors with data. Here are the key pain point take aways from the report.

1. Expected budget changes:

   1. High increase of social media to 53% of budget

   2. 50% increase of display online/mobile budget

   3. 49% increase of video on online/mobile

   4. 37% increase on OTT-TC/connected-TV

2. Top marketing objectives:

   1. Brand awareness as most important

   2. Customer acquisition falling in second

   3. Customer retention third most important

   4. Customer advocacy

   5. Competitor conquest

   6. Churn reduction last

3. Beliefs on what positively influences campaign performance:

   1. Audience targeting comes in at the top

   2. Ad creative second

   3. Audience reach is third

   4. Data quality

   5. Personalization

4. Importance of diversity and CSR initiatives:

   1. 67% of DEI in marketing efforts

   2. 65% in content where ads are purchased

   3. 65% in vendor selection

   4. 68% in marketing effort as a company

   5. 68% environmental and social governance in marketing efforts

Brand awareness efforts, social media spend increases, DEI/CSR initiative importance and audience targeting are the ley take aways from the report. To read the full report click HERE.

The Power of Email Marketing

Here’s a question for you… do you think that most people check social media or their email first in the morning? We’ll give you a second to think about what it is that you do…

If you said check your email you are correct. Most people check their email first in the morning before anything else. This is one of many reasons why email marketing has the top ROI of any marketing strategy or channel. A study done in 2015 showed that for every $1 spent an email has an ROI of $38 according to DMA. Therefore, it’s important to draft a great email campaign for your readers. Not only can it be great return on investment it can help your business grow. Here are just a few ways that it can do just that.

1.     Increase your brand recognition and awareness. Every time someone sees your brand logo in their inbox their recall will improve. Talk about things that your company values, its products/services, its mission. Help your audience understand who you are. Help them connect with you as a brand.

2.     Customer engagement and retention. Add interactive content such as videos, infographics, etc. Feature some of your customers in your email marketing. For example, perhaps you have worked with an influencer or done an affiliate program. Extend your thanks by featuring them in your email marketing campaigns.

3.     Customers are enticed to act. Put call to actions in the emails. Make them stand out with brightly lit colors. Keep them short and send them to a landing page rather than your home page.

4.     It’s personal and builds relationships with customers. Everyone hates mass emails. They feel spammy. Personalizing emails to your customers so that it resonates with them. Create connections that will build relationships that last by giving them information they want.

5.     Increased website traffic. This one is a given. Your email should have links to your website listed for a number of reasons. It could be to a blog on your site. Some work you’ve recently done. A sale you have going on. You get the idea. People may not always be looking at your site so this is a way to drive traffic.

6.     Optimized time and budget. As stated above, ROI is insane for email marketing. Email marketing is cheap and some is even free. By putting effort into the emails and using the 80:20 rule you will increase your revenue with little budget spent. The 80:20 rule states that roughly 80% of your sales come from 20% of your clients. Focus your energy on that 20%. This is where personalization can come into play as well.

Now that we know why email marketing is a powerful marketing tool, do you have the proper criteria to create a stand out email marketing campaign? Here are some basic rules of thumb to follow to create a killer email.

1.     Personalize, personalize, personalize! Same as we stated above and this couldn’t be more important.

2.     Make it visual! This increases engagement and motivates people to take actions.

3.     Promote action! Make sure there are plenty of calls to action in your email. This will also allow you to track how the email is doing.

4.     Write a catchy subject line. We would say that this is second most important next to personalization. This is where you have one chance to hook your audience into reading. Also, email marketing should have short excerpts so make every word count!

Email marketing is one of the most efficient ways to grow your business and see great returns. It can help build your audience and increase sales if done correctly. To sum it up, don’t slack on your email marketing. The benefits far outweigh any cons.

Performance Marketing vs Affiliate Marketing

A hot topic right now is performance marketing. It’s somewhat similar to affiliate marketing but has a lower risk involved and encompasses a wider umbrella that includes affiliate marketing as its sub category. It’s not something that is new but is now rising to the top as a new way to market. Let’s define each for some more clarity. Affiliate marketing is where a relationship is set up between a brand and an individual or organization where partners will receive a percentage commission of the sales they help create. Performance marketing where brands only pay when a certain objective has been met, such as clicks, leads or a sale. Here, advertisers connect with agencies, publishers or influencers to design and place ads on their company channels. Similar to that with affiliate. This is done instead of traditional advertising and now the advertisers pay based on how their ad performs and is measurable in number of impressions, clicks, shares and sales. It’s “performance based,” hence the name. Let’s now talk about the ways in which your brand’s performance-based marketing can be tracked. Here is where you see the difference in payment structure from that of affiliate marketing.

