How Black Friday Can Hurt Your Brand
27 Nov 2019

Thanksgiving is tomorrow! For brands, that means one thing; the looming arrival of Black Friday and Cyber Monday are imminent. These discount days are some of the busiest days of the year for some brands, but these price-driven events are not necessarily the best for business. Depending on your target audience, these days can hurt brand equity.

So, How Can Black Friday Hurt Brand Equity?

There are a couple of ways that Black Friday and Cyber Monday can cause more harm than good. While in the short-term, these big discount days may drive sales, in the long term, these days can change consumers’ brand perception and brand loyalty.

Brand Perception

Brand perception has mostly been an issue for brick-and-mortar stores. Consumers take a dim view of large companies forcing their employees to give up time with their families on Thanksgiving. Some retail stores open their doors are midnight on Thanksgiving day, meaning the employees have to give up their Thanksgiving evening to be at the store. Walmart even went a step further by allowing the rush to start at 10 PM. Many customers (some of whom might be those who shop at the store year-round) consider the companies to be greedy.

Brand Loyalty

If a company is severely cutting prices and known to be severely reducing costs, then it will become known for that. Over time, customers become less loyal to the brand, knowing that the full price they see at the beginning of November will be slashed in the last couple of weeks of November. So, while sales might break all records on Black Friday, the transactions in the lead up to Black Friday have actually been lower, and it might have implicated throughout the year too.

Customers and Black Friday
While it may be a relief to get a percentage of the price discounted for Christmas gifts and technology that you’ve been eyeing up for months and months now, do not let Black Friday fool you. These days are designed to trick you into impulse buying (that you otherwise would never have done) and have one aim… To separate you from your cash. Bear that in mind as you get ready to get in line or online on Friday!

Brands Can Research How This Will Hurt Brand Equity

It is important for companies to conduct market research on how these discount days can impact your brand equity. Market research will determine how your customers will react to these sales in the short- and long-term.

Want to read more from Provoke Insights, find some more blog posts linked below:

Why Trends Are So Important In Marketing
Experiential Marketing & Retail

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Check out our most recent features in the news media:
September 11th, 2019: 40% of U.S. Millennials prefer crypto investments in the event of a recession: eToro Survey
July 31st, 2019: Jewelry Is About to Get its Own ‘Got Milk’ Ads
July 1st, 2019: 22 Top Advertising Research Companies 2019

Keep on the lookout for more blog posts from us!

Why Trends are so Important in Marketing
21 Nov 2019

Tracking Competitors

To begin with, let’s use our time machine and head back to 2007. In particular, think about GPS technologies. Twelve years ago, Garmin and TomTom were the two biggest GPS technology producers. At the time, Garmin was only looking at what TomTom was doing when it came to its competitors and TomTom was only tracking what Garmin was doing. 

As both brands were tracking other GPS navigational systems, they were sideswiped by Google who began offering free navigation via an iPhone app and on the web. 

As a result, in just 4 weeks, the valuation of these companies dropped! Imagine if these navigational systems had followed the trends that were happening outside of their narrow industry, we might be using our Garmin maps app on our phones for directions today. 

Understanding trends is critical for a brand to stay fresh and competitive. Keep these market research methods in mind to best follow the market.

Secondary Research

Maybe the most important method when it comes to understanding trends is Secondary Research. Secondary research is finding research that is already available. It is a great low-cost option to study industries that your business is not currently in. For example, if you are a bus company- you may also want to follow airplane trends. This way you can have a full picture of the transportation landscape.  In addition, secondary research can also keep you up-to-date regarding the latest technologies. 

Certainly, if GPS technologies were following how Google was developing their GPS technology for free use, they would have seen the way the trends were going. Consistently conducting comprehensive secondary research can always give you a state of the market and allow you to look at non-direct competitors to make sure that you’re not going to be blindsided the same way these GPS companies were.

There are a lot of free secondary research tools out there such as Google Trends and JWT Intelligence.

