Now you see me. You see me again. Its me again. Annddddddddddddddddd Yup still me. Definitely me. hi.

So how did this guy became a billionaire at the tender age of 23 by operating a FREE social media website?

Definitely not through his looks (oops, sorry not sorry). 

Basically, most social media platforms are free for consumers. This benefit itself attract consumers by the horde to use the platform. On the other end, marketers are eyeing this population and pay whoever runs the platform to blast theirs ads to the consumers.

Consumers benefit from the free usage, marketers benefit as their ads are exposed to a larger targeted audience with a much lower cost as compared to traditional advertising. Sounds like a fairy tale where everyone lives together happily ever after?

As most consumers are not willing to pay for usage, the only way for social media companies to survive is through marketers paying them for advertisement space.

Many brands in hope of attaining the highest level of awareness pay these social media companies to spam their ads to consumers. Technically, social media companies only stand to gain from these deals. Firstly, they are paid for simply putting up Your ads. Secondly, they are able to test their consumer’s reaction through these ads for future strategy implementations.

However, ad spamming has its repercussions.

Short-term, ads start becoming insignificant to consumers and they simply brush through it. Marketers may be achieving a high level of reach, but not as much positive response or actions to their ads.

In the long run, consumers start forming associations of social media platforms with whatever ads they are spamming. Marketers promoting their brands on these website are often tied into these associations. Example, a social media platform spamming casino/gambling games.  Consumer may associate it with promoting an unhealthy addiction, causing a decrease in the credibility and legitimacy of the social media platform. Companies marketing on the site are also deem as supportive of such negative behavior.

Therefore it is important for marketers to set a correct timing to display their advertisements to achieve maximum effectiveness and prevent their ads from being filtered out.

Mirror Run Challenge

Many celebrity or influencer ‘wannabe’ have posted videos online hoping that it becomes viral. If life were that easy, they would be famous by now. What they fail to understand is that contents do not go viral for no reason. Certain conditions need to be met. Lets take the recent Mirror Run Challenge by Jaze Phua for example.

This video was created a month ago by Jaze and made viral by Tastemaker – 9GAG. The first condition, tastemakers helps bring the video to a larger audience.

Soon enough, there were countless parodies of the Mirror Run Challenge by the internet community.

Which brings us to the second condition of going viral, Community Participation. Audiences are inspired by these challenges and start creating their own version of it.

The final condition is Unexpectedness. I mean, who would have thought something simple like running away from mirrors repeatedly could create such a interesting and engaging content.

However, Jaze did not stop at his first viral content. He took the challenge to another level and created 2 more videos incorporating anime themes.

Jaze’s viral campaign is successful due to proper integration throughout his social media platforms and there is Coherence, Consistency, Continuity as well as Complementary.

His challenges constantly revolves around the theme of Japanese Anime and at all times the casts are him and his partner. Also his videos have a consistent element of action and humor taken from the anime’s context, allowing his audience to relate to it. From the 1st challenge video created to the 3rd, there is an obvious improvement in effects together with the use of camera angles.

Last but not least, if you all have not realised by now. The videos were all filmed in the SAME TOILET

Marketers today need to learn that while it is important to create a viral campaign and make their presence known in multiple social media platforms, it it also crucial that all communications do not contradict each other. It should be built on one another to improve communication with consumers instead of confusing them.

“Omae wa mou shindeiru” SEO: NANI

A search engine allows consumer to search for a distinct information by typing keywords into the search bar. It assist consumers in seeking relevant information or products to address their needs.
The purpose of SEO is to help marketers put their links at the top of the search result with the intent of appealing to consumers.

However, SEO is dying due to the emerging trend of social media as well as mobile applications targeting niche markets. These alternate platforms provide consumers with a more specific and educated information, allowing a simpler decision making process. Resulting in the rapid split of consumer traffic online.

FOOD

Take searching for food as an example, instead of searching ‘best food to eat in Singapore’ and receiving this generic answer,

consumers prefer browsing through Facebook or Instagram to look at what their friends are having for their meals. Consumers gains better assurance as posts by their friends are more relatable, they are also able to ask their friends for the overall experience which provides them with a greater sense of personal touch as compared to recommendations by websites.

Consumers can also look up Youtube videos of various influential figures or mavens for their recommendations.
As the saying goes ‘action speaks louder than words’. These videos provide consumers with a better visualization of the food and how it taste rather than trying to picture it through text and images. The amount of views, likes, as well as comments section yields the credibility for consumers.

