Please Stop Shouting!

Consumers create much more (and often better) content for your brand than you do.

A bold statement maybe, but a quick sweep of social channels and consumers are there; using, sharing, living your brand.

Take GoPro's consumers for example:

Or perhaps Lego's

Or Nutella's...

Consumers are using brands in the most genuine, real way, every day. But I'll come back to this in a minute.

Today I attended ISBA's 'Good Brief Week' event, which was about how brands should do real-time, reactive marketing. I feel this is one of those topics I know a lot about because I actually have some common sense, and I know that a beer brand shouldn't be tweeting about the birth of the royal baby because it's got fuck all to do with them.

Jon Burkhart opened the presentation with the overrated, outdated, Oreo - Dunk In The Dark example... "Ugh, here we go". 

But no, before I was about to ram my pen into my jugular, he brought it up as a bad example of real-time marketing.

He basically said everything I feel - that it was a good example of timing, but a bad example of content because the actual brand was irrelevant to the SuperBowl, and it inspired every other brand in the world to start jumping on every topic they can, whether it has anything to do with them or not. 

Ergo, Oreo is responsible for the downfall of man.

Oh.

So, back to my earlier point regarding consumers, the people you are creating this "relevant, reactive" content for....

They are already doing it. They are using your product in a way that is real-time and relevant for them. They don't need brands to come up with some strained connection to #TheOscars or #RoyalBaby, they won't care about it and they will tune you out.

You need to understand what is important to your consumer when using your product, and then use that as a starting point for what conversations you get involved in and what your opinions are. That way you will connect with them in a meaningful way on many levels.

Great example: inspiring Dulux consumers using a current topic

Consumers' digital habits and behaviours have changed, so brands have to change. We have to keep these old, shouty, widespread advertising ideas to the masses in the past. Now, it's all about a more tactical, personal approach. Ideas needs a bit more thought behind them if they are to stand out from the crowd.

Stop shouting, start personalising.