Word of mouth now creates trust in brands more effectively than any other marketing method. Brands with evangelical supporters develop third-party validation and are more likely to be trusted sources. In turn, the opinions of colleagues, friends and family members may matter more than any strong advertising campaign.
Do you rely on hearsay when it comes to your marketingcampaigns? No you say? Feedback on your marketingcampaigns, showing results and measuring effectiveness. It sounds like every marketer would own one or more processes to do so, but do they?
Most senior marketers say they either have a formalized process or are using one when the situation calls for it. “But when it comes to the types of local market data used to impact campaign performance, those same marketers appear to be too reliant on ‘hearsay data’,” the CMO Council states in a new study.
Marketers are twice as likely to gather insights from field and business development teams as they are to examine online voice of customer listening and analysis (57% vs. 29%).
What do your brand colors tell you about your business? And how unique are your brand colors? Do the colors evoke the consumer response you aimed for? This infographic by Marketo brings you the insight.
In two earlier posts (here and here), I discussed the growing importance of localized marketing, and I described how technology enables and supports localized marketing efforts. In a recent survey by the CMO Council, 86% of respondents said they intend to look for ways to better localize their marketing content.
Global enterprises face several complex challenges in delivering relevant, localized marketing content. The most obvious challenge is the need to deliver marketing messages and materials in the primary language of the target audience. According to Ethnologue, there are 6,909 known living languages in the world today. While no company may need to communicate in every known language, it’s very conceivable that a global enterprise will be required to create and manage a few dozen versions of many marketing content resources.
Beyond the language challenge, global marketers must also develop marketing content for multiple ethnic and cultural environments. Read More
For the first time in 25 years, Microsoft has changed its logo. Until now, the software giants name was printed in black slanted letters. The new logo has a minimalist type and a simplified Windows symbol in front of it. After three logo changes in the first ten years of the brands existence, Microsoft held on to its previous logo from 1987 to 2012.
With the new logo, Microsoft introduces a series of changes and product launches to come. The company has announced new versions of nearly all their products in the coming year.
Marketing manager Jeff Hansen, while enthusiastic about the logo, foresees some issues with a consistent brand image fully implementing a change like this takes time, so there may be other instances where you will see the old logo being used for some time. But to Windows users, faulty updates cant be that unfamiliar.
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Apple doesnt strike us as a company with a particularly good sense of humor, but theyve got this going for them: theyve got a pretty consistent brand image. Instantly recognizable. Clean, smooth, glossy every new Apple gadget is guaranteed to send the brands fans flocking to the stores. If Apple sold water, this is definitely how they would market it. And we would probably buy it, too. Pity Steve Jobs is no longer around to introduce the new product
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Trouble keeping up with your own companys constant re-branding? Rely on Twitter to give you a little extra work. The microblogging site has updated their logo. Before, the site carried multiple logos: the little bird, the lower case t, as well as the full name of the site in that particular Twitter typeface. From now on, however, the bird is the only symbol of Twitter. The logo has been streamlined and is based on three sets of overlapping circles (representing interlinking social networks). On the company weblog, the rebranding is described somewhat circularly as:
Twitter is the bird, the bird is Twitter.
Visit the Brand Guidelines page for some more information on how to display the logo on your website and marketing content. Twitter would like you to use it in exactly the right way. .
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What is branding exactly? This video by Norwich Business School tries to capture the essence of one of the things in marketing and advertising thats so hard to pinpoint: the Brand. Originally a way of telling apart cows from different farms, brands have become complex and dynamic concepts. And since the rise of the Internet and (yes, there they are again) social media, marketers have been forced to release at least some control over their brands in order to let them flourish.
A brand is not just a logo, according to the video. Its the feeling of familiarity and trust that it sparks in the consumer. Thats what makes them so versatile: Virgin is a music label, an airline company, a chain of media stores, a telecom provider And still all these should be recognizable as part of one umbrella brand. And this is exactly where Marketing Operations comes in: it provides the structure and management to make sure brands can present a unified image, even if the manifestations of that brand are very different. .
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Unilever, the consumer goods group, is prioritising advertising and branding over promotions as it pursues a long term growth strategy, despite the challenging financial climate.
Jean-Marc Huët, Unilevers chief financial officer, argued the pressure on disposable income in Western Europe and North America, combined with rising commodity costs and intense competition in emerging markets, posed significant obstacles. However, he added the organisation would not let economic fluctuations prove a distraction from its overarching focus on innovation, new market launches and brand building. Read More
We wouldn’t be surprised if you said, „what brand vs. business metrics?!” Whats wrong with these people, brand and business work together, not as opposing forces. And you are correct; the brand represents the promise of your business. The challenge is the C-Suites perception that marketers whose key performance metrics are primarily brand-related such as measuring awareness, relevance, and interest, are not in touch with the business. Read More
