We know that different mediums require different business models, but because digital platforms – online and mobile – change and progress faster than their predecessors, it takes some time to identify trends and pinpoint exactly how to use current technology to your business’s advantage. In its latest brief, Trendwatching.com identifies and comprehensively discusses the development of online business practice over the past couple of years.
The brief outlines a concept called ‘brand butlers’ and I think they’ve hit the nail on the head. In the colonial days of yesteryear butlers were employed primarily to assist people in their daily lives, to take care of the tedious administrative part of an experience so their masters could indulge in the pleasurable part. They provided a service which enhanced the lifestyle of those who could afford to pay for it.
This is exactly how businesses need to approach their online strategies. Web 2.0 has turned the internet into a user-centric environment where individuals spend time on social networks expressing parts of their life experience, which often includes their wants and needs, and their satisfaction or frustration with certain products, services and systems.
Essentially there has been a significant power shift. Previously advertisers would create a branded image aimed to elicit desire for a certain lifestyle in their target market. But online consumers are less naïve and impressionable. If they desire a particular lifestyle it is that of their contacts on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Confident in their identities they know what they want, which means that as a business you need to offer them a service, a way to supplement or enhance their existing lifestyle, rather than convince them to buy into a new one.
From Trendwatching.com’s post: “In uncertain times, there’s also a consumer longing for institutions that truly ‘care’, which is more about showing empathy and providing customers with a status fix than being purely practical. This too requires brands to master more service-oriented personae.”
Like the Trendwatching brief describes, time, convenience, control and independence are the new currencies as the consumer continuously seeks ways to streamline and better their personal experiences. They are looking to interact with brands on and individual level in a conversational manner, which will add value to their lives – not to be confused with gimmicky entertainment marketing or traditional customer service.
The brief is very detailed and provides numerous examples of good quality ‘brand bultering’: “Domino’s Pizza Tracker allows US customers to follow the progress of their pizza order from preparation through to delivery via a web interface…Beck’s Gig Finder app helps users to find local music gigs. The app’s map and GPS interface allow users to see where he or she is in relation to the gigs”.
The full post is well worth a read and will give you ideas on how best to harness the online medium for your business. An innovative and value-added approach to branding strategy coupled with good SEO is a winning recipe for online business.
