As a marketing leader I recognise that Marketers today need to understand that the WHAT of marketing may have changed and that the HOW and WHY have substantially altered direction for both the consumer and brand communications.

4P’s or 4E’s – that is the question?

The fluidity of marketing never stops and success is always built through an innovative approach. For those who have spent years learning more traditional marketing theories, that built a value proposition, now need to think differently. The famous the 4P’s (Product, Price, Place and Promotion) from traditional Marketing don’t truly cover the language we all now need to speak. Today I give you the 4E’s, marketers latest approach to customer value proposition­ – Engagement, Experience, Exclusivity and Emotion.

People believe in brands that give them an experience with emotive connections.

The most successful brands don’t offer just physical products or services, but great experiences, emotions through stories that resonate directly to them. Meaning businesses must change their thinking from “WHAT should we sell?” or even “HOW should we sell?”, to “WHY should we sell?” – Brands today need to be emotionally intelligent to engage the consumer and stand out.

We all know that Disneyland and Coca-Cola sell happiness and that Adidas and Nike give you the courage to follow your dreams – they achieve this through a strategic brand language that is a direct conversation between the brand and the consumer. Using this emotive connection helps consumers relate and engage with a brand, ultimately cultivating trust and building brand advocacy.

I believe that never before has the importance of our personal and cultural values been connected to how we live our lives, this also applies to any brand wanting our attention. Brands need to genuinely connect to their consumer on a one-to-one level to promote a belief of an exclusive relationship.

The product still matters.

The product has always mattered and still does! Great stories, emotive connections and values don’t make someone buy a poor product. I know that if a product falls short of expectations, consumers will always choose ‘better’ options and could then leave a poor review on the way out.

Brand loyalty takes time to build and the consumer not getting what they’ve been promised is the quickest way to destroy that relationship – the brand promise is everything. Brand values shouldn’t be directed at the consumer exclusively. Anyone in business needs to follow its brand values, from product development to production and distribution, to sales and operations – all need to live the brand.

Monitoring and analytics are the Goldmines of Insights.

Digital media monitoring and analytics are the ‘Goldmines of Insights’. Consumers discuss brands and products on social media, industry experts and news sites publish reviews, and competitors post the latest product updates. This online ‘buzz’ is a source of business intelligence that already exists. I, and many others, have seen that more and more businesses, particularly during the pandemic, have altered their business model to e-commerce, with media monitoring being invaluable. This has become more and more important as we make data informed decisions, with our strategic marketing activities.

Making engagement count.

Real engagement will not come from a Facebook contest in which users get prizes for likes. This activity will bring only short-term effects, which can form part of an overall marketing strategy – the follower base might increase, but the people will leave brands if they can’t emotively engage. I think we need to acknowledge the limitations of traditional social platforms and create experiences and relationships beyond that world – People make social work, not the software, algorithm, or the likes.

Influencers shape opinions.

Bloggers, vloggers, and other influencers have the power of shaping consumer opinions. Consumers are willing to trust recommendations from a favourite YouTube creator rather than from a brand itself. A few years ago, Snapchat or Vine campaigns were a rarity, and nobody took them seriously. Nowadays they’re prolific and bring measurable results.

Over the years consumers have become more sophisticated in how they understand brands and how they market to them. In a post-pandemic world people have had time to reflect and are looking for truths and want to be communicated to in an unpatronising way.

It is true that influencers are seen as genuine and trustworthy, so people put more confidence in what they have to say. But, like any marketing communication, things are always fluid and trends change. I feel that for some platforms and influencers, this may be sooner than we might think. People know how products get endorsed through payments and that can alter their opinion of a brand.

What’s the next big idea?

Who knows! But what I do know is new technology will bring new ways to communicate. I know we need to be innovative in our thinking and that although tools change, objectives stay true. WHAT we do and HOW we do it changes as trends change, but the WHY we do it stays consistent. Since any business exists to make money, that’s its main goal, but a brand needs to think beyond today’s bottom line and cultivate relationships with their customer’s values; this is one way marketing works to drive future revenue.

I also know that being part of a team that is adaptable to change, but with a common goal, means everyone works towards a clear vision. Through innovative thinking and different perspectives, we can nurture cross functional relationships – Nothing is better than being part of a great team!

Marketing today is a multi-channel proposition, with all brands amplifying their digital presence. To remain competitive and know how to utilise those channels is key to the future of any business. Gone are the days of on and off-line marketing strategies, now all marketing should start with digital at its core and that core should be direct consumer transactional.

Marketing has should never be all things to all people and the challenge today is to use data to identify who we want to communicate to and why?