If we were asked to identify a linear process for successful marketing, it would go something like: marketing activity > brand awareness > customer engagement > sales. Clearly this is an oversimplified version of the actual marketing process itself, but it’s not far from the truth. So, if your goal is to create a marketing activity that’s going to improve brand awareness and get people talking about your company, how are you going to achieve those aims? Take a look at these four useful tips to stimulate conversation about your brand and start down the path to improved marketing revenue this year…
Be controversial
Some people say that there is no such thing as bad publicity, and in many ways, they’d be right. A bit of controversy can be the catalyst your brand needs to see sales figures spike and dramatically increase brand awareness, but you need to be careful. Taco Bell’s controversial ‘Liberty Bell’ prank worked wonders, being just on the right side of controversial for potential customers to admire their chutzpah, but Hyundai’s ‘Pipe Job’ advert was deemed so offensive it was pulled just days after going out. Even when being controversial, it’s important that people are taking about you for the right reasons.
Be engaging
You don’t need to walk on the wild side to get people talking about you, however – you just need to be interesting. Content marketing is a process by which you offer your audience something engaging rather than simply trying to sell to them. In return, they’ll read what you’ve written or watch what you’ve produced, sharing it amongst their friends and thus driving traffic to your site and promoting conversation about your brand. All you need to do is find an interesting way to promote your industry without alienating uninitiated audiences.
Go viral
The ultimate goal of content marketing and video marketing is, of course, to go viral. Viral videos spread like their biological namesakes, attracting millions of views and hogging the limelight on sites like Twitter and other social networks. Viral ads are perfect opportunities to push brand awareness through the roof, but a successful viral campaign will usually require a truly innovative concept or a breath-taking visual spectacle…
Make the first move
Many marketers make the mistake of waiting for people to start talking about them, rather than actively engaging their customers in conversation. Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook put the initiative in your hands, allowing you to ask customers where your brand is succeeding and where it’s going wrong, whilst simultaneously making them feel like part of the process. Again, this approach is fraught with dangers, however, as Twitter marketing campaigns by Waitrose, Tulisa Contostavlos and the agent of Susan Boyle have found to their cost…
Promoting conversation about your brand can be a great way to experience increased sales and profitability in future, but it’s not always as easy as it looks. If you’re in need of a little marketing expertise, consider making use of our marketing strategy service to plan your activities for the year ahead, and our marketing implementation services to get those plans off the ground.