Too much digital marketing is designed to stop me doing what I’m trying to do. Creatives are getting better and better at interrupting me – doing what TV ads used to do before time-shifting came along.
I think there is a much better way to go and many B2C brands know it. It’s time for B2B to catch up.
It’s summed up by the famous phrase from the JWT ad agency: “We’ve got to stop INTERRUPTING what people are interested in and BE what people are interested in!”
It’s what Simon Andrews of media planners Mindshare calls the concept of ‘Branded Utility’ and I choose to describe as marketing as a service. This means providing content or a service to our target market without asking anything directly in return. In this way we engage with that audience on a pull not push basis and position our brand in a positive way.
If we really understand our target market then we should know what is useful and interesting to them. In the B2C digital space this is not a new idea. Carling provides me with a great music site with free video content from gigs and bands I like. They hope I’ll like them more as a result. There are many other examples from the best and biggest consumer brands.
The opportunity is huge for B2B brands to do more and win first mover advantage in their marketplace. That’s because B2B marketing is often aimed at a very targeted set of people with specific needs and interests, often facing similar issues. Marketers spend a lot of time identifying those issues and challenges. Suddenly, in the digital world, they can develop engaging content helping to tackle these issues using time-effective and contemporary tools, such as web TV.
Indeed, it’s very worth comes from the fact that it’s not for everybody. If you are an architect and I want to sell to architects, the fact that I develop content which only architects would find useful demonstrates that I really understand your needs and exist to cater for you.
In my view the Branded Utility is tied directly to the brand’s core expertise and flows from its value proposition. In other words, the B2B brand should stay on home turf.
Here’s an example: for four years we have produced web TV programming for BT Business aimed at SMEs. This addresses real business issues on the minds of SME decision makers, but entirely from the perspective of how technology can help tackle these issues. We’re not claiming BT can provide banking advice or property services, although we do produce programming which shows how technologies can help financially and make property usage more efficient.
The level of engagement with the programming among the target group and the improvement of their perception of BT is high and monitored. Nothing is sold through the programming, though it all does link to relevant areas on bt.com where you can go on a sales journey.
Marketing as service. Branded Utility. Pull not push. Becoming what our audience is interested in. This is the new paradigm of digital marketing and one which I think our audience will force us to embrace.
Comedian Bill Bailey was asked how he writes jokes. He said: “I start with the laugh and work backwards.” Brilliant. If you start with the desired outcome and work backwards, would you really be planning that interruption to my life?
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