Brian Babineau is svp of media & marketing at Digital Influence Group. Follow him on Twitter @BrianBab21.
It’s a trend as old as advertising: Consumer behavior evolves, marketers find new ways to reach those consumers, and agencies adapt their capabilities to address the brand marketers’ needs. This movement has picked up steam since consumer behavior went all digital on us, and new capabilities and roles began tumbling out of agencies with alarming speed. Now, there isn’t anything wrong with agencies developing new focus areas. But simply appending a new capability to the agency, while a starting place in trying to keep up with industry developments, misses the point.
It started in the 1990s with vps of digital, and then vps of mobile, followed by the occasional vp of engagement or vp of experience, and then peaked over the past four to five years with vps of social media popping up in nearly every major agency. 2013 has seen a new trend take center stage in the agency evolution, as major agencies have hired leadership in the content area and made a big deal about these new vps of content in the press.
Think about everything we know about today’s consumers. They want to connect to people first, content second and brands last. Content based on cohesive and engaging storytelling is what breaks through — no easy task in a world where consumers are already pre-planning and controlling every piece of content they are letting in during their waking hours. So knowing this, agencies should go off and create a new social or content specialty practice to better engage the consumer, right? What’s the issue with that?
The silo.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos1
Consumers don’t care how many agencies a brand has, or who does your print vs. your digital, and they don’t care whether or not you have a vp of content or social. What they care about are valuable seamless experiences, powered by people and content. They want to engage on their own terms, in whatever channel suits them, and at whatever time they wish. And they intend on having the same quality and type of experience with a brand across each of those channels. For them, content that smells like advertising, or content that shows up in irrelevant or forced context, is an instant warning bell and leads to that content being ignored.
Cohesiveness matters, too. The more a brand or agency divides each and every aspect of the consumer experience, the more fragmented each consumer touchpoint becomes. When you create different departments for social and content – which should be woven into the DNA of every capability – there is a greater risk that consumers will be left with a slightly schizophrenic and unsatisfying experience.
The best experiences feature content that is both more relevant and personal for the consumer while also bringing key aspects of a brand or product to life, without over-evangelizing either. These experiences must be powered by social engagement and careful choreography of content across all channels. It’s time to recognize that social isn’t a capability; it’s at the core of every digital interaction. Content isn’t a department; it’s one of the most important ways a marketer can begin a relationship with a consumer in any channel and format. They aren’t nice-to-haves as additions; they are must-haves as part of a foundation.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos2
Image via Shutterstock
More in Marketing
In the marketing world, anime is following in the footsteps of gaming
As marketers look to take advantage of anime’s entry into the zeitgeist, they might be wise to observe the parallels between the evolution of anime as a marketing channel and the ways brands have learned to better leverage gaming in recent years.
With the introduction of video ads and e-commerce, Roblox looks to attain platform status
Roblox is expanding into more areas than just ads in 2024. Much like platforms such as Amazon and Facebook have transcended their origins to evolve from their origins as online marketplaces and social media channels, Roblox is in the midst of a transformation into a platform for all elements of users’ virtual lives.
PepsiCo wants to remain a ‘driver of culture’ as it turns to influencers and activations amid rebrand
The soda-maker says it can translate cultural relevance into sales volume.
Ad position: web_bfu