My tastes and buying preferences are very different from my parents. My daughters are very different to mine, and I am seeing that my grandkids are different again. The implications of that involve entities having to adjust they way they market to these groups. And to make it worse, my preferences and expectations have changed over time as well. How can organisations possibly know how to plan their marketing strategy in such a dynamic context?
Thankfully Deloitte Insights has just published their report ‘2022 Global Marketing Trends’ (Read it here) which provides guidance on what is looming, and what organisations should be doing to meet the changing needs of consumers. The report is based on thousands of surveys across the globe. Spoiler alert: “Consumers expect more tailored and personalised experienced, but simultaneously are more guarded about how their data is captured and deployed.”
The advice from Deloitte? “…holistically rethinking the way brands engage with customers.” The evidence supports this, with brands with 10% or higher annual growth “…comprehensively addressing the entire customer experience – encompassing everything from activating an enterprisewide purpose to overhauling entire customer data strategies.”
The report is packed full of examples and ideas to help you reorient your marketing strategy, and it is built around three sections that follow, along with some ideas (each of which has their own chapter in the report):
1.Putting people at the centre:
- Purpose is a beacon for growth – commit and communicate that your impact is beyond profit
- Authentically inclusive marketing – understand authentic diversity and demonstrate inclusivity – authentically.
- Build the intelligent creative engine – utilise and/or recruit creative and analytical talent to solve customer problems
2. Building the data infrastructure
- Meeting customer in a cookieless world – preparing for a world without cookies
- Designing a human-first data experience – making sure customers are understand and are happy with the way you use their data
3. Designing dynamic experiences:
- Elevating the hybrid experience – creating a dynamic experience using both digital and in-person environments, whilst maintaining a human—centered design
- Supercharging customer service with AI – integrating AI with human service to bring the best of both world to the entire customer journey.
I have barely done the full report justice with this brief snapshot, and it is highly recommended you download it and use it as a discussion starter with your marking team to see how you can prepare for the coming changes.