The power of a personalized marketing strategy

Every contemporary person in the sphere of marketing knows the power of having a personalised marketing strategy. We’ve all seen generic advertising that barely grabs our attention. It’s even worse  when you are bombarded with irrelevant advertising on your social media timelines. Perhaps you care little about football or video games but you still keep getting flooded with these ads. Sadly, this is the experience that many consumers face today, but it doesn’t have to continue being such. With the right personalised approach all of this can come to an end. The huge advertising budgets that are currently going in vain without being target specific can be optimised or redirected towards something more productive. We call that “something” consumer-centric research.

Accomplishing your marketing goals and leaving your consumers with the feeling they haven’t actually been spammed has become more challenging than ever. Yes, you do all the prep work and try to make the most out of all the signals they give you at every point of contact, and yet there seems to be a piece of the puzzle missing. Because being data rich doesn’t mean you have the insight necessary to turn all the information into actionable ideas relevant to your business.

This is why it’s important to take personalization one step further with the help of consumer centric research. The richness of consumer-centric research comes from the fact that it can generate tailored insights specific to your brand metrics and campaign objectives, as and when you need it to, hence leading to more data-driven strategies delivering better results.

Here are the 5 signs consumer-centric research is right for you.

1. You don't know how your consumers feel about you.

The inability to understand your consumer can have a severe negative impact on your marketing strategy. Here is where usage and attitude studies come to the rescue as they provide information as to how consumers use a specific product or service, what motivates them to buy said product,  to advocate a brand, etc. The accuracy and in-depth understanding that brings this approach allows a consumer-centric insight to be turned into an actionable next step.

2.  You don't know why consumers won't try your products.

Such gaps in knowledge mean a lack of understanding of why consumers would start using your product or service in the first place. By putting consumers’ beliefs and perceptions at the heart of the research you can uncover the true trial drivers and barriers that exist. Having established this as a baseline, it is then easier to uncover gaps in communication, thus making future messaging and engaging with your consumer more effective.

3. Your advertising just falls flat.

Up to 45% of consumers use ad blockers to save themselves from the constant commercial messages. Having had a bad experience with a particular ad or feeling fed up with seeing only brand created content, consumers start looking for a way to escape this nuisance.  With consumer-centric research, you can first test your ideas among your target consumers. Then, with the gathered information at hand, you can optimize your positioning and identify any obstacles standing in your way.

4. You don't know what your consumers want next.

As marketers we’ve always wanted to know what people think about our products and services but often the methods we use rely on stated behaviours and are responses to ideas internally created. Why not move to co-creating ideas and products with your consumers - having them as passionate advocates and consultants in the process. That way each step of the way you engage - learn with and iterate to improve ideas with the end consumers themselves.

5. You don't have enough time to get what you need.

Ah wouldn't we all like more time to learn! The ideation and innovation process can be messy - with multiple touchpoints - multiple check-ins with internal stakeholders that you often lose the essence of a good idea. Consumer immersions - involving them end to end, in an iterative manner allows you to save time and improve outcomes at the same time.

Consumer-centric research in practice - Lavazza 

Challenge and Brief: Lavazza wanted to launch a new coffee proposition in their largest global market. However the brand was unsure whether the proposition "fits in" to consumers drinking occasions, whether or not there was a habit or appeal of such a proposition and whether Lavazza even had a right to win in this space.

What we did: We sourced a CROWD of 100 consumers in 4 key cities to get a new understanding of their drivers, preferences and consumption habits. We then gave these urban consumers a series of MISSIONS to unpick all the different drinking occasions. Through a series of video and image capture diaries - we sought to understand what drinks were being consumed, where, with whom and most importantly why - the motivations or driver behind their consumption choices. With these "need states" defined we helped Lavazza optimise their early concept ideas and provide them with a winning idea for launch. The richness of the process was that it was the target consumers who helped optimise and improve in real times these ideas - to give us the confidence of success.

What was the key insight: We uncovered the specific driver behind the new proposition - the need for social downtime but through a refined moment. The need to create ritual and a sense of occasion was particularly strong for this new product - and you could only achieve that through a more nuanced multi-sensorial experience provided not only from the product, but the way it's served, packaged and where it should be consumed.

Why consumer-centric research is a must have?

We now are in a world where consumers lead, and we follow. Knowing how to find your way in this new environment can help you get ahead of your competition but only if you have the guts to listen to feedback and the mindset to put it to good use - trust your consumers and don't be afraid to involve, learn and optimise with them at the centre.

Catalyx helps brands beat your consumer’s expectations by getting their thoughts, behaviour and ideas into your organisation, fast. We work with many of the world’s leading brands, including Ariel, Pantene and Gillette. Get in touch to learn more about how we can help your business discover better brand-building solutions in days, not months.