1.     Cost Per Click (CPC): as the name implies, advertisers only pay when their ad is clicked on.

2.     Cost Per Sale (CPS): the advertiser only pays when the sale was driven by the ad. This is what is used for affiliate marketing.

3.     Cost Per Impression (CPM): advertisers pay for every one thousand views. For example, if your ad gets 30K views then they pay their base rate 30x’s.

4.      Cost Per Acquisition (CPA): advertisers pay when consumers complete a specific action, such as giving their contact information, getting a sale, etc.

5.     Cost Per Lead (CPL): advertisers pay when someone signs up for something such as an email newsletter, webinar, etc.

Now that we’ve discussed the ways that advertisers pay for performance marketing let’s talk about some of the benefits. The most important one is that is tends to be lower risk since advertisers only pay after a desired action takes place. This will leave more budgeting wiggle room. Second, it’s very trackable. Performance marketing can be measured to where advertisers can watch the entire journey of their audiences’ buying path. It shows which channels are showing better results. Lastly, it increases brand awareness and increased ROI. This is a way to reach new audiences’ brands have not already tapped into. The pros are the same for affiliate marketing. However, there are some down sides to this style of marketing. Brands will have less creative control, they risk putting their brand’s reputation at jeopardy with an affiliate and most programs rely on third party cookies to measure performance, which will no longer be available when Google phases out 3rd party cookies. In summary, having both marketing strategies in your brand’s back pocket is good. Both have benefits but with the phase out of 3rd party cookies soon performance marketing will be taking a front seat. It’s honestly surprising that it took this long to come to the forefront with all the pros it produces. They both assume the risk of overpaying versus how much sales it generates but with performance marketing the risk is lessened. Could performance marketing be the marketing strategy of the future?

Marketing on a Budget

Inflation is here and it’s having an effect on every industry today. There’s no denying it. With the current state of economic affairs, we thought an article on how to maximize marketing on a budget was beneficial. Here’s a quick bullet point list.

1.     Harness the POWER OF UGC. Of course, we’re bias on this topic since this is what we do. That being said, this is one of the best ways to market on a budget. It can cut the costs of production and according to Hubspot, production takes up to 24% of the marketing budgets. Pre-production and post-production come in at the second highest costs.

2.     Hire student/amateur actors. If the brand does want a produced marketing campaign, then save money by using students or amateurs who aren’t big stars yet. Most times they will be eager to gain experience and do the job for much less or possibly free.

3.     Use free editing software. Mac already includes this with your device. With a PC, Windows Movie Maker can be installed. There are others available online as well.

4.     It’s all about lighting & sound. Don’t waste money and time on equipment that you don’t really need. You can save money here on high end cameras. However, having good lighting and good sound are important. Good lights and good mics are a must have. BUT… you can have your cake and eat it to. There are plenty of lists that experts put there that can help your brand get the best bang for their buck.

5.     Film with your smartphone. Phones have really good cameras now. Some even have cinema mode for cinematographic style shots. This can help your brand save money on equipment as well to be used in other areas of your campaign.

There are plenty of options to help save money when marketing on a budget. We hope that our quick tips helped get your journey started. Video marketing is by far the best way to reach your audience today. You cannot  merely skip out on it because you think you may not have the funds for it. There are plenty of hacks to make video marketing a reality for your brand. It will take some research and planning ahead to stick to the budget that you have allocated while getting the highest quality videos simultaneously.

Emotional Advertising

Of course, we all buy things out of necessity or want! However, as it turns out a lot of us buy things driven by emotions. A study done showed that “70% of viewers who experienced an intense emotional response to an ad were very likely to buy the product” (Unruly). This brings to mind that overly drawn out commercial for the SPCA. In the ad you’re shown sad faced, pitiful looking animals while Sarah McLaughlin sings in a melancholy tone the background. Yea, you know exactly which one I’m talking about. They’re really selling it home hard with triggering the emotional response here. This is the text book example of an emotional ad. Makes sense to advertise this way. IPA Research showed that, “ads with purely emotional content perform twice as well (31% vs. 16%) compared to those with only rational content.” It appears we are emotional beings rather than rational. Side note, Italians are the most emotionally engaged with brands at a whopping 65%. We thought this fact was interesting. Although very effective, it can be somewhat risky. There’s really no predicting if it will beseech the emotional response intended from your audience. This is why we believe user generated content should be a big part of every brands advertising strategy. UGC is one of the best ways to create emotional connections from brand to audience using the lens of the customer experiences. With an array of emotions and reactions through UGC video, it’s not a surprise that it is the most engaging. When you can sympathize with another “real” human who isn’t a paid actor, you build an authentic relationship with the brand and its mission. But don’t take our word for it, Frontify showed a statistic that 85% of people find UGC to be more influential. If your brand hasn’t already tapped into the infinite potential of UGC or sourced content marketing contact us to learn how.

