Learnings from the prodigies of marketing
Hi my loves, this blog is going to be about how different Godin’s ideas are from the viewpoints cited in the Kerin text. So, buckle up readers, for we will be exploring some kickass formulas to marketing with the prodigies of marketing! I would absolutely love it if you share your thoughts on this topic with me! 😊
To begin with, I am a part of the last few generations of millennials to be born before Gen Z made their way into the world. While Gen Z pretty much grew up to be tech savvy, millennials on the other hand got to live through a world where traditional advertising was still the rage. However, as the world adapted to new forms of technology, everyone saw a huge shift in the world of marketing where digital marketing began to start giving advertisers a lot more results than the traditional forms of marketing!
In a world where people are closely connected via internet, one thing I noticed is that Godin’s ideologies work better for this fast-paced world compared to the ideologies mentioned in the Kerin text.
In my opinion, here’s why:
“Ideas that spread win.” — Godin.
The widespread usage of internet by customers makes it the perfect space for marketeers to reach their target audience. Content that goes viral not only stays ‘top of mind’ for the customers but also lets the brand see the effect of their campaign in a more tangible manner. They get live and organic feedback directly from their target group! With traditional mediums such as television, newspaper, magazines, outdoor advertising on billboards, radio ads, etc. this quick turn around time on statistics of how well a campaign actually did is not possible. It also gets difficult to track which medium influenced the consumer most to actually make a purchase. With new tracking tools on internet, brands can track this today.
In the Kerin text what I noticed is the focus of marketers is on fulfilling the needs of consumers but without feedback from customers it can get risky to simply launch a product only with the help of groups of individuals that represent the target group. In today’s world, consumers have so many options that a brand voice to stand out is also highly important. To know exactly what to say, the brand will need to constantly stay in touch with the entire universe of their target groups and be able to reach them at every stage of the user journey while the consumer ‘checks the brand out’.
2. “Culture beats strategy — so much that culture is strategy.” — Godin
Exclusive website memberships, exclusive access to groups across social media and special discounts and offers are all easily available across online platforms! Consumers can join an ongoing discussion or start a new one and share how they feel about the brand — thereby, not only be able to talk with the brand but also with each other thus building a strong sense of community! A brand that is backed up by its tribe is considered not only cool but also is very beneficial for businesses in the long run — it shows a loyal customer base that actively helps the brand to stay relevant with the target group in an evolving market.
How can a consumer build a community that stays connected regularly, that shares common likes and dislikes with each other while also sharing the common love for your brand offline? Tell me, how challenging would this be for a brand to be able to achieve such a community only with offline marketing mediums aforementioned in the point number one? Where Godin has stated the importance of a brand having its own dedicated community, the Kerin text has not acknowledged the same. The Kerin text briefly touches upon relationship building with consumers through the company’s mission, vision and value statement but it is not enough to build a community.
3. “Marketing in five steps” by Godin vs the 4 ‘P’s of marketing in the Kerin text
Step one in the book by Godin is to invent a product that consumers need, with a story that is worth telling the world. The step two involves ensuring that this product/service is designed in such a way that the said target group benefits from it and begins to care about it personally. Step three is to tell a brand story that matches the narrative and the dreams of that group of target audience — the brand’s smallest viable market. The fourth step is to generate excitement about your brand and spread the word — create virality. The fifth step which Godin says about showing up for your target group regularly, generously and consistently over and over for years is overlooked by the Kerin text. In this step, Godin states that a brand must make its target audience feel trust and confidence in the brand, so that they choose your brand over any competitor. The trust must be so much that it also earns the brand permission to follow up with their target group while earning the privilege to teach them solutions to their problems.
Product, pricing, promotion and placement of the ads (considered the 4 ‘P’s of marketing) are all very important part of ‘selling’ the brand to the consumers. However, While the first four steps are more or less the same as the 4 of marketing in the Kerin text, the latter skips the last step completely.
4. “What you say is not nearly as important as what others say about you.” — Godin
Brand perception can be highly affected via modern mediums such as influencers and greatly controlled via online reputation management and PR articles. Brand perception is what makes the brand ‘cool’ or ‘uncool’.
The Kerin text does not give tools to manage the brand perception.
Thus, to conclude, in today’s disruptive world, Godin’s ideas really help a marketer build a successful 360° marketing strategy that is disruptive and end-to-end — one that works in tandem with the constantly emerging new trends of an evolving market.
Note: Readers, please note that both both texts have important insights into the world of marketing and although the above mentioned points are my personal observations, I urge you all to please read the books yourself and decide for yourself what you think. 😊
What did you think about the above-mentioned points? Do you agree/ disagree? Do leave a comment and let me know why as well! 😊
Thank you for reading! Have a wonderful day or night!
