The impact of GDPR legislation throughout 2020 threatens to undermine established marketing methods to such an extent that they may no longer be fit for purpose. Whilst this threatens so many aspects of the way we work, from granular reporting to re-targeting strategies, this should also be seen as an opportunity.
Marketing was always supposed to be a blend of art and science but digital channels, with their overwhelming abundance of data, have always been dominated by the data scientists rather than the creative thinkers. That’s why in the last year we have launched new services including ideation sessions, creative versioning and even behavioural psychology research.
Always consider the context
As we hand back control to consumers and move into an opt-in world, the art of marketing will once again take centre stage. In recent years we have had a wealth of technology at our disposal that has allowed us to measure everything we do down to the smallest of variables, and when we could no longer join up all the dots, we could use clever modelling and AI to help fill the void.
But that will not necessarily lead you down the right path for your brand. We actually need to think like a consumer and build experiences they want, rather than being led exclusively by numbers and executing a strategy based on what the company needs.
Every single touchpoint is crucial for effectiveness, and each step of the consumer journey should be considered equally for maximum impact, as shown by our multi award-winning Untapped campaign for WaterAid.
How should you adjust to market trends?
Every piece of content – digital or otherwise – requires care and attention. It isn’t ‘just’ a banner or a Facebook post, that can be thrown together using assets from a 90-second hero TV creative. While we will no longer be able to execute 1-2-1 personalisation at scale, we can and should tailor creative based on what we do know about our target audience.
This includes their environment, the context and a plethora of other macro signals. What does the audience want to see? What emotional reaction do we need to trigger so they become a potential customer?
A prime example of this is our “one-to-many” approach for David Lloyd. The work, which has been shortlisted for several industry awards, was adapted across Facebook and Display resulting in significantly increased response rates. And that’s only half the story.
Visitors to your website expect to have an optimal experience whether they are searching on a mobile or trying to transact as quickly as possible on a laptop.
Younger audiences are searching less – they expect brands to come to them via the platforms they naturally engage with, and you won’t get many second chances.
Where should you focus your attention in 2020?
That first experience with your brand creates a long-lasting impression which is tough to influence. So, think about how you can provide the content the audience demands on the device they like to use. In 2020 there really is no excuse for a poor website experience on any device. It is easy to see where small changes could make big impacts, whether those changes are driven by qualitative research, analytics data or plain common sense.
Brands must stop silo-ing budgets between creative, marketing and development. They are too interdependent to be treated as separate projects and budgets should move fluidly between them to have the greatest impact on your bottom line.
That’s why we have always operated with client-centric teams rather than channel silos. Our account managers truly understand your business challenges and can recommend shifting budget from media to creative versioning or CRO to drive the most efficient ROI.
In summary you need to be asking three questions as you brief and plan your next wave of media activity:
- How can we measure the true effectiveness of activity in a GDPR compliant way?
- What can be done to optimise the customer experience of our next campaign?
- Is there data we could be using in an innovative way in our content?
For more information on how you can optimise your brand’s digital presence to best effect, please get in touch.