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Jun 22 2012
2

Play it again Sam!

By | Byte

We’ve heard it all before… Or have we?

Knowing your Generation X, Y, Z’s as a marketer has been invaluable as the sociological research behind these demographics has enabled us to form distinctly appllicable communication strategies.

A little rusty?… I’ll hum it for you:

Boomers –  Born between 1946-1964. Witnessed dramatic social change. Defined as Hippies and Yuppies. Idealistic and competitive.

Generation X – Born between 1965-1976. Witnessed divorce and economic unrest. Defined as Latchkey Kids. Individualistic, skeptical of authority.

Generation Y – Born between 1977-1992. Witnessed inter-community conflicts and digital technologies. Defined as Millennials. Optimistic and brand loyal.

Generation Z – Born between 1993-2010. Witnessed terrorism, social networking and major environmental issues. Defined as Digital Natives. Flexible and diverse.

Generation Alpha – Born between 2011-?. Witnessing widespread economic downturn and technological innovation. Defined as Google kids. Educated and materialistic.

Currently there is a lot of excitement surrounding Millennials. The are defined as such, not only by their birth year but also by their mindset, a major factor towards this mindset is the internet. Why do Millennials matter: 80 million strong, they have purchasing power, they are agents of change, they are trend-setters, they have political influence, they are distrustful of marketing and are socially conscious, they are determined to make an impact and are advocates of social responsibility.

Interestingly, they are putting family, flexibility, balance and lifestyle ahead of career and money. (At variance with their Gen X parents).
What does this mean for marketers? Well, it means that they filter content aggressively, they expect content to be free and on demand and competing for their attention is fierce.

They become brand advocates for brands that are ethical, inspirational, socially conscious, responsible, sustainable, original, economically sensible and shareable.

For more statistics and case studies of brands that have become relevant to this Generation see Millennial Marketing.

“Play it again Sam?” Perhaps we should be saying. “Rewind Selectahh!”

Jun 22 2012
1

A Traditional Death…

By | Byte

“Everything is digital, but digital isn’t everything.”

That’s right, it isn’t about the latest trends, the flashiest web banner, the coolest iphone app or any other GMOOT to come out in the next 10 seconds! So what is it about? It’s about INTEGRATION! It’s not just about mixing media into a tasteless mess. “Put the TV Ad on Youtube!”… Is the WRONG way of going digital. Use each media platform to its fullest potential. This this the era of semantic storytelling… Content used in a meaningful way.

According to Microsoft Advertising:
Recent research from Thinkbox and the IAB highlights the advantages of planning a marketing campaign to make use of multiple channels from the start:

Increased purchase intent, with conversion rates rising by more than 50 per cent when TV and online are used together
Extended reach across different audiences and channels
Lengthening the life of the campaign, with different channels helping to keep messages fresh.

The essence of Y&R Global CEO, David Sable’s observation, is that advertisers must realize that ‘digital’ is a situation, a culture, a global lifestyle. So it should be REALIZED as such and not treated as a separate trend/gimmick.

In fact as always, if we go back to basics and make sure that our campaign is rooted on genuine consumer insight, that the idea is compelling and distinctive and is applied effectively then our message and our content will be relevant and that is what we should be producing – this is semantic storytelling.

To quote David Sable once again. ”If the work ends up being one-size-fits-all, then we’re really just talking to ourselves. And that’s not a sustainable business model, no matter how many awards we win.”