Last year talked about how digital is infusing everything and the data would mean that brands could and should be a)building products with data informing it and considering how to get data out of it and b) generally behaving more responsively. This year, I’m presenting research that I conducted with two of my Forrester colleagues that proves that we’re already in this world. And as I as thinking about how I wanted to present this to you, this happened.
I hope you arent too comfortable out there…I know its early in the morning but I want you to join me on a workout. Style is not for every1 – come with me on a fitness break and we will make sure we where these….
Under Armour’s new smart shoes which track your stride, your pace, even the rhythm of your gait to help you run healthier for your body, and better against your specific fitness which you manage with Under Armour’s fitness ecosystem.
Custom nutrition guides, fitness planners, product offers, and community, all based on your activity levels, environmental conditions like the weather or the integrity of your gear. This means, when head out together Under Armour will make sure you aren’t just along for Shar’s workout, but rather for one that is customized to you…complete with your favorite tunes which amp when your smart shoes tell your play list that you need some music motivation.
Based on your activity level, preferences, and some contexual data like weather, wear / tear on your gear. Come along with me..NOT my workout, something customized just for you..fav tunes amped up…smart shoes tell your playlist you need music motiviation.
So if you come along with me you wont be doing MY workout..you will have something customized just for you…down to fav tunes AMP up bc smart shoes told your playlist you are slowing down and need music to amp up
This example is the perfect blend of marketing and CX.
Its frictionless – blend of CX and marketing
Anticipatory - Creates one to moment marketing – anticipating user needs and stress levels
Immersive – not an online or offline program, it’s a utility program, integrated into life activity.
It demonstrates post-digital marketing
How you can do the same thing….UA example has a lot of moving parts. Let me distil out the Fundamental world view of a post-digital marketer
Frictionless, anticipatory and immersive. All good stuff. But why do we call this The Post-Digital World? Aren’t we still in digital? Well, no. We’ve moved so quickly that we’re past mere digital. For 3 primary reasons. 3 ways you can tell
First, due to the proliferation of consumer digital devices you have to understand that customers are entitled, not just empowered.
This means that we have excrutiatingly high expectations for their interactions with you.
empowered was 5 years ago. entitled is today. empowered may they were able to demand things; entitled means they now expect seamless experiences and get angry when they have to demand them.
Consider that the avg US online adult uses more than 4 connected devices every day.
And as the age gets younger, the number of devices gets higher. Where they use those devices is increasingly diversified both in and outside of the home. And we track this phenomenon using a segmentation we call the always addressable customer.
Always addressable customers use 3 or more internet-connected devices to access the internet multiple times a day or constantly throughout the day, in multiple physical locations like home, work, on the train, in the park, and in a store. In 2011, just over half of Americans self-reported as being always addressable. Last year, that number rose to nearly two-thirds and this year it will certainly be higher.
We are so used to immediate, contextually relevant experience w brands…that this is what we expect.
This constant connectedness has trained us to EXPECT speedy, contextually relevant brand experiences.
So digital devices ushered in this era of entitled customers, but it’s happened so quickly that now, calling out what is "digital" isn't relevant, or even possible, because digital is part of everything.
No longer relevant to talk about what is digital – its in everything.
Think about this…59% percent of us use our mobile phones while shopping in a physical store.
Twenty-two percent stream television programming to watch anywhere on any device
You see this popping up….In store experiences are becoming increasingly digitized like virtual try-on at Uniqlo, TopShop and other retailers.
And even sports leagues– notoriously persnickety about replay rights– are testing virtual reality courtside seats, like you see here for the NBA. Premium VIP experience from your own home.
The 3rd way you can tell we are in post digital world..regardless of the channel we are talong about…digital insights are fueling biz strategy. All of the data you can get derive from digital resources is going into planning across the company.
And what’s more, even if you’re not thinking about digital channels, with digital ubiquity, businesses gain more intimate access to customers and to digitally derived insights that aid business planning.
Princess cruises uses wristbands to collect customer data to streamline embarkation, improve luggage handling, and offer above-and-beyond experiences. For example, a robotic bartender on board will mix your favorite cocktail based on previous drink orders.
John Hancock uses private label fitbits to optimizes insurance policy pricing. Digital sitting in the background influenceing the entire business.
This is HOW you know we are in the post-digital world.
So that’s why we’re in the post-digital era. But what exactly is post-digital marketing? Simply put…
NOT thinking about what is traditional vs digital, marketing does this – some1 else does that, what media, impressions, clicks, drive the next best action…post digital marketing is about….
ADD STUFF HERE FROM NOT MEDIA, NOT CLICKS AND IMPRESSIONS, NOT PUSHING TO PURCHASE. Post Digital marketing is doing what you say. It’s NOT thinking in terms of digital or interactive and traditional. It’s NOT drawing a hard line in the sand between marketing and other departments. It’s NOT focusing exclusively on what media you’ll buy or how many impressions you’ll drive. Post-digital marketers do what they say.
Post-digital marketers make good on their promises– everywhere the customer interacts with them, regardless of “channel”.
They work with product, ecommerce and customer experience colleagues to solve problems, not just communicate.
They consider what combination of communication, utility and experience a user needs throughout her lifecycle.
