Author: Coegi

Why the Performance Scoring Model is the Future of Marketing Measurement

Posted on by Coegi

 

Is your marketing measurement strategy founded in business intelligence or in media metrics? 

No single marketing metric can equate to business success. Likewise, no single marketing measurement strategy can translate success for all brands. You need a custom solution to accurately track and measure holistic brand health – based on your unique definition of success. 

This is why we believe every brand needs a performance scoring model. 

What is a performance scoring model?

A performance scoring model uses multiple, weighted data sources to define your media’s impact on business goals. This model should combine media data, business data, and advanced measurement studies, weighting each of the data points per their significance. 

Then, you can use this custom formula to create an overall brand performance score. By standardizing reporting and insights from both the granular campaign level to a broader business strategy perspective, this will allow you to make smarter, and more results-based marketing decisions.

Here is a simple example of how this formula can look:

Lift in Unaided Brand Awareness (45%) + Location Visits (20%) + Clicks (10%) + Sales (25%) = Performance Score

Using the Performance Scoring Model to Measure True Marketing Success

Advertising needs to be held more closely accountable to business outcomes. Marketing leaders are feeling this pressure more intensely now than ever. It’s uncomfortable and challenging – but these are necessary growing pains. As the industry navigates increasing consumer data privacy regulations, marketing plans require more complex planning and measurement. 

Simply put – today’s business challenges require more than basic in-platform forecasting and metrics. Media data – impressions, reach, cost-per-click – are too in the weeds to illuminate the full landscape. A performance scoring model incorporates both media and non-media data enabling marketers to make smart business decisions and more accurate predictions. 

It is simply a living, breathing business dashboard that allows marketers to accomplish three key things: 

  1. Unify disparate data sets to better contextualize and assess data analytics
  2. Clearly communicate the impact of marketing on business outcomes 
  3. Predict and inform smart campaign optimizations and strategic decision-making

3 Key Benefits of the Performance Scoring Model

1. Unify disparate marketing data sets

Data aggregation is at the core of this marketing measurement strategy. You may already be using measurement tools to combine media channels in one dashboard. But, business challenges require taking that a step further to reveal brand insights. 

The scoring model gives you a new understanding of marketing performance across the business using both conventional, and unconventional, metrics. This levels up your data analysis to go beyond engagement rates or a cost per action. You can add context by bringing in factors such as economic indicators, health trends, or any other data points impacting the business or consumer behavior. 

It’s not necessarily a tool to drive new sales or leads. But, it does allow you to frame conversations about multiple KPIs in a concise, digestible way. It can guide your marketing strategy so the media can perform better, which will impact long-term growth of bottom line metrics. Ultimately, it resets expectations and aligns teams on the incremental impact of media on business decisions. 

“With the custom scoring model, we work to see a holistic view of performance, setting meaningful KPIs and holding media accountable to business goals.”

– Ryan Green, VP of Marketing & Innovation, Coegi

2. Clearly communicate marketing results

The custom scorecard offers a more objective, quantifiable number you can use to communicate to key stakeholders. Communicating media’s value to non-marketers can be challenging at best, especially if you’re speaking with acronyms that do not apply to their daily jobs. By standardizing disparate data sets, you will be able to more easily achieve buy ins. 

For example, which of these is easier to understand? 

  • In March, FB CPMs decreased by 9.5%, CPLPV rose by 33.4%, and CTR was 1.7%. 

OR

  • In March, our overall media score was 7.5 out of 10, a 1.2 point increase from February.

Ultimately, the custom performance scorecard is a more tangible way to showcase directional return on marketing investment, in particular for stakeholders that aren’t in the marketing department (like finance or operations). Plus, it’s a very flexible data model. You can easily change the weights of each factor in your scorecard formula to accommodate input from other stakeholders or changing business needs. (We’ll get to how to create your custom formula in the next section.)

3. Inform smart marketing campaign optimizations

Finally, you can leverage custom performance scoring models to evaluate and identify leading indicators of success. You can use it to identify which parts of your media strategy are working in near real-time, rather than waiting months for results. Depending on the non-media data you incorporate, it can also help you make real-time pivots based on external factors. 

For example, you can use this model to identify highest performing DMAs. Then, you could distribute your budget and adjust messaging in softer markets versus stronger markets. Alternatively, you can swap geographic region as the optimization point with different audience groups. You can break down audiences to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each segment. Then again, strategically decide whether you will double down on strong audiences or focus on weaker audiences. 

How to Create Your Brand’s Performance Scoring Model

Ready to create your own scorecard? As you begin, media metrics are your most readily available and straightforward data points, so it’s fine if they make up the majority of your scorecard (at least initially). However, it’s important to pull in some external data as you iterate on your model over time. Otherwise, you’re siloing your marketing from other business factors. It’s like driving while wearing blinders. 

Outside perspective from non-media data guides smarter media decisions. Having that additional context can help you determine optimal frequencies, efficiencies, and top-line analytics goals. 

Examples of Non-Media Data Sources for Your Scoring Model:

  • Sales data: Sales by product/service, retailer, region, etc. 
  • Financial data: Consumer price index, stock market, interest rates, 
  • Infection rate data 
  • Net promoter score (understand your greatest customer advocates from  customers who need greater nurturing)
  • Consumer survey data: brand reputation, store cleanliness, product quality, service quality, brand loyalty
  • Advanced measurement data: sales lift, brand awareness lift, foot traffic lift

And this is just scratching the surface. You can get creative here and pull in more obscure data as long as it’s relevant to the success of your business and able to be analyzed at statistical signficance. 

Weighting Your Performance Scorecard Formula 

How do you determine what weight to give each input? I recommend leading with your intuition. But it should also be a group effort. Collaborate with the people closest to the data as well as the people closest to the brand. To avoid biases, be sure to gather input from several stakeholders:

  • CMO/Marketing Manager – Lead the discussion based on existing knowledge and marketing KPIs.
  • Data Analysts – Help provide guidance as to what data is available for use.
  • CEO/Board of Directors – Ensure strategy aligns with overarching business goals and external stakeholder needs.

As you have these discussions, remember it is an iterative process. The first formula you create certainly will not be the last. That’s the beauty of this custom model. It is adaptable, flexible, and increases in accuracy and relevancy over time as your data collection grows and your formula improves.

Implementing a Performance Scoring Model: Marketing Use Cases

Here are three ways Coegi has applied the performance scoring model to our clients:

Use Case #1 – Attributing CPG Sales to Advertising in Real-Time

Point-of-sale data lets consumer packaged goods brands see exactly how much was sold. However, the problem is speed. You often find out results weeks after a campaign. This is far from the real-time results you need to make agile marketing decisions. 

To identify CPG marketing ROI, brands typically need to go back and attempt to attribute that sales lift. Was it from your media spend? The media people certainly think so. Or did the economic boom really do all the work? Maybe it was the in-store displays… The custom scorecard model measures all of those things at once giving you a better idea of what drove sales. 

If you locate those leading indicators of success, you can have an idea of what’s working in real time. Then, when the sales data rolls in 4-12 weeks later, you can confirm what you assume to be true and adjust as necessary. 

