:social media
WHEN YOU CONSIDER THAT the first
online advert appeared almost two decades
ago, today's marketer would consider the
banner ad 'old school'. So perhaps the short
answer is yes, we have returned to traditional
advertising but not in the traditional sense as
emerging technology continues to create new
tools for marketers.
With these new tools comes more choice
for the consumer. There has been more
change in media consumption over the last
two years than in the 30 years that preceded
it. Thanks to mobile devices like smartphones
and tablets, people are now spending more
of their waking days interacting with media
than any other activity. That's more time than
we spend working or sleeping or anything else!
Social media platforms such as Facebook,
LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest are an
integral part of our day. A whopping 97%
of kiwis have visited a social media site
spending up to 15 hours on it a week. For
marketers, social media is word of mouth on
steroids. Powerful but it can be dangerous if
treated like a traditional marketing tool.
Social media is changing the marketing
plan. The consumer has seized control,
deciding what content they want to view
and what they will share. We are even seeing
practitioners questioning the old 4 P's of
marketing model .
One thing we seem to agree on is that
social media puts the focus on telling a
story and engaging with your customer
versus selling. Picture this; you are catching
up over a drink with friends when deep in
conversation a sales person plonks themselves
in the middle of your group asking if your
life insurance is up-to-date. You can pretty
much guarantee a cold reception, so don't
treat social media any different.
The challenge for marketers (and it's
certainly not a new one), is to use the right
message across the right channels (traditional
and digital) and to recognise that customers
use media in different ways. At the end of the
day, advertising campaigns needs to show a
return-on-investment (ROI). Marketers need
to define what impact they want their social
media campaign to have. Do you want to
extend your TV campaign reach by linking
through to your Facebook page? Do you
want your readers to sign up to your email
newsletter?
Be clear about what you need to achieve
and don't just create a social media campaign
because everyone else is doing it. Remember
what the world's best marketing guru said,
"would you jump off a
cliff if your friend did?"
Thanks Mum
Alisa Higgins
iah.org.nz
THE 'P'S AND 'E'S OF
ADVERTISING
Social media is word of mouth on steroids
44 | www.h e rma gaz i n e . c o. n z
