Reflections on the Integrated Marketing Communications Conference 2010, Cape Town
Who would expect a marketing conference advising you to stop marketing? But this was exactly the core message at this year’s IMCC. Well, the conference title actually gives it away- it was all about integrated marketing communications.
So if you’re not supposed to market, then what are you supposed to do?
This conference, hosted in Cape Town, South Africa, although focusing on a developing market also conveyed messages many of us might want to consider in our marketing strategies. South Africa is only just engaging itself in social media, online networking, microblogging. Many smaller companies don’t yet have company blogs, Facebook pages or Twitter accounts. (Twitter, in particular, is not nearly as possible in this market as Facebook.) There are so many companies that have not started engaging their (potential) markets on a social level yet. And why? Because a mind-shift is needed!The IMCC focused heavily on advocating a shift in perspective and position. It’s not about what we think consumers need, but all about whether they need us or not, whether they want to engage with us or not. The message, as we know so well, listen and engage!
In comes branding. More important than ever before, it’s all about personality, leadership qualities, trendsetters. And who are the new trendsetters in marketing? You guessed right. It’s not the marketing professionals with years of experience and certificates on the wall, but the creative geniuses. The ones who think up cool stuff. The ones whose spark and motivation causes a ripple on a global level. Just think Old Spice hunk, or Nike phone - boot run.
The visual word of mouth
But let’s take it to the next level. It’s not even about these trendsetters. They might be the think-tank crazy creators, but they are nothing without you, the consumer. And we all are consumers – marketers included. It’s about how well we respond to their artwork, how much we feel like we’re part of it. Yes, here it comes again... engagement is the key! Start a conversation. Word has always spread like wild fire throughout the history of humanity, from when we beat the bush drums to gossiping about neighbours from behind our picket fences, to today’s gossip platform, social media. Well, gossip might be a bit of a strong word. Let’s call it word of mouth. Then again, it’s more than that. It’s not just about “have you heard”, but more about “have you seen”. We are getting more and more visual. Video, imagery, even holographic projections is what the modern mind seeks. Numerous case studies attested to this trend – I can’t remember a single case study that wasn’t in a video format or supported by strong visual images at the IMCC.
Search going social
So how can you prepare yourself? Acknowledge that you’re not at the pinnacle of your marketing pyramid. You’re part of a wheel – together with consumers, merging channels, creative minds, decision-makers, staff, global trends. Practically, it means, start engaging on multiple channels. Strong calls were made for more South African businesses to set up social profiles on Facebook or Twitter, even if they post once a week only at the start. Soon search will go social. Already Google is incorporating feeds and status updates into their search result pages. You want people to talk about you, to keep you top of mind and refer you. Or run you down – what a great opportunity to engage with them and find consensus.
Of course, from my perspective, email marketing is one of the most successful channels for lont-term engagement. Whilst social reaches a wider audience, social followers are more distant from the brand – as opposed to email, which is a personal, one-on-one medium. My inbox is a lot more private and intimate than my Facebook profile. I have a greater level of trust for those brands I allow into my inbox than those I “like” on Facebook or follow on Twitter.
Attendees were urged to keep up paid advertising (such as Google and Yahoo/ Bing pay-per-click campaigns) for their websites. Of course, SEO was also encouraged, and the benefits of optimizing through using benchmark keywords in social feeds, blog titles and press releases.However, I think websites, traditional search ranking and the PPC model will soon be something of the past. It often suffices to have a blog, or a social profile, or a great visual viral presence. As in the future, I think it’s all about who says what about whom. So a tip for those of you who want to be part of the new cool kids’ gang: make friends with top bloggers, social influencers, well connected individuals that have a strong presence on the web. (The good thing here: while it’s regarded as utterly unethical to bribe a journalist, it’s apparently absolutely fine to push some label clothing, island trips and champagne in a blogger’s direction).
Start shifting minds
So, to un-market ourselves just means to acknowledge these new trends and start shifting our minds and sharing control. Scary thought that, huh? But it’s the citizen journalist out there now – even if you don’t engage on a social level, your company will be spoken about. Postively and negatively. Marketers still have a duty to measure, forecast and coordinate. But who knows what will happen in 5 to 10 years’ time? Maybe today’s marketing duties will be handled by finance and CEOs, and marketers will become engagers, socialites, creative artists? Maybe that is truly what we are. The one thing I can tell you, is that almost every attendee could be spotted sipping some bubbly in the lobby after the panel discussions, engaging with other inspiring minds.
Barbara UImi, IMCC engager at GraphicMail
