So Many Media Outlets, So Little Time

A recent article in the Journal of Advertising Research pointed out an interesting point: word of mouth is still more trusted and listened to than key influencers blogging about new products. What this tells me is that there is still a need for traditional media, and that new media needs to be a part of the mix – integrated marketing communications across all media, new and traditional, is how to reach your target customer.

How does this impact a new business? One of the first questions you hopefully asked yourself before you open your doors is “Who do I want to walk through my door?” We’re not talking marketing segment, target audience and other traditional marketing research tools and terms. No, this is concrete visualization of an actual ideal customer. Now, granted you might have more than one, but you need to be able to see each of them clearly. Picture their lifestyle, try to envision how they spend their time, how they map out their day. The next question becomes – what is the best way to reach them.

The key, then, is to ensure that media dollars are designed to reach the right people, in the right way, by presenting information in the format with which that target customer is most comfortable – and receptive – to receiving that information. This may vary among target demos, and will most certainly vary along psychographic profiles, as they respond to different cognitive triggers and stimuli. While one target customer may be most easily reached and influenced by vertical publications – magazines and other periodicals – another, no less valuable target customer, might be best reached online. The fact that these two customers might in fact be one and the same at different times, only adds to the marketers challenge of making their message stand out from the white noise that constitutes much of the marketing/media mix in today’s environment.

So – what to do? Being aware of the trends that are emerging in the marketplace as a method of marketing communication is certainly a step in the right direction, and will take the savvy marketer along the path of consumer enlightenment. Some of the emerging trends that should be considered and added to the mix:

Localization  - the more global communications become, the more important it becomes to reach your audience where they live and work – the mantra of “think globally, act locally” put into practice.

Texting and mobile campaigns

Social media – Facebook; MySpace; LinkedIn; Eons

Virtual worlds – Second Life; Sims Online

Organic vs. paid listings for Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Marketing

While some of the above may seem obvious to cutting edge marketers, even maybe "so two weeks ago", they have not yet reached mass-market penetration. Remember - no one gets tired of a brand faster than the brander, but that timeframe is generally when it is just catching fire with the audience....

And….one more point to consider – Nike and Coca Cola, the two best known brands on the planet – are committing 30% of their marketing budgets to online.