a consumer’s active interaction with a brand or brand idea. Consumers will tell you, though not in so many words, that the brands to which they are most loyal are those with which they have felt a connection. Maybe they are part of a rewards program or they “discovered” the store or product; they might have been asked to give feedback on a product sample, or perhaps they chatted or blogged online with a representative from the company. Whatever the individual story, the common thread lays in the lengthy and involved process marketers are undergoing of engaging consumers in their brand. This week, in an effort to keep up with the constant evolution of the marketing world, I explored the blogoshpere and made two comments, which I have also included below. The first post from the blog, “Beyond Madison Avenue” was written by Danny Nathan, a freelance brand strategist for a wide range of companies in
Post 1:
I understand the desire to stand out in a world drowning in advertising clutter, but this retailer seems to be taking that stance a bit far. While I admit the name was intriguing and the clean, modern design of the store (as pictured in your post) was rather refreshing, there comes a point at which the question of identity should be addressed if a business is to thrive. Having read your blog, I went to the website and spent several perplexing minutes trying to decide whether the Center for Cosmic Wonder was, in fact, a clothing store as your post intimated or a combination art gallery and new-age spa. The average consumer will not spend that time to make such a distinction. Clearly, the sleek, “voyeuristic” experience that CCW created for its customers is both innovative and unique, but if new consumers are lost before they can participate in that distinctive experience, the point is moot. The only way to maintain market share in such a competitive industry is to grow. To ensure growth, businesses must engage potential consumers, but that can only be accomplished if consumers first understand the products or services being offered. An effective brand consists of identity and differentiation, but without a clear identity, differentiation merely leads to confusion and a dearth of engaged customers.
Post 2: Marketing Hipster: “Engage Your Customers or Die”
Online consumer engagement is vitally important to all companies, but most especially for those on the larger end of the spectrum. With the slow, but steady demise of mass media strategy, companies have to be creative in the way they reach and secure new customers. Creating individual connections with potential consumers is one of the surest ways of producing that all-
important repeat-customer. People are looking for more from businesses in which they invest. Between knock-offs and generic brands, products themselves are becoming more and more like commodities, so the extra things (like personal contact) that companies incorporate really make the difference in customer loyalty. The issue of “how [businesses] go about engaging these online conversations while…protecting their brand and company” is a touchy one. Clearly, misinterpreted or misinformed statements, and their litigious consequences, would be detrimental to a company, but the opportunity cost of allowing consumers to form primary bonds with competitor brands far outweighs the potential risk—especially when that risk can be diminished, as Nathania suggested, through properly trained media and consumer-relations personnel. The concept of employing company spokespeople is not new. Essentially, it just extends public relations to a new medium, and tweaks the structure of the classic press release to accommodate the variation. In terms of “who should respond and how,” again, I propose the PR department working closely with other involved departments. Delegations from the product team or finance department should absolutely be consulted for the necessary factual backbone of the response, but the skills of the PR team are uniquely suited to addressing consumer concerns with minimal negative impact to the company.
2 comments:
Abe,I agree that the CCW store is a little confusing. I was taking some of what they do at face value from the related posts I'd read. And, I agree that for a huge chain store, being able to understand what they do makes sense. And, again, you're absolutely right that any brand needs a strong identity as a basis to creating an experience.
But that doesn’t change the point. It is possible to create an experience that has a more retail-like feel IF that's what your brand needs. For the CCW, maybe the point is to keep people in the dark a little bit. To create a sense of wonder and exploration. In which case, one could argue that they've done exactly what you're suggesting by sticking with their identity of "cosmic wonder".
For someone else, that might be counterproductive. But a retailer could still create an experience for their brand that will stand out in the minds of the consumer AND reflect their identity. Maybe their experience reflects their commitment to offering the best customer service, bar none. Maybe their brand takes a stand as the most luxurious; that's certainly a claim that can serve as the basis for a customer experience.
I thought your post was very well organized, and I liked that the two blogs you commented to were very similar in content to one another. I was a bit lost, however, when I first began to read your post. For example, the opening quote, “"The heart of engagement is 'turning on' a mind,"” from Joe Plummer was relevant to the post, however, a bit confusing as your first sentence. I think I would have understood the context of the quote a bit more if you explained the post before you introduced the quote (perhaps switch sentences one and two). I thought the rest of your introduction explained your post and your position very well, however. You had many resourceful links, and introduced the blog authors very well.
I enjoyed the content of your posts, and felt I learned a lot from reading your blog. I thought your post on Center for Cosmic Wonder was particularly interesting. I agree with you in that although the ‘experience’ may intrigue customers, ultimately customers need to understand what good or service is being offered in order for the business to be successful. I, too, think it is key for marketers to engage the customers in the products. When reading your post, I was reminded of a great marketing tactic of Thompson’s Pet Pasta that really engaged the customer: Mr. Thompson created a contest where the customer had to teach his/her pet to say “pasta” (the winner won a trip to Italy).
Regarding formatting issues, I thought your blog was very easy to read. For example, I found your color scheme relaxing. I think in future posts the reader would benefit if you referred to the images more and included quotes from the original blog.
Again, thank you for an informative post!
Post a Comment