Most marketing strategy today revolved around what type of media should I buy?
Post-digital marketer must answer how can I solve customer problems
Program management today focuses on what next offer will drive a customer purchase
Post-digital marketer asks: how can I reduce the stress of my customer’s decision process
Marketing measurement today focuses on how many impressions or clicks did I drive.
Post-digital marketer evaluates: have I consistently demonstrated my brand promise everywhere
Post-digital marketers make good on their promises– everywhere the customer interacts with them, regardless of “channel”.
They work with product, ecommerce and customer experience colleagues to solve problems, not just communicate.
They consider what combination of communication, utility and experience a user needs throughout her lifecycle.
To do this you need to think differently about the world, the marketing function, and the role you play at your organization.
Change your mindset – reimagine the marketing function and your role in it. Not about spending more $$ on martech
Post digital marketing doesn’t need more technology, nor a host of new processes. In fact, if you balance the best of all of your previous practices in a way that has never been done before you can throw out what is no longer applicable.
To do this you need to think differently about the world, the marketing function, and the role you play at your organization.
3 rules to follow to help shift into the post-digital world:
Be Human – Treat your customers like people, be authentic and anticipatory. You must respond to situations with empathy.
Be Helpful – Solve problems– don’t just hawk products.
Be Handy – Be dexterous enough to flex wit the context of a situation.
You notices that I didn’t talk about technology. That’s the point. Technology facilitates and supports these three rules, but the focus is no longer on the tech itself– it’s on serving your customers and doing what you say.,
Let’s break each of these down a little further and see how technology is supportive but not the “main entrée”
Let’s start with Be Human.
This is all about treating your customers as people by being authentic, empathetic and inclusive.
I wear contacts – have for about 15 years and usually order my lenses from 1800Contacts. For those of us who wear lenses you know that you need a valid prescription in order to purchase. 1800Contacts tracks how often I order and at what quantity and sends me friendly email reminders often that its time to re-order (its all automated, using data). But a few weeks ago I received a personal phone call / voicemail from them informing me that my lens prescription was expiring in 2 weeks time and I would have to submit a new/valid one if I wanted to place a future order (here or anywhere else). The point here is that did not send an automated email with this notification BUT picked up the phone and personally called me bc it was important (and reminded me to get my annual eye exam. HUMAN – called, left a voicemail vs email.
Quite simply, be helpful means solve a customer pain.
Staples is a great example of this. Business technology and marketing worked together at Staples to create its “easy system” -- a self learning system which replenishes office supplies based on email, text messages, a mobile app, or voice commands all with an intent to demonstrate Staples’ brand promise: We make it easy to make more happen.
In Oct Staples reached the next phase of its Staples Easy System pilot program, unveiling the new cognitive-enabled “Easy Button” office supply reordering system which integrates IBM’s Watson technology to simplify office supply management for Staples Business Advantage Customers. The Staples Easy System brings the “on-demand” world to businesses, allowing customers to order anytime, anywhere, from any device they prefer
SO helpful…MD Anderson Cancer center…has launched an online community that connects doctors all over the world– and their patients– to the studies and resources that their cancer center has available to ensure that patients get the best treatment possible without having to leave home.
So far, it’s contributed to the treatment of nearly 30,000 patient cases on a local basis. How’s that for being helpful?
To be handy – you need to be dextrous enough to cooperate productively, thrive in changing market conditions and accommodate dynamic user needs. It is not about digital or not digital. It is about taking a lean approach to get things done better. Move from 1-1 to one – moment marketing….
This feature has been available since 2015 and is now available at 4,000+ hotels around the globe. Guests can chat with employees directly as well as request things such as extra towels right from a menu within the app.
As post-digital marketers become dexterous enough to accommodate dynamic user needs, 1:1 marketing, which is already tough, will move to 1:moment marketing which is even tougher. It’s also necessary though because the same person may have different needs in this moment than the last one. Gatorade has taken steps toward this already. Its new “smart cap” bottles pace an athlete’s rehydration based on detected sweat levels.
So you can see through these examples how technology facilitates and supports these three rules. Now let’s take a look at how this can all come together to serve customers in a particular moment.
I recently heard a story about one airlines that I think sums up this idea of post-digital marketing perfectly. An elite-level flier was waiting for his flight in the lounge. He went to find the newspaper that he always reads in this lounge before he takes off, but it wasn’t there. He Tweeted the airline, saying that he was disappointed that the lounge didn’t have his favorite pre-flight reading material. Because KLM has a thoroughly-connected always-on corporate culture, the employees manning Twitter found out which flight he was on, how long he had before departure, and who the flight attendants on that flight were. The flight attendants are all equipped with iPads, so they received a message about this passenger before boarding. One of them went to the newsstand in the airport, got the paper, and put it on the passenger’s seat so it was waiting for him when he boarded. Surprise and delight? Obviously. IT’s also human, helpful, and handy.
To sum up:
Post-digital marketers Do what you say.
Mastering digital is a crucial step on your path to post-digital so pay attention and master this.
Not about tech investments and streamlining processes..its about a to totally new mind set requiring you and your team to be…HUMAN, HELPFUL, and HANDY…starting right now.
Starting right now.