Multicultural Advertising

Gen Z is the most multicultural generation to date and it’s expected that multicultural advertising budgets are going to increase in the coming years. It’s estimated that the white population in the U.S. will actually be the minority by 2043 according to the U.S. Census. Large cities all across America are now enmeshed with loads of diversity and with the social justice movements during the pandemic, inclusion is now necessity in conducting good business. Yesterday we wrote an article on cross-cultural advertising, so today we’re going to focus on the importance of  multicultural advertising. As essential as it is today, it is still no easy feat to create multicultural ads that resonates with its audience and does not offend or alienate them. Thus, we thought we would put together a tips list to help you get started.

1.     Research and analyze data. Look at multicultural campaigns that have worked. What did they do? A prime example would be Coca-Cola’s “America’s Beautiful”. Also, don’t forget to make sure to do research into specific cultures that you’re trying to reach as well. Understanding the culture will help you know the motivations of the audience as well as what triggers them to buy something.

2.     Have a diverse multicultural marketing/advertising team. Of course, someone from a particular region will understand that place better than anyone. This can help you contextualize your campaigns through your team who has, quite literally, been where your audience is or has been. This diverse team can help you check for accuracy of campaigns.  

3.     Triple check accuracy and authenticity of campaigns. As stated above it’s important to check the accuracy of the multicultural campaigns. Aside from having your diverse team, your brand can run it by colleagues that may also represent that cultural group. Get their feedback. What emotions did it invoke? This can also be done through A/B testing to see what appeals to the group(s) you’re targeting. Whichever way you shake it, having a cultural expert look at your campaigns is a must before they hit the market.

4.     Create empowerment in multicultural communities. How can your campaign create a sense of empowerment? How can you shed some light on issues or diversities that a particular culture has faced? People will trust your brand if you’re authentic in your support to give representation to underrepresented groups!

5.     Overcome preconceived cultural beliefs. This could be thought of as research listed at bullet point number one above. Make sure to study the culture and beliefs are your target audience. Even following influencers in that culture can help you understand the mood of target cultures. Keep an open mind and a humble heart while you learn about new cultural groups.

Overall, in the coming years it will be important to develop deeper and stronger understanding of different cultures. A new ecosystem of advertising space is coming to light and it’s right around the corner. It’s crucial to stay up to date with cultural trends and keeping your work space diverse. We’re excited for this new multicultural advertising space and embrace it with open arms. As a business who holds high DEI standards we couldn’t agree more with the increasing importance of multicultural advertising. To see more great examples of brands that got their multicultural advertisements right click HERE.  

Cross-cultural Advertising

First off, let’s note that cross-cultural and multi-cultural advertising are not the same. Multi-cultural advertisements are created with a specific ethnic group(s) in mind where cross-cultural advertising is created in order to reach many different cultures simultaneously. Although it may seem straight forward, multi-cultural advertising is a little easier to achieve than the broader spectrum audience of many cultures. Specific ads that may do well in one country may not always do well in another and in countries that are melting pots, such as the U.S., you want to make sure your message gets across the way you intend. Thus, cross-cultural advertising brings with it certain challenges. That being said, cross-cultural advertising has never been more important in today’s global society. Different cultures are more accessible in every part of the world with technology and transportation. It’s imperative that agencies adopt a cross-cultural approach to their advertising strategies. It’s not straight forward but the work will be worth it! Here are some things to consider when creating cross-cultural advertisements.

1.     Know your market. Do some research on different cultures that are within the target audience(s). There are so many sub cultures within a country, such as rural areas, southern towns, west coast culture versus east coast culture, etc. You get the idea. Therefore, it’s important to research each and know what strategies to take for your advertisement campaigns to tailor to all and not just one. Make sure to look into what cultures may consider taboo as well.

2.     Understand cultural norms within that market. Cultural norms are important when designing your advertising campaign. Avoiding missteps here can save you a lot of headache later. More research here is required. Think about whether a certain culture is more conservative than another. Thai culture believes that the head is a sacred space and that you patting someone on the head is disrespectful. It’s understanding these subtle cultural nuances that will keep your head above water for your cross-cultural advertising campaigns.

