Tag: marketing strategy

If you want to improve your brand’s visibility and promote your products or services, don’t make them the centrepiece of your marketing strategy. That’s right, the time for traditional, product or service-focused marketing is over. It has, in fact, been a no-go zone for a long time.

As customer expectations continue to evolve rapidly, driven by digitalisation and changing needs, brands need to find new and exciting ways to communicate and engage with consumers and provide authentic and personalised experiences that demonstrate the value a brand has placed on each customer.

Study shows more than 85% of surveyed South African shoppers say retailers need to get better at giving them the products, service and experience they want. South Africans surveyed form part of a study of over 30,000 global online consumers from 18 countries. 

In today’s corporate world, data is power, and for a business strategy to be worthwhile, it must be supported by substantial data. Moreover, without research, it will be difficult for organisations to identify areas of improvement.

Marketing technology (martech) is growing in popularity, and there is no shortage of statistics to support the benefits that technology can bring to the marketing arena. However, while many software offerings and tools tout to help marketing teams achieve their goals and objectives, they can also add to the complexity of the day-to-day.

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) found that South Africa has one of the highest business start-up failure rates in the world. In the GEM National Entrepreneurship Context Index (the NECI Index), South Africa ranks 49th out of 54 countries, ahead of only Croatia, Guatemala, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, and Iran. Often, people think that the number one thing an entrepreneur needs is a winning idea.

An interview with Desiree Gullan, Executive Creative Director, Gullan and Gullan Digital, and Dr Ivor Blumenthal, CEO, ArkKonsult, discussing why in the digital era, it’s never been more difficult for brands to break through the deluge of information and penetrate consumer’s ever decreasing attention spans.

In the digital era, it's never been more difficult for brands to break through the deluge of information and penetrate consumer’s ever decreasing attention spans. Your brand messaging is one of the most important aspects of a marketing communications strategy. From the language used, to the tone it is delivered in, successful brand messages will result in your target audience resonating with your brand, and be more open to receiving your content.

Beware of the marketing experts who warn you not to cut your marketing budget, with their perennial slogan, 'cutting your budget would be an overreaction that could be costly to your company in the long run'.

Whether they like it or not, all business owners engage in some form of marketing, but many neglect to adopt a strategic approach. It’s not surprising then that marketing was highlighted as the area in which most business owners feel they require skills training, according to the most recent National Small Business Survey by the National Small Business Chamber.