The top 5 most effective advertising techniques
Technology provides brands with several opportunities to create messages that resonate with consumers. Mobile video, in-store apps, programmatic marketing, and emerging platforms offer ways to target the right individuals as they’re in a purchase mindset and drive them to specific products in the store. These five effective marketing techniques help brands connect with consumers in ways that increase interest and drive sales.
#1: Branded Storytelling on Social Media
Creating a compelling narrative for a campaign can help humanize a brand, and keep it top-of-mind for consumers when it comes time to shop. Like in any story, these campaigns need characters, a plotline, and a satisfying ending to keep consumers intrigued with the premise. Most importantly, these stories need an emotional component that drives affinity.
Purina provides an excellent example of the effectiveness of branded storytelling with their Service Dog Salute, in which they set a goal to raise $500,000 to support Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation. To engage consumers, Purina provided a price matching option to donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of various products.
#2: Programmatic Marketing Through the Internet
Programmatic marketing is an absolute must for any marketer that wants to keep pace with the rapidly moving digital landscape. Most marketers recognize this trend, as it’s estimated that programmatic ad spend will reach $69 billion by 2020, and these purchases will account for over 90% of the digital ad spend category. Marketers choose programmatic because it offers a wide range of benefits, including:
Mass marketing access:
Google gets an estimated 40,000 searches per second, which presents a lot of potential for ad buys. Whether brands are paying to be in the sponsored section of the search results or gaining real estate in the sidebar of a popular website, these numbers are promising. Through programmatic marketing, brands can reach millions of consumers with a single search.
Targeting potential:
Programmatic marketing offers the opportunity to pick and choose who sees certain ads, meaning that brands can control the delivery of the message to ensure that it’s viewed by the most engaged audiences. Marketers can break the delivery down by categories such as gender, interest, and socioeconomic status to ensure they only reach those most likely to purchase their products.
Streamlined ad buying and tracking:
Prior to programmatic marketing, marketers had to request proposals, negotiate prices, and manually insert advertisements. All of this took time and money. Additionally, they had to follow up to ensure there was a reasonable ROI on their purchases, and that they didn’t waste money on the wrong platforms. With today’s tools, marketers can manage their payments and automatically purchase ads based on digital bidding options. They can also access at-a-glance reviews of ROI and monitor for issues like ad fraud in reporting.
#3: In-Store Marketing via Mobile Apps
One of the most effective advertising techniques is in-store marketing that encourages consumers to engage with products. With a mobile shopping app, like Shopkick, consumers are incentivized to scan product UPCs in exchange for rewards points (or kicks). This drives shoppers to seek out products at-shelf, which significantly increases purchase potential.
#4: Partnering With Emerging Voice Platforms
The voice ordering market is expected to reach $40 billion in sales value by 2022, meaning now is a wise time to optimize product listings for audio content. Smart speakers are the primary drivers of this use, but other wearables like smartwatches or even smart appliances will likely play key roles in the growth of this market.
Brands should look to the providers of voice platforms to enhance their marketing potential before these platforms become saturated. Increasing brand awareness and reputation on voice search platforms is crucial, as product reviews will drive the search results in these mediums. Some brands have even chosen to roll out voice-centric apps to increase recognition in this space.
#5: Co-branding to Reach Larger Audiences
Some products naturally complement each other. Whether it’s chips and salsa, shampoo and conditioner, or sports games and beer, there’s a natural segue that brands should take advantage of. Cross promotions may involve teaming two of a brand’s existing products together, or even crossing paradigms and working with an entirely new partner. An example of this strategy can be seen in Budweiser’s partnership with the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team.
In-House Creation or Partnerships for the Most Effective Advertising Techniques
When leveraging the most effective advertising techniques for CPG brands, a mix of in-house development and digital partnerships will be critical. Brands should consider what they’re willing to develop on their own, and then use strategic mobile app partnerships to fill the gap.
At the same time, Target also participates in third-party rewards programs to reach consumers who might not use the brands other services. This relationship is reciprocal, as the rewards program encourages consumers to visit Target, both through rewards they get for walking through the door, and gift cards they can earn by gathering kicks. The partnership also creates a virtual greeting that encourages users of the app to visit the store.
The most effective advertising techniques leverage both available and emerging options in technology to improve the customer experience. Brands can provide consumers with rewards, reach larger audiences, and improve their branded experience overall by leveraging mobile marketing. There are many effective advertising techniques brands can use to gain market share, but these five represent the best to implement with the highest potential ROI.