Brand Tracker

When it comes to understanding the market and landscape, nothing beats a brand tracker. A brand tracker is a survey that is conducted over time that evaluates a company and its competitors’ performance. In addition, the survey typically includes questions to evaluate if a company’s objectives are being met. The key to brand trackers is to not only follow your direct competitors, but also looks like those who may indirectly influence sales.

Among other things, brand trackers test the awareness of brands in the market space of a product. If Garmin and TomTom were using a brand tracker, they would have had a broader understanding of the market, and any trends that they might need to understand. The key to a brand tracker is both a comprehensive list of competitors, the actions that they are taking, and their reception from the public.

In conclusion, it’s vital to use market research to understand trends. Without staying up to date, your business might be swept out from beneath you. And if you are using shoddy methods instead of comprehensive research, you may fall to the wayside as well.

Want to learn more about Market Research? Here are some blog posts to check out!
  1. How to Avoid Advertising Mishaps
  2. Virtual Reality & Qualitative Research: Fad or Here to Stay?
  3. 6 Things to Watch Out for When Writing a Survey
  4. Marketing Strategies for Generation Alpha: the Newest Generation

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Follow our social media accounts:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/provokeinsights

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/provokeinsights/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/provoke-insights

Check out our most recent features in the news media:

September 11th, 2019: 40% of U.S. Millennials prefer crypto investments in the event of a recession: eToro Survey

July 31st, 2019: Jewelry Is About to Get its Own ‘Got Milk’ Ads

July 1st, 2019: 22 Top Advertising Research Companies 2019

Keep on the lookout for more blog posts from us!

Experiential Marketing & Retail
13 Nov 2019

The Retail Landscape is Changing: Experiential Marketing

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Likewise, this quote can be applied to the hundreds of retail spaces closing their doors and moving to e-commerce. In other words, while many large retail stores are closing their doors, it might be important to ask, is this the only way to stay ahead in today’s changing marketplace? 

Accordingly, as many large stores are shutting their doors, Nordstrom is expanding. Last month, the luxury retailer opened a brand new New York City Flagship store. Not only is it unique for them to be opening a brick and mortar store at all, but it also opened a very unique store. As a result, the flagship is an experiential retail experiment. 

What is experiential retail?

  • Much like experiential marketing, experiential retail is an immersive experience. 
  • The concept aims to engage customers rather than sell to customers.
  • The customers’ senses should be stimulated by the experience.
  • It should go beyond what customers expect of a retail store. Something that they will consider shareable. 
  • The space should accommodate events and services, not just products. 
  • These events and services should accommodate the target audience’s real needs.

The Nordstrom location includes a martini bar in the middle of the shoe department, stroller cleaning, and appointments with a personal stylist in the styling lounge. It ticks all of the boxes. There are services, and events to keep the customers engaged. The entire space is aimed towards their target audience and should definitely exceed their expectations.  

The company threw a grand opening party and invited Instagram influencers. Namely, it felt like you entered the club where anyone who’s anyone should be seen. In addition, other companies in NYC have done something similar to their stores to stay relevant – Levi’s, FAO Schwartz, and Timberland just to name a few. 

Experiential Marketing in the Changing Marketplace

Experiential marketing is just as important to go along with these new stores. Particularly, it is a well-known fact at this stage that Millennials prefer experiences over things. Therefore, it is important for this generation to experience the brand to be won over by it. To sum up, this is why experiential marketing can be key too. As a result, the same rules apply as above. 

In conclusion, is experiential marketing the right move for your brands? In short, it is key to better understand your target audience. Thus, survey research or focus groups is a key method to better understand what your customers are looking for. 

Looking for more? Check out our other blogs on Millennials:

The Difference Between Generation Alpha & Millennials

Here is a brief excerpt from the article:

“Knowing your audience and prospects is a key way to improve your profitability! Different generations have different behaviors, attitudes, and preferences. Understanding the generation gaps will help you understand the needs of your customers. Generations give marketing strategists an easy way to target and focus their methods.

