10 Key Lessons to Take Away from the MU Digital Summit
- Conferences = networking opportunity
Hundreds of students and professionals rubbed elbows at the Digital Summit, including participants from Laughlin Constable, Spotify, Google, Microsoft and more. Some Marquette students had the opportunity to get up close with speakers as student ambassadors by greeting them and introducing them. But anyone has the opportunity to network at a conference like the Digital Summit by sitting at a lunch table where you don’t know anyone, exchanging business cards and then following up with a LinkedIn connection or an email. You never know where it might lead.
2. Keep personality and character in brands
Laughlin Constable practices what they preach by keeping personality in brands. For example, they personalized the face of cancer in a campaign for Aurora, they’re proud of their local roots by transforming a concession stand into a mock super club, they’re unafraid to tell it like it is when it comes to beer, socializing and college student.
3. Don’t underestimate the power of YouTube
There are over 1 million different beauty, health, and wellness channels on YouTube. YouTubers such as Michelle Phan, Zoella, and Bethany Mota all have millions of subscribers on their beauty channels. Men and women both use YouTube as a tool to learn about the pros and cons products, how to use products, and other tips and tricks. YouTube is a great way to get yourself out there and to promote yourself.
4. The media allows us to be anything
Mobile apps like Instagram and Snapchat have changed the way that we think about taking pictures. Is this worthy of posting to Instagram? Do I care that everyone I have on Snapchat will see my story? Our phones allow us to capture every moment of our lives and share them with the world. Facebook’s recent trend is Tasty videos — videos that show step by step how to prepare interesting meals. These are viewed by millions of people and shared across Facebook thousands of times. People watch them and think, “Hey, I can make that!” Each platform is a chance for us to become someone else and to learn something new.
5. Consumer trust is the key
If your consumers don’t trust you, how can you expect them to buy anything you’re selling or do anything that you tell them to do? Augie Ray spoke about this and talked about what he called the Customer Experience (CX) Pyramid. It starts with simply stating that consumers want valuable information. The pyramid gradually works its way up to the top, where it states that consumers want to feel good, safe, and powerful.
6. Insight is everything
Going off of number 2… The Laughlin Constable agency is huge on brand personality. This involves creating a relationship with your audience. How do they do that? They do research about their audiences and then use the media to cater to their needs. Their Facebook page is great because it has pictures of their employees going out and interacting with clients in the real world. Gaining insight and seeing things from a different perspective can change everything.
7. The days of buying and downloading music are over
Step aside iTunes. Spotify is here and he’ll be here for a while. Dan Williams says that “millennials are sound-tracking their lives.” As a millennial, I can say that this statement is entirely true. I personally make a new playlist for every month of the year. In addition to that, I have playlists called “sleep,” “on the road,” and “shower.” Dan also noted that on average, Spotify users spend 2.5 hours a day streaming music.
8. Sharing is caring
We should use the media as a way to connect with others, build communities, and share what we’ve learned. Brad Heidemann’s advice to students at the Summit was to focus on the quality rather than the quantity of what we’re creating.
9. Content is a huge factor
Just because your ad is funny or visually pleasing doesn’t mean that it’s a well made ad. The content is equally important — the main idea has to be clear to the audience. Start with quality content and then focus on a creative way to present that information.
10. Stand out from the crowd
With technology and media growing daily, it’s important to try and set yourself apart from others. There are so many media outlets and products for consumers to pick and choose from. Think about what makes your product unique and what you can do to grab their attention.