Winning the marketing mission and the need for balanced KPIs

We're attracted to brands because of the stories they tell us and how they make us feel. That remains unchanged from the Mad Men days of advertising. But what has changed is that the buying mechanisms have created a much faster path to purchase. Brands now have the ability to move very quickly from being one that makes consumers feel; to: “Wow, I've just discovered something;” to: “Now I'm going to buy that.”

Pre-COVID, I went to the Transit Museum in New York City, and I saw some of the old ads that used to be on subways and buses. There were plenty of bizarre antiquated headlines, like: “A man that wears a hat is the man a woman will want to marry.” Wow. But overall, it made me realize that there really was a slower time.

Today, we have content coming at us constantly. Standing out in a very crowded space requires brands to create that emotional connection, and consistent brand stories are what create long-term value. And how we're innovating to bring the right content to engage our audiences is key.

That idea was very much crystallized for me when I worked on a global baby brand. We were evaluating the journey to parenthood, which is fundamentally the same for everyone across the globe. So it became really interesting working to understand what motivates first-time expectant moms to buy and what brands they choose. We found that this particular audience really fell in love with the brands whose content made them feel confident about tackling this new challenge, through stories and content. There’s a utilitarian component to that as well, but ultimately the brands that made them feel like they’d be good parents are the ones they added to their parenting toolkit.

At a higher level, understanding consumers’ wants and needs, and delivering on them with relevant content is what helps consumers fall in love with brands and why they choose you, especially in very emotional moments.

Audience insights enable brands to get smarter about seeing consumers in a passive moment, like when they're streaming TV. From an audience and a measurement standpoint, we are now able to have more confidence in our digital advertising. And I mean, this is taking a page from Amazon, in terms of how we think about consumers’ worlds working together.

If you're smart in terms of how you're investing with Amazon Ads, you can figure out how quickly you can help consumers move from seeing an ad during a Thursday Night Football game to buying potato chips. If you’re really good at that, with the right creative, you can see how well you’re tapping into that broader canvas to grow your business. To do that well, it’s important for brands to think in terms of the mission versus the traditional marketing funnel.

We do still use the term “full-funnel.” But I use it purposefully because I sit in a commerce space, and that’s about being an advocate for partners that really do have a full-funnel solution when it comes to retail media, like Amazon. Although this might be a different way of looking at things, compared to legacy media principles and how we’ve viewed the full funnel experience in the past.

Missions are basically objectives for a consumer that brands should be enabling, like back-to-school shopping, weekly grocery stock-ups, or planning a birthday party. You need to really be customer-centric and think from your customer’s perspective: What does that mission look like? And what are the tasks that the customer has to accomplish for that mission? That’s how I think about how you should be planning. Understanding the consumer mindset early on in that mission, versus close to purchase, and how you are enabling them to stay with you throughout that process.

When you think about the mission and the multiple jobs that need to be done as part of that, it forces you to be more precise, like: “Okay, what does that audience look like? What's the actual universe?” And then, “How can I grow in these segments and in these demand moments?"

I think today the traditional funnel still applies to highly considered purchases. Most people aren’t buying 17 cars in their lifetime, right? It applies also to life stages, like if your kid’s going to college or you’re an empty nester, you do certain things, so it’s important to reach those prospects. But, in general, consumers move much faster between discovery, purchase, consideration, et cetera.

I like to use a metaphor of a friend, even a good friend—we don’t want them talking to us all the time, do we? Imagine if you have a relationship with someone, and they keep telling you on SMS, “This is what I think is happening,” over and over, or sending you constant updates for shoes. Look, I'm never buying 2,000 pairs of shoes. So enough. Stop bugging me. Now, you’ve become an annoying friend. In terms of a mission, most people are probably only looking to purchase shoes a handful of times a year, and at specific times. That means brands need to be intentional with when they choose to message their customers and prospective customers.

And relevance is crucial. What is your message otherwise? “Hey, you have feet. Do you want to buy shoes?” That wouldn’t be the best customer experience. And that is all about the UX of what you're making versus the relevance. Because if it's done right, and it's compelling, and you have compelling content, then relevant and tailored messaging and recommendations are helpful and welcome.