We explore and revisit some strategic communications trends for 2021 with steps on how to use the remainder of 2021 to plan for and build capability in preparation for 2022.
As more countries start to plan for the eventuality of a vaccinated population, and a new normal of living with the COVID-19 virus, businesses and brands must start preparing ahead for the inevitable changes.
These changes include managing customers’ new expectations, re-positioning for more profitable niches or segments, or entry and expansion activities to chase after opportunities.
In an earlier article, we explained that brands should look to expand their playbook, integrate messaging across channels and become familiar with automation. We continue to believe that these capabilities will serve as foundation for many brands looking to prepare for the pandemic recovery stage.
Additionally, there are some trends that brands should pay attention to and use to prepare themselves for 2022.
Become intensely familiar with your customer’s journey to you
Customers must become familiar with your brand before taking any decision to engage. According to research, customers must encounter a brand at least 10 times, through advertising, events or other formats to encourage conversion.
Instead of relying only on a reach and frequency model, consider elevating your perspective.
What is your customer’s journey to get to you and make a purchase?
It’s important that you understand how they first discover your brand and how they navigate through your touchpoints. This navigation becomes one iteration of a possible journey.
Try to build each iteration to anticipate the customer’s needs, expectations and desires. The quicker your touchpoint identifies how to solve their problem, the quicker they make it through the journey.
At this point, ensure that each touchpoint and channel has sufficient information for customers to decide whether they want to engage with your brand. The idea that the customer will be willing to move from one channel to another because of your brand or product should be left behind.
And when the customer finally makes their way to your location or a purchase decision, demonstrate some understanding and appreciation of the journey it took them to get there. Apart from the expected value from the purchase and service execution, what else would delight the customer? Add that in wherever possible.
For example, this can take the form of a complementary-to-the-product token, a note with a next purchase discount code, an automated message to take returns if the product did not meet expectations. The concept is to encourage loyalty and a return purchase, and not give customers the impression it is merely a transaction to the brand.
We can help you fix and problem solve for many growth and revenue scenarios such as market entry, market expansion, product/service launches through a strategic communications approach.
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We are Brand Utility is a business consultancy. Our principal consultant is a registered management consultant, certified and recognised by the Institute of Management Consultants Singapore.
We work with brands in the corporate, professional services, retail, travel and technology spaces.
Are you aware of your customer’s relationship with technology?
We are all aware that the customer has changed in relation to their adaptation to the pandemic world. At-home customers readopted their monitors, video calls, streaming services, e-commerce and social commerce.
70 percent of consumers expect technology to become more prominent in their lives over the coming three years. Respondents from the same research “…expect businesses to recognize the inter-dependency between what they do and the people they serve and adapt their services accordingly.”
However, what’s uncertain will be how customers integrate these technologies they enjoyed during the pandemic during the recovery period and whichever workplace model – hybrid or remote – becomes dominant.
Brands that are starting to build out their strategic communications master plans have to work with the data they have. This means making assumptions about which technologies their customers will continue to use, and creating relevant content for these channels.
Brands can tap on current customers with focus groups and surveys to build some understanding about how they interact and use their technologies. This can provide value to the customers by working within their preferences. Such interactions with customers can continue to build trust within the relationship.
Collaborate with other brands to create unexpected customer opportunities
Discovery and awareness are very crowded places now for customers to find brands new to them. The idea of collaboration means complementary brands can reach new customers, often at little cost (compared to traditional marketing) and leverage across multiple owned and partner channels. Brands can also benefit from cost savings as they do not need to build infrastructure or commit resources from scratch. A 2017 American Express Business Collaboration Index found that particularly successful collaborations happened when brands worked with collaborators from outside their direct industry. Working with another brand can help with more creative expressions of the journey, the value and the engagement than done alone. Combining resources – especially time and talent – to produce value can engage customers better. Not all collaborations have to cost lots of money. For example, Uber partnered with Spotify to let premium passengers choose their own music to listen to during their rides. Ocean & Co used a cause to rally customers by sharing profits to fund research about sea turtle and shark movements with Mote Marine Labs. When looking for brand collaborations, ensure there is sufficient time set aside to identify, plan, negotiate and execute. True collaborations take time for the relationships between the brands to develop, and for the creative output to happen. Trying to fake it with a short-term transactional effort will cause customers to leave both brands and create a negative outcome. Look for brands that mirror your brand’s characteristics, or that reach out to the same customers, or that offers the same benefits or shares similar customer service values. Build some ideas about how a partnership can create customer and brand value that is not possible without the brands working together. Be proactive and reach out to the partner brands and share your initial ideas. If the brand is interested, create shared ownership by customising the ideas or even creating new ones together. Start by brainstorming a list of organisations that would make sense collaborating with yours. Then pull together some ideas for how your partnership could create value that wouldn’t necessarily be attainable in a solo mission. Approach your target partners with an open mind and work together to develop a plan that works for both of you. Make the collaboration a positive experience and both brands might find it beneficial to build a deeper relationship.
We are Brand Utility is a business consultancy. We work with brands in the corporate, professional services, retail, travel and technology spaces.
We offer strategy and tactics to support growth outcomes - revenue, scale, regional expansion and market entry – for our clients.
Areas of support include:
Strategic communications: Approach to market, brand concept and map, positioning, messaging, story and narrative, thought leadership
Marketing: Campaign/programme planning, story-based marketing execution, digital marketing, community amplification, content planning and production, go-to-market execution
Lead generation and growth marketing: Digital advertising, social media advertising, social commerce, e-commerce
Integration of marketing with business operations: We plan and execute as a marketing and/or PR lead for your brand
Discover more about our services at our website.
Photo by UX Indonesia on Unsplash
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