Understanding the dynamics of the new consumer universe. An excerpt from my keynote address at the Latin American Communication Festival at Rio.
There was a time when the bull’s eye of brand building was at the centre of the communication and the consumer universe. Today, it is no longer fixed – it is wherever the consumer goes. We now have a ‘moving target’!
Again, we had above-the line, below-the-line and, indeed, online as a system of segmenting conversations with consumers. Today, the lines have, literally, blurred.
In fact ‘target’ as a phrase is more about a mindset or a mode or a moment, rather than a demographic.
With such dynamics rapidly changing the playing field, the integration agenda that agencies are talking about becomes a very interesting one. Given the new role of behavioural economics in all of this – with online and offline behavioural patterns being vastly different as well – it’s a highly interactive world we live in.
So which medium is at the heart the campaign? What is the role of channel planning? How are manufacturers and consumers enjoying co-parenting brands? These are question that will determine where the bull’s eye has to move – and where brands have to align themselves in relation to that.
These are the most exciting times for marketers. Because these are the most engaging times for consumers.