The Marketing Corner: Follow the Consumer

There are many schools of thought on how to execute successful campaigns.
The Marketing Corner: Follow the Consumer
Mobile advertising is a prime channel for businesses to reach Millenials who are increasingly purchasing products while on-the-go. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)
8/14/2016
Updated:
8/14/2016

There are many schools of thought on how to execute successful campaigns.

However, there is a truism that is surfacing: one must follow the customer in order to realize the desired results. If you feel a little light-headed and believe you need skates to keep up, which may not be a stretch. Keeping up with consumers’ latest trends is a full time job of being immersed in data, past campaign results, and optimizing strategies.

But help is here to make all of this a little bit more manageable. Since it’s increasingly important to gain a competitive edge, technology is affording marketers to manage a variety of tasks quicker, more efficiently, and in real-time.

Consumers are juggling a lot in the course of the day. In addition to working several hours per day to satisfy the basic necessities of life, they are also inundated with a plethora of messages from businesses and the media. These messages are coming from a variety of platforms. The trick is to know which platform should carry which marketing message.

Don’t fly by the seat of your pants. Use technology to help research in real-time the best customer for your product or service. Then, use those insights to map more consumers who share similar behavioral patterns. Also, it is important to identify these consumers of choice via the devices and channels being used. This will allow the ability to tailor messages and even testing of messages to see which can be more effective and “push” the consumer to a desired action.

As you continue to develop and optimize your marketing plan, consider using technology to manage the volume of data. This can expand your resources, even if they’re limited, by maximizing your potential reach with the best customer. Mass communication is the old school of thought. The new school of thought is personalization and one-on-one communication.

Your objective should be to create experiences and deliver messages within the right channel and device. After all, the point is to not waste your valuable marketing dollars but gain the higher share of the consumer wallet!

Adele Lassere is a marketing/advertising consultant, freelance writer and author of “Elements of Buying” (a self-help advertising guide), available at Amazon.com. Adele was listed as Black Enterprise’s 2016 Women of Power in Advertising & Marketing and 2013 Top Women Executives in Advertising & Marketing. Contact: [email protected]