Back to basics for SME’s

Back to basics for SME’s The explosion of digital marketing options means that many businesses are spread too thin across too many channels these days. We often do audits for new and existing clients on their digital assets/channels’ performance. With so much data spread over so many channels, it is crucial for businesses to do this ‘health check’ regularly to avoid over-spending or to identify areas that yield real returns for their business. Smart businesses focus on dominating one channel. Marketers should get more focused and aim to do fewer things better. Of course it is easy to get distracted by shiny new digital objects. Marketers love new trends and to be on the leading edge of new technologies and platforms. We often see surveys where marketers say AI and machine learning are critical channels. Ultimately, yes, this kind of technology could have a dramatic impact on marketing performance and optimization, but how many advertisers (small businesses and brands) are actually using proprietary AI or machine learning to improve marketing? Currently, not many. The reality is that many small businesses and a portion of big brands aren’t delivering on the basics of digital marketing like websites, SEO, social media, blog writing, Google ads, online reviews, etc. Given the huge marketing budgets of big brands, small businesses must execute on these foundational tactics. For most SMEs the majority of their business growth still comes from the foundational tools in digital marketing: social media, digital ads, email marketing and SEO. Don’t forget to focus on your foundation. Often, optimizing your base digital execution will provide a better return on investment than experimenting (and getting distracted) with every new tool. So the next time you speak to an agency or martech company trying to sell you what’s “new” or “cutting edge” or “the future”, ask them to help you get the basics right first. Upwards and onwards! Daniel Gross – CEO All CEO's Thoughts Interviews and Insights Industry News Interviews and Insights Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before 26 Oct 2022 Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before Despite current downturns in the economy, evidence shows that the e-commerce industry is picking up and going back to pre-pandemic… Read More CEO's Thoughts Never stop marketing 26 Oct 2022 Never stop marketing There’s a LOT going on in the world right now. This is not a political piece, yet it is diffiult to ignore the world-shaping events… Read More Interviews and Insights Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove 26 Oct 2022 Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove Our October profile is Sandra Jardim, mom to twins Gisela and Alaia and blogger/owner of MammaBearLove. She uses her blog as… Read More Prev123Next

Privacy please!

Privacy please! The world of Martech (marketing technology) is developing at a breakneck pace. Marketers can bearly keep up with the rate at which new technologies and solutions are coming into the market. From video & audio to AI, the Metaverse, Web3 (crypto) and the rise of marketing fortresses (think Amazon, FB, Tiktok, Instagram), competition for eyeballs and consumer dollars is stiff indeed. But the word that is likely to rise to the top of the priority pyramid in 2022 is undoubtedly Privacy. Whether you are an advertiser or a consumer, we’ve all been there. We’ve signed up for a newsletter with a company we like/trust or want to buy from, and the next day we get emails from companies we’ve never even heard of, using personal information we never gave them. We don’t like it. Or you want to buy some coffee pods for your morning cuppa, but in turn, the sales lady needs your cell number, ID etc. WHAT?? That’s too much information. We don’t like it. Each year we grow more and more suspicious, and every time we hear about a data leak or a hack, our trust goes down even further. Because of the way data has been treated in the past, consumers have become angry, confused and suspicious. We want a personalised experience without personal infringement. This will be the biggest challenge for marketers in 2022. Marketers need to be or become mini data scientists in today’s tech-driven world. They must be prepared to invest and get the right tech in place to develop its first-party data (the data a customer shares with you directly). Customers want brands to have this data and want them to use it to personalize experiences. They don’t want brands to share it with others. Of course, there will always be those who won’t share data at all. For that, mass personalization is still a viable strategy: tailoring experiences, content, ads, and products to known segments of consumers. That delivers a “personalized” experience feeling without requiring the data that true personalization requires. Delivering it successfully demands new skills, however. There is no doubt that marketers have their work cut out for them. The focus will need to shift towards building their own audiences and communities and embracing new types of data using intent-based solutions. As we head towards more privacy-focused advertising, contextual targeting has become one of the main viable ways to reach a target audience, and thanks to technological advancements, the solution has become much more scalable. Those who do the best job at integrating these contextual tools with the entire programmatic ecosystem will ultimately be the most successful. Happy selling! The Publisher Management Team All Interviews and Insights Industry News CEO's Thoughts Interviews and Insights Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before 26 Oct 2022 Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before Despite current downturns in the economy, evidence shows that the e-commerce industry is picking up and going back to pre-pandemic… Read More CEO's Thoughts Never stop marketing 26 Oct 2022 Never stop marketing There’s a LOT going on in the world right now. This is not a political piece, yet it is diffiult to ignore the world-shaping events… Read More Interviews and Insights Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove 26 Oct 2022 Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove Our October profile is Sandra Jardim, mom to twins Gisela and Alaia and blogger/owner of MammaBearLove. She uses her blog as… Read More Prev123Next

Digital trends 2020 – what everyone is talking about

Welcome back! I hope you are rested and ready to take on the new year like we are. 2020 is bound to bring on a fair amount of challenges and opportunities for the digital industry. Whether it’s the fact that Google recently decided to phase out third party cookies, or US politicians pushing to break up ‘Big Tech’ firms like Facebook and Amazon, our landscape is ever-changing and the best thing we can do is to be prepared, look ahead, adapt and keep an ear on the ground. According to the World Advertising and Research Center, in 2020 Digital Advertising will for the first time ever make up more than half of the total global ad spend at $336 billion, with Google’s share of the global ad market being 23%, ahead of Facebook’s 13% and Amazon’s 2.5%. But what does that mean for you as a publisher or an advertiser? Below are some of the big trends in digital that you will need to keep an eye on: Companies relying on Google Analytics will get beaten by their competitors – Not that there’s anything wrong with Google Analytics, but things are changing. New channels are being introduced constantly, such as voice search, and transactions are no longer as simple as someone coming and buying from you. On top of that, there are so many different ways you can generate revenue for your online business, such as partnerships, affiliate marketing, and even webinars. In 2020, you will see more companies adopting business intelligence solutions. A central place where you can tie in all of your data and make better-informed decisions so you can optimize for your lifetime value instead of your short-term income. Conversational marketing – this is thought by many to be the most exciting trend in marketing today, bringing together rapid consumer adoption of smart speakers and innovation in search query processing, conversational interfaces and messaging. However, many of these technologies aren’t expected to become mainstream for another 5 to 10 years. Of those forecast to hit the mainstream within the next 2 to 5 years, the three most significant for marketers to consider are personification, real-time and conversational marketing. Consumer privacy – Repeated privacy faux-pas by Facebook, Google and security breaches at other brands leading to the release of customer details have highlighted to consumers that their data isn’t as safe with online brands as they may have once thought. Privacy regulations like GDPR have been enacted to improve data privacy with increased fines. This also means that the days of the cookie (and particularly third-party cookies) and digital fingerprinting may be numbered. Therefore businesses should be considering other alternatives if they aren’t already. Martech – These days, Marketing Technology presents a bewildering choice of software services for businesses looking to improve their management of digital media, experiences and supporting data. If your business and your agencies adopt the right blend of Martech, it can help give you an edge against competitors, but if not, you may be missing out on the insights and automation processes they are using. The only way to map, store, analyze and act on the complete end-to-end customer journey is having all the data in one place using a Customer Data Platform. But it is up to each company to decide which system (or combinations of systems) is the best fit for their business. It’s quite a lot to think about, but AdMarula is on this journey with you, as your partner in Digital. Upwards and onwards! Daniel Gross – CEO