Marketing from the Customer’s Perspective

In the past advertisers and marketers used the pitch to sell products. A good pitch could net new sales if it was heard among the thousands of other pitches from other companies vying for attention. Soon it all became noise that the customers learned to block and even ignore altogether. Customers need a more compelling reason to buy from a company than the claim about the greatness of a product, the 10% discount, the easiness of use, etc. After all, customers still need solutions to their problems and products for their needs so their loyalty goes to the company that provides them the things they want when they want them. Many companies today offer similar products and use similar technology. Only your emotional connection to people, will differentiate your company and its product, lubricate your marketing channel, ignite the conversation engine in social media, and call to your door ready-to-try-or-buy prospects. With social media companies have a tool to reach customers directly, understand their needs and concerns, and build customer relationships that solidify the brand in customers’ mind. Retention is an important business objective that can be reached through the use of blogs. Referrals increase when the customer feels validated and understood by the company which happens when the company provides a two-way communication channel. Customers need companies who care about them, who have a stake in their well-being and are willing to put them first. In return, they’re ready to offer complete company loyalty, to become advocates for the company and their products, to help build solid reputations that cannot be broken.

IPTV Could Eclipse Broadcast Sooner Than Expected

Gavin O'Malley, Online Media Daily contributor, says that while TV broadcasters have the clear edge in online video, they had better establish some sturdy ad formats "while there are still revenues from the traditional business to support the transition to multiplatform," according to new research from media analyst firm Screen Digest. "The next few years will be critical," said Screen Digest analyst Arash Amel. According to the report, the combined dominance of the leading broadcaster-supported platforms will drive the total ad-supported model for the distribution of online entertainment programming, news, sports and events in the U.S. to more than $1.45 billion in revenues by 2013. "With better targeting and increased ad inventory, online TV services could be generating per-viewer revenues comparable to an average TV broadcast viewing in as little as three years," said Amel. However, based on the current online ad strategies implemented, it will account for 2.2% of all U.S. TV ad revenue by 2013, and surely will not be generating enough revenue to offset the $2 billion Amel expects total U.S. TV advertising to have declined during that period. Meanwhile, third-party platforms like YouTube, Joost and other portals -- which have no direct vertical affiliation with major rights holders, nor direct access to premium content rights -- will struggle to aggregate ad-supported movies and TV shows, the report warns. As a result, third-party ad-supported video platforms may have to either diversify into new forms of their own original programming, exit the content aggregation business and offer technology and advertising solutions to the content owners' and broadcasters' own services, or settle on the low-margin business of becoming affiliates of the player-platforms distributed by the content rights holders themselves. Overall, the online Web-based TV services of the four major U.S. TV networks -- ABC Full Episode Player, CBS Audience Network, NBC.com and Fox.com -- together with Hulu, the joint venture between NBC Universal, News Corporation (and more recently Disney), accounted for a combined 53% of an ad-supported US online TV market that generated $448m in revenues last year. According to Amel, the networks have proven their ability to drive audiences to online TV replay services from prime-time schedules, which accounts for the market dominance. This multiplatform approach has been, and will remain, very important to the future relevance of broadcasters to younger demographics and retaining prime position in the online TV space. The key, according to Amel, will be to create an online platform model that retains control of the content while distributing it widely, and meets the audience's changing demands for TV anytime, anywhere. "A successful online entertainment distribution business model is about establishing and maintaining interest in trusted brands and syndicated services that go hand-in-hand with the content, often free at the point of audience consumption," Amel concludes. Notably, while Amel is obviously bullish on free content, the paid market -- driven by the respective hardware ecosystems of various service providers, and high-value sports events -- will grow by 67% to $1.33 billion by 2013.