Category: Industry Expertise

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. 

The 3 Step CPG Marketing Strategy to Gain Lifelong Customers

Posted on by Elise Stieferman

How to Build an Effective CPG Marketing Strategy

Consumer packaged goods (CPG) – a massive category with a lot of nuances to consider. Some goods are purchased daily, while others have a longer life cycle ranging from months to years. 

The goal that unites all CPG brands? The need to build brand affinity to gain a lifelong customer, regardless of the frequency of purchase. Achieving a high customer lifetime value requires ongoing, personalized investment. It’s about relationships, not just reach.  

There is a low switching cost for CPG brands, and competitors can swoop in and take your customers. There will almost always be MANY other choices and consumers are becoming less loyal. Building loyalty requires going beyond transactions and forming authentic relationships that delight users and create long-term brand advocates

So, how can brands create a CPG marketing strategy that optimizes the consumer experience – that attracts new customers and nurtures existing ones? We recommend a three-pronged approach to accomplish this goal:

  1. Be consumer obsessed
  2. Invest in outstanding content
  3. Lead with digital marketing tactics

How To Be Consumer Obsessed

If you don’t understand and deeply care about your key consumers, going beyond demographics, you will lose their attention every time. That’s why it’s critical for brands to do extensive research on their best customers. Understanding consumers’ pain points is a key first step in this learning phase – what challenges will your product solve for? How will it make consumers’ lives better? Make sure you acknowledge how you will alleviate their frustrations as you go-to-market. 

Next, determine what motivates these individuals:

  • Are they parents focusing on creating a safe home environment? 
  • Are they executives seeking products that insinuate prestige and luxury? 
  • Are they athletes looking to enhance their healthy lifestyle and improve performance?

Understand your audiences on a granular level to ensure you are speaking their language and appealing to what they care about.

Lastly, ensure you’re placing this message on channels where your core consumers are most engaged. This improves marketing ROI by decreasing media waste. Consider things like:

  • Their hobbies and interests
  • Where they most commonly shop
  • Which websites and social media platforms they visit
  • What publications or streaming services they subscribe to

At the end of the day, make the customer the hero of your brand story, rather than yourself. This will allow your brand to show up during foundational times and influence key decision-making moments. Remember, it can even impact generations of consumers as parents pass on their preferences to their children.

Why It’s Important To Invest In Outstanding Content

Once you understand your target audience, work on cultivating a memorable brand image and voice. All the audience research in the world will not reach its full potential unless the content you’re promoting is highly relevant and engaging. Even the strongest media strategy cannot override the impact of poor creatives on performance. 

So, how do you achieve creative content excellence? This, of course, goes back to point number one – know your customers and what keeps them coming back. You shouldn’t speak to the safety-focused mother the same way you speak to the influence-focused executive. However, consumers are inundated with ads every day. It’s important to be strategic in showcasing your brand’s story, ensuring your ads are impactful and not disruptive for the wrong reasons. 

Now, this can get very expensive, very quickly – if not done strategically. That means your brand does not need to show up on EVERY channel. Instead, create one or two meaningful content pieces, and identify ways to adapt this to each channel.

Lead With Digital Marketing Tactics

The purchase funnel is becoming shorter as information is available at our fingertips. Consumers can search for a product, read reviews, compare brands, and make an informed purchase in a matter of minutes. Most of the time, this is done digitally. Fortunately, this is also an environment where CPG brands can test and learn quickly.

A digital media strategy helps brands account for each stage of the consumer journey – whether on D2C, e-commerce marketplaces or in-store channels. Digital media placements also allow CPG brands to evaluate their content effectiveness and make small adjustments before buying the expensive TV spot or billboard. Start small and build scale once you have done the analysis to understand what works and what doesn’t. 

