Marketing Trends: Continuous job hunting.. Continuous Marketing.

Morning all, a brief aside to begin with - big week for all things employment. The combination of looking forward to hearing back from interviews/recruitment agencies plus no real day time commitments means long hours of sitting by the phone/email. The joys of the job hunt. How many more of us are in the situation? (silly question). Keep going and motivated I think is the key - call rather than email, be pro-active... Oh this isn't what you want to read and this isn't a graduate recruitment blog? Enough from me.

An extremely continuous process nonetheless. 

Indeed, with the hunt it is meticulous - it doesn't stop, any time you do stop, is a time spent knowing you're not going to reach employment. Any time you go out in the afternoon, is a time spent not searching for employment, or earning money if you'd prefer to think of it like that. Key word - continuous. There we go, I said it, and funnily enough, continuous marketing is today's marketing trend of choice. Relate that previous example to the marketing world of an organisation and marketeers must realise the strong current trend that is continuous marketing. If marketing stops moving, so does the brand. What a great coincidence. Here we go then..

4. Continuous Marketing
The bottom line is this, the marketing department should no longer think of just running marketing campaigns. It is too rigid. The continuity is today's society mean that being an online presence (found in the social network: Twitter/Google etc) requires constant publishing, marketing and content tailored to improve Search  Engine Optimisation activity. Again, for the fourth day in a row THERE is that word content again. It's everywhere, and is key. Creating and marketing content for social media must be relentless. Don't stop. The brand will be left behind and straight away you're lost of the huge social space that is the world wide web.

So, lets find an example. Take Manchester United - their following is absolutely huge. BUT, do they rest on their laurels? No. They recognise that constant contact with their fans present the opportunity to monetize, and that is why they keep continuous contact with them. Check Facebook and their recently developed Twitter and you'll see exclusive contact and information on their current developments (pre season tour of the Far East). What is the key thread through all social media platforms? It doesn't stop, and it doesn't sleep - this allows them to target their segments of fans throughout the world. Continuous.

MUFC continuously provide exclusive content for their world-wide fanbase

It follows that social media provides the driving force behind continuous marketing. It has created a marketing cycle that allows marketing professionals to diversify more quickly to take advantage of opportunities and fix problems as they occur. Customers can now be understood on a deep level and carefully crafted brand messages and content which appeals to them can be positioned in their minds and subsequently evaluate their marketing efforts through analytics. Social analytics provides the knowledge of customers and how they are responding to a product or brand. This enables marketing professionals to alter the message, and rather than confusing the consumer, they rather target the message they seek and push them out to social media once again.

The circle of marketing life..

It's almost a circle of life. Understanding the customer, market, messaging, content, placement, amplifications and evaluation only leads back to once more trying to understand the consumer better. With social media, the continuous cycle can happen quickly and at a lower cost than conducting market research. The ability for SM platforms to engage the consumer has already and is changing the very process of marketing in it's entirety.

Well done, you made it. Speak soon.

CLD - BSc Sport Management Graduate - Loughborough University

Twitter: @callumldraper (https://twitter.com/callumldraper)

Facebook: Callum Leslie-Draper (https://www.facebook.com/callumldraper)

LinkedIN: Callum Leslie-Draper (http://lnkd.in/H74fAc)

Marketing Trends: Oops we missed Sunday, at least we've got Integrated Digital Marketing.

Good day to you all and welcome back to the week. Isn't Monday a pleasant sight? Woah OK less of the expletives please - at least you have this daily blog to keep up with, this daily blog that became ever so slightly less daily over the weekend. Yes I missed Sunday, thanks to all of you that pointed that out.... My bad. Everybody knows that Sunday is the day of rest, so after the serious man hours spent posting this blog it's only fair that I took a day off right? It was only a one-off so chill your beans.

Whatever..

Speaking of one-off's, this word should be one of despair and sheer horror as a marketeer. One-off's are small islands of isolated tactics. One-off ad campaigns for example, even though they seldom exist can turn out to be rather funny - like this. They can no longer be considered as the cornerstone of a companies return on investment. To receive the full value of marketing in today's world - marketeers must be savvy know-it-all's who adopt sophisticated marketing strategies.

Enter - Integrated Digital Marketing.

3. Integrated Digital Marketing
Oooohh integrated - complex word Cal. You need to chill out today - Integrated Digital Marketing requires businesses to fully synthesize their marketing strategies which occur across various media platforms in real-time. Marketing campaigns can not, let me repeat, can NOT be perceived as vaguely interpreted, kind of measurable units of marketing expenditure. NO. Ensuring that a companies approach allows them to tie all efforts together as one business strategy will confirm maximum effectiveness as a goal for the organisation.