3.     Consider language. Sometimes particular words do not translate across cultures. There may not be a translation for a word. Also, avoiding particular jargon or slang may be necessary to advertise cross-culturally. For example, hella is a word used in the northern part of California and other parts of the country may have no clue what this word is meant to be used for.

4.     Know the values of your audience. Does the target culture(s) stress the importance of collectivism or individualism? Do they promote selflessness for the good of the whole or applaud having a strong personal identity?

5.     Pay attention to visuals. Colors invoke specific reactions and have powerful effects. Each culture is different. Certain colors can have meaning in one and a completely different in another. The same can be said for numbers and superstitious objects, such as black cats. In America, black cats and the number 13 are considered unlucky whereas in other cultures they are thought to be signs of good fortune.

There is an art to taking multiple cultures and connecting them together by commonalities. Brands that have great advertising in essence should already have good cross-cultural advertising strategies. However, they will need to branch out to untapped cultures in order to grow if they haven’t already. A brand will need to make sure to stick to their instilled brand culture and find commonalities with the cultures they wish to branch out to. This will ensure that they remain authentic to themselves and their original mission. They will also come off as being “real” to their new cultural audience. Innovative brands should have no problem with this since they are used to being at the intersection of multiple cultures at once. In short, for cross-cultural advertising, research will be required, time will be required and cultural preconceptions may change as a result. Expanding and learning about new cultures will help you understand the world overall much better, reduce stereotypes, enhance communication skills effectively and prevent ethnic/racial divisions.

Efficient Marketing Campaign Planning & Management

Marketing campaigns by definition are an organized, strategized effort that promotes a specific company or brand goal. This could be done for a number of reasons. It could be to promote a new product/service, increase brand awareness, gather feedback, get new leads, increase revenue, boost engagement or promote an upcoming event. Whatever the reason, it is important that the campaign be planned and managed properly. Here are some steps to help your brand efficiently plan for their next marketing campaign.

1. Know the purpose and goal. Use the SMART technique. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. Is your goal to promote a new product? Is it to get more engagement across social media channels? Key Progress Indicators (KPI) will define the goal, show how it will be measured and which metrics will track its progress.

2. Know how you will measure metrics. This will also depend on the goal of the campaign so it will be different for each one and for every brand. For example, say the goal is to increase brand awareness you can measure this goal by keeping track of shares, social mentions and press. Another example would be for increasing revenue. Tracking new leads, sales as well as upsells would be a way to measure the success of the campaign.

3. Know your audience. What are your audience’s interests? Where do they spend time online? Instagram, Facebook, TikTok? What problems do they have that my product will fix? These are all questions that will help define your audience. It’s imperative to understand who they are, what their age range is, if they’re predominantly male or female or both. Knowing their age range and sex will help to determine where they hang out online on social platforms. It also helps to know what you can solve for them. You’re not going to market a joint pain supplement to the age group of 18-25 for example.

4. Know the right management software. There are so many marketing management softwares now. Here’s a short bullet point list of some and what they do.

   a.     Marketing automation & data analytics: offers campaign scheduling, customer segmentation, content creation, and analytics. Helps track campaigns in real time.

   b.    Project management: helps assign employees to tasks and gives an overview of the project when using a multi-team campaign.

   c.     Online advertising: measures ROI across all advertising channels.

   d.    CRM: deals with accounting and reporting so that your team can focus on more important aspects of the campaign.

   e.     Social media marketing: helps schedule content, monitor brand sentiment and gather data.

   f.      Email marketing and lead nurturing: examples are Mail Chimp and Constant Contact. We’ve all heard of these.

   g.     SEO Marketing: 93% of all web traffic comes through search engines according to Search Engine Statistics.  These SEO marketing tools help improve search presence and help with keyword brainstorming. These tools are more relevant than ever before.

   h.    Content and graphic creation: these tools offer consistent graphic design across all channels.

5. Know you have created the perfect team. Make sure to develop the right team. Define clear roles for each employee and an understandable brief. Make sure to keep them motivated. Have check ins often and empower your team through positive and constructive feedback. Don’t forget to celebrate the small wins!

A successful marketing campaign comes from the successful relationships within the team. Having the right people and the right tools ensures a smooth and successful campaign. Therefore, planning the marketing campaign starts with building a good team. Monitoring the success of the campaign in real time allow for adjustments to be made as needed so that success rates are almost certain.

