Sivaram Kuppachi, CEO & Bonny Philip, Brand Manager, Zamstars Management Services

We are often asked sceptically, “Is Digital Marketing really going to add value to my business? How many ‘Leads’ can we get?”. Clients expect digital platforms to generate leads from day one. While quality leads are a favourable outcome of any Digital Marketing campaign, we need to gain a deeper understanding of the true ‘Outcomes’ for Digital Marketing efforts.

Too many Digital Touch points to ignore

What is the goal of Digital Marketing? To connect with the right Audience (Prospects, Influencers, Promoters, Critics, etc) at the right moment when most open to ‘influence’. Let’s consider a familiar Customer Decision Journey (CDJ) based on latest McKinsey Insights:

• A customer considering buying an SUV, will form his/her initial consideration set based on ads splashed across billboards, TV, magazines and online channels.

• The customer evaluates brands based on online research (websites, online offers, reviews & comparison sites) and on word of mouth.

• Eventually after multiple test drives, the customer buys the SUV of his/her choice.

• Post-purchase, based on good service and overall experience, the customer becomes a brand advocate influencing others to buy the same.

• With continued brand engagement through social media, the customer bonds with the brand and is likely to go back for his second purchase or “recommend” the brand to others.

 This entire Consumer Decision Journey has multiple digital touch points which are opportunities for businesses to make their presence felt and effectively influence customers’ buying decisions.

At Zamstars, we use a simple yet effective approach to influence the customer buying decision. Attract, Engage, Influence and Delight are the four gates around which our digital campaigns and social communications revolve.

Digital Disruption is here to stay

With digital disruption, the balance of power has now shifted to consumers, where they depend on content vis-a-vis. blogs, online reviews, social platforms, online aggregators, mobile apps, coupons and price comparison sites to arrive at purchase decision. It has transformed the way consumers review or buy products and services. This disruption is challenging the ‘status quo’ of traditional business models. Hence, it is all the more important for companies to add a digital dimension to their brand voice.

Incidentally many businesses are resisting the digital wave. They are way behind than most when it comes to exploiting digital channels as part of their marketing and sales strategies. Some reasons are:

• They do not see any immediate results to justify digital spends; Emphasis is only on ‘Leads’

• Continuous dependency on Brick and Mortar channels

• ‘Inertia’ to Change

“Lack of digital disruption” is causing a strain to businesses that adopt traditional marketing practices. The Lodging and Travel industry has been disrupted by players like Airbnb, Ola and Uber. A traditional industry like offline retail has seen some ground breaking changes due to online retail with Omni-channel being the next big trend. ATMs have moved to Paytm.

Building Brands, Customers Love through Digital Marketing

Digital commerce in India itself is touted to touch 2.1 lakh crore by December 2016 according to IAMAI-IMRB Report (Internet and Mobile Association of India). Digital Marketing empowers brands to have a well-targeted audience and personalised campaigns, at lesser costs per reach, compared to traditional marketing channels.

Businesses need to go beyond focusing on leads alone and build a brand that customers can connect with. But this takes effort and time. A combination of organic and paid strategies needs to be in place across social channels to get the desired social ripple effect. According to Stewart Butterfield the founder of Slack, media success is defined by ‘20 percent content and 80 percent people posting about it.’

Marketing campaigns of many brands are focused on generating engaging digital content. Traditional companies like MTR Foods, ANP CPMC (Construction Project Management Consultants), etc, are aiming to curate engaging conversations through digital marketing. Cadbury Choclairs Gold rolled out ‘#SayAaa’ Social Media campaign, where engagement was built by getting people to say "Aaa" in innovative ways. IPL 2016 clocked over 3.1 million mentions across Twitter, blogs, forums and Google news, banking on which companies tried to boost their own engagement. #VivoIPL received around two lakh plus mentions, followed by Kingfisher's #UnitedByGoodTimes campaign that got over one lakh mentions.

To stay competitive in this brave new world, brands must form meaningful connections with the people who matter most: those who find value in their brand. Your brand voice needs to stand out and strike a chord with your customer. Digital Marketing has to be a part of a business’s marketing mix, to create a customer experience that will make them come back for more. If your business hasn’t adopted the digital way yet, then it’s about time you
get started.

The Zeal to Achieve more

Businesses need an eco-system that combines the three core functions of growth – Marketing, Branding and Sales. To create such a holistic approach for clients, at Zamstars, we have devised a unique formula, {m+b+s}^e = g i.e. Marketing, Branding and Sales with the power of seamless Execution results in exponential Growth for any organisation. We leverage digital, non-digital and human assets that perform Outcome-Driven activities for business growth. The culture and fabric of Zamstars lies in the success of our clients.