CPG marketers have an exciting opportunity to identify ways to drive marketing ROI for their brand. The key is straying away from early mass media investment. Instead, prioritize smart learnings through audience-first digital activations with creative excellence. Here’s how to bring this to life:

Create Brand Awareness and Affinity

Every effective CPG marketing strategy starts at awareness – testing and amplifying messaging with prospecting audiences. Then, by activating a flexible, omni-channel approach, we can learn who our best audience is. We’ll also learn what channels we can reach them on and what messaging resonates best with them.   

Get in front of potential customers early in the discovery phase. Search and retail media channels are particularly effective tactics to show up where consumers are actively looking for products. Consider these CPG brand awareness building tactics:  

Prime Audiences to Purchase

Crossing the boundary from ad impression to ‘add to cart’ can be challenging. After reaching users in the discovery phase, deploy smart segmentation and retargeting to stay top of mind. It’s important to reach users across various media touchpoints from social to display to digital video with an omnichannel strategy. 

Tips for establishing consideration: 

  • Target messaging and use effective frequency exposure across channels to make sure your product makes the shopping list. 
  • Understand how many interactions you need before a customer will remember your brand and make a purchase to optimize your budget.

Move Seamlessly to Sales Conversion

As a consumer nears purchase, machine learning and algorithms need to get to work. Use AI to predict and serve the right messaging at the right time. Also, use technology like dynamic creative optimization to tailor messaging to complement previous touchpoints – such as add to cart or existing cart reminders.

Tips for keeping your clients loyal to your brand: 

  • Use loyalty card data to understand frequency and cadence of purchase to serve your ads in the right place at the right time. 
  • Serve ads for complementary items to previous purchase, with sufficient buffer time post-purchase 
  • Surprise customers with incentives, promotions, or gifts

Want to learn more about how to create a best-in-class CPG marketing strategy for your brand?

We’ve got you covered. View the complete CPG Digital Marketing Playbook below.

Coegi’s CPG Digital Marketing Playbook

HIPAA Compliant Healthcare Marketing and Ad Targeting

Posted on by Colin Duft

Healthcare Marketing Compliance Guidelines

In healthcare marketing, compliance is of the utmost importance. At Coegi, we work with many healthcare and pharmaceutical clients to continuously navigate this highly regulated industry. Continue reading to learn more about what it means to be a compliant and ethical healthcare marketer with this guide. 

Who sets the regulations for healthcare marketing compliance?

In 1996, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was passed to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without consent. However, when it comes to understanding HIPAA for healthcare advertising, there’s a lot of room for interpretation. This leaves many advertisers unsure if certain marketing capabilities are compliant and ethical. 

This is especially true for pharmaceutical advertisers using health information to target audiences for prescription drugs, medical devices, and other pharmaceutical products through media. To provide an industry standard, there are committees devoted to giving pharma advertisers direction – including  the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA), and the National Advertising Initiative (NAI). 

The NAI is one of the leading bodies for defining healthcare marketing compliance regulations. Founded in 2000, the NAI published a set of codes for targeted advertising and online profiling that is supported by the U.S. FTC. The most recent revisions to the code provide media targeting best practices, including a definition for Sensitive Health Information to provide pharmaceutical advertisers with more concrete direction for targeting consumer populations.

How does HIPAA affect healthcare ad targeting?

The first step is understanding if your brand’s core consumer audience falls under the ‘sensitive’ category. This will impact targeting capabilities. According to the NAI, there are two subsets of sensitive information: 

  1. Data about a health condition or treatment derived from a sensitive source 
  2. Data about certain sensitive conditions regardless of the source of the data

The NAI only provides a few sensitive categories. These include drug addiction, STDs, mental health, pregnancy termination, cancer, and all conditions predominantly affecting children that are not treatable with OTC medications. For other health conditions, the NAI provides guidance to help determine whether pharmaceutical targeting segments are considered sensitive. However, this guidance does not offer a clear list of compliant targeting capabilities. 

One of our leading media buying partners, The Trade Desk (an NAI member), also has a healthcare targeting policy. Using its own multi-factor analysis process, it defines whether a condition is high, medium, or low sensitivity to determine allowable targeting capabilities. Coegi recommends using these guides to inform client conversations and recommendations when aligning on the brand’s own definition of sensitivity. 