Use Case #2 – Identifying Audience Likelihood to Travel 

The travel and tourism industry is impacted heavily by macro-environmental factors. How is the weather? What are flight tickets and gas prices? Is there a health pandemic halting travel? These kinds of factors influence where media should be placed for maximum results. 

This was especially prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic. We used the scorecard approach for a state tourism client to create a “COVID-19 Scoring Model”. This scorecard gave each county in the state a score indicating level of opportunity for travel in each market. Using it, we were able to inform media decisions and ensure the strategy aligned with public safety. You can read the full case study here for more details. 

Use Case #3 – Identifying Highest Opportunity Geographic Markets for QSR Chain

Quick service restaurants operate in a competitive, cluttered space. Customer loyalty and share of wallet are major factors driving long-term QSR success. 

Knowing this, we create a performance scoring model for a QSR client factoring in brand lift attributes, visitation, and point of sale data. We even included data on how highly customers rated their french fries. Using this model, we were able to allocate budget to top markets and tailor messaging to boost market share among loyal customers. Read the full case study here. 

There are infinite ways to apply this methodology across any industry and any brand. At the end of the day, the performance scoring model is about getting to the WHY to inform the what – making our marketing strategies stronger and our clients even happier.

For help applying this approach to your brand, contact Coegi today for a discovery call. 

Create an Omnichannel eCommerce Strategy | Complete How-To Guide

Posted on by Coegi

Create Your Ideal Omnichannel eCommerce Strategy

A successful ecommerce strategy requires an omnichannel presence. It is the new norm for shopping and will continue its upward trajectory. Brands are following suit, investing more than ever in ecommerce advertising.

What does this mean for ecommerce marketers? 

To build consumer relationships and establish brand loyalty, marketers must create a robust online presence that aligns with where their consumers are spending time online. It is critical to show up in multiple digital marketplaces, for product discovery as well as purchase. 

Today’s ecommerce model expands beyond traditional commerce channels. Brands can’t rely on just having a Shopify or Amazon storefront anymore. You can place your product in front of engaged users on social media through social commerce, influencer marketing, social search, and many other paid advertising placements. However, even social is just one piece of the puzzle.

To learn how to craft the optimal omnichannel ecommerce strategy for your brand, download the guide below:

Creating an eCommerce Ecosystem 

The digital world is far more crowded than any physical retail destination. eCommerce is multi-channel, bridging the gap between in-store and online experiences. Over 73% of consumers use multiple channels to make purchasing decisions. And because shoppers are multichannel, brands must be too. 

The eCommerce Ecosystem

eCommerce Statistics 

Understanding the eCommerce Consumer Perspective

The modern consumer is their own salesperson.  They are better informed, armed with reviews, and company and product information.  In fact, 97% of consumers check online reviews before buying a product to get additional insight.

What are today’s consumers looking for from ecommerce brands? 

eCommerce has skyrocketed in popularity. As this medium grows, consumer expectations and shopping behaviors are also changing. 

  • Greater flexibility from payment plans to product availability 
  • More personalized ad targeting and curated content 
  • Convenient and quick delivery options 
  • Continuously cultivated brand relationships 

Customer experience is the ultimate differentiator. Consumers seek quality experiences, with 36% rating experience as critical for them, just behind price and convenience. Positive, personalized brand experiences are what ultimately drive conversions. 

Build Your Connected eCommerce Strategy

eCommerce is social commerce, marketplaces, delivery providers, D2C, retail media, and more –  all wrapped into one connected commerce experience. Skai coined the term “connected commerce”, which simply refers to connecting all points of the customer commerce journey together. It’s important to also connect all digital media tactics with commerce channels to ensure they are synchronously supporting the customer journey to drive optimal return on investment. 

Key Takeaways for Successful eCommerce Marketing: 

You can achieve ecommerce success using three key components: 

  1. Messaging that resonates with and engages target audiences 
  2. A multichannel e-commerce experience with numerous retail touchpoints   
  3. Full-funnel marketing for each stage of the consumer journey 

Coegi can help set up a data-driven strategy to maximize your ecommerce success. Contact us today to learn more.

Increasing Brand Lift and Growing Market Share for BODYARMOR

Posted on by Coegi

Brief

BODYARMOR was a new entrant into a well-defined CPG category: sports energy drinks.  

With a product containing less than half the sugar in Gatorade, but only 2% of overall category market share, BODYARMOR was looking to disrupt the paradigm. 

 

Highlights

16%
Lift in Brand Awareness

25M
Video Views in 2 Months

23%
Lift in Purchase Intent

Challenge

The media challenge was to break through the clutter in a crowded space and ensure BODYARMOR’s message of superior hydration was reaching the most relevant audience – ultimately increasing awareness and market share.

Logistically, they secured significant investment with grocery store and gas station distribution networks. The brand also had endorsements across all major sports leagues, plus significant involvement from investor, Kobe Bryant. But, to increase market share and sales, they needed to establish brand awareness with the right customers.

Solution

We used industry research to select the optimal digital media channels, as well as our own planning and channel mix software, to develop the optimal “go-to-market” plan. Using BODYARMOR’s first-party data collected from web engagements and promotional eblast sign-ups, we created targeted media plans for key niche audiences and engaged media partners to further invest in BODYARMOR’s success and growth.

Our team performed look-alike modeling and statistical analysis to create microtargeted audiences, including: Blue Collar Workers, Grocery Gatekeepers, Veterans, Teenage Athletes, and Health-Focused Adults.

Each audience had its own media plan and messaging strategy, for example:

  • The Blue Collar Worker audience focused on Midwestern and Southern states, Facebook and YouTube channels – using creative highlighting their partnership with NASCAR’s Ryan Blaney and UFC promotions. 
  • The Teenage Athlete audience focused on Instagram and Snapchat and leveraged endorsements from the NBA’s James Harden and NFL’s Richard Sherman.

To maximize campaign efficacy, we enabled multiple layers of targeting. This included layering our media with the national distribution footprint, to ensure the campaign was reaching the right people at the right time in the right place. We customized sequential messaging based on customer engagement level and continually made real-time adjustments to optimize performance.

We also engaged our Google reps to ensure alignment and efficiency across the board. These partnerships allowed access to Google Beta products, as well as brand lift and purchase intent studies to evaluate campaign success.

By all measures, this campaign delivered superior performance. Aggressive optimization throughout the campaign resulted in 55% over-delivery and engagement rates much higher than initially outlined. Through Google Site Link extensions, we were able to drive and measure a significant amount of in-store sales volume. 

In year one, the audience-first strategy produced strong brand recall lift amongst four of the five target groups. In year two, the strategy shifted to only include the top four performing audience groups.

  • The Blue Collar audience saw 22% brand lift and $840k in attributable sales.
  • The Grocery Gatekeeper audience saw 14% brand lift and $376k in attributable sales.
  • The Veteran audience saw 12% brand lift and $411k in attributable sales.
  • The Teenage Athlete audience saw 14% brand lift, $154k in attributable sales.
  • The Health Conscious Adult audience saw 2% brand lift, $214k in attributable sales.

More importantly, sales increased nearly 300% YoY, with 6% category market share; leading to the brand being acquired by Coca-Cola.

5 Key Components for Building an Omnichannel Search Strategy

Posted on by Coegi

 

If your search marketing strategy stops at basic Google SEM, you’re missing out on a wealth of opportunity. Paid search is no longer just a straightforward marketing tactic in your media playbook. New technological advancements and shifting consumer behavior are changing the user journey for search.

