This article by Corey White of Future Point of View, Scott Klososky’s consulting firm, was first published on Technology Story.
A quick keyword search on Google reports that in the month of October the term “digital marketing” was searched 135,000 times. Pop “digital marketing” into the Google search bar and you will be returned 212,000,000 results. In short, the term “digital marketing” is about as warm as a smelting furnace. Everyone is doing it, but not everyone is doing it properly. Just about everybody has a camera in their pocket, yet not everyone can snap a photo like Ansel Adams.
Technology, when utilized in an impactful way, allows you to “wow” the people you connect with. People recognize and appreciate companies that use technology to impress them and make connection easier and more personal. We call this a technology halo. Here are just a few creative ways companies are using technology to create this halo:
Using Content to Create Surprise and Emotion: Content allows you to develop an emotional connection with consumers. Yet, if content is “king” then there are more people vying for the crown than for the 2016 GOP presidential nod. That’s why it’s critical (and so difficult) for content to stand out. Maybe the last place you might expect groundbreaking video storytelling is from a venerable newspaper. Yet the New York Times is currently using virtual reality to help re-imagine digital storytelling. Its free smartphone app can currently be downloaded to view richly immersive virtual reality stories that have so far included chronicles of the recent vigils in Paris and the journeys of a group of children displaced by war. The campaign, which has been collaboration with Google and VR company VRSE, has included the distribution of free VR viewers to subscribers that are designed to enhance the viewing experience. All of this is meant to extend the Times’ reach and keep the newspaper (if it may still be referred to as that) on the bleeding edge of digital storytelling.
Utilizing Social in Creative Ways: A recent study by Pew Research found that nearly half of smartphone users 18-29 use a messaging app and 41% use an app that “automatically deletes messages,” such as Snapchat. Unique efforts on these apps can offer opportunities, if done correctly. The World Wildlife Fund learned this by utilizing Snapchat for its #LastSelfie campaign to surprising results. The fund sent nine-second Snapchat pics of endangered animals to users along with a note explaining that it might be the last time the animal is ever seen. It encouraged recipients to take screenshots and share them on other social channels, creating awareness and increasing donations. According to the WWF, after one week, 40,000 tweets hit 120 million Twitter timelines meaning 50% of all active Twitter users were exposed to the campaign.
Developing Digital Personalization: One of the great struggles of many retailers looking to create a successful eCommerce platform is how to create a brick-and-mortar experience in the digital space. This is a challenge that one famous clothing brand has faced. “We were really looking to replicate that in-store experience,” says O’Neill CEO Daniel Neukomm. “We really wanted to be able to provide that customer with direct and unique customized recommendations.”
The goal was to get the right product in front of the customer in as few clicks as possible. O’Neill turned to a personalization platform developed by Reflektion. The platform aggregates attributes like clicks, add to carts, searches, and past purchasing behavior to determine individual preferences. These are processed through an algorithm that provides individual specific recommendations for each user. Reflektion compares its system to a good store associate because of its intuitive user experience. Interest in a specific color or style are tied together to determine a unique taste leading to personalized recommendations that move a user towards a purchase. According to O’Neill, in the months following the implementation they saw an 85% jump in engagement, a 26% increase in conversion rates, and a 17% jump in average order size.
O’Neill has recently taken this one step further by bringing personalized content and offers to email subscribers. Now its email content is specifically designed around each individual recipient’s interests and even their most recent shopper intent. It’s one-to-one, designed to dramatically increase opens and clicks through the presentation of uber-relevant content to an individual. Really it’s an innovative way to get people back to the storefront by offering not items they may be interested in, but items they actually are interested in.
These are just a few ways organizations have utilized technology to create a deeper connection. Few organizations have the resources and reach of the New York Times and O’Neill, but finding ways to create a stronger and more personal connection with customers or constituents is still something that every organization can and should do. Really it begins with leadership. Leaders understand their business better than anyone. They also have the best ability to understand the needs of their constituents. Therefore, it’s important for leaders to get informed as to the most innovative ways to use technology to serve and extend reach.
Have you mapped the journey consumers walk when they engage with your organization? Have you built a Digital Revenue Engine that will help you utilize data to become a blessing to your customers while augmenting transactions and leads? Have you truly analyzed the data you currently collect from customers as well as considered data you are not collecting that you probably should be? Have you defined how you use technology in your processes and sought out ways you could be more efficient? These are important questions that leaders should be asking themselves.
Every organization has the ability to develop a technology halo. It starts with education, learning the tools and techniques that that will guide you. One can design a fancy toolbox, but that toolbox is useless if it is empty. That is why we have created the Technology Mastery Institute. We strive to offer leaders the skills they directly can use to pilot their organization towards digital maturity. We believe it is no longer appropriate for leaders to sit back and let a third party dictate technology strategy within the organization. The reins belong to you!
A former CEO of three successful tech startup companies and principal at consulting firm Future Point of View, Scott Klososky specializes in seeing beyond the horizon of how technology is changing the world. His unique perspectives on technology, business culture, and the future allow him to travel the globe as an international speaker, consultant, and author, working with senior execs in organizations ranging from the Fortune 500 to universities, nonprofits, and countless professional associations and coalitions.