How do you approach pharmaceutical targeting compliantly?

The goal is to aggregate enough compliant data about an individual to create a complete picture. This allows you to meet their needs accurately while preserving their privacy. Make sure pharmaceutical advertising campaigns are compliant by examining the data sources informing them. Look for two specific criteria:

  1. Consent: Guarantee the audiences reached provide the brand permission to market to them
  2. Deterministic data: Validated user information so marketers know they’re reaching a person who gave consent

Despite the challenges, pharmaceutical brands still have a variety of ways to target patients. We can use first-, second-, and third-party data and machine learning to identify relevant consumers who are likely to be receptive to receiving advertising from your brand.

Best Practices for HIPAA Healthcare Marketing Compliance

  • Ensure FDA and HIPAA compliance of campaigns including messaging and targeting with legal counsel.
  • Use de-identified information from third-party data providers for patient behavioral targeting.
  • Gain opt-in consent from users for sensitive health segment targeting and geo-targeting. 
  • Leverage data partners to reach HCPs on a 1:1 basis at scale. 

Healthcare Consumer Ad Targeting

Once you determine whether your target is in the sensitive or non-sensitive condition category, use the following tactics to reach healthcare and pharmaceutical consumers:

Modeled Targeting

Modeled targeting using de-identified information from third-party data providers is compliant according to the NAI. The NAI’s Guidance for Health Audience Segments quotes, “the use of offline marketing segments that are also modeled, not based on any user-level purchase, behavior, or activity, would also be considered non-sensitive.”

From a blog post by Yeehooi Tee of PulsePoint, not all audience models are created the same. It is critical to analyze data collection methods. There are key factors to understand when evaluating health data segments. These include the source of the seed data, modeling attributes, the seed-to-output ratio, and many others. 

Contextual Targeting

There are no regulations on using contextual targeting for a consumer audience. This is a popular approach for reaching patient and caregiver audiences in a compliant manner. 

Connected TV is a useful medium for contextual healthcare targeting. A TV ad for a specific health condition can feel less invasive, yet still relevant, using contextual targeting. With third-party data partners, personal information is de-identified for HIPAA-compliant CTV targeting.

Geo-Targeting

For both sensitive and non-sensitive conditions, geo-targeting a consumer audience requires the user’s opt-in consent to target by location data (like a clinic location). However, even with opt-in consent, there are still limitations for sensitive topics, such as reproductive health or addiction recovery, when it comes to location-based targeting. 

There are other forms of targeting patient audiences using geographic data. For example, using data partners, pharmaceutical brands can target programmatic buys to specific zip codes that over-index for a condition. Using anonymized provider prescription data, data can be matched to zip codes with the highest lift in specific prescriptions and even mapped to these households via IP addresses. This enables omnichannel online targeting to reach healthcare consumers through display, video, native, and social media channels. 

Condition-Based Targeting

We use third-party data providers to access unique condition-based healthcare segments. This anonymized data is not subject to some of the strict HIPAA guidelines, as it cannot be tied to personally identifiable records. This allows you to reach your relevant audience at scale with minimal media waste. 

Interest Targeting

Interest-based targeting can reach patients as well as caretakers with interest in a specific condition or topic. This expands reach to the key decision-makers in the healthcare process. The content consumers are reading or searching for online typically defines “Interest”. To engage these individuals as they are consuming relevant information, consider contextual targeting methods mentioned above. 

For more of my tips on the best strategies and channels for healthcare patient and provider targeting, view the video below:

Healthcare Provider Ad Targeting

Healthcare providers are relatively easier to target than patient segments due to publicly available information and fewer privacy restrictions. However, there can be challenges with achieving scale and managing higher costs. Regardless, brands can reach HCPs across the wide range of content they consume and the multiple devices they use.

