Marketing

Like “strategy” and “analytics,” “design” is a term that suffers from misuse. Design is not just about making objects pretty. Design is the process of understanding customer needs and then creating a product or service—physical, digital, or both—that addresses their unmet needs. It sounds simple, but it’s actually a high bar: the design must simultaneously achieve functional utility, emotional connection, and ease of use, while fitting into customers’ broader experience.

If you had questions about whether the U.S. Hispanic market should be in your marketing sights for 2018, we’re here to answer with a resounding SÍ.

When people see a powerful brand, they often wonder where it came from. 

Computers don’t cry during sad stories, but they can tell when we will.

Segmentation of the U.S. Hispanic population has evolved through the years as Hispanic marketing has gone from a novel idea to a lifeline among brands in desperate pursuit of new markets. Once driven primarily by language (Spanish-dominant to English-dominant), segmentation became more granular, looking closer at acculturation levels (less acculturated to more acculturated) to craft a more relevant marketing message.  by Mario Carrasco / Think Now

Velocidi was founded on the knowledge that marketers are struggling to translate data into actionable insights. Still, we wanted to know exact scope of the problem, and research more deeply the specific challenges associated with being a data-driven marketer. To that end, we commissioned Forrester Consulting to study the current state of marketers marketing intelligence initiatives and find out what makes them successful, and what causes roadblocks.

Facebook and Google command most of the money now being funneled toward video advertising  There’s no doubt that content publishers are struggling with the ongoing dominance of the digital advertising ecosystem by Google and Facebook. And while the embrace of video content—and the higher ad revenues expected to attend the format—was bandied as a possible solution to their problem, the reality is that the duopoly has extended its dominion well into the realm of digital video.

Americans are exposed to up to 10,000 advertisements every day (link is external), a number that is rapidly growing with the increase of advertising channels and new technology.  Businesses need to advertise in multiple mediums to reach consumers during their everyday activities, whether it’s watching TV, reading a magazine, or browsing on social media.

On Monday I posted about how Subaru managed to grow  while making industry-leading margins. In pulling together the case study I could not help but reflect that while my attention focused in large part on the advertising there were many factors that led to Subaru’s success, not just an emotionally engaging ad campaign.  by Nigel Hollis

The Marketing Word of the Year, according to the ANA (Association of National Advertisers) has something a bit, well, artificial about it.

In the latest episode of eMarketer’s “Behind the Numbers” podcast, analysts Lauren Fisher and Paul Verna discuss the relationship between programmatic ad buying and the complex, fragmented connected TV space.

We invite brands into our lives to provide the products and services we need. And in this connected, switched-on world, we expect them to be available to us whenever and wherever we want. Yet this creates tension: exactly when and how are brands welcome to add value? Too often, consumers feel stalked and overloaded with advertising, messaging, reminders and push notifications. How can brands streamline, to target only the moments people are most receptive to them?

Consumers have more screens in the home than ever before, which allows cross-platform video advertising to have more reach. But today’s fragmented media landscape makes it more difficult to capture consumers’ attention. eMarketer’s Sean Creamer spoke with Matthew Fanelli, senior vice president of digital at MNI Targeted Media (Time Inc.’s media planning division), about how marketers can create more engaging, immersive video advertising campaigns that utilize all of the screens in consumers’ homes.

This set of interviews with top Chicago marketers on the topic of the challenges and opportunities of digital missed calling out the elephant in the room. Most digital campaigns lack what is required for them to be effective.  By Nigel Hollis

The practice of celebrity endorsements appears to be in trouble with at least one key demographic—millennials.

In response to brand safety concerns over the past six months, nearly six in 10 US CMOs surveyed in November 2017 said they’ve increased their spending on channels that can prove they are brand safe, and almost as many respondents said they’ve reviewed their agency relationships.

We’re all familiar with “Plan B.”  It emerges out of the haze when Plan A has self-destructed for one of a thousand reasons.  An unexpected snowstorm cancels our flight. We’ll have to scrub a key meeting.  Too bad.  On to Plan B.  If  there is no Plan B, we’ll have to improvise.  We’re usually unhappy with Plan B.  It’s a necessity, born of circumstance.  We shrug our shoulders, wistful and disappointed.  Oh, well.  Plan A was so much better!  But … it isn’t happening.  By Michael Farmer

As far as choice goes, there’s never been a better time to be a consumer. Thanks to globalization and connectivity, consumers around the world have access to a wider array of products than ever—a trend that’s likely to continue going forward. And the bevy of choice involves products and services from both multinational and local brands. So in an era of massive choice, how much weight does the “made in” moniker carry when it comes to purchase motivation?

This past year marked a turning point for the White Non-Hispanic population which declined for the first time ever, 10 years before the U.S. Census projection. Multicultural segments made up 100% of U.S. population growth last year according to recently released 2016 ACS. While U.S. population growth is slowing overall, Multicultural segments are driving the expansion of the U.S. consumer base making up 4 in 10 Americans with Hispanics continuing to drive half of the entire U.S. growth and the Other/Mixed Race segment delivering the fastest growth. Looking to the future, the Multicultural population in the U.S. is projected to reach 131 million in 2018. This tipping point is causing many marketers to reconsider with which segments to lead their growth efforts.

The difference between connecting and pandering to your Hispanic consumer is a fine line. When you reach out to Hispanics solely for your needs and with little authenticity (soccer balls and Mariachis everywhere!), you’re pandering. When you reach out to address mutual needs in an authentic way, you’re connecting. Awareness of this difference can mean gaining the loyalty of your audience versus being an object of ridicule, as politicians from Hillary Clinton to Donald Trump, as well as major brands have learned.  By Lee Vann / Capture Group