Sure, Google is a continuously evolving target that requires marketers to dedicate time and energy to evolve with it. But it’s also important to understand the value of leaning into search algorithms on social and e-commerce platforms to promote product discovery. 

So, as search marketing becomes both more multidimensional and omnichannel, how can you use it to your brand’s competitive advantage? 

There are five emerging components of search you can leverage to create a future-proof search marketing strategy:

  1. Social Search
  2. E-Commerce Search
  3. Zero-Click Search
  4. Visual Search
  5. Multisearch

#1 – Social Search

If your goal is to reach new audiences in the Gen Z or Millennial demographics, social media is a must-have component of your search strategy. Social media is Gen Z’s favorite channel to learn about new products, per Semrush survey data. In fact, 28% of Gen Z say the primary way they discover new brands and products is through social media ads versus the 27% who do so through search engines. Even after initial discovery, social media remains the top channel for additional product/service research among both Gen-Z and Millennials. 

Any social platform with a search bar can be a tool for brand discovery. Tap into the search engine optimization elements of social media by implementing a well-researched keyword strategy on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest. Develop keywords to promote product discovery and increase conversions, and play to each platform’s unique algorithms. Explore ways to optimize your content – paid or organic – to match what your consumers are looking for. 

Social Search Tip

Optimize everything – your profile description, shopping pages, captions, closed captioning, hashtags, and location – for key search terms. 

#2 – E-Commerce Search

Although search engine marketing is traditionally viewed as a bottom-funnel, conversion-driving tactic, it’s also an excellent tool for initial discovery. What better way to tap into this potential than optimizing for search on e-commerce and retail sites where there is a shorter purchase cycle? 

A MediaPost article reports that, “Amazon, Google, and eBay have become the top three destinations to search for products in the United States.” In fact, 60% of online product searches start on Amazon alone – more than the total of all search engines. Plus, another 35% of consumers start their searches directly on retailer websites. 

Using these platforms, consumers are more likely than ever to discover a product for the first time and immediately purchase it. That’s the beauty of the speed and convenience of e-commerce today. You can tailor your content on shopping channels to rank for product-focused, transactional search queries and drive quick conversions. 

E-Commerce Search Tip

Use the space available on product and brand pages to include a blend of relevant branded and unbranded keywords. This will defend your footprint against competitors and introduce your brand to in-market consumers. 

#3 – Zero-Click Search

Zero-click search refers to search engine queries that do not result in any clicks to other links. Instead, the user is able to find the information they need in the snippets at the top of the search engine results pages. Zero-click search accounts for 25.6% of mobile search queries, per Semrush research. From Google My Business to Rich Answers, brands can provide a wealth of information to consumers without the need for a click, simplifying the user experience.

Google Search Click Thru Rates – Semrush

Let’s address the elephant in the room – losing website traffic sounds like a detriment for brands. So, how do you flip zero-click search to your advantage? Forrester’s 2022 report by Nikhil Lai, Implement Holistic Search Marketing To Win The Search Engine Results Page, states that zero-click search, “challenges marketers who ‘have measured success purely through clicks’ to accurately measure search’s impact, according to Ryan Green, VP of marketing and innovation at Coegi. Without relying on clicks, search practitioners become more like PR directors focused on awareness, visibility, and top-of-funnel strategies.”

So, lean into your content quality. Make sure your technical SEO is optimizing for transactional search queries, and your content and website schema are structured for rich results. If you’re selling a product, you want it to rank in the top Google Shopping results for relevant keywords. Likewise, if you’re trying to rank for informational queries, make sure you have highly useful content on those topics written according to SEO best practices. This will increase your authority and improve your chances of gaining featured snippets. 

Zero-Click Search Tip

Add FAQs on key topics to your website to boost your chances of showing up in Google Rich Answers.  

#4 – Voice Search

Google voice search became available to Android users back in 2012. By 2020, 63% of Americans began using voice assistants in their daily lives – whether it was Siri on iPhones, Cortana on Microsoft devices, Alexa on Amazon Echos, or others (National Public Media, 2020). Today, we are seeing an even greater consumer adoption of connected devices for voice search. This includes hands-free devices like connected cars, voice-activated CTV remotes, and, of course, smart speakers. 

Currently, local search is a leading driver for voice searches beyond basic weather, music, and news queries commonly used with voice assistants. However, the growth of mobile commerce and hands-free search is making voice search a more important player in the search and e-commerce ecosystem. As the technology becomes more responsive and user-friendly, the Internet of Things will help create a wealth of opportunity for more voice search and voice shopping applications. So prepare now – start exploring how to make your content adaptable for voice search and explore connected device integrations. 

Voice Search Tip

The average voice search is 29 words long. Write content in a conversational tone and lean into Q&A formats targeting long-tail keywords. Also lean into broad match terms to allow your keywords to evolve with user queries. 

#5 – Google Multisearch

Multisearch is a new tool from Google allowing mobile app users to search using a combination of text and image. Using this AI-driven technology, users can upload an image and then type an accompanying query into the search bar. A multisearch example Google shares is uploading a picture of a houseplant plus the query “care instructions’.” 

Similarly, you can snap a photo of an item, such as a rug or a sweater, and find it or similar options for sale online. ‘Multisearch near me’ even allows users to snap a photo of an item and then find where it is available nearby. This provides a unique way for local restaurants and brick and mortar retailers to reach new customers via search. Think of the beautiful food pictures you see on Pinterest or Instagram. With multisearch near me, you can upload one of those images and see if a local restaurant has a similar dish to try. 

By layering text and image, multisearch responses can be more relevant to the user, personalized to their wants and needs. Although still a new and evolving tool, it’s clear to see the discovery and commerce potential multisearch offers for brands. 

Multisearch Tip

Develop search content, whether written, video, or image, for humans – not just to appeal to the Google bots. The goal of multisearch is to be as relevant and useful as possible – ensure your content matches these needs. 

Search engines, social media platforms, and e-commerce sites are collectively enhancing what’s possible for search. This means you need to extend both your SEO and SEM strategies to all possible channels in the media mix. To succeed with your search marketing strategy, focus on your audiences’ user journeys and discovery experiences first and foremost, rather than gamification of the SEO system. 

Key Takeaways to Improve Your Search Marketing Strategy: 

  • Think human, while leaning into Google’s emphasis on relevance and usefulness with your content. 
  • Create and structure content for rich results such as images, videos, how-tos, FAQs, charts, and more.
  • Take an omnichannel approach and apply your search strategy to social media channels and digital marketplaces. 

2023 Digital Marketing Trends Reshaping the Industry

Posted on by Coegi

 

Looking for ways to advance your digital marketing in 2023? Learn Coegi’s top tips and trends for programmatic marketing as we enter the new year.

On this episode of The Loop Marketing Podcast, Coegi’s President, Sean Cotton, and VP of Marketing & Innovation, Ryan Green, discuss the top digital marketing trends for 2023. Listen, watch, or read below to learn how to level up your advertising campaigns this year.

 

2023 Digital Marketing Trends & Predictions Podcast: Edited Transcript

Elise: Today we are talking about 2023 digital marketing trends and predictions. I’m joined by Sean Cotton, Coegi’s President, as well as Ryan Green, Vice President of Marketing and Innovation. 

