The empowerment of people is what’s challenging the positioning of brands these days and it is only fair to accept that the consumer’s behaviour and expectations are evolving alongside the marketing industry.
The public – being no longer the obedient recipient of media messages, impressed by shiny commercials, blindly trusting and buying a certain product – has now become a discussion partner and brands need to accept and build on this opportunity for future success.
So, where does your brand name fit in to this digital journey to the consumer’s mind, considering the immense variety of digital channels and diverse expectations out there?
That question becomes even harder to answer when talking about top brands or growth hacking start-ups, because while trying to be the best in class, they also need to face the pressure of endless opportunities and lack of boundaries.
This is the era of ‘selfies’ – in which people feel the urge to share personal moments and themselves, beyond the comfort of their homes, but don’t seem to have much in common with their neighbours on the bus! In a time when people only care about themselves and seem to always be connected to a technical device, it’s interesting to observe the concept of ‘the human era’, as described by Marcel Molenaar (country manager and head of Marketing Solutions at LinkedIn Benelux) at OnBrand ’16, a marketing conference staged recently in Amsterdam. Watch him here:
[youtube id=”_o1yNUpO0zA”]On branding and the human transformation
We must admit that it is people who have done a ‘digital’ transformation! People don’t seek the approval of machines – they don’t post pictures for the fun of robots, don’t hope to be connected to the internet, but to another person. The fast-paced environment is the reason why people focus more and more on the things that are of real value to them and deliberately choose where to spend time online and what they want to learn.
And here is the challenge brand marketers face. With consumers spreading themselves across multiple channels, blocking ads and being self-centered, how can brands reach out to them? “The story is the bottle,” says Jens Kok, brand ambassador at Dopper – the bottle designed to change the world. What is remarkable about this business is that it doesn’t sell a product; it is meant to raise awareness on a topic of worldwide interest and to offer a solution.
The propositions of the company and the values they share, bringing together people who care about the environment and trying to diminish plastic waste, is the key point.
The brand’s strategy doesn’t rely on selling the best product, nor the most innovative one, but it tells a story and entrusts readers with taking action. The story builds a connection and opens up communication, and this is what changes one-time visitors into faithful brand ambassadors. If people can relate to your idea and see its real use or benefits, the bond is complete and it is now only a matter of brands being consistent with their core values and aspirations.
From a ‘social’ point of view, Ashley Winson – head of Brand Strategy Belgium and Netherlands at Twitter, encourages brands to explore and experiment, since there is no secret path to success, but that of being honest and “trusting your guts”.
Although it is quite clear that hot topics nowadays are centered on virtual reality, rather than the human being, marketers must not forget that everything is done by humans, for other humans, and people still respond positively to personal messages and engage in conversations, as long as something is powerful enough to trigger them.
To sum up, as seen at OnBrand ’16 in Amsterdam, brands belong everywhere, between the selfies and the others, leaving a mark on the social life, rather than the social network.
As long as they act and speak like a human being, brands are going to succeed in this brand new era. Tell a story, make it count!