Because you’re targeting by profession rather than a condition, there are fewer restrictions for HCPs. Let’s explore some of the most effective forms of compliant audience targeting for HCPs: 

ID-Based Targeting

ID-based targeting allows pharmaceutical brands to reach HCPs with a compliant audience-first approach. National Provider IDs are personal identifiers for specific healthcare providers, including their practice location and specialty. 

Utilizing this data set via demand-side platforms (DSPs) such as PulsePoint, MedData, CrossIX and HealthLink allows for compliant, one-to-one HCP targeting across multiple channels and devices.  Brands can target HCPs both by specific medical specialty or by an individual NPI number. 

Geo-Targeting

Brands can also use NPI numbers to target relevant practice locations for particular physicians or specialties. By targeting a geo-radius around point-of-care locations with high volumes of particular diagnoses or treatment types, brands can remain compliant with HIPAA and the NAI while also reaching the target audience. Another opportunity for geo-targeting physicians is geo-fencing industry conferences and events where large groups of professionals congregate.  

Contextual Targeting

Contextual targeting tools can look at categories, keywords, and tags on web pages to deliver highly relevant content to HCPs through programmatic channels. At Coegi, we map these to the National Library of Medicine MeSH Taxonomy to ensure the most relevant terminology is applied to our digital media. 

Rx and Dx Targeting

Through data partnerships, brands can target NPI numbers of providers who commonly prescribe certain prescription codes. Likewise, brands can target by diagnosis using ICD-10 codes to find their core HCP customers. 

Depending on each client’s goals, Coegi provides a recommended HCP targeting strategy. Even with fewer restrictions, we investigate and understand the source of the data segments associated with NPIs. 

For more on healthcare marketing compliance and best practices, read this Q&A article with more insights from myself and Pulsepoint’s Malcolm Halle or contact Coegi today. 

Win Over Audiences with Effective Finance Content Marketing

Posted on by Maggie Gotszling

Financial literacy is in short supply. Brands who lean into an education-first finance content marketing strategy can build lasting customer relationships, when done right. 

Consumers are making a substantial investment when they choose to work with your financial institution. Outside of the financial commitment, 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. 

As a marketer, it’s important to be proactive in answering key consumer questions to win their trust and business. Some questions our financial services clients are regularly addressing include:

  • Which business offers the best rates? 
  • Can I solve all my financial needs in one place? 
  • What accounts and funds are best for me? 

But, these questions are truly just scratching the surface. To win over audiences, you must build a robust, flexible finance content marketing strategy that:

  • Simplifies communication between the business and consumers 
  • Delivers useful content in the most opportune areas  
  • Leans into innovation, fearlessly breaking the mold 

Building a line of communication with finance content marketing

To persuade consumers to trust and invest in your financial services, you must understand their motivations, financial literacy and relationship with your brand. But don’t stop there. 

Go more in-depth to find out what their research process looks like, understanding what and who impacts their financial decisions. Additionally, discover what channels they use to formulate an opinion about your financial brand. Are they watching financial channels on YouTube? Searching on Google to see if you’re on a list of top local banks? Reading brochures on the benefits of opening certain accounts? 

47% of consumers worldwide turn to their wealth manager or investment adviser when making important financial decisions, followed by educational resources from financial institutions (41%), whereas friends and family as well as social media are only at 25%. Yet, when it comes to making overall financial decisions, Gen-Z is turning to video while Millennials and Gen-X continue to first turn to search engines.

Financial Education Sources by Generation

Figure out which channels your target demographics are turning to, create a unique communications strategy by product, and meet them where they are. Formulate a financial customer journey with your marketing to help answer their questions and ultimately persuade them to call, email, or fill out a contact form.

Leading with quality content

Depending on the risk of the financial decision, consumers may need a lot of time in the consideration phase. They’re weighing their options, researching and consulting with trusted sources. Regardless of the product or service line, sharing high quality educational content is your opportunity to show up early in the consumer journey.

Even if you’re just