Participation Branding

In today’s era, just mere advertising is not enough to grab the attention of the customers. As per a survey, 89% of the advertising goes unnoticed or is not remembered by the customer. Apart from that, every 1 out of 3 internet user has an Ad blocking software enabled which becomes one of the primary reasons for unsatisfactory performance of an ad campaign.

Consumer Participation Branding is the need of an hour. Now, what exactly is Participation branding? Participation Branding is the marketing strategy which aims at encouraging an interactive conversation with the customer to engage them throughout the process of brand creation. Campaigns must not only focus on attaining new customers but also on engaging them throughout the customer lifecycle. There is a clear need for Open, transparent and collaborative relationship with the customers.

Companies are experiencing a shift in the behaviour of marketers. The consumers these days are willing to get involved with the brand even more closely, they want to contribute in brand evolution either via providing new ideas, formation of new strategy or by providing regular feedback. There are volunteers willing to actively indulge in endorsing and promoting brands. It is also believed that customers tend to relate more to the ideas which emerge out of people survey or come via campaigns being run for end users.

Ways of Effective Participation Marketing:

  • Social Media plays the key role in achieving active conversation with the customers. Live Feeds on social media is one of the most effective means of reaching out to greater audience.
  • There has to be interactive engagement between the consumer and the product. Companies must focus on using mass search identifiers #hashtag, which enables to float messages related to a specific brand or product.
  • Companies must provide a sense of importance to their customers. Consumers must feel that they are being heard and their brand understands their needs. Campaign must be designed in such a way that they are easy to interact with and must be user friendly.

Participation Branding Index:

Participation Branding Index helps in understanding why customers involve with certain brands and participate actively in their campaigns. The index analysis data from 14,000 consumers across 5 regions (UK, US, Brazil, Thailand, Australia) and 177 brands across 6 sectors (Automotive, Consumer Tech, FMCG, Retail, Travel).

Apple has emerged as the leader in Participation Branding as over 60% users in US feel themselves to be part of Apple community. May be that has lot to do with the way Apple involves its customers , be it taking regular feedbacks on new application , cell phone feature or even releasing BETA version of upcoming enhancement to seek feedback from the end users.

Apart from Apple, Google, Netflix, BMW, Coca Cola, Airbnb have performed exceedingly well when it comes to Participation branding.

Coco-Cola which has already acquired around 80% of the user base in US is known for its innovative marketing strategy. Coca-Cola aims at building long-term emotional connect with the customer. “Share a Coke” campaign where it replaced the coke logo with the name of the people, encouraging people to share a coke with the friend. This referral marketing campaign was a huge success and registered over 3 lakh posts on Instagram.

Advantages of Participation Branding:

  • Participation Marketing deepens the brand’s relationship with the customer. This long-term relationship continues to drive sales and engagement.
  • Effective marketing campaigns create a sense of excitement among the users towards the brand product. This enthusiasm among the consumer enhances the overall brand performance.
  • Consumer satisfaction is directly responsible for greater recommendation. More the user is connects with the brand, more he is expected to recommend it to others.

So, companies must focus on changing their business approach and should align it as per the requirements of Participation Branding. They may take a leaf out of Apple’s book to see how they engage with their audience which benefits the business in long run. Companies must aim on enhancing repeat customer base as it they who ensure consistent revenue for the business.

 

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