I want to start by talking about if your viewpoints to marketing have seen a big change over the year. Ryan, do you wanna start us off?  

Ryan: The thing that I think has changed the most is how important content actually is to media. For several years, we’ve really talked about campaigns – campaign numbers, IOs, and target audiences. But, what’s important going into 2023 is the merging of media, audience, and automation with the content and the message. Those need to be thought of together now, and they have to be part of the media buy.

Leaning into publisher and influencer relationships – sometimes as the creative agency in some ways, right? I think this happened during the pandemic. it was hard to go to production to build an old school campaign. But, you were able to create content. You were able to write. You were able to leverage influencers. And the media agencies started to do a lot more of the work there. So that’s really changed my viewpoint this year.  

Elise: Sean, what about you? Any changes to your personal viewpoints over the last year for marketing?  

Sean: My thoughts are closely related to Ryan’s. At the beginning of last year, there were still a lot of effective things that could be done around audience. And there still is, but that signal is becoming weaker with privacy laws and regulations. 

In 2022, we saw the impact of our audience targeting capabilities lessen – which we expected. So in 2023, we need to continue to lean into research and content as Ryan was discussing. By using tactics such as influencer marketing, we can make sure we’re really engaging our best customers throughout their journey and not relying on the easy button.  

Elise: Right, the audience signal is weaker, so the content has to work even harder to stop the scroll. Plus, personalization is going to change quite a bit.  

Ryan: And I think what content is has changed too. We’ve seen success with shorter content. We’ve also seen success with long-form content. It’s not just the trope that the modern consumer has a three-second attention span. That may be their attention span on TikTok. But, that’s not true when people are watching 30 minute videos on YouTube or reading 10,000 word articles. 

The modern marketing campaign needs to take a broader lens on what content is and where it plays in the consumer journey. And then, we need to amplify it to the right audience using automated tools to make the perfect mix and ultimately achieve business goals.  

2022 Year in Review

Elise: I think that’s a good segue to talk about some of the predictions you had at the start of this year. Sean, you predicted there would be more emphasis on social short-form video across multiple different platforms. So how did that play out in 2022?  

Sean: Well, we certainly saw the growth in short-form video production and distribution with the growth of TikTok, YouTube Shorts and so forth. But, I don’t think brands are capitalizing on short-form video and telling their story. Content needs to be tailored for each platform differently. The social media environment with short-form video requires us to be much more agile. 

Sometimes, it’s better to focus less on quality and more on authenticity in terms of content production. So I think part of that prediction came true.  As users, we are engaging more with short-form content. But, brands and agencies are still trying to catch up as to how to capitalize on that to it’s full potential.

Elise: And then, Ryan, you made a prediction that the metaverse and augmented reality and virtual reality were going to be driving factors in brands’ marketing plans. How did that play out throughout 2022?  

Ryan: It hasn’t, at least not for most marketers. It has for gaming. It has in fashion. But I don’t think anybody could have predicted some of the struggles Meta had. There are some Web3.0 things I’m still bullish on long-term. So, if I could revise my  2022 prediction, I would lean in more to retail media. It certainly has come on as a driving force. There’s been a strengthening of signal from retailer point of sale and media networks that advertisers can really lean into. Retail media needs to be a major part of lower funnel plans for CPG brands and a variety of industries.  

Elise: And then you both predicted that the availability of consumer data was going to be more of a force in terms of ad quality and how we measure marketing. I’d like to hear where you think that is heading as we enter 2023.  

Sean: We spoke a lot about incrementality over attribution last year. I was really surprised at how quickly that approach gained popularity over the course of the year. A lot of other marketers were thinking the same way. The beauty of digital has always been that we could tie together touchpoints and show attribution or ROI. I expected it would take a while longer for people to shift. Even going back to the way we used to measure with advanced forms of media mixed modeling and incrementality. 

So, I think that prediction really came to fruition right before our eyes in 2022. And I think moving forward we’ll see savvy marketers become even more skilled. There’s not a lot of doubt about whether it’s the right approach now. At this point, it’s about perfecting that approach and making it more meaningful when we deliver campaign analysis.  

Ryan: I’ve been pleasantly surprised that, even with cookie deprecation delays, brands and advertisers didn’t fall back on click-based attribution. They did still continue to lean into incrementality, even when they had an excuse not to. I think that goes into reliance on audience targeting as well. It’s not just browsers and cookie deprecation, it’s also legal and regulation that’s coming. Sean mentioned news that came out from the EU on Meta today that potentially is going to nullify personal ad targeting – period . If that does become law there, that’s going to have a trickle down effect across the globe. So, it’s good that brands are moving forward with what modern marketing is going to look like.  

Privacy and Regulation Trends for Digital Marketing in 2023

Elise: So, would you say that regulation is a top challenge brands should be looking to tackle in 2023? How should they be looking at the changes in the privacy landscape?  

Ryan: It depends where they’re transacting. They definitely need to be on more alert if they’re operating in the European Union. The United States is still to be determined, but we have stronger regulation coming out of California. So there’s several different angles, but we have an idea of what’s going to shape out. 

It’s actually an opportunity for brands to put a stake in the ground about their values as it pertains to data collection and regulation. They don’t have to wait to be told what to do. They can decide themselves to continue to have great campaign performance while still clearly defining brand safe data collection.  

Sean: And at this point, we should be implementing best practices around data collection, storage, and security on top of our marketing campaigns. If an advertiser was to find themself with first-party data without a strategy for how to use it, I would suggest they reach out to a professional  as soon as possible.  

Retire These Digital Marketing Trends

Elise: I’d like to hear each of your hard-hitting takes on trends that marketers should retire in 2022?

Ryan: This probably should have been done a couple of years ago. The reliance on Facebook as an easy button and as your primary social platform. That needs to go. Not only has the world diversified in where our consumer’s eyeballs are, but there’s well-noted privacy regulations that Meta is the center of. Their stock went down 80% over the past 10 months for a reason – that’s unprecedented. If that’s not a signal to advertisers that maybe that’s not the one place you want to bet on, it definitely should be.  

Advertisers should have been diversifying their social and digital media spend for a long time.  iOS 14.5 was a wake-up call to brands looking at last click attribution. There was so much shift between what the platform reported versus what their backend sales were showing.

There’s not going to be an easy button. It’s challenging to create content that plays well on a half a dozen different social platforms and screens. This is the time when advertisers that do the hard work are going to be rewarded. The ones that want to make it easy are going to be downstream.   

Sean: If I had to pick one trend to retire, I’d point to viewing CTV/OTT video as simply an incremental video strategy. Historically, brands would view linear as the majority of the big screen budget and carve off maybe 5% for CTV/OTT. There’s still a lot of marketers that approach it that way. Whereas if we analyze a CTV/OTT buy versus a linear buy, we can attain greater reach and a more manageable frequency.   

