Editorial Articles

Discussing the impact of advances on marcomms campaigns and what it means for marketers, advertisers and brands, whilst also addressing important issues surrounding privacy when using cookies as future legislations looks to reduce the use of this data.

The wealth of customer information made available through the growth of the internet means that most marketers are struggling to manage, store and understand their customer data. However advances in digital technology means that there is no longer an excuse for marketers to be victims of unmanageable central databases. Technological innovation means that it is possible to connect multiple data sources regardless of where they actually sit to allow marketers to be data-centric.

The solutions available to connect multiple data sources such as third-party customer databases, panels and retail data also means that marketers can now create targeted audience segmentations anchored in behaviour for example, what the consumer actually needs and want, rather than making gross generalisations based on demographics and attitude.

The fundamental aim of data-centricity is to allow analysis of interconnected data within seconds or hours as opposed to days and weeks or even months. Faster decision making becomes inevitable as campaigns can and should be tweaked across all touch-points based on consumer response to maximise effectiveness.

Two of the most talked about ways of dissecting data are web analytics and behavioural targeting. Behavioural targeting is a method used by online publishers and advertisers where information is collected based on an individual’s browsing activity online such as which pages they visit or what search terms they look for. They can then match an appropriate advertisement that is tailored to tap into that individual’s interest. Ads that are properly targeted in this way will fetch more consumer interest and will increase the effectiveness of campaigns.

Web analytics can link directly to a company’s inventory data so that an out-of-stock product is given less visibility to site visitors and consumer search queries are directed to alternative products instead. They can break down visitor mass into a number of discrete channels which can then be analysed and a virtual profile is created to deal with each channel.
From these virtual profiles, we can create personas that give the website operators a starting point in terms of deciding what content, navigation and layout to show to each of the different types, which will boost the effectiveness for the visitor.

Using these tools we can identify advances on marcomms campaigns and which are the key practices to look out for.

Targeted TV
The recent survey by Deloitte shows that 86 per cent of TV viewers are skipping advertisements but reveals that the most memorable type of advertising is still advertising. Data-centricty used for personalisation will be imperative to maintain a connection between audiences and TV advertising that they will engage with. Personalisation has long been a feature of the online sales environment such as when a consumer clicks onto Amazon the site presents a list of items that might be of interest to the individual, based on their past buying patterns or what other consumers have purchased. The next stage is the imminent arrival of digital, addressable TV with online video and TV services growing fast – IPA Touchpoints data suggests online viewing to be every bit as transformative a technology as PVRs. Addressable TV, which can tailor messaging down to household or even an individual level is being trialled in the US, with tests scheduled in Canada, Australia and the UK. As digitisation becomes a reality for TV and other paid-for media channels like outdoor, the use of ad-serving technologies will expand. Implementing full addressable advertising has complexity and capacity challenges, but using data-centricity as a foundation for any targeted TV campaigns can significantly boost revenue. 

Cookies as currency
A cookie is a piece of text stored by a user’s web browser and can store site preferences, shopping cart contents as well as other text data. In the future the current impression-based digital-trading model will be replaced by a system in which advertisers bid for cookies based on their potential financial return. Technology platforms that enhance cookie value through data matching, together with optimisation across vendors, will become important assets for agencies.

We are already working with ‘dynamic media optimisation’ which uses machine-based algorithms to match clients’ audience and price needs with available inventory. The selection and purchasing of media happens in the time between the consumer loading a page and the delivery of advertising to that page. This approach can deliver significant additional value for clients.

Automated buying is a more efficient way of trading media but is important to recognize that it changes the negotiation rules. Access to the best technology and real-time trading expertise becomes more important – it’s not just about scale.

Privacy is paramount
The ability of cookies to record and store consumer behaviour also allows accurate targeting and re-targeting of messages, without personally identifying the cookie owner.

However, there is concern about privacy issues in relation to cookies and it seems likely that future legislation will seek to restrict the use of cookie data. We believe that responsible use of cookies is paramount for the future of marketing communications. In the US, where consumers can opt out of providing this data, we are at the forefront of this debate, working closely with the Internet Advertising Bureau to develop and launch a consumer education campaign (www.iab.net/privacymatters).

Data into dollars
Harnessing the data challenge can create sustainable competitive advantage and move communications to the centre of the client’s value chain. Data and technology expertise will be key, either in-house and/or with partners like Omniture. Hard-wiring critical data feeds and KPIs into decision-making processes will allow us to improve and track ROI consistently, and provide a service to clients that can inform virtually every part of their business.

In order to engage consumers todays means embracing new ways of working. Data-centricity has always been an integral tool to the functionality of a succesful marketing campaign, but as digital changes the game, innovation in how we engage with consumers should not just be an add-on but a crticial driver of business success.

In other words, we now need to be in control enough to let go of the old practices.

For more information and additional thoughts click here

Stuart Sullivan-Martin
Chief Strategy Officer, MEC