The business landscape for consumer product companies are shifting. New digital technologies are empowering consumers and giving them access to more information than ever before, and as a result shoppers relationship and interaction with brands are changing. According to a study from IBM, business leaders and executives are starting to acknowledge this change and realizing that the brand experience should be a top priority. 74% of surveyed executives said that creating compelling brand experiences is their top priority.
Today's great technology advancements is not only changing consumer behaviors, but also attitudes and expectations which in turn is putting pressure on consumer product companies to re-think and analyze their marketing strategy. IBM's study reveal that there are three things brands can do in order to meet these behavioural and technological changes:
Infographic from IBM
In my recent book, Digilogue: How to Win the Digital Minds and Analogue Hearts of Tomorrow's Customer, I argue that businesses need to put more effort into creating Smart Local Branding Experiences. Similar to the case that IBM make in their report I believe that compelling brand experiences should be highly personalized and contextualized. I think this approach and focus on brand experience is essential in today's digital landscape where brands are competing for customers time and attention.
Because brands are now focused on consumers' attention spans it have become increasingly important to create and distribute valuable content that attracts specific target audiences. One brand who understands this is the UK fashion retailer Mr Porter which have successfully combined commerce with content. Their website looks more like a premium online magazine than a typical fashion webshop, and the fascinating brand stories, beautiful imagery, style guides and how-to-videos on mrporter.com creates a digital experience that's both differentiated and memorable.