With linear, we often get high frequency to a very small pool of linear TV watchers. And, all the data shows people are cutting the cord. So CTV/OTT should be a central part of advertising on the big screen. It’s measurable and targetable to attain the appropriate reach and frequency goals. Now, linear TV still has its place without a doubt, but they need to be looked at in tandem  

Ryan: And now you’re seeing the Nielsens of the world coming together and measuring CTV and linear TV in the same language. We’re going to transact on CPMs – not on GRPs. That’s a big step towards a more apples to apples comparison. When there’s two different measurements, they end up naturally going to different places. There’s less excuse now, with measurement partners that are able to translate both. You need to lean into that to be effective in 2023.  

2023 Programmatic Marketing Trend Predictions

Elise: What are some other big digital marketing trends for 2023?  

Ryan: One of the big things we’re going to look at in 2023 is the emergence of retail media as a primary vehicle for digital marketing campaigns. Retail media only emerged in the past two or three years with any real emphasis. It was something experimental. But now it could be the backbone of a CPG marketing campaign. Social may become secondary or tertiary to retail media, and that really flips things on its head. 

Sean: One trend would be redefining what performance marketing and media is, especially as we go into a recession. Every dollar matters, so all media needs to deliver some type of performance. Now typically, when you say performance marketing, people think of lower funnel tactics where you can see a direct conversion. But the fact is – every marketing dollar needs to perform. 

There’s pressure on CMOs and CEOs to show return on all of their marketing investment. So, marketers are challenged for all media to perform. Now, you’re going to measure awareness differently than consideration or intent, but there needs to be some sort of accountability. So a trend we’ll continue to see as marketers embrace incrementality, is looking at performance marketing with a wider lens.  

Ryan: I agree with that. One other thing that’s come up this year is sustainability and the effect of digital marketing on our carbon footprint. We are really starting to dive into supply path optimization – having fewer touchpoints from the ad server to the consumer. I think we’re going to see a lot of brands start to demand this across every third-party partner.  

2023 Social Media Marketing Trend Predictions

Elise: To wrap us up, I want to talk about the future of paid social media and influencer marketing. Are there other 2023 social media trend predictions marketers should be looking out for?  

Ryan: There’s never been so much headwind with social. Social media has always been a growth channel, in every aspect. But, you have headline after headline coming in – from Meta’s demise to Twitter now having 70% less staff. And TikTok is not going to run the way that it is forever, with government regulation coming against China there. Even in the influencer space, we’re starting to see Gen-Z and Gen Alpha rebelling against the perfect influencer lifestyle. We’re seeing less time being given to those platforms.  

A lot of those platforms make it very easy to have great reach. In some ways, this actually may be an opportunity to do more on social media. The billions of logins Facebook has are not suddenly going away. And there’s plenty of people that still use these platforms. But there needs to be balance in your social strategy next to other media.

Balance is going to be a calling card for 2023. The brands that go heavy into search and social are going to be at a disadvantage if they don’t think about all the places it takes to garner attention. Attention is still the number one commodity we’re looking to harness as marketers. And we’re going to have to be more creative in how we message audiences and place ads to be competitive.  

Elise: Well, thank you both for being here today and I’m excited to see how these digital marketing trends play out in 2023. 

 

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Top Consumer Trends for 2023: What They Mean For Digital Marketing

Posted on by Coegi

Consumer behavior trends are constantly evolving. This is especially true for shopping preferences in 2023 as 90% of consumers are noticing price increases. Consumers are switching brands more than ever before. Brands must be highly adaptive to consumer trends to keep up with these changes and fend off the competition. 

So, brands, it’s time to meet (and reintroduce yourselves to) your consumers. 

Here are our top six key consumer trends for 2023, and the insights you need to capitalize on these trends for your brand: 

  1. Customer-first approach
  2. Brand loyalty risk
  3. Omni-channel shopping
  4. Social commerce proliferation
  5. Connected device adoption
  6. Influencer growth

Apply these 2023 consumer trends to your brand’s marketing

#1 – Taking a Customer-First Approach

Putting customers first is no longer an added value proposition – it’s an expectation. 19% of marketing executives report ‘fostering relationships with customers and increasing brand loyalty’ is their top priority for 2023. To do so, brands need to find unique ways to engage consumers and authentically insert themselves into their story. As a Netscribes article quotes, brands must, “go beyond the commodity to fuel engagement and advocacy by delivering context-specific interactions at the right junctures of the consumer journey.” 

Key takeaway: Brands must build a relationship with consumers in order to break through the clutter. Prioritize first-party data collection to understand your customers and provide a more personalized experience based on their interests and needs.

#2 – Preventing Brand Loyalty Risk

In the face of an economic downturn, consumers display less brand loyalty. Surveys found nearly 60% of US consumers are less brand loyal due to increasing costs of goods. Household names are losing their power as curious and price-conscious consumers shift towards value, price, and convenience. However, loyalty programs can help. 78% of consumers report that strong loyalty programs make them more likely to purchase from a brand or retailer. 

Key takeaway: Create ways to incentivize customer loyalty, either financially or with exclusivity. Remember – it’s more expensive to win over new customers than invest in your existing ones!

#3 – Optimizing Omni-Channel Shopping

Consumers are split between online and brick-and-mortar shopping. 75% of consumers report purchasing and researching products on both in-store and online channels, per McKinsey’s 2022 Consumer Pulse Survey. So, brands must give both channels attention to ensure they work together seamlessly and enhance the consumer experience. Integrations such as click-and-collect shopping help bridge this gap. 

Key takeaway: Blend traditional and digital channels to be present at every key customer touchpoint. Then, ensure the shopping process is seamless from exposure to check out to shorten the path to conversion.

#4 – Taking Advantage of Social Commerce’s Proliferation

Social commerce is on the rise with platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest adding new in-app shopping features and shoppable ad formats. Through these integrations, brands can engage customers in the moment without disrupting their social experience. E-Marketer forecasts over 50% of US users will make a social commerce purchase in 2023. When done well, social commerce promotes quick product discovery, a simplified shopping experience, and less friction in driving purchase.  

For more on social commerce, view our full 2023 Social Media Advertising Trends article here.

Key takeaway: Explore different tools to utilize social commerce, making it as easy as possible for a customer to add your product to their cart. Consider retargeting audiences from paid social media or influencer campaigns with shoppable ads to build trust and drive ROI.

#5 – Understanding Connected Device Adoption

Expect greater adoption of smart technologies in 2023, including connected cars, connected TVs, and smart speakers. More responsive technology advances, such as click-to-buy CTV ads or seamless re-purchasing through smart home devices, will pave the way for IoT-driven commerce. As these technologies continue to develop, test ways to use these devices to enhance your customer experience and drive e-commerce.

Key takeaway: Do the research to understand if your consumers are taking advantage of these advanced technologies. If they are, test interactive ad formats on connected devices and explore other IoT integrations such as voice shopping applications with smart speakers. 

#6 – Lean Into the Growth of Influencer

Influencer is the new word-of-mouth marketing. Authentic and relatable content from social creators drives full-funnel results for brands who do it well. Social media platforms are making it easier for influencers to monetize content and collaborate with brands, further paving the way for the social commerce boom. In 2023, the influencer market is projected to reach $6.16B, with TikTok on pace to gain the largest share of influencer ad spend by 2024. 

Key takeaway: Blend influencer marketing into your paid social media strategy to build authenticity, grow trust, and boost e-commerce. Adopt an omnichannel influencer strategy across multiple platforms and lean into useful, entertaining short-form video content to maximize exposure and engagement. 