MUSIC

Music-lovers are using Spotify to get their dose of music updates and daily recommendations, it also allows them to enjoy the music instantly. Serving greater convenience as compared to searching it on the web and having to find a different platform for listening. Spotify also recommend musics from relevant genre the consumer is interested in. Again, it is more relatable.

The main focus here is ‘relatability’. Marketers need to understand their target audience and decide which is the most suitable channel that their consumers can relate to. After all,  appearing at the top of a search result does not equate to higher traffic and higher purchase if it doesn’t appeal to consumers. A low Return on Investment is also a waste of marketing efforts.

Big Data and IOT

The Internet is dominating the whole world and it is the closest thing to a God at this moment. In fact, the Internet knows more about you than you.

With Big Data coming in to play, Consumers are keying in their personal information less frequently on the web and Marketers can retrieve these information effortlessly.

One good application of Big Data by Singapore is the implementation of Singpass. Singaporeans can access all government channels such as the CPF, ICA etc. It creates convenience for Singaporeans as they only commit their memory to 1 username and password. However, it is a double-edged sword as whoever hacks the account gets a hold of all the sensitive information. One example will be the recent SingHealth cyber attack where patients information are stolen.

The Cloud technology is also a simple platform where users can store, share and fetch their data at one’s convenience. One good illustration would be Apple’s iCloud, information captured on the iPhone can be sent to the cloud and retrieved from the MacBook. However, online predators took advantage of this virtual storage to plunder users private photos for lewd purposes. Almost 500 Celebrities had their private photos stolen and shared on various platforms.

It is crucial for Marketers to develop an effective security system to provide their consumers assurance and confidence when using their platform. This means collaborating with a professional IT team to build a secure and practical website that suits their target audience. With tons of information given to Marketers, it is only useful when they are filtered and analyse properly to help achieve the organisation’s goal.

 

EndGame.

Contrary to Thanos’s snap, mobile users today can attain half of the world’s information at a snap of their fingertips. They can search for whatever they want anywhere at anytime they deem fit with the help of their ‘Infinity Gauntlet and Infinity Stones’.

In the past where mobile technology are not as advanced, marketers simply put up posters and advertisements hoping to stand out from the rest of the clutter.Today, the job of a marketer is to induce and incite consumers, at the right time and place to look at their products, ultimately purchasing them. Their goal is to convert the ‘I-Don’t-Want’ Moments to  ‘I-Want‘ Moments such as:
I-Want-To-Know Moments
I-Want-To-Go Moments
I-Want-To-Buy Moments
I-Want-To-Do Moments

Marketers need to give consumers a reason to enter these moments by stimulating them. Take Marvel for example.
They make their consumers want to know who is the mysterious hero Nick Fury paged at the end scene of the first Infinity War, teasing their curiousity to search online for answers.

After which, they release a movie trailer of this mysterious hero. Now Marvel’s consumers are dying to go to a cinema and buy a movie ticket to watch this new hero’s superpowers, character development and how he/she can aid them in the next Infinity War movie.
Now all the consumer want to do is to know how will the Infinity War saga end eventually.

While marketers understand the importance of making consumers ‘want’ their products, it is crucial that they understand the emphasis of translating it into a ‘need’. A ‘need’ is often demonstrated in the form of brand loyalty. After all, retaining customers is cheaper as compared recruiting new ones.

Hi, can i just have a minute of your time to ask you a few questions please? Just one minute.

“Hi can i have a minute of your time to answer a few questions? Please ah please my manager over there say need hit quota, just need answer survey only i promise.”
-Recall the number of times you heard this question while walking to the MRT.

“Eh bro, when are you free to meet? We can catch-up over coffee.”
–From a friend you have not heard from since primary school.

When answering 3 questions or a simple meet-up turns into a 20 minute lecture on how to manage my finances and which insurance policy is suitable. I’m sure at some point of time in our life we are victims of hard-selling ‘financial advisers’.

Similar to the internet, we are often bombarded with information we find useless or a nuisance. But still hung around long enough to stick in our memory. Using the context of Internet, these roadshows or calls comes in the form of social media.
More often than not these ideas are spread by Connectors, Mavens or Salesmen on social media.
Connectors help spread ideas through platforms such as Reddit where users can start a thread and open their comment sections for people to share their opinions.
Mavens are usually experts in their field and they share various information to their followers or target audiences. One good example would be Night Owl Cinematics, where they use a segment FoodKing to share with their youtube viewers a variety of good food all around Singapore.
Lastly, Salesmen are the countless brand/company social media accounts that shares information with the main purpose of encouraging users to purchase their products.

