In conversation with experts, Social Samosa explores the various aspects of Performance Marketing with predictions on how it would evolve in the 'new normal'.
As markets tackle the consequences of COVID-19 induced lockdown, a shift in conversations is apparent: How to recover and stay afloat before steps can be taken to further branding goals? This is where Performance Marketing is bound to play a role. To figure out the best ways to convert leads into sales and take the potential customers through the funnel.
In an attempt to understand the near future of performance marketing, Social Samosa brought together experts for a live Samosa Talks session. The panelists included: Nilesh Gohil, Chief Business Officer- Media & Addressable Advertising - Merkle Sokrati, Ankit Banga, Head - Marketing, Indiabulls Home Loans, Prashant Puri, CEO & Co-founder, AdLift India and Smita Murarka, VP-Marketing & Ecommerce, Duroflex. The discussion was moderated by Hitesh Rajwani, CEO, Social Samosa Network.
Several interesting points were raised by the contributing experts. They can be summarised in the following factors.
Attribution is key
It is extremely important for marketers to put efforts into understanding which platform is contributing, in what ways, towards their main goal. To be able to attribute is key to optimise actions and strategies for particular preferable results. They must seek out tools to get better insights to empower teams into taking better decisions.
Shifting goals
Dividing goals on the basis of short term and long term is an ideal scenario. However, COVID-19 has tumbled such plans in significant ways. Now, as all parties involved are in aggressive problem-solving mode, is it pertinent to be open to shift goals as per need. It is also important to have enough data at hand to be able to adapt with ease.
Open to experimentation
Digital is a constantly evolving world. It is extremely important for marketers to be open to learning, take risks and experiment with new opportunities in front of them. They must use their experience to identify these and push their organisations to set aside a budget for experimentation.
Play to strengths
With COVID-19 causing havoc in plans and possibilities, it has become increasingly important for brands to understand their strengths and replicate those strategies, in evolved and optimised forms, according to the current scenarios.
Investing in resources
No matter how hard the time, it is the resources that are key to an organisation. Even while going through a cash crunch, it is important for an organisation to invest in resources and upskill the ones they have on board. It may seem tedious in regards to efforts but it bound to reflect in the results over time.
When it comes to driving results, influencers are an essential part of the strategy. They have an audience that cares about their opinions and doesn't consider an advertisement to be an advertisement. Personalisation in the communication put forth helps build credibility for a brand. It is something marketers should look into while strategising.
Tell your product story
Commerce is increasingly turning digital and that comes with a key challenge: How to give potential consumers the look, feel and real-life experience of a product? Telling the product's story can go a long way in helping with this. Brands must invest in creating high-quality assets of their individual products to drive branding efforts, and eventually sales.
Gamify for engagement
Gamification of experiences being offered by a brand can lead to engagement. It helps consumers to stay hooked before seeking information and making a decision to buy. This is especially important for brands that sell service products rather than physical products.
Nuances of platforms
To have the same expectation of results from all platforms is not an ideal move on the part of brands and marketers. They must educate themselves on the nuances of various platforms and set their KPIs accordingly. Each platform should be tapped into for the unique experiences and audiences they have to offer.
Quick conversions
Creating content that has the ability to drive conversions has become more important than ever. Almost every piece of content put up by a brand has a cause and effect to it. Even if the intention is to build branding efforts, they have to be directed to an eventual sale. Consumers of branded content are unlikely to come back unless they are hooked and genuinely interested. Brands should try to tap on it, focussing on driving quick conversions.
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