Traditional marketing tactics support the ‘ becoming ’ part of being top of mind , but seldom do they support the ‘ remaining ’ part of the equation .
contents of the flyer . This is not two-way communication , especially in today ’ s society .
In 2021 , an example of enabling twoway communication as a marketer is by creating and publishing content assets that serve the interests and needs of your target audience and allowing them to comment on , or react to , those assets . That is twoway communication between a brand and a ( prospective ) customer .
Personally , I am of the opinion that ‘ direct response campaigns ’ are old fashioned and that we ’ ve entered the era of ‘ continuous dynamic response campaigns ’.
Having worked in retail , including on the coal face as a customer service representative in QSR ( fast food ) outlets , I have always appreciated the desire of customers to converse with those serving them ( well not everyone , some don ’ t even want you to say hi , but many !). It was always a priority for me to build a relationship with the most regular customers , and this was only achieved by allowing two-way communication . Instead of simply saying ‘ Enjoy the free garlic bread you ’ ve redeemed . Have a great night and make sure you redeem the offer on the next flyer you receive !’, I built such strong relationships with some customers , that I would provide them with complimentary products in a highly personalised manner . I didn ’ t need flyers to do so , because I afforded attention to their loyalty to the business and would recognise it .
Digital solutions are increasingly being developed to support brands with improving their approach to brand communications . Consider chatbots : they ’ re a great tool if configured , implemented and monitored well . If , however , you simply add a chatbot widget to your website because you think prospective customers will feel loved when a little window nudges them to answer a generic question , you are likely to be disappointed .
A chatbot , like any other solution designed to support automation of customer communications for a brand , should be designed , developed and deployed with an appreciation for the art of service design - which is an integrated approach to business process improvement , concerning internal and external stakeholders . It must be useful .
3 Don ’ t just build followers - build real influence
Influence isn ’ t just about followers : put in the work to know the best way of quantifying influence for your brand .
In today ’ s noisy social media ecosystems , we ’ ve rapidly been conditioned to perceive follower count to be the direct measure of influence . It ’ s not . There are ample case studies , some very comical , to demonstrate that follower count does not necessarily correlate with business performance .
At its simplest , influence pertains to behaviour . Can you influence the behaviour of others ? Can you influence the perceptions of others ? Can you influence the decisions of others ?
When someone elects to ‘ follow ’ your social media page or profile , they have been influenced , either directly or indirectly , to press or touch a digital button prompt . It doesn ’ t mean , however , that you have succeeded in influencing behaviours or decisions that translate into business outcomes for your brand ( be it personal or enterprise ). Real , meaningful and material influence is longer lasting and more substantial than a follower count increasing by one , and your content rapidly being lost in a noisy newsfeed . In fact , if you have no material influence on this new follower , there is a danger that they may even be hijacked by a competitor who can now ‘ see ’ their interests and deploy targeted digital marketing tactics to override your previous efforts .
The belief that a social media follower count is the direct measure of influence can lead marketers to all sorts of trouble , including declining sales , increased cost of lead acquisition and challenges retaining customers .
It is critical that you investigate and determine what metrics are most representative of your ability to influence prospective customers , and then focus on those . For some brands , it can be follower count - but for most , it is not . Metric maturity - own it .
Catch Sally at upcoming Fitness Tech Summit
This July , Sally is presenting at the Fitness & Recreation Industry Technology Summit ( FRITS ) in Sydney , where she will join a lineup of presenters sharing their perspectives on the effective integration of technology in the fitness industry . For details go to
fitnessindustrytechsummit . com . au
A thoughtful convergence of people and technology
The fitness sector has diverse scope for engaging and sustainable transformation using fit for purpose technology to enhance brand communications and strengthen influence - whether the objective is to grow virtual memberships or increase foot traffic to physical outlets .
Compartmentalising the chaos of technology transformation is key . Technology itself will not resurrect sales or transform customer and employee experiences . It is the thoughtful convergence of people and technology that will enable real and valuable business outcomes . A wise friend , who previously served as the VP of Sales for IBM and achieved 16 consecutive quarters of growth , once said to me ‘ know your customer , know yourself and know your competitor ’. If you ’ d like to broaden your thinking on the convergence of people and technology , click here to watch a 9-minute
keynote I delivered in 2019 .
Sally Illingworth Sally thrives on complex adaptive projects , specialising in operations and strategy as a consultant . She has a knack for assimilating and interpreting information and is highly skilled at understanding business-facing and customer-facing communication requirements .
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