Consider Your Channel as You Engage with Your Audience



Sustaining global brand awareness can be challenging within our connected and evolving world. Attention has shifted to mobile and the discovery process is constantly changing based on consumer behavior, industry trends and a new level of influence. It is no longer enough to simply create content, marketing in silos across traditional marketing channels. Global brands have to define and build connected audiences across multiple platforms. The challenge is that each platform requires a different approach since each offers a very different style and dimension to overall strategy.

Consumers are no longer passive recipients of marketing messages; with today’s mobility they are deeply in control of when and how you can talk to them.

We can no longer employ a “Know-This” approach. We have to figure out when to capture an audience’s valuable attention and how to talk with them instead of at them. Consider how your branded message will feel within the stream of emotional moments in their social feed.

Shifts in our behavior and attention have created the demand for multichannel communications. Ignoring these shifts could leave you absent from important conversations, and removed from disruptive trends that could impact your business. When customers have problems, they voice concerns, and search for answers. They are more curious than ever, and are often looking for immediate solutions. Because of this, being a trusted resource has become more important than ever.

When customers love your products, they share them; often with strong emotional triggers defining the brand’s role in their life through stories generated from experiences the company provides. To achieve this level of connectedness, a brand’s resourcefulness must extend beyond products or service. You must represent an absolute understanding of the audience, the industry and what’s ahead, all while igniting emotion.

Creating customer experiences and smart moments that will standout in the customer journey: Where to begin

Transitioning to an audience-centered approach is challenging, but important when looking to capture share-of-attention. Allow customers to determine communication channels by monitoring audiences within each channel and creating benchmarks that define shifts within your current targets. Test your ability to engage with new audiences through response, seeding interest and building curiosity about your brand.

Keep in mind the conditions of engagement are very different within each platform. Respecting the natural language and attributes of each channel will offer a more natural experience for people discovering the brand for the first time.

Responding to your audience, new and old, is important. Consider creating unique and varied responses, and seeding curiosity by inviting conversation. Having engagement from a corporation’s most important senior executives is critical for supporting loyalty with partners and in delighting customers.