Budget Strategy and ROI (Part 6 of 6)

This series asks the tough questions about evolving marketing strategies and the benefits and returns you should expect and plan for.

Necessary shifts in thinking

We’ve reached the end of our 6-part look at how shifts in the digital landscape have forced marketing departments to rethink budgetary planning from traditional marketing strategies and “big idea” campaigns to targeted, relationship-building activities.

It’s a buyer’s market

The online discussion space is a consumer’s paradise and favors their influence over the producer’s. The thriving digital world has brought with it an efficient knowledge market. News travels faster than ever, and the general, known information about a product or service is more immediate — and often more accurate — than ever.

What’s the worst that could happen?

The penalty for non- or limited participation, even insincere participation, represents a potential opportunity cost greater than the cost of comprehensive engagement.

Let’s look at the potential consequences of a digital communication strategy that is not aimed at contributing to the infinite discussion.

Non-participation
You might be making the assumption that your market doesn’t exist in the digital world. This is wrong. There are millions of conversations going on about a million topics. There are likely conversations going on about your product or service that, if ignored, you will have no influence over.

Further, you’ll glean no insight from them. Non-participation represents a missed opportunity to build extremely valuable relationships with consumers. You’re also leaving the opportunity open to the competition.

Limited participation
You might start a Twitter account or a blog to publish press releases or announce new products. You don’t monitor these accounts and maybe you don’t reply to your followers or publish any of their critical comments. You assume your one-way conversation is enough to get news out to the web.

Wrong again! Social media and internet forums are not traditional news outlets looking to just rebroadcast your news. It’s a networking event; there has to be a give and take. You’ll be called out by the very audience you’re trying to reach as just trying to extract dollars from their wallets. Your reputation will take a hit. This could potentially be even worse than not participating at all, because you’ll be viewed by the community as completely uninterested in the discussion.

Caveat: For those whose products suck, we salute you!

If your instinct tells you to hold off on engaging in the online world for fear of bad-product backlash — follow your instinct! There is nowhere to hide.

Poor quality products and services are exposed and flushed out of the market much sooner; and better, more competitive products will replace them at break-neck speed. If your product won’t hold up to consumer scrutiny, hold off on cannon-balling into the digital space to tout your wares, at least until your wares are worth touting.

The takeaway

The only way to extract value from the endless conversation that is the internet is to openly and honestly interact with it. Provide the discussion with relevant, quality content that informs the existing discussion, and listen to what comes from it.

Building trust and relationships with your audience will ultimately lead to sales in the long term.