Real-Time’s Growing Up: From Spray-and-Pray to Orchestrated Efforts

in , ,

Real-time marketing’s been said at least multiple times by every marketer in America. What took off with one tweet during the 2013 Super Bowl has turned into a brand pile-on when royal births are announced, the Grammy’s happen or even a random food holiday has its time on the calendar. It was once a way to stand out from the crowd. Now, it’s just a way to be part of it. Everyone’s doing it, and there are no shortage of bad examples from brands. The Prince tributes may take the cake, however.

Real-time marketing had its moment in the sun. Now, it’s growing up. (Many) Marketers are getting smarter with their choices in when and how they react.

Read More

Getting Real About Real-Time Marketing #6: Expanding the Content Opportunities Lens

in

The following is part of a series of blog posts related to 2013’s hottest point of social discussion—real-time marketing. This is the second post in the series. The first post is here. The second post is here. The third post is here. The fourth post is here. The fifth post is here. The sixth post is here.

Brands have been trained over many years to talk but only talk about themselves. It's not a novel concept to say that social media has changed all of that, and the conversation brands initiate should not be focused solely on them. That's been the mantra of social media marketing for awhile, but real-time marketing not only promotes this, it makes it necessary to be successful.

The majority of today's brands focus their social conversations on their brands and their categories. That's only a sliver of the conversation taking place online, giving marketers the opportunity to expand the lens through which they view content opportunities to include adjacent categories that relate to brands but not directly.

Talk About My Interests

People are selfish, and they aren't about to give a brand any of their time and attention unless it earns it. Timely content that relates to consumer interests will not only be rewarded with user attention. Platforms will also recognize it. Facebook gives timely content that resonates with audiences more exposure than content that falls flat.

Creating content that resonates with consumers but also delivers a brand message comes from understanding brand fundamentals:

  • Brand architecture will tell you what your brand stands for and values. It answers: What would your brand be interested in?
  • Consumer and cultural understanding will answer: What do consumers talk about and want to know?
  • A content framework with clear objectives on what content should accomplish and how it relates to your brand will answer: What do you want people to feel/think/do after they interact with your real-time content?

Use real-time marketing to capitalize on the conversation zeitgeist and make your brand part of it.

 

Getting Real About Real-Time Marketing #6: Real-Time Challenges

in

 The following is part of a series of blog posts related to 2013’s hottest point of social discussion—real-time marketing. This is the second post in the series. The first post is here. The second post is here. The third post is here. The fourth post is here. The fifth post is here.

Real-time marketing… it sounds great, but it also sounds like a headache and an insurmountable task for many brands. Organizations are built to be risk-averse and move slowly. That's not exactly what real-time marketing demands from brands, and that's why challenges for real-time marketing live at the organizational level.

    Read More

    Getting Real About Real-Time Marketing #5: The End of the War Room

    in

     The following is part of a series of blog posts related to 2013’s hottest point of social discussion—real-time marketing. This is the second post in the series. The first post is here. The second post is here. The third post is here. The fourth post is here.

    The latest “Getting Real About Real-Time Marketing” post discussed three types of real-time marketing, one being opportunistic.

    Oreo executed opportunistic real-time marketing exceptionally well during the Super Bowl. It woke the industry up to the possibilities, and the combination of a massive real-time event being watched by millions (the Super Bowl), the lights going out as a fluke and having a team ready to respond is one that will not come around again any time soon.

    Read More