Rejection is the idea of Selecting the brand vehicles

The digitization, convergence, and development of increasing number of platforms of communication has opened up vast number of opportunities for advertisers and brand custodians to reach their audience in a more convincing, personalized and effective manner.

Today the Marcom professional does not have to simply divide his marketing budget into print, TV, radio and outdoor media vehicles.

Internet, blogs, networking sites, mobile phone services like IVR, SMS, cross branding opportunities, packaging, sports events advertising, sponsorships, in-movie advertising, the list of new generation media vehicles is umpteen and its just the foresight and imagination of a marketing professional, which can put limit to various options of advertising which can be utilized to reach the TG.

The number of advertisers has sky rocketed in the recent past and still growing. This puts a lot of pressure on the marketing executive to create a distinct identity for his brand and make it stand out of clutter not only since there are so many other brands and advertisers but also since there are so many new era media vehicles developed.

In our day to day lives we come across a restaurant promoting apparels, an outdoor hoarding promoting a social networking site or a radio channel promoting television soap and a TV soap promoting various brand of jewelries or vehicles or apparels! That’s what I term as chain or integrated advertising.

Today it’s very difficult to explain the meaning of 360 degree marketing. Unlike in the past, when there was selective availability of media vehicles, it was easy to create a media plan and adopt a 360 degree media strategy.

We see big brands present behind a movie ticket, metro rail ticket, airline boarding pass, menu card on dining tables inside restaurants, supermarket carry bags, cash memos, internet websites, personal emails, etc. The list of such usage of various never thought before items as media vehicle is never ending.

A Marcom professional, can adopt the strategy of “rejection as idea for selection” to create a media plan. Instead of dividing the financials amongst every possible media vehicles, it is better to do a thorough market research, identify the gap areas and points of communication, which can help him to communicate with his TG most effectively and deliver the desired results.

The strategy should not be to identify the BEST POSSIBLE media plan, rather develop an OPTIMUM media plan. With limited budgets and continuously shrinking bottom lines, the companies are getting more and more strict in trying to justify there marketing spends.

The increasing seamless integration and convergence of communications medium and their usage as advertising vehicles, has lead to another point which needs a consideration of marketing professionals.  WHAT TO COMMUNICATE? And HOW TO COMMUNICATE?

As the brand crosses various geographical borders it meets different cultures, people, societies, politics, traditions, habits and behaviors. In such a situation, the brand custodians have to be very careful about the socio-economic backgrounds of various societies and people, whom he looks upon as his potential TG.

The final language, phrases, fonts, colors, graphics, expressions and other advertising pneumonics which shall be used in various communications should be decided after conducting a thorough market research to understand the sensitivities of the society, people’s behavior in different situations as well as political situation in the respective country or market.

Thus with increasing means of communication, the challenges of a brand custodian are also increasing day by day. And the one, who can make his brand stand out of clutter and reach the home of his consumer, shall live long.