Have you blinked during the last few seconds? Your customers aren't where they were before your eyes closed.
All right, perhaps the changes aren’t coming that fast, but consumers are no longer the passive targets marketers once thought they were – and would still like them to be, according to Ted Leonsis, vice chairman emeritus of AOL.
How so? According to Leonsis, their needs are shifting: They have more purchasing power with no leisure time. And while some families have dual incomes, they also tend to have less savings. The real estate meltdown has left them with less cash, and family life is more fractured than in times past.
Consumers, he continued, are overscheduled and on the move, aging but living healthier and longer, more sophisticated than ever before but still searching for help, are watching less television but going online more and are self-satisfied but ultimately note happy.
And more than anything else, they place a great premium on “rolling their own” in terms of wanting choice and convenience in every aspect of their lives. This includes their online experience, the applications they use, the content they are presented with, and of there lives as a whole.
How they view what they consume is changing, as well. Increasingly they want items they consume to be free (such as sponsor supported, or given in exchange for information), and available on demand. They want the content “mashed up” – either altered to present something unique, or the ability to create unique offerings themselves. They want the ability to share their offerings, and be shared with. And above all, they want offerings to be “raw and authentic,”
“Be direct,” Leonsis said. “The new consumer can smell a phony a mile away.”
The Internet may be the best way to reach these consumers, but the Internet user community is fragmented, and user-generated content is increasingly viewed less as a privilege and more as a right.
How does one reach these consumers? The Internet offers a variety of means to make them happy, Leonsis said. Through online channels, they have opportunities at their fingertips build relationships and gain a sense of community, have a sense of self-expression, give back (whether to the community or to other causes), and pursue “higher callings.”
There is other evidence the Internet is consumers’ channel of choice. Leonsis cited statistics indicating that fewer than 35% of people under the age of 34 read a daily paper. Separately, both display and search advertising revenue are expected to grow at an estimated compound annual growth rate of 21% at least through 2011.
How does this change advertising? “Marketing isn’t just to people anymore,” says Leonsis. “You have to market to algorithms.” Meaning that coming up first in Google results, or blog searches, or Amazon.com recommendation engines can mean the difference between a successful and failed campaign.
Furthermore, marketers should realize the growing importance of harnessing the wisdom of crowds. The masses are increasingly controlling what comes up first in Google searches, what gets caught in spam filters, where National Football League betting lines are set, and even public record, such as in Wikipedia and other forums.
What advice does Leonsis offer for reaching consumers in this environment? First, listen and be open to their thoughts. Create good products with virtue – the reputation you earn will be disseminated. Since consumer-controlled advertising is only going to gain in importance, make sharing easy. Know the community you are trying to reach, and mirror it in your offerings. Be authentic, and above all else be humble.
Leonsis offered his thoughts during a keynote speech at Direct Marketing Days New York.
