Day 1 of ad:tech NY set up the theme of getting back to the core of marketing, seeing past the bright, shiny objects and new technology constantly at our fingertips. So what should marketers be focusing on to keep them true to their mission? According to a few presentations and panels on Day 2, it’s three things: data, innovation and people, otherwise known as DIP. Here are a few points of wisdom from ad:tech Day 2 on how to take advantage of all three areas in your marketing efforts.
Data
In a time when advertisers are being prompted to embrace data-driven marketing, several presenters cautioned against devaluing people-based marketing in place of data. “Big data should supplement your judgment, not replace it,” said John Costello, President, Global Marketing and Innovation, for Dunkin’ Brands, Inc., during his lunch-time keynote. “Big data is not a strategy. It’s a tool but it’s not a strategy.” The data you collect should be used to create messaging that is relevant, authentic and contextual.
Innovation
Costello posed an interesting question during his keynote: What’s the right role for technology when traditional marketing continues to work well?
In the separate session “Bottom Line Branding: Optimizing Mobile and Digital for Deeper Consumer Engagement,” David Rosenberg, Managing Partner, IPG Media Lab, provided an answer: “Start at the place of business, not of innovation.” In other words, marketers should focus on their or their clients’ end goals, such as revenue, and then consider the technology that will help get them there. Costello put it another way through the lens of staying authentic: Identify your core values, and then assess how the tactics are changing to maintain those values.
With more budgets out of the CIO’s office and in the CMO’s, more advertisers are considering technology providers to help them meet their goals and innovate, said Jay Henderson, Director of Offering and Product Management, IBM Marketing Cloud, during the panel that followed Costello’s keynote. The way of the future, he said, would see marketers creating, customizing and working with a portfolio of technology from various providers to meet their goals and drive competitive advantage. Joseph Jaffe, Founder and CEO of Evol8tion, warned that adopting a culture of smart innovation takes time, and that marketers should avoid being paralyzed by choice and the “bright, shiny object” syndrome.
“Change and adaptation is an art,” he said.
People
People had two meanings in the presentations on ad:tech Day 2. Most speakers talked about people in terms of current and target customers and thinking beyond segments. During the panel “Who’s Your Customer? Building Audience Profiles to Better Sell Your Product,” one participant said that the most valuable signals are why a customer is knocking on the door of your brand (whether on your site or in your store) and what they actually want in terms of product or service.
But it’s also important to consider who you’re selling to if your brand is about an aspirational experience. In that case, one target customer or persona is the muse, and the other is the actual buyer. They will likely have very different demographic makeups and desires. As one panelist pointed out, if you have a supermodel advertise a clothing line for your store, it’s not other supermodels who are your target customer but women who aspire to have a similar lifestyle and look to this first population. Also make sure you’re loving your current, loyal customers enough, Costello cautioned, with offers, discounts and exclusive new products.
But “people” also means your own internal team and partners. Costello reminded the audience during his keynote to build strong teams with individuals that challenge one another to be better. “Are you surrounding yourself with people who are smarter and better than yourself?” he asked.
Food for thought—see you at ad:tech NY 2016.