Baby Boomers do not want to see texting acronyms; they are swayed by clear video, they care about their in-store experiences, and they like to compare prices. On the other hand, Millennials want to care about the product they’re buying, and want to have a positive impact on their community. In addition, Generation Z (those born after Millennials and before 2010) is most influenced by social media, as that’s where they receive most of their news.”

Millennials, Fine Jewelry, & the Luxury Category

Want to learn more about Market Research? Here are some blog posts to check out!
  1. How to Avoid Advertising Mishaps
  2. Virtual Reality & Qualitative Research: Fad or Here to Stay?
  3. 6 Things to Watch Out for When Writing a Survey
  4. Marketing Strategies for Generation Alpha: the Newest Generation

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Consumers Hate Advertising: Advertising Without Turning Off Customers
07 Nov 2019

Forrester announced that consumers HATE advertising and that advertising budgets are transitioning away from traditional platforms to platforms such as Google, YouTube, and Facebook. Disliking an ad is nothing new! 

Why?

The difference today is that it is significantly harder for brands to stand out from the crowd. Consumers hate ads even more because they are popping up everywhere and they all seem the same.

It’s more important than ever to be shrewd and calculated in how you advertise. You do not want consumers to see your paid advertising and feel discouraged or angry. How can you stand out from the crowd? Keep these five keys to understanding the current advertising landscape in mind when launching your campaign.

1. People are consuming content differently.

Content is consumed on devices regardless of if it is an iPhone, TV, or computer (Cord-cutting today is switching over to YouTube TV). 

In the past, traditional television advertisements were guaranteed to hit a large section of the audience. But in today’s world, there are so many different channels for content consumption that your brand has to have a wider strategy. Even on television, on-demand viewing has cut down advertisement time and priority significantly.

2. From multiple social media apps to hundreds of TV channels, there are just more media channels than ever before.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat are just some of the social platforms with a huge reach, a reach that is now much larger than any television program. Advertisements are an immense part of the experience of each of these social networks, both in terms of paid advertising, and company accounts that post their own content. 

The problem with the first form of advertising is that ads show up with markers that they are ads. As discussed earlier, consumers hate ads. But combined with organic social media content, it’s a good plan to use as many social media platforms as you can to reach as wide of an audience as possible. 

3. So Much Content!

Google rewards brands for producing more blogs, videos, and articles by providing brands with better SEO. So, when you produce organic social media, your own videos, and your own articles, Google will help you reach more consumers in the search engine. Paid advertising on platforms is one strategy; search engine optimization as a result of constant content is another to add on top. 

The best way to reach people is to be constantly creating and promoting. Traditional advertising needs to be in conjunction with content, because that’s what people want to see, not advertising.

4. Diversity and differences are acknowledged, and we can target better than ever before.

No longer is everyone watching the same ten channels with the same commercials playing over and over again. Advertising is tailored to the consumer. So not only are you smart to operate on different social platforms, but you can target the consumers that are most likely to buy your product. And advertisements need to include different races, ethnicities, and sexualities.

How do you know who your target consumer is? Market research, of course! Segmentation and persona development reveal not only the demographics of your audience, but their media usage as well. As a result, your advertising is much smarter, cost-efficient, and directly correlated to sales.

5. Brands have more competition as there are more and more brands.

It’s important to be vigilant because there are more brands than ever. Keep creating and advertising in order to stand out from the crowd. Content is key to avoid frustrating consumers who hate ads. There are ways to target properly to do your best to get to consumers. And keep on creating!

Want to learn more about Market Research? Here are some blog posts to check out!
  1. How to Avoid Advertising Mishaps
  2. Virtual Reality & Qualitative Research: Fad or Here to Stay?
  3. 6 Things to Watch Out for When Writing a Survey
  4. Marketing Strategies for Generation Alpha: the Newest Generation

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