Tying everything together..

SO you've considered the various media platforms that your brand operates within - this is the bare minimum. At the moment, the organisation is currently the same as every. other. brand. The company has two options. Take the blue pill - well done, congratulations you satisfactory achiever you, you've created a presence on the internet just like every other brand. But, take the red pill, and rather than just creating a presence, you become a presence. You understand that the best way to achieve this is to understand that integrated digital marketing and the methods that underpin it are not just flowery ideas, but actually the axels around which your brand flourishes. 

Your choice.

Here's a snapshot of the few initiatives you'll be undertaking after gulping down that red pill.

Digital Presence Management - A business website is the cornerstone of a brands online presence. Looking back to the last blog post and the implementation of responsive web design, consumers will be able to access the website from their device of choice.

Content Marketing - That old chestnut, here we go again, this really can't be emphasised enough - content is king (see the blog post before last). Conveying their brand message through blogs and videos must not seem forced upon key target audience segments, rather the kind of stuff you might share with someone yourself.

Performance Management - You want to see some physical effects of that red pill? Obviously. By understanding the metrics of IDM the company will be able to monitor changes in consumer engagement so that we know what's working and what's not. Digital marketing analytics can inform a businesses ongoing marketing strategy and current interaction with consumers. Check out Google for a great example.

Online engagement - So you've established social media sites, so now each of them must be used within their unique capabilities. By using the different functions of social media the company is able to diversify the way they interact with consumers to find that right solution. By asking questions, taking feedback and tweaking their delivery, businesses are able to confirm their presence on the digital stage.

In this age, if you don't have an integrated digital marketing plan, you lose that opportunity to differentiate and you don't have an edge. Brands that don't interact with consumers digitally will eventually lose. That's the bottom line. Which pill do you take? That's not even a question, jump on the red board and form the kinds of connections with consumers that will make the difference in today's marketplace.

Peace out.

CLD - BSc Sport Management Graduate - Loughborough University

Twitter: @callumldraper (https://twitter.com/callumldraper)

Facebook: Callum Leslie-Draper (https://www.facebook.com/callumldraper)

LinkedIN: Callum Leslie-Draper (http://lnkd.in/H74fAc)

Marketing trends: Welcome to the weekend... Oh, and mobile marketing.

Day 2 - Hello and WELCOME to the weekend everybody. We did it. 

So, slowly post-uni the weekend is becoming fully distinct from weekdays. Isn't that a good feeling? That TGIF feeling this week - after spending the week working 9-5 (with an hour lunch break, don't worry about that) to find employment - has been fully embraced with a weekend of London Athletics. Any keen sports fan will tell you that there's no better activity on the box compared to athletics that's suddenly sprung upon you. No greater experience than observing Team GB perform the perfect baton change...... Really good today. (oops).

And that man Mo Farah. Absolutely unreal by the way. 2600m, one lap to go, signals to the crowd to cheer louder - and then waltzes away to beat the field by 50m, that man cannot be described in words. Unbelievable.

So good was he, that I felt he deserved a tweet or two from my iPhone 3G (old school - sorry), which leads me onto today's topic, and trend number two, mobile marketing.

2. Mobile Marketing
The ever increasing rise of smart phones, tablets and all things mobile naturally possesses the ability to catch many marketing managers off guard. Woah there marketing managers, chill your beans, it's not a criticism. BUT it should be noted that some websites record 30-40%+ of all traffic from mobile devices and well over 12 million people in the UK are now looking at the internet on their phones each MONTH. It follows, and is worth noting that consumers are now viewing content, receiving emails and buying products on impulse from those small screens that allow our fingers do the talking at the drop of a hat.

Mobile, mobile, mobileeeee...

That only leaves one question, what company wouldn't want to tap into mobile marketing? Dur. Well, let me hit you with some knowledge.

1. Only 25% of brands have a mobile strategy. (Econsultancy)
2. 45% of companies rely solely on desktop sites to showcase their content. (Adobe)

In all seriousness, what are we doing here UK? This is a criticism.

One simple way of incorporating mobile marketing into a business marketing strategy is to redesign websites and blogs (like this one) and make them 'responsive' (respond to all devices screen sizes for optimal viewing and usability) to ensure they are optimising for mobile devices. Responsive or device specific websites provide continuity between viewing contexts. The same website will present an optimized layout regardless of which devices is loading it.Try reading this on a laptop and then on a mobile, you'll get what I mean. For a business, without doing so is only costing money and also very importantly, missed opportunities. It's no coincidence that US Mobile Ad Revenue has quadrupled since 2009 (socialmediatoday.com)

What about all that content marketing and consumer interaction we were droning on about yesterday? Well, there are best practices a company should take when it comes to consumer interactions, particularly by utilising text messaging as a key channel through which they can make both direct and personal communications with consumers. Here - knowing your audience - is key, nobody wants to receive an offer outside of their interests, nor do they want an unattractive benefit. Segmentation of customers ensures a more effective approach.

