Changing the Behavior of Consumers and Lessons for Brands
How are we going to make money tomorrow? New technologies and changes in consumer’s behavior bring new challenges — not only for publishers and the media, but also for brands.
The goals of brands are to build awareness and relations with costumers, and to sell, sell, sell products or services.
These goals, in some sense, are just the same as they were before, and most brands are still using the same methods to achieve them. But we must understand that consumer behavior has changed radically.
First, let’s talk about changes in technology. There is no doubt that the Internet disrupted most industries. More and more people shop online. According to prognoses, the B2C e-commerce market worldwide will grow 30%, reaching $2 trillion in 2015. People want to have the ability to buy whatever they want, whenever they want.
At the same time, consumers are distracted and feel lost in the information flow. For example, $5.3 trillion was spent on display ads targeting U.S. consumers in 2012. Although this amount of money is mind-blowing, the fact is that the average banner ad had only a 0.1% click through rate.
Let’s be honest, when was the last time you clicked on an ad banner?
I certainly don’t remember. Nobody is clicking on banners anymore. Moreover, ad blocking software is on the rise now; around 5% of Internet users worldwide use such software, and in certain countries, this level reaches 30%.
If nobody is clicking on banners, retailers do not get any advantage from online advertising. This is a big challenge for brands as well as for publishers.
There is other data indicating a dangerous tendency for brands. According to statistics, 92% of consumers follow recommendations from their friends and family members, instead of relying on traditional advertising. Just 10% of consumers trust information delivered by brands.
What I want to point out is that it’s no longer enough to provide just an opportunity to buy online and run an ad banners campaign. Surprisingly enough, however, many brands continue to do so. As I mentioned earlier, $5.3 trillion was spent for this particular purpose in one year. Which means that brands are still trying to say something to their consumers in a language they don’t use anymore. Why?
The answer is rather simple — consumers are not only reluctant to trust brands, they also want to be engaged. They want to not only talk with a brand, but to talk at any time convenient for them.
This tendency can be seen as a challenge and as an opportunity as well. The main goals for publishers and bloggers are to engage users by teaching them, entertaining them, and building long lasting relationships based on trust. They can influence user behavior and their choices. If there is no opportunity to ask friends or family, a consumer is more likely to trust influencers (bloggers) or publishers.
This is the meeting point for brands and publishers. It is clear that the age of traditional ad banners is coming to an end, and brands have to find new ways to build awareness and interact with their customers. Fortunately, publishers and influencers are here to help deal with this challenge.
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