Use these 2023 consumer trends to analyze your current CPG marketing strategy. Take your advertising to the next level by leaning into high growth areas and being the first to adapt to changing consumer preferences in 2023. 

For more marketing trends, view our 2023 Digital Marketing Trends and Predictions podcast episode.

MediaPost – Search Beyond Google: The Future of Brand Discovery

Posted on by Coegi

Search: It’s Google’s world. We’re just living in it.

This may have been true in the past, but not anymore.

Google is still the dominant traditional search engine, but AI advances and shifting consumer behaviors have changed the world of search as we know it. Social media and ecommerce have become mechanisms for consumers to discover and purchase new items, without leaving their preferred apps and platforms.

Marketers need to understand and adapt to the new ecosystem of search and brand discovery.

Let’s unpack these three key aspects of Search 2.0.

    • Search is social.

    • Search is ecommerce.

    • Search is omnichannel.

View the article

Pinterest Advertising Tips & Best Practices

Posted on by Coegi

Pinterest is a frequently overlooked social platform for advertising, with many marketers defaulting to Facebook and Instagram. However, it can be an excellent tool for brands looking to reach niche audiences in a discovery mindset. Inspiration is a key driver in marketing effectiveness, and Pinterest is where consumers go to be inspired.

Pinterest users are action-takers who intend to make purchases, plan projects, or develop new skills. This sets Pinterest apart from other social media platforms where users just skim through and like friends’ posts or news headlines. In other words, Pinterest is the ideal site to increase brand awareness and consideration.

If you’ve historically been hesitant to use this platform, read on to learn more about how your brand can capitalize on Pinterest ads.

What is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a social curation platform that acts as a digital inspiration board. It lets users create, share, and categorize online content per their interests. Marketers should think of Pinterest as a combination of a powerful visual search engine and online social community, making it the perfect place to promote product discovery among potential customers. 

What are pins?

Users can upload and save images from the internet and add captions, descriptions, and links. These are known as pins. Pins can be saved or uploaded to customizable boards on user’s accounts to have multiple points of inspiration. 

What do people use Pinterest for?

85% of Pinterest users use the platform as their first stop before beginning a new project. So, Pinterest is using this intel to lean heavily into commerce, giving users the opportunity to create shoppable pins and shopping lists. These shoppable pins are look native in the user’s feed, creating a less disruptive advertising experience. Additionally, Pinterest has new AR features that allow users to try out products virtually before purchasing. People use the platform to discover and research products and brands, making it the ideal platform to reach your audience before competitors do.

Types of Pins

There is a diverse range of ad formats you can leverage on Pinterest. Idea pins, how-to pins, downloadables, video pins, idea pins, shopping pins, and collection pins are just a few examples. Some of the newer and more valuable formats that marketers can utilize are idea pins, try on pins, and collection pins.

Idea Pins

These pins are Pinterest’s interpretation of the “story” concept that other platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram have used. Idea pins are short form video content or a series of images. These pins are usually demonstrations or how-tos. 

Pinterest Idea Pin Example

Try-On Pins

Try-on pins use augmented reality technology to allow the user to test out a product before purchasing. From trying out makeup to seeing how a new couch would look in their living room, try on pins allow users to visualize the product in their life before purchasing. 

Pinterest Try-On Pin Example

Collection Pins

These pins consist of several elements – one large main hero asset and three smaller secondary assets. Once clicked, collection take users to a page where they can view the hero asset up close next to the secondary assets. This can help brands showcase multiple complementary items or highlight different product features in one view.

Pinterest Collections Pin Ad Example

Who Uses Pinterest?

The platform has over 400 million monthly active users, who utilize the platform to plan projects, make purchases, and become inspired. Pinterest’s user base is primarily female, with 60% of their global audience consisting of women. Unsurprisingly, women are also the most likely to make purchases on Pinterest.

However, the user base is steadily diversifying, with male and Gen-Z users growing by 40% this year. Additionally, 45% of social media users who bring in an average household income of over $100K are active Pinterest users, meaning Pinterest users are high earners and high spenders.  People in many different life stages, and with many different interests (from new homeowners to hobbyists to gift shoppers), utilize Pinterest. 

How to Advertise on Pinterest

To start advertising on Pinterest, you must first create a Pinterest Business account. This gives you access to analytics, exclusive pin formats, and the ability to create ad campaigns. From there, you will receive a prompt to select a campaign objective. 

Pinterest advertising objectives include: 

  • Brand awareness – Brand awareness helps consumers to discover your brand, products and services
  • Video views – Video views optimize the quality and duration of views, as well as completion rates
  • Web sessions – Web sessions drive visitors to your website and increase awareness and consideration
  • Conversions – Conversions encourage users to take action, such as signing up for a mailing list, or adding items to their cart
  • Catalog Sales – Catalog sales aide in the discovery process, helping users find products and services

These objectives determine your spend and ad formats, so choosing one that most accurately reflects your company’s business goals is important. 

How to Target on Pinterest

Advertisers have several options when it comes to targeting. You can target users who have already interacted with your brand online, find new customers through lookalike modeling, target by keywords, or even create a target audience by uploading a mailing list.

Pinterest also gives users the ability to target by interest with their premade interest targeting options. For example, if you were advertising a modern chair, you could select “contemporary design” or “modern home aesthetic” in order to refine your audience even further.

4 Pinterest Advertising Tips

Here are four best practices to maximizing your advertising efforts on Pinterest:

  1. Keep it Visual: On Pinterest, visuals are everything, so it is important to tailor your creative to the platform. Users are looking for pins that look good on their boards, so make sure your creative is high quality and aesthetically pleasing. 
  2. Mix it Up: The most successful Pinterest marketing campaigns are experimental, so vary the type of pins you use. Like many other platforms, short-form video content typically performs well on Pinterest. Video ads autoplay on mobile devices, which highlights your ad against other pins. Mix in different styles of content to keep your audience engaged. 
  3. Lean into Analytics: Pinterest ads manager allows advertisers to track their campaigns and access valuable analytics. Use these metrics to understand trends and optimize business goals. 
  4. Be Descriptive: Utilize the description for each pin to give the user helpful, inspiring context and let them know why they should save your pin. 

Pinterest ads offer brands a great opportunity to reach reach and persuade niche audiences. If you’re in search of a new platform to breakthrough the noise and engage consumers, don’t over look Pinterest.

For more tips, view our 2023 Social Media Advertising Trends article here.

CTV Advertising Best Practices: Q&A with The Trade Desk 

Posted on by Coegi

Your CTV advertising questions answered.

If you’re interested in streaming television advertising but have never run a campaign, you likely have many questions. How do I create an effective campaign? Is it worth the time and money? How will I know if it’s working? 

In this Q&A article, we sat down with two CTV experts – Jake Richardson, Director of TV Partnerships at The Trade Desk, and Hannah Schatz, Director of Programmatic Operations at Coegi. They answered common questions about connected TV so you can feel confident using this high-impact channel to reach your brand goals. 

What is something most marketers don’t know about connected TV advertising?

Jake: One of the biggest unlocks we hear from clients is that certain TV shows or events are not available for programmatic purchasing. While that was once true, we’ve made great strides with our TV partners. They have realized the value of having programmatic inventory. Now, anything available on linear can be reached via streaming or connected TV. That even includes things like live sports.