The Rise of Interactive Advertising

Did you know that there is a term called ad blindness? It is a term to explain the phenomenon in response to how people have begun to cope with being subject to constant advertising. People have developed a coping mechanism to subconsciously and sometimes consciously tune out advertisements. In fact, 82% of Gen Z skip or ignore ads completely according to A List Daily. You can check out our article from yesterday on tips to make your advertisements more engaging but there is another kind of ad emerging that seems to increase engagement; interactive advertising. Actually, interactive advertisements have been shown to increase consumer attention by 47% and 32% more memorable according to a study conducted by Magna Global. So, let’s talk about some different types of interactive advertisements.

1.     Playable ads. This type lets the viewer get a taste of what it is like to use their product. Examples can be viewed HERE.

2.     Interactive films. A few movies on Netflix have done this now. It gives the users the options to make certain choices for the narrative giving them control of the how they experience it. Bandersnatch is a great example. We have actually participated in this interactive film.

3.     Interactive display. These expand when clicking or rolling over when viewed on a website. When it is expanded it will reveal the interactive advertisement. Visit this website for some examples.

4.     Augmented reality. Think of filters in social media apps. A great example of this is Taco Bell’s Cinco de Mayo lens on Snapchat that allowed users to turn their heads into tacos. Here’s an interesting take on it.

5.     Interactive voice. These literally speak to the user and engage with them verbally. It allows the user to respond to their voice activated device. You can read more on this HERE.

6.     Interactive video. This can be prompted through polls or trivia, such as on Facebook and allows for real time interaction with the brand audience. People love trivia and they love answering questions about themselves. Wieden + Kennedy created a beautiful ad in this type of interactive space.

Interactive ads might be the advertising of the future. With this new and creative way to engage consumers, marketers have unlimited possibilities to generate higher brand recall, increased engagement and ultimately generation of conversion rates will go up. These ads will keep your audience guessing what type of crazy ad you will come up with next. Encourage your creative team to expand their minds in order to create interactive advertisements that will keep your target audience coming back for more for years to come!

Social Media Stats 2022

Upon all our blog research here at Locomotive, there is always a recurring theme in advertising with social media. It’s now one of the most important parts of an advertising strategy in today’s world. We found some really interesting stats that we wanted to share with all of you. We know it helps us see a clear picture of who is watching what and where. It’s important to know where your target audience is to better serve them.

Pew Research Center:

• In 2005 only 5% of American adults used at least one social platform. In 2021 that number was 72%

• Percentage of adults that say they use at least one social media site by age in 2021:

  • 18-29: 84%

  • 20-49: 81%

  • 50-64: 73%

  • 65+: 45%

• More women typically use social media (78%) than men (66%) in 2021

• YouTube and Facebook are the top most widely used platforms

  • YouTube: 81%, FB: 69%

  • Instagram comes in third at 40%

• 70% of people use Facebook daily

• 59% of people use Instagram daily

These are only some of the current social media stats but in our opinion are extremely useful when looking at where to target your ads. For more interesting statistics visit: Insider Intelligence, Sprout Social and Influencer Marketing Hub.

Ways to Engage Consumers for Advertisements

Whether on a streaming service, online or when watching a video, at some point we’ve all been just waiting for the “skip ad” button to pop up so we can click on it to get to what we’re there for. It occurred to me that I do this almost 100% of the time and I’m not alone. A study done by IPG showed that 65% of people skip video ads as soon as they get the chance. Some even stated that it is purely habit at this point. So, how do advertisers get people engaged to view their advertisements? What makes someone stop what they are doing and watch the ad or forget that the skip button is even there? We decided to do some research to find out the best ways to engage an audience with campaigns and this is what we found.

1.     Know where to advertise. This is number one in our opinion. Putting ads that are similar to content being viewed will most likely pique the interest of a consumer. For example, if someone is reading a running blog an ad for Brooks running shoes would be placed on the site. Programmatic advertising can assist brands with this and increase efficiency. Knowing where your target audience is most engaged is key.

2.     Get straight to the point and keep it short. You’ve got 8 seconds to hook, line and sink er’. That’s the average attention span of Gen Z and it’s still only 12 for Millennials. As we keep saying, attention spans are getting shorter, so don’t lose your audience by creating a 3-minute advertisement.

3.     Throw in something different. Attract immediate attention with something funny, odd or by pointing something important out. You may ask a thought-provoking question or show a compelling image. We know that always gets us to stop and watch. We always appreciate a creative campaign that stands out. Take the recent Liquid Death ad for example.