Right person, right message, right moment.

The opportunity for an immediate discount, or the possibility to collect points and additional benefits as part of a loyalty program or even a gift from the brand provide perfect examples of beneficial consumer interactions. Example: O2 priority moments. They are great at just this - download their mobile app and as an O2 consumer - that discount to that film, or that free starter (who doesn't appreciate free dough balls) at a restaurant is only a finger click away.

Result: respect builds loyalty. By developing positive relationships with your mobile audience - customer retention increases. Customers remain engaged with your company - oh - and don't forget that key message from yesterday - people talk. If there's one thing I learnt from my degree course, it's that word of mouth recommendations provide a vital means of advocacy and brand awareness.

Beware, inspirational message:
So go marketing managers, out there is a world of mobile marketing - know your consumer, build that loyalty, deliver that free gift - you just might enjoy the repercussions. (film voice).

Over and out, czzzz.

CLD - BSc Sport Management Graduate - Loughborough University

Twitter: @callumldraper (https://twitter.com/callumldraper)

Facebook: Callum Leslie-Draper (https://www.facebook.com/callumldraper)

LinkedIN: Callum Leslie-Draper (http://lnkd.in/H74fAc)

Marketing Trends: Post Graduation Direction

Graduation from Loughborough University occurred over a week ago now - unbelievable week by the way - and almost as soon as that began, the job hunt began. It struck me as a time where I was now able to engage fully with the real world post-16 years of education and as such unearth and start enjoying the blog.

4000 page views by the way. 

Where on this Earth did they come from? It seems a lot of people take a lot of interest in marketing.

And so do I. Good lord, far and beyond was it the most interesting topic I engaged with during my degree. So after developing a serious interest in how a brand is able to interact with their consumers and beyond - it follows that this is an area I want to pursue post-lectures. It actually feels quite good to research into marketing trends non-academically and without the painstaking task of quoting or memorising guy I'll never see again (1972) and rather, consider the realistic value of certain tools. Try it graduates.

Anyway - reading around, I've identified seven main marketing trends which principally occur in the commercial business world. And so one a day, for the next week - I'll give a brief insight into each. Feel free to add anything!

1. Content Marketing

So I thought we'd start fairly basic - and also very traditional (key word - not boring). In all the furore of the modern world it seems fairly logical that businesses walk around with their eyes lit up with the F of the Facebook logo and only for social media.

Ah yeah FACEBOOK yeah! 

From a business and non-personal perspective (I know this is difficult) - YES it is a sure-fire way to interact and connect, on mass, with a vast array of current and prospective consumers. YES it's an opportunity to provide exclusive offers and deals. And YES it provides a source of procrastination to students and graduates (oops). But in all seriousness, in a recent publication by IBM, it turns out consumers are extremely pragmatic, most do not engage with companies via social media simply to feel connected. To successfully exploit the potential of social media, companies need to design experiences that deliver tangible value in return for customers' time, attention and perhaps most importantly, data. 

SO, here comes that key word again - CONTENT. 

After all, content is the cornerstone of all digital marketing and is the reason people read, view and share. Creating liquid content allows the brand to become digitally aware and is vital to maintain excellent perceptions of the brand from the view point of the consumer. By creating unique and inspiring content to publish and promote that educates, informs and entertains is a sure fire way to maintain interest in the brand. Studentbeans.com are excellent at this. Check out their website and you'll be bombarded with quirky lists that students absolutely love in those desperate few minutes (hours) before a lecture. Perfect. The power of sharing, tagging your friends, self-publishing is unlimited for a business - after all, we're all humans - such marketing in modern society really taps into our innate nature to INTERACT with one another.

Oh, and lets not forget Twitter, LinkedIN, Google+, Flickr, Foursquare, YouTube bla bla blaaaaa etc etc etc. Cor blimey - on your way commercial world - inspire us!

CLD - BSc Sport Management Graduate - Loughborough University

Twitter: @callumldraper (https://twitter.com/callumldraper)

Facebook: Callum Leslie-Draper (https://www.facebook.com/callumldraper)

LinkedIN: Callum Leslie-Draper (http://lnkd.in/H74fAc)

Yeah I'm social - but do I provide liquid content? Controversial.