In conclusion, having ‘stick’ to a consumer’s mind or having high exposure does not guarantee a high or positive level WOM. A negative experience often results in consumers to be reluctant in sharing their ideas. Whereas if Marketers spread the correct information to the right target will result in positive WOM as consumers are more willing to share with others their experience.

Till next time!
-ZH

#InstaFamous

I’m sure almost everyone reading this post have followed what we called a Influencer on Instagram for various reasons. In the past when Facebook first started, users focused on increasing their pool of Friends.

Then Instagram entered the market but instead of adding friends, you’re increasing Followers. Well, the difference is that not everyone can be in your friend list but your friends duh, while people that follow you may not necessary be your friends. I believe that sparked the change in perspective of young social media users.
Youths are often inspired by idols and celebrities, hoping to be in their shoes one day. The number of followers is more often than not their one-way ticket to fame.

Applying Hodis et al Facebook Segmentation Matrix to the above context, Instagram Influencers fit into the category of Attention Seekers and Devotees. This means they generate a high amount of content for their followers, the only difference is the amount of consumption.

On the other hand, common users are classified as Entertainment Chasers or Connection Seekers. Where they spend most of the time scrolling through contents created by users they follow and produce little contents themselves.

So what exactly do we gain by following these Influencers?

Smith and Colgate categorised value into the 4 different types above.

For example when fitness geeks purchase training accessories and training programs from Larry Wheels (above), they feel more recognised and socially accepted as they are using a brand endorsed by a famous bodybuilder. The impression of a Herculean strength created by Larry Wheels result in users feeling stronger and tougher when training with those accessories. Leading to Symbolic/Expressive Value and Experential/Hedonic Value.

At the same time, Larry Wheels often post videos of him training in those accessories. Hence there is little or zero doubt on the performance of his products. Resulting in Functional/Instrumental Value.

In this day and age everyone can be famous and become a brand endorser as long as they have a certain amount of influence over a large pool of people. Marketers have to take into account the credibility of influencers, as well as the image they portray on Instagram (No brand would want a bad name associated with them!).

Till next post! 🙂

-ZH

Social Media: The Way Forward For Marketers?

Straits Times

Often seen people with their heads laying low, with their fingers busy fidgeting at a small gadget on their hand? That’s right, the small gadget is a Smartphone with multiple functions and most importantly, it provides access to the Internet and Social Media.

Singapore’s Internet and Social Media Population

This has become a common trend in Singapore no matter where you are or what you’re doing. Be it dining, on a public transport or in school. With almost 84% of the total population having access to Internet and 83% actively participating in Social Media.

However, how will these trends affect marketers in Singapore and their marketing campaigns?
Choosing the Correct Platform: Marketers need to recognize their product’s target audience, then select the correct social media platform where they can market the product and get the best possible result in return. For example, a Fashion brand should preferably target Instagram. Whereas a company selling daily use products may prefer using Facebook.

Consistency: One thing for sure, consumers hate inconsistency on various social media platform. Inconsistency causes confusion for consumers which can result in a backlash towards the company. Hence marketers need to take note that the message driven out on social media platforms align with each other as well as the brand’s image.

Active Communication: In order to build and maintain relationship with target audiences, marketers must actively post updates to strengthen interaction at the same time catching the attention of new consumers. Active communication also allows company to build strong brand loyalty towards the brand.

Breaking out of the clutter: With dozens of social media platform out in the market, everyone have something to say. What can you do to make your words louder than your competition and stand out from the rest? Marketers often struggle to produce the best marketing campaign due to the lack of creativity.

Mutual Respect: Let’s face it, a company can never be successful without its customer. Hence marketers need to be aware of the content that is being posted on social media. A poor move could result in a avalanche of negative comments and word of mouth. Which can result in a stain on the brand’s name.

Although Social Media is a simple and easy tool to market a brand or product, it is also a pool of risk. With everyone becoming more tech-savvy, we also can’t deny the fact that it has become a part and parcel of our life. However the goal of a marketer still remains the same, to attract consumers. It is up to individual marketers how they want to tweak social media to their advantage.