Instead of focusing on consumers’ individual personas, marketers should look at the communities to which they belong. Consumer personas are like horoscopes. “Nicole is careful with her spending, but under the right circumstances is willing to splurge on herself, if the mood strikes her.” Read carefully, and psychographic profiling is full of generic, unverifiable, ambiguous and often contradictory language that supports a number…
Industry Insights Blog
Customers give personal information to companies that are careful about trust, transparency, and the type of data they request. When consumers get to the cash register or checkout screen, they are increasingly asked to disclose personal information. Studies show that even people who harbor privacy concerns are willing to provide personal details to a company.
Indeed, most consumers realize they’re being tracked…
Almost all high-priced products get called “luxury” these days, but prices don’t define which brands get considered luxury brands — only extreme value can do that. Photo: Shutterstock Alexandre Arnault, CEO of the luggage brand Rimowa and the son of LVMH founder Bernard Arnault, stated in a series of recent interviews that he prefers not to use the term “luxury”…
In the past year or so, live video has quickly become one of the most popular types of online content, especially on social media. Not only is Facebook Live thriving, with one in five videos being live streams, but other major platforms like Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and – most recently – LinkedIn, have embraced similar features. Aside from the older social media…
It’s no secret that retailers face serious obstacles amid the coronavirus crisis, but the sector has the resilience to rise up and overcome them. Benjamin Wall identifies the three main challenges plaguing UK retail at the moment, and proposes ways to make the best out of them. Retailers today face bottlenecks in their online delivery, depressed consumer confidence, and the need…
Coronavirus may have put many things on hold for fashion brands, but many continue to introduce new products online and every piece that goes online needs product imagery. That’s despite the fact that photo studios are closed and the team of people needed to produce a photoshoot can’t gather in one place.
For maternity fashion brand Storq, the solution was turning…
Collecting and selling data about people is estimated to be a $200 billion business, and all signs point to continued growth of the data-brokerage business. Here’s how the business works when the data is being sold to consumer marketers. Data brokers collect information about customers wherever they can: through loyalty cards, public records, social media posts, and most often by…
How frequently do you visit websites that offer you the opportunity to interact with a bot? I’m guessing your answer is “pretty frequently” because, according to our recent State of Marketing Report, more than 45% of businesses today have implemented bots as part of their marketing efforts.
Today, consumers have choices when it comes to the ways they communicate with businesses — live…
Consumer insights are the lifeblood of your organization. If communication channels are blocked, or if data isn’t flowing in the right directions, there are going to be problems – misalignment between teams, disconnection from customers, and mismatching initiatives across the business. Ultimately, this is how organizations die.
Many teams are making great progress in bringing the voice of the consumer into…
Many companies are daunted by the idea of building a richer digital experience for consumers right now. Those with limited infrastructure or resources can consider using no-code and low-code tools to create experiences that go beyond the transaction. These tools require little or no help from a developer, making them compatible with working from home. You can use them to…
Many customer-centric organizations are using Voice of the Customer (VoC) data to enable them to understand their customer journeys, which facilitates the ability to keep customers satisfied and coming back. Some businesses are unsure of just how to effectively use VoC metrics, and much of the confusion derives from the fact that they are underutilizing the most valuable VoC feedback…
The Great Recession of 2008 poses economic similarities that retailers and brands can learn from to successfully overcome a COVID-19-driven economic downturn. It is no surprise that the uncertainty of COVID-19 poses a series of unprecedented obstacles and business challenges that all industries will have to face in the months to come. While many of us have not dealt with a situation…
Google will stop charging merchants a fee to list products on its Google Shopping search pages as the coronavirus pandemic makes e-commerce a vital sales channel for retailers forced to close their brick-and-mortar stores, the search giant announced in a blog post Tuesday.
Starting next week, search results on the Google Shopping tab will mostly show free listings from merchants, even those…
Even with most transactions frozen, this can be a good time to talk to customers, experts say. But retailers need to send the right message. Despite the surge of e-commerce in the last two decades, personal transactions remain the lifeblood of most retailers, big and small. Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic that has been arrested, with stores locked and even boarded…
Last month, Sprout Social published its latest listings on the best times to post to each of the major social platforms, based on insights gleaned from its 20,000+ user base, in order to provide guidance as to when you should consider posting to maximize response.
But since then, a lot has changed. The COVID-19 lockdowns have lead to massive increases in social…
Amid the massive uncertainty that surrounds most every part of our lives we can be certain of two things at least: We have more questions than answers, and anyone who suggests otherwise is a shill. And the past provides no actionable blueprint for moving forward. As marketers—let alone humans—we’re hungry to look backward to find ways forward. How should brands…
Just as data about customers is becoming more and more valuable, customers are becoming more concerned about how their data is being used. Simultaneously, they are becoming more powerful and have greater control over their digital lives. Witness the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the right to be forgotten, “deep delete,” and laws governing data sovereignty. With rising…
Everyone engages with brands on social media differently. This is doubly true when it comes to different generations of consumers. Understanding your customers’ social media habits is key to reaching them where they’re browsing and purchasing online. And memorable content caters to your audience’s platforms of choice, and their behaviors on those platforms. Curious how your customers engage with social media?…
In late March, social distancing guidelines surrounding COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, were extended through April in the U.S. Since entering this reality, we’ve witnessed an overwhelming urge to use this time productively, an especially relevant truth for marketers. Although it can feel counterintuitive to dive into a digital strategy during times of uncertainty, I’ve learned as…
Digital marketing has evolved significantly over the last decade. Search engines are smarter than ever before and social media engagement has dipped. Frequently changing algorithm makes it tough for digital marketers to get their message in front of the target audience.
Digital marketers are looking for alternatives to solve this problem. Facebook Messenger is one of them. Facebook Messenger allows brands to…