4.     Tell a story or share a personal experience. Telling a story can be done very well through the use of user generated content in your spots. It will help your audience connect with your brand. Look at our past campaign for Oreo “Stay Playful.” It asks their audience to stay playful and uses shots of UGC of regular people shooting basketballs during March Madness to connect with them.

5.     Be slightly mysterious. A study found that brands who introduced themselves too early look pushy and it will not go over well with your audience. Try to throw it in after the hook in order to help keep them watching until the end.

6.     Don’t be overly positive. This one is odd we know, but it has been shown that people tend to get annoyed when they see an ad that’s seemingly too happy. Although that may seem weird, when someone may not be in a great mood themselves, the last thing that they want to see is overly artificial happiness. Honestly, we’d be bothered by it.

7.     Put the brand logo next to the skip button. This is a little trick. Since people tend to skip video ads, this is to help ensure that they will still remember your brand name after they skip your ad. Although, it’s been disputed that it may not have a high impact, it can’t hurt right?!

There are many types of video ads to promote your product or service such as outstream, instream and social media video. Whatever advertising avenue you choose make sure to get the most eyes on your videos.

UGC Stats

We’ve all heard it a million times now. People trust people more than paid actors. It’s for this reason and many others that user generated content is now at the forefront of digital advertising. The purpose of this blog is to shine some light on some statistics about user generated content, otherwise known as sourced content.

·      79% of people are strongly influenced by UGC when making purchase decisions (Rachna & Khajuria 2017).

·      71% of people have positive attitudes toward UGC in digital advertisements (Rachna & Khajuria 2017).

·      73% of people believe that the presence of “real people” is the most important component of sourced content (Olapic Survey).

·      Consumers are 3x more likely to say content created by a consumer is authentic compared to content created by a brand (Stackla).

·      Roughly 70% of advertisers believe that sourced content is more cost effective than traditional advertising (Catch & Release Survey).

·      90% of consumers say that UGC influences their decision to make a purchase (Cision PR Newswire).

·      Demographically, Gen Z YouTube viewers prefer UGC to professional videos more than older generations (YouTube 2020).

·      Ads that feature UGC garnered 73% more positive comments on social networks than traditional ads (IAB Study).  

·      UGC generates a 25% higher ad performance than traditional advertisements (AdAge).

·      85% of companies incorporate UGC in their marketing strategy (Semrush).

·      Almost half of customers say that UGC is a way for them to discover new products (Forrester.com)

·      UGC is 35% more memorable comparable to other media (Mediapost).

·      92% of consumers trust UGC more than traditional marketing (Marketing Insider).

This is reason enough to make sure your brand is incorporating sourced content into the advertising strategy. Of course, we will always believe it is one of the best ways to connect with your audience but don’t just take our word for it, let us show you. Contact us today for a free brief evaluation!

Programmatic Advertising

Some of you may already know what programmatic advertising is but just in case we thought we would explain it for those who may not. Programmatic ads are done through the use of software or AI to buy digital advertising space. This connects publishers who own website domains with advertisers and takes the arduous task away from people having to manually do it. The software uses an algorithm to determine where the ad space is best for your target audience in order to increase your ROI. The brand gives the information of audience specifications, key performance indicators and information on the ad campaigns. The program will then create the algorithm to fit and find the perfect placements for your digital ads. After the ads go live, it will monitor and look for areas of improvement. This type of advertising couldn’t be more critical with the Google phase out of thirds party cookies. We are entering a digital era of personal information confidentiality and it’s only going to get harder to find your online audience with privacy at the forefront. This will be one of the best ways to get your ads in front of the right consumers. Here are some other reasons why it is important.

1.     Real-time adjustments. Since it is being monitored, it can show how the ad is doing based on impressions and can be adjusted as needed.

2.     Larger audience reach. Since there is purchasing power from any ad space, this increases the audience it will reach. Advertisers have a large pool of publishers, which will increase ROI as well.

3.     Efficiency. Budget is better spent. “More relevant ads are served through targeting” (Publift). Taking the human out of the equation who has to search for, inquire, and purchase the spaces makes this more efficient. It is so much faster with software and will save the company money in the end.

The future is digital! Making sure your company is up to date on the newest software and techniques for their advertising is going to be a key component to their success. Taking advantage of software that performs programmatic advertising will save your brand money, streamline your digital ad space buying process and help you reach a wider audience than before. Why wouldn’t your brand want to take advantage of this when it seems like a no brainer right?! Happy advertising!