The New Age of Marketing: Change is expensive, not changing- even costlier

History has witnessed numerous moments of crisis and uncertainty that have not only galvanized new innovations but shifted perceptions of mankind. This change is dominant in every sphere today. The ability to master and harness change to one's potential has become one of the most sought-after skills, particularly true in marketing where this tempo of change is constantly escalating.

In a year of unprecedented changes, consumer habits have transitioned seamlessly to fit the new normal. However, today's marketers are facing a baffling dilemma- change gets expensive with every passing day, yet not changing can get even costlier. With great change comes the opportunity to innovate and marketers now have it at their disposal to engage with customers online. Organisations today are ensuring that their marketing efforts reflect on the internal consistency of purpose along with an external consistency of responsible messaging. Today there are multiple channels and paths to not only engage with the existing consumers but also create an inroad to get noticed by potential customers. Technological evolution has sparked paradigm shifts in marketing in the form of personalised, targeted communication and actionable real-time insights. This has now established a clear distinction between marketing approaches changing from “Business-First” to “Customer-First” strategies.

This means that marketers need to now work even harder to deliver advertising that is relevant to avoid losing consumers who may feel inundated by the digital intrusion. This year has been remarkable with regards to driving digital engagement among audiences across all generations, some of whom may not typically be associated with the digital-first world. A broader and wider audience segment implies that marketers need to tap into their pulse to re-learn how they are accessing their content. Various digital platforms give brands an audience whose appetite for content is very different from one another and the channels to reach them are varied as well. 

Earlier this year, we observed consumers placing greater emphasis on corporate social responsibility, some suggesting that digital advertising can be improved by brands paying more attention to the social climate. While the pandemic has impacted the very bedrock of our society, we have also seen changes this year brought about by environmental, social and political movements. Consumers have increasingly high awareness and expectations of brands to keep up with this change. They expect transparency from brands to better understand how they work and how they support the environment and society, looking for brand actions to align with their own values.

Understanding the needs and wants of the individual consumer is important when evaluating brand experience. As new people are coming online it will be more confusing for them to navigate the world, hence brands must focus on having one seamless, holistic customer experience across digital and in-person exchanges to avoid confusion for the consumer which could result in a lack of trust in the brand. 2020 has been a year unlike any other, but to look at the better side- it has also accelerated trends that many marketers have perhaps anticipated for years, which seemed futuristic until 12 months back. 2020 has been the year of massive change- perhaps 2021 can become the year of opportunity!