Hannah: Connected TV is not bought, sold, or delivered the same way as traditional TV advertising. With CTV, ad slots are not determined by certain air times or channels. Rather, CTV ads are shown one at a time to a specific target audience/viewer.

What’s the biggest misconception among advertisers about CTV?

Jake: Pricing – many believe connected TV is less ‘efficient’ than linear TV on a household reach basis. However, the true power of CTV advertising is that marketers can tap into consumers on a more precise data-driven basis, with individual households. This makes that inventory substantially more appealing than traditional TV where targeting can be limited to a DMA or age and gender at best. What’s a better use of budget: spending it on households that are not interested in your product or spending it on audiences that have shown interest or even purchased previously?

Hannah: The idea that premium TV content is only available on one platform. For example, a brand wanting to reach Bravo viewers can access them on Hulu, but also on other streaming platforms such as SlingTV, DirectTV Stream, and FuboTV.

How can brands ensure they are running ads on high-quality CTV inventory?

Hannah: Look at what you are buying before launching your campaign. DSPs, like The Trade Desk, package their premium CTV inventory into private marketplaces (PMPs) of different categories (News, Live Sports, Entertainment, etc). Without executing through PMPs, the buy is open to all inventory coming through as “CTV” in the bid stream. This can result in buying less desirable ad slots.

For more tips on selecting CTV inventory to maximize your budget, view the video below:

What targeting approaches should marketers consider to reach their audiences on CTV?

Jake: One of the most important pieces of advice we give to our clients and brands is to start with an audience-first approach. With linear TV, we use contextual parameters to help narrow our audience. However, with CTV we have incredible user data that allows more granular targeting. Relying on contextual parameters in an audience-first world hinders your ability to unlock CTV’s full potential.

Hannah: Consider what is more important to you: the platforms your brand appears on or the audience you want to reach. If you want to target a niche audience AND only be on 2-3 streaming platforms, you will likely lack scale. Instead, be open to casting a wider net in terms of inventory if targeting a small audience. On the other hand, be open to targeting a broader audience if you only want to appear on a few streaming platforms. 

How can brands control CTV ad frequency?

Jake: Ad oversaturation isn’t just wasting money. It diminishes the consumer experience with your brand. The benefit of buying CTV via platforms like The Trade Desk is that it allows for holistic frequency capping. This means you can control and leverage frequency across not just CTV buys, but across the entire media mix. 

How can marketers measure the impact of CTV advertising on business results?

Jake: Traditionally, we don’t think of CTV as a direct response channel. By combining CTV buys with your omnichannel digital approach, marketers can track traditional digital KPIs – even on CTV inventory. Leveraging the power of multiple digital channels working together gives advertisers the most out of their CTV buys. 

Brands and advertisers can also evaluate campaign efficacy in real-time and shift accordingly when marketing goals change. Also, you can add in data from retail media partners like Albertson’s, Target, or Walgreens for greater performance insights and, in some cases, to measure tangible sales results.

Hannah: CTV advertising success is not just measurable by front-end metrics like video completion rates or cost per completed view. I often recommend running a brand lift study. This provides insight into how your video ads impacted an audience’s awareness or consideration of your brand. CTV also allows for offline conversion tracking. This records how many times a viewer was exposed to your ads before taking a key action. 

What strategies can brands use to connect measurement results from omnichannel campaigns?

Jake: Omnichannel measurement is one of the key differentiators of platform-based buying, as compared to buying television in siloes. We counsel clients to bring as much of their existing digital buys into the platform. Then, they can measure campaigns across all of the publishers and channels. By leveraging linear TV audience data via our Audience Accelerator product, advertisers are also able to understand their linear TV footprint and adjust their digital channel strategies to ensure these buys complement one another.

Hannah: It’s important to take advantage of real-time measurement and optimization. CTV advertising offers more flexibility than linear TV. For example, CTV can measure which creative message worked best, as well as what audience responded the most with the final action, such as a product purchase. Those converted users can then be suppressed from targeting on other channels running in tandem. This ultimately leads to less media waste.

How is CTV advertising evolving to drive lower-funnel conversions?

Jake: Much of this shift is being driven by the addressability of CTV measurement; but also by emerging channels. More and more, we are seeing interactive creative that evokes a response. This comes through both third-party vendors and publishers themselves. We’ve found that new creative formats are increasingly able to drive toward brands’ KPIs thanks to technological innovation in the space.

Hannah: Pixels, site visits, and site activity can be tracked on any programmatic campaign, including CTV. As a result, you can measure CTV by the number of lower-funnel activities such as: 

  • Number of site visits driven
  • Cost per site visit 
  • Conversion rate of on-site actions. 

This allows us to refine TV campaign objectives beyond broad awareness and reach. 

What should marketers consider when balancing cost and effectiveness on CTV?

Jake: Since marketers can now activate in real-time on an individual household level, they can better determine which impressions are worth their dollars. Instead of spending money on ‘cheap reach’, media buyers can make every impression count. While CPMs may be more costly on a per-unit basis, omitting out-of-demo impressions results in biddable CTV with much greater inherent value.

Hannah: Consider what placements are going to elevate your brand’s position. Some are more costly but have powerful engagement. For example, supplementing your buy on a large live sporting event to reach many users on multiple streaming platforms can have a major impact worth the premium. 

What should marketers consider when putting together their CTV creative strategy?

Jake: Marketers should treat CTV creative much like they do traditional television creative. This is a chance to tell a story. It’s also an opportunity to engage closely with your customer on the largest screen in the room. 

Also, keep in mind that you can target a very specific set of viewers. For example, a food delivery service using the offerings at The Trade Desk could activate real-time weather data to target streamers with warm dinner options in Kansas City when it’s raining. I cannot understate the effectiveness of this kind of real-time pivot.

Hannah: As you tell your story, keep a cohesive narrative, whether you have 15 seconds or a full minute. Also, ensure your video is of the highest quality possible as premium publishers have thresholds on things like bitrate. Finally, run A/B tests to determine which creatives resonate best with your audience. 

How can brands be more innovative with CTV advertising?

Jake: One of the best things about CTV is the speed and agility and the ability to test and learn more quickly. You can improve campaign relevance and effectiveness in ways that can be challenging to achieve on linear. 

Hannah: Consider incorporating emerging ad formats and tactics to increase overall ad relevance and engagement. For example: 

  • Interactive ad elements such as map functionality or QR codes 
  • Dynamic creative optimization to deliver personalized ads to target audience groups
  • Real-time geographic data to deliver CTV ads to your target audience based on their location/environment 

Finally, what are your best tips for running a successful CTV campaign?

Jake: Iterate, iterate: iterate! The power of CTV is real-time feedback. Taking the data and measurement that comes part and parcel with a CTV buy will allow you to quickly adjust buying behavior. The end result is higher return on ad spend and less waste.

Hannah: To maximize CTV campaign success, focus on three key areas: audience, context, and measurement. 

  • Audience: Avoid wasting media dollars by taking advantage of addressable CTV targeting. Activate first-party audiences by purchasing data from partners like Catalina, retail media providers, or exposure data from Samba TV.  
  • Context: Make sure your ads are running around high-quality programming that is relevant to your audience. 
  • Measurement: Establish CTV campaign KPIs that are clear, meaningful, and trackable. This will enable you to attribute success and see its value in your overall strategy. 

Download our CTV Ecosystem Infographic here to understand the key terms and players in the streaming landscape. 

For more strategic tips and information, access our Connected TV Advertising Guide.

The Ultimate Guide to Financial Services Marketing

Posted on by Coegi

How Financial Institutions Can Adapt to a Digital-First Marketplace 

Consumers are making a substantial investment when they choose to work with your financial institution. Outside of the financial commitment itself, the decision of which company to work with also requires a significant amount of time and research. This is true whether selecting an institution for banking, loans, or retirement funds. 

To win over finance customers, you must build a robust, flexible strategy that establishes trust, provides an open line of communication on preferred platforms, and simplifies the finance decision-making journey. Keep reading for Coegi’s how-to guide on financial services marketing. 

In this guide you’ll learn how to: 

  • Capitalize on market opportunities 
  • Target and motivate financial consumers with personalized messaging
  • Create an effective omnichannel financial marketing strategy
  • Track, measure, and improve advertising performance 

A strong audience strategy backed by a robust understanding of their behaviors, motivations, preferences, and media consumption will drive reduced media waste by ensuring your ads are being shown in the ideal places and with an effective message.

-Maggie Gotszling, Account Strategy Director

Key Digital Channels for Financial Marketing 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone – even late adopters – began exploring ways to  conduct finances online. We saw a surge in usage of online bill pay, Apple Wallet, Venmo/PayPal, digital check deposits, investment apps, and more. 

With this shift in behavior, the volume of physical banks is shrinking. From 2012-2021 there was a 16% decrease in US branches. On the other hand, there will be over 3.6B online banking users globally by 2024. 

Changes in digital adoption are prevalent among both financial professionals and consumers across age groups. As a result, 87% of financial marketers increased their digital marketing budget in 2022.

Use the following digital channels to focus your dollars on the most cost-efficient and effective channels that align with a digital-minded consumer.

Video

Finance brands are realizing the value of video in driving awareness through storytelling, which is important for major financial decisions. Consumers are shifting more and more to video content. In fact, around 84% of consumer internet traffic is on video content. So use quality video content to educate your audiences, show your brand personality, and bring your message to life.

YouTube 

YouTube is the preferred source of finance-related video content among Gen-Z. Additionally, one in three Millennials cited YouTube as their preferred source of investing and personal finance guidance.

Connected TV

Streaming TV received the highest investment of any digital channels by consumer banking and consumer finances brands in the past year, according to Pathmatics data. 

Why are finance marketers leaning so heavily into CTV? 

  • High-impact video content on the largest screen in households
  • Addressability with contextual and behavioral targeting
  • More flexibility and affordability versus traditional TV

Social Video

Short-form videos on social media platforms typically receive higher engagement and promote better brand recall. This is why video ads are expected to account for 35% of social media ad spend in 2023. Use quick, straightforward video content to efficiently convey your brand message.

Paid Search

Search engines drive nearly all website traffic and are the third most popular source for consumer financial education behind families and banks themselves. It’s critical to show up as a top-ranking site on Google. Pair effective keyword bidding with strong website SEO to ensure your brand is visible at key points in the consumer journey. 

Display

Display ads are a cost-effective option for building brand awareness. They can also drive consideration and lead generation through specific CTAs. We recommend using dynamic creative for personalized offers which drive measurable actions. 

Native display ads are especially useful for targeting finance buyers when they are reading contextually relevant content. It can position your brand as an additional resource to the topic they are reading about without being intrusive.

Paid Social

59% of financial marketers expect to increase their social media marketing budget in 2022.

Why? Four out of five financial marketers gain new leads through social media. 

Social media is useful in bringing your brand to life and building trust and authenticity with followers in an environment where they are active daily. It also goes a long way in driving new prospects and increasing customer lifetime value. 

High Performing Social Channels for Financial Marketing: 

LinkedIn

LinkedIn has millions of active professionals with detailed targeting capabilities for reaching a business-focused target audience. On LinkedIn, individuals are more likely to engage in business activities. You can also use tactics like job title targeting to ensure you are reaching the right individuals.

Facebook and Instagram

Instagram is the most highly invested-in social channel for consumer banking, followed closely by Facebook. Together, these channels make up nearly half of all digital consumer banking ad spend. Lead generation ads on both platforms offer a reliable way to collect first-party data in exchange for educational content. 

TikTok

No other social platform enables the potential virality or mass reach as quickly and easily as TikTok. Plus, there’s a huge niche on TikTok for financial content. Younger audiences looking to increase their financial literacy follow creators who post relatable and digestible finance content. There is a great opportunity for banks and finance brands to educate consumers and build awareness via influencer partnerships and paid advertising on TikTok. 

Twitter

Twitter is especially effective for targeting financially-minded individuals. 41% of users report that financial and business content on Twitter can impact their investment decisions. The platform has a very active crypto and fintech community. Members are consistently discussing the latest news and trends in the space. Align your brand with this content, trending hashtags or popular creators to capitalize on the opportunity Twitter offers. 

Reddit

Reddit often referred to as the “first page of the Internet,” is a discussion-based platform that allows advertisers to reach a very niche audience at a cost-efficient rate. It is most popular among the 18-34-year-old age group. This makes it a great option to reach younger generations with a financial interest. Look for relevant subreddits where your brand can show up as a helpful resource. 

Local Partnerships

Regional finance brands need to be active in their communities. Local partnerships are a great way to establish that presence and boost brand affinity. For example, a regional bank could sponsor a professional sports team or non-profit. Even for national brands, it’s important to identify the key regions where you have the greatest traction and find partnerships to help amplify your brand.

Content Marketing and Publisher Partnerships

Less human interaction with advisors and representatives means your online content has to work harder. Thought leadership content can humanize your brand and help guide your customers through their financial journey. Through publisher partnerships, brands can establish authority in particular industry niches.

Digital-First, Not Digital-Only, Engagements 

Despite the strengths of all these channels, digital tactics shouldn’t stand alone. Accounts opened in person have up to 10x higher balances after four months than those opened digitally. A positive physical onboarding is ideal to enhance customer lifetime value. 

PWC reports, “Most consumers do still want to work with real bankers along with technology — especially during initial acquisition and onboarding activities — as long as it’s on their own terms”. So explore ways to create immersive experiences that blend physical and digital worlds for both customer service and advertising. 

Creating an Omnichannel Financial Marketing Plan

Only 9% of customers say their bank offers an excellent digital customer experience. The top way you can improve the banking customer journey, according to BAI, is to improve the omnichannel experience. It’s easy to get absorbed in individual channels. However, this causes campaigns to turn from strategic to tactical quickly. 

Instead, leverage a consumer-focused approach that determines who your most valuable audiences are and how you can best reach them.

Forward-thinking finance brands have an exciting opportunity to leverage the digital marketplace to their advantage. With a digital-first approach, audience personalization, and strategic targeting, you can reach your highest potential buyers with maximum efficiency. 

As you continue to navigate these challenges, Coegi is here to guide you. Reach out to us at info@coegipartners.com for a strategy consultation to enhance your customers’ digital journey. 

Coegi Partners

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