Marketing methodologies have had to keep up the technology pace of the go-go 21st century changes. The influx and broadened reach of communication and branding have created a world where a bird’s-eye view of information for anyone with enabling devices. Naturally, this has caused a shift in the understanding of how and why markets think and act like they do. Marketers and research firms are now faced with a curse and a blessing. The blessing? More information is readily available at the click of a button.
The curse? Segmenting consumers requires following a deeper path into an avenue where psychographics are constantly changing. As a result, trendspotting is now a top priority for many agencies and firms. Let’s observe how marketers and brands are balancing out these two factors on the South African consumer landscape.
Marketing Transformations - the Social Media sphere
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram arguably hold the most marketing power on the social media front. The ability to share, like and retweet defines one’s standpoint and opinion. However, this tends to become a little vague and open-ended.
How can marketers know what specific elements of a product or advertisement is appealing when being in favour of something tangible is generalised to the click of a button or by the tap of touch screen? One solution that is utilised to resolve this problem and gain deeper insight when brands take the time and effort to reach out to individuals and reward them for their digital engagement.
Sodastream South Africa teamed up with Social Wiiv, the world’s first social media research & rewards tool, and conceptualised an idea for a branded community platform called “The Sodastream Bubble Club”, which actively gifts its consumers who engage with their social media avenues. The exponential increase in Sodastream South Africa’s Facebook engagement ( 760 % in 10 days! ) speaks for itself. The incentive-based initiative has potential to gain a deeper insight into the minds of their consumers.
Creating hype in giving back to those who take the time to engage will produce a sustainable cycle of intense customer feedback - granting information as to what aspects of the product offerings are thriving, and reveal a concise online target market.
Marketing Transformations - Mobile Marketing
For a fresh stance on innovative marketing - and coincidentally helping to solve the metropolistic issue of expensive taxi fares - we need to look no further than Uber. Appealing to a multi-cultural target market of all ages, Uber provides inexpensive, safe and reliable transport from anywhere in the city, all with the touch of a button on their stylish mobile app.
Not only are they revolutionising the access of South African public transport, but they helped to assist the rage of the Cape Town fires in February with their initiative “Uber Assist”. Volunteers and the general public simply needed to use the app to zone in Uber taxis, drop off their donated food and water in the company’s cars and the drivers would then embark on a mission to the nearest group of firefighters within a safe proximity of the blaze. This charitable act enabled a network of community spirit and sparked a flame of heartfelt passion on their social media platforms.
The whole interface of Uber is enabling their consumers to directly speak about the company on a multitude of platforms, which has mostly been an influx of positive feedback. The implications extend to families with children. Parents now have the ability to secure a cheaper, safer mode of transport for their kids if they happen to unreachable on certain occasions. The Uber drivers will be the primary marketers of the company’s service offering, as face-to-face interactions provide a crystal clear reflection of the consumer’s archetype in a general and segmented light. With technology surprising us on a regular basis, who knows what new marketing transformations will pop up on the trading landscape next?
Contributed by Cameron Smith
