The pandemic has brought about notable shifts across industries, and the case has been no different for marketing. Today, digital marketing has become a crucial aspect in order to acquire new customers and retain existing ones. In our weekly BrandWagon Ad Talk series, industry experts highlight what has changed over the past two years and more importantly, are these changes here to stay. Pravir Arora, chief marketing officer, Aptech Limited, talks to BrandWagon Online, about the dos and don’ts of digital marketing, best marketing campaigns, and more.
What are the recent best marketing or advertising campaigns you have seen and why?
While there are many great advertising campaigns, I personally applaud Dream 11’s – Actors v/s Cricketers – an ad that ingeniously sets the stage for an entertaining clash between actors and cricketers, captivating audiences with a fusion of Bollywood charisma and cricketing prowess. Through the teaser of the impending clash between #TeamActors and #TeamCricketers, the ad sparks enthusiasm through the cricket season. The campaign strategically amalgamates two widely beloved domains, ensuring a blend of entertainment and sportsmanship.
Another industry favourite has to be, The “Nothing University” advertisement by 5 Star – it stands out as a creative portrayal of the common challenge of navigating through moments of idleness, transforming the mundane into an adventure. The ad ingeniously weaves the theme of ‘nothingness,’ depicting the ordinary aspects of life as an amusing quest. This clever integration effectively showcases the brand’s playful essence, capturing the universal experience of finding excitement in the everyday.
In both these ads, humour as an emotion resonated with the audiences well invoking both engagement as well recall.
What is the difference between launching a brand in today’s digital era versus earlier?
The Internet has transformed how consumers engage with brands. Granular targeting across platforms, devices, and prospect segments coupled with AI-led insights around what works and what doesn’t makes digital a potent tool for brand building.
One of the elements that goes into establishing a powerful, recognisable and relatable brand is consumer trust. Prospects value trust more than other attributes that comes with a product or service. Social Media is a conversational tool that enables prospects to interact with and about the brand. When friends and peers endorse a brand, that endorsement is sufficient for prospects to move closer to the decision to buy. Online reviews are a great way to build brand credibility. Prospects value customer testimonials significantly more than what the brand narrates by itself. Using digital, brands can address various cohorts in their TG with personalised messaging across digital platforms. Digital marketing offers the unique ability to amplify brand narratives. This coupled with the engagement drivers that digital offers makes it a strong choice for marketers to engage with prospects in ways that were not possible hitherto.
Which brand in the last year has made the best use of digital and how?
Digital marketing allows brand amplification at scale. Especially when the target audience involves people in the age-group of 18 – 24 years. Using programmatic, social media and other touchpoints, brands can reach out to the target audience to connect, communicate and amplify the brand story. For instance, for our brand – Lakmé Academy Powered by Aptech, we roped in Bollywood star Ananya Panday as our brand ambassador to communicate, among other things, the opportunities in the Beauty & Wellness sector. We organised a webinar titled ‘Beautiful Futures’ which accentuated the opportunities our students can look forward to not just in the Beauty &Wellness sector, but also in unrelated fields such as entertainment, etc., where there is significant demand for skilled professionals such as make-up artists. The webinar garnered over 25000 registrations. The brand’s Social Media page, WhatsApp and Email Marketing was used to extensively communicate to the prospects. The campaign is a good example of a tactical campaign garnering not just massive visibility but also micro-conversions in the form of registrations.
More recently, our other brand MAAC (Maya Academy of Advanced Creativity) – a premier institute and a pioneer in high-end 3D animation, VFX, Game Design and Multimedia – collaborated with Playground –India’s first Gaming Reality Show to amplify the craze and frenzy around online gaming. The central thought being the opportunity to get gaming enthusiasts to take-up game designing as a career choice i.e. to translate passion for gaming into a profession.
In a post-Covid world, what are the dos and don’ts of digital marketing?
Digital marketing enables hypertargeting which makes it possible to deliver content to specific segments in a manner that is contextual, relevant and personalised. The ability to coalesce with mainline marketing to deliver an integrated experience makes digital branding a more potent tool.
Dos
Reinforcement: Digital is a great enabler to intensify the messaging around the brand promise across various digital touch points. Identifying touchpoints where prospects spend their time digitally and using those touchpoints for brand reinforcement helps in enhancing brand connect.
Seamless and consistent cross-channel messaging: In order to build a strong brand identity, it is important to deliver cross-channel messaging that is consistent across all digital and mainline touchpoints. According to Salesforce, “75 percent of consumers expect consistent experiences across multiple channels (web, mobile, in-person, social).”
Aid Prospects’ Decision Journey: Tailored messaging to aid prospects’ decision journey based on which stage in the funnel they are in. Further, the messaging should be refined, sharpened and contextualized based on the platform and digital channel used for dissemination.
Don’ts
Fragmented Messaging: Tactical elements such as remarketing, geo-fencing, etc. can become incredibly fragmented if a strong brand communication strategy is not in place. To ensure the brand strategy does not become fragmented, do not take a siloed approach to branding. Integrated marketing communication trumps channel-oriented tactical strategies.
Over-communicate: While brand reinforcement is needed to drive messaging, repeated exposure to the brand can lead to ad fatigue and prospects likely getting annoyed. Hence the need to not over-communicate. Identify the appropriate reiterations required for superior impact and apply frequency capping accordingly.
One recent bad case of advertising you have seen, and why?
In my view, any advertising that lacks responsibility, accountability or sensitivity is considered unfavourable. As marketers, we bear the responsibility of shaping public perceptions. Our advertising campaigns must conscientiously convey the right messages, avoiding harm or offense and adhering to ethical standards. In today’s digital age, brands with poorly executed advertising campaigns may face immediate consequences, including negative chatter and trolling on social media platforms. It underscores the importance of maintaining a positive brand image through responsible and considerate advertising, reflecting the broader trend toward socially conscious consumer expectations.
Being mindful of ethical standards and cultural sensitivities not only helps in avoiding controversy but also contributes to a brand’s credibility and long-term success. Consumers increasingly value authenticity and social responsibility, and brands that align their advertising campaigns with these principles are often better received by the public.