From marketing to humanity

Today, the unplanned communication is becoming more and more important – it is the field, which is difficult to be controlled or predicted by the companies. In social media are communicating the users, who are dealing with brands, comparing their experience, expressing their disappointment and criticism. It requires from the companies a true customer-oriented approach, focusing on his expectations and needs. The dialogue and relationship are very important. I'd add for myself that I have been reading this thesis in various publications and have been hearing at many conferences for a long time. However, I can agree that for many companies it still retains the challenge status. In general, the communication practitioners are offered to accept the fact that the client is independently and individually generating information about the brand, and that information space includes not only the planned communication by the companies, and therefore communication planning should be started from the client's perspective.

The informative review of researches on sponsorship was also presented. Among other discoveries it was commented on how important is not only to publicly report on the fact of sponsorship, but also initially to choose a logical idea, which will be supported. For example, one insurance company has supported a great campaign, during which young people were educated of the safe driving. The campaign has received a positive publicity in the media, has become recognisable, the message was well learned. But the research among the target audience has discovered a huge problem: people believed that this campaign was financed by the department of road safety. The audience was not able to relate the insurer with this topic.

Another, but the better example: pharmaceutical company decided to enhance its prestige in the eyes of the audience by supporting the opera. At this time there was thought out a logical bridge between the brand of the drug manufacturer and the opera. The sponsor has made a delicate move: before the performance the spectators were given the cough drops. Everybody knows how disturbing a cough during the opera is. Anyway I hope that the cough drops were packed so that they didn’t make any noise.

In connection with social campaigns the use of emotions was described. For example, one research showed that most effective are the campaigns, in which different emotions are mixed. Furthermore, the best result is achieved when, at first, the audience is generating the negative emotions, and afterwards - positive.

Another important issue that was raised at the conference: how to monetize conversations in social media. A research, which was conducted in USA, showed that despite the active discussions about the companies in social networks, Net promoter score observations reveal a tendency of people to give up any preferences in relation to brands. They simply go to the shops and buy what is offered there or attracts their attention, and not deliberately go and seek the specific brands.

Another trend, which should be definitely taken into account: the society is becoming more individualized. People are focusing on themselves, and not on the others, for example on the family. Therefore, the advertising researchers recommend using also more self-centred messages. Speaking about the message, it should be noted that the promotion analysis of the so-called “ethical products” - those that are healty, and are produced without environmental damage, was very interesting. It turned out that the ethics is not sufficient to convince the customers. It is important to clarify the benefit of this acquisition (savings, gain in health, etc.) to make the customers buy the products of this category.

At the end of discussions at the conference there was presented the idea marketing no longer exists today, as there are no markets. But there are people and communities, with whom it’s necessary to communicate, to build relationships, whom we want to sell something. Maybe it's time to change the paradigm of perception: from marketing to the “humanity”?