Consumer branded goods marketing is all about reaching and delighting your customers in a time and place that suits them. Increasingly, consumer goods marketers are turning to online and social media marketing for brand-building strategies.
B2C marketing is an ever-evolving discipline, because customers' tastes and expectations are, naturally, always developing. With the rapid digitalization we've seen particularly over the last 2 years, the change of pace is faster, and it can be hard for marketers to keep up.
Moreover, in a competitive marketplace, businesses are struggling with the challenge of growing their brand alongside also generating leads and sales. A large market share doesn't necessarily translate into a high turnover if you can't move prospects down your marketing funnel.
Without a structured marketing strategy in place, many consumer-facing businesses are finding themselves losing customers, or missing opportunities that could increase their ROI. That's why we recommend utilizing the RACE Framework to plan, manage, and optimize your marketing strategy.
Our simple 5-step strategy framework for marketing leaders breaks down data-driven marketing into a streamlined sales funnel, taking prospects from point of discovery to conversion and repeat purchase.
You can use our RACE Growth System, and our recommended integrated branding tools, to drive results at each stage of your customers' decision-making journeys. Find out more. With so much competition, you need to stand outCan your branded consumer goods business compete online?
The key to building a brand that performs is strategizing your 'reach' tactics to make sure you attract the right customers. With unprecedented levels of digital data and segmentation available for marketers right now, the good news is that has never been easier. In this blog we recommend 3 brand building strategies for businesses looking for growth:
Social commerce is the environment where social media meets e-commerce. Rather than simply being used for marketing, social commerce allows the sale to take place on social media platforms.
It transforms social from a channel largely used for discovery to a sales channel, primed to encourage purchases. This is a big deal for marketers looking to build their brand on social, and a great opportunity to track and convert ROI from the social media channel.
Finder research shows that 2020 saw a 21% uplift in time spent on social media in 2020 attributed to the product discovery element.
Between 2021 and 2028, the global market is expected to grow by 28% a year to almost $3.4 trillion, so it is definitely a trend for brands to understand.
Moreover, in June 2021, 48% of US social media users reported having bought something via a social media platform in the previous 12 months.
Find out more about the social media sales funnel in our Learning Path module 'A planned approach to social media marketing'. This module will help you identify the benefits of a more planned approach to social media marketing, and define the relevant stages of a social media plan. Create a social media strategy Part of the Social media marketing Toolkit Learn how to structure a social media strategy and translate it into practical actions to improve your goalsCore Module
User-generated content (UGC) is not an approach for brands to post rich, engaging content to drive interest amongst potential purchasers as part of a joined-up digital strategy.
For marketers wanting to build their brand on social media, however, user-generated content is the Holy Grail. This is particularly important for industries where consumers have low trust in crafted brand messaging.
By incorporating video into more communications, it conveys a perception that the brand is open to conversation. Using UGC allows consumers to see their peers using or interacting with a product in a way that they would like to.
A dedicated hashtag is an obvious way to encourage UGC, making it clear across communications touchpoints how users can share directly with the brand.
Did you know, more than 92% of consumers trust earned media more than other forms of advertising?
Consumers are skeptical about polished marketing messages, whereas UGC shows authenticity. Authenticity is a key trend in consumer marketing, whether it is values such as sustainability, localness, or social conscience, it’s a big pull for today’s consumer.
GoPro's Instagram feed is flooded with UGC images, all using the brand hashtag. The images that are collated and used are high quality, on-brand, and show the benefits of the product without costing a penny.
When planning media for your brand building strategies, divide your content between paid, owned, and earned - UCG sits clearly in the 'earned' media category, but there are other ways to gain other earned activity too.
Learn more about earned media, UCG, and working with influencers to truly enhance your marketing activities at each stage of your funnel. Check out our Learning Path module 'Influencer marketing'. Influencer marketing Part of the Content marketing Toolkit Learn how to improve your process of influencer relationship managementCore Module
Shoppable marketing means combining your key messages with marketing technology that makes it as easy as possible for customers to 'shop' for your consumer-branded goods any time any place.
Shoppable social media channels means your customers can discover, interact with, and purchase all in the same place. For example, shoppable Instagram feeds facilitate an end-to-end conversion journey:
Currently, these features are available across most territories, but checkout is only available to customers in the US and a select number of businesses.
Instagram shopping and other shopable social media cannot be ignored if you want to maintain market share for your brand:
Each of the main social media platforms has developed their social shopping offering. There are also other tools available too. Find out more below.
PopShop Live - Brands can create a popup store, curate inventory, schedule and host live shows from anywhere using their smartphones.
Amazon Live - Brands and influencers can use Amazon Live to connect with interested shoppers in real-time via interactive shoppable videos.
MikMak – A multichannel marketing platform with an in-built ‘where to buy’ feature that links shoppers to more than 200 retailers. Users can checkout without leaving the platform, creating a seamless shopping experience.
Buywith - A video shopping platform that lets influencers shop with their followers using screen sharing. Buywith is a collaborative shopping experience using screen sharing, text, or video chat.
If you're looking to grow your consumer branded goods company, these 3 strategies will help ensure you are reaching and converting high-value customers for your brand.
Smart Insights Business Members get 24/7 access to downloadable templates and trackable marketing tools to help inform their marketing strategies with data and best practice. Get started today. With so much competition, you need to stand outCan your branded consumer goods business compete online?
By Dave Chaffey
Digital strategist Dr Dave Chaffey is co-founder and Content Director of online marketing training platform and publisher Smart Insights. 'Dr Dave' is known for his strategic, but practical, data-driven advice. He has trained and consulted with many business of all sizes in most sectors. These include large international B2B and B2C brands including 3M, BP, Barclaycard, Dell, Confused.com, HSBC, Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft, M&G Investment, Rentokil Initial, O2, Royal Canin (Mars Group) plus many smaller businesses. Dave is editor of the templates, guides and courses in our digital marketing resource library used by our Business members to plan, manage and optimize their marketing. Free members can access our free sample templates here. Dave is also keynote speaker, trainer and consultant who is author of 5 bestselling books on digital marketing including Digital Marketing Excellence and Digital Marketing: Strategy, Implementation and Practice. In 2004 he was recognised by the Chartered Institute of Marketing as one of 50 marketing ‘gurus’ worldwide who have helped shape the future of marketing. My personal site, DaveChaffey.com, lists my latest Digital marketing and E-commerce books and support materials including a digital marketing glossary. Please connect on LinkedIn to receive updates or ask me a question.
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