One of the greatest strengths that online communities provide, is the customer insights and first- hand business intelligence that comes from them. Harley- Davidson has even turned its own forum in to a revenue- generating centre. Unlike the previous generation of hobbyists, now it is full- time entrepreneurs who are raking in the moolah from their websites focused on topics as far- ranging as food, music, fitness or gardening. Online communities have in the long run, a massive potential for digital marketing. To create such a site that eventually the users will pay for, one needs to start with a substantial user base. Once created, the entire messaging has to be centred around the content displayed on the site. Here social media is of great help. One needs to be heavily involved, right from the go. The entrepreneur must make sure, the site never turns in to an internal clique. Relationships need to be managed in a way that they flourish online. One can’t ignore the simultaneous sales balance though, though the online community must never resemble yet another sales channel.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/09/how-to-create-an-online-community-that-people-will-pay-for

Uploaded Date:14 October 2019

While every company understands that innovation is the lifeblood of any business, too much of it too soon may put the future expansion to jeopardy. This is especially true if the new features get panned. Now, all the more this is an area of focus, as due to social media, word- of- mouth travels faster than any other digital marketing media. Thus, a positive buzz needs to be curated online, perhaps making use of celebrities or influencers. This form of new marketing allows volunteer fans to be converted quickly, unlike the paid medium nature of the earlier ones. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are of course key to getting this executed. The right tone and timing too need be in place for such electronic marketing.

Source:https://www.strategy-business.com/blog/Electronic-word-of-mouth-can-make-or-break-a-product-launch?gko=808d3

Uploaded Date:29 August 2019

The future of marketing will be quite different to the mass media proliferated version as seen for most of the last century. Instead it will be more personalized, but still at mass scale. Digital marketing has the power to reach the last consumer, and curate content according to the person’s taste. This requires an enormous quantity of data warehousing, so that one is able to generate specific content. Personalization is like a philosophy for customer engagement. Technology also helps in conducting multiple interactions with the same set of customers. Personalization also has a positive impact across the full customer lifecycle. Even customers prefer this style. At the World Retail Congress, the vast majority of marketers confirmed to knowing about its value, but only a fifth acknowledged to be actually using this principle. Before going too far ahead though, marketers need to understand the quality of data being captured.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/personalization-at-scale-first-steps?cid=other-eml-alt-mip-mck-oth-1808&hlkid=f8b29aaf584045ffb8905890ce730da8&hctky=2657824&hdpid=044126e9-45f9-4488-a0b6-2d991da5badb

Uploaded Date:30 July 2019

The business world is at present in the midst of a martech revolution. Martech stands for marketing technology. It includes the use of new gen technology such as business analytics, data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics and smart devices to propel any brand’s digital marketing. New growth now needs to be aligned with the company’s martech capabilities. It is also now getting essential in curating new business models, products and services. Martech has enabled business operations to be run with a kind of speed and agility, never experienced before. It has also caused a revolution, where marketing has jumped from being part of communications to being in the business of experiences.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/making-the-most-of-marketing-technology-to-drive-growth?cid=other-eml-alt-mip-mck-oth-1808&hlkid=16648b96da1e4360b4648f14d4180a57&hctky=2657824&hdpid=044126e9-45f9-4488-a0b6-2d991da5badb

Uploaded Date:29 July 2019

Selling smart products is not the same as that for the conventional goods. It needs some level of ingenuity to execute the sales process fine. Before embarking on this, a few questions need to be posed by the top leadership. For a start, one need not continue with the policy of the present pricing. Instead one needs to initiate the “pay- per- performance” philosophy. The payment needs to be made as one goes. The payee also needs a change. This has to be effected while keeping in mind the eco- system and not just the supply chain. Smart product makers also need to conduct a data warehousing operation, to truly understand the reasons for customers’ likes or dislikes. The fundamental needs thus have to be addressed. To collect such a vast treasure-trove of data, the company will need to disburse content for free. The currency now needs to be data and not the money per se. It will also help these platforms go toe- to- toe with the likes of Google, LinkedIn and Facebook as platforms for digital marketing. A sustainable business model will need to prove how this data collection is of any use to its customers even.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/07/5-questions-to-consider-when-pricing-smart-products

Uploaded Date:29 July 2019

The digital revolution has seen marketing, right at the forefront of the transformation. It has become a complicated landscape, with digital marketing requiring an intersection between data, growth and the creative side of things. Some senior McKinsey partners have come out with this latest study to understand how all this intersects. This will even be presented at the Cannes Lions Festival. The daily job of a marketer has evolved significantly, as the study states. The marketer now needs to have an understanding of personalization, segmentation, targeting and of business analytics. This analytical skill is essential to sieve through the enormous quantities of data now stored by companies and databases. Even smaller and mid size firms now have access to such vast treasure troves of data. The CMO needs to continue using a classical approach, built around customer experience, brand positioning and advertising, but this has to be tailored around the new findings. One area where much change has taken place is how the end- to- end customer experience was far more immature earlier. The CMO’s role now goes beyond merely strategy definition. It now includes a valid participation in the long- term profitability of the firm.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/how-to-unlock-marketing-led-growth-data-creativity-and-credibility

Uploaded Date:22 June 2019

Companies working in the consumer packaged goods segment, have their work cut out. In order to win over the customers, they need to rely heavily on digital marketing. To start off, they need a strong key- account management, that looks after priority clients. An e- category management system has to be developed which will look in to the upcoming opportunities. Latest, cutting- edge technology ought to be used in here. This will focus on a number of aspects beginning with assortment, followed by pricing and promotions. Merchandising and marketing is the third stage. Brands also need to develop a high Digital Quotient (DQ) for themselves. Amazon and L’Oreal for instance have done well with these strategies. Honing a DQ depends a lot on the company culture created. The right organizational structure too needs to support this.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/the-digital-future-of-consumer-packaged-goods-companies

Uploaded Date:15 June 2019