I admit! I hate commercials on the television and still I want to be a marketer. Weird? I don’t think so, too me a marketer is someone that can think and act outside the box. That’s why I’m a big fan of the new marketing trend that’s called interactive advertising and more specific interactive billboards.

We all see many billboards while driving to work or going to school. But we almost never remember any of them when we reach our destination. Some clever marketers have a solution to this problem. They want to surprise passers-by and make them a part of their ad. This has a double effect. First of all customers are surprised and they will remember the billboard much longer. Secondly they will create a bound with the brand and will be more likely to buy it in the future.

A nice example of a marketing campaign that includes this is the IBM campaign. They have created a billboard that adapts itself to the colour of the clothes the viewer is wearing. With this billboard IBM wants to demonstrate that a smarter supply chain that can adapt itself better is important, e.g.: in the fashion industry. They want to give every customer a different experience.

Another amazing billboard is this one below of Cadbury Eggs. Everyone that uses the buss sometimes knows how annoying it is to wait. Cadbury wanted to change this bad experience into a fun time for the consumers. By creating a game in their billboard, people get entertained and get a better feeling towards the brand.

I hope that these billboards will be used sooner than later in Belgium. But for the moment, I’m still annoyed while waiting at the buss stop. So I hope that the Belgian brands get to this kind of advertising as soon as possible!

Lisa 

The newest concept in the marketing world is called ‘Virgin Consumers’. The non-stop flows of new products, services, apps and experiences as well as new brands ensure that almost everyone is now a ‘Virgin Consumer’. 

According to trendwatching.com we can see to parts of the ‘Virgin Consumers’.
First let’s explain the one side of the Virgin Consumers. They are Eager Virgins. The amount of consumers that is searching new brands and experiences in this world is booming. The time that brands could just use the word ‘new’ as a marketing trick is long gone. Instead new products and services of new companies are doing well. Why? Because they are more surprising, more convenient and just better than existing alternatives. All this leads to the fact that consumers are convinced that ‘new’ will help them to improve various aspects of their lives.

While Virgin Consumers may be new to a product, brand or sector, this doesn’t mean that they are naïve. Contrary, because they have been in the consumer society for so long, they are driven consumers that know what they are searching for. They can be seen as Experienced Virgins.

For brands that want to seduce the Virgin Consumers there are three main rules to follow:

1. Keep it simple
   

       Make a product that fits in to the current lifestyle of your consumer and don’t make yet another variant     
       on an already existing product.

2.    Explain your brand
       Make a marketing campaign that answers foundational questions: Who are you? What makes you   
       different? What does your brand say about consumers who choose it?

3.    Don’t ask for commitment
       The current consumers like to rent or lease a product rather than place a permanent order. You should      
       keep that in mind.

So this was my blog post for this week, hope you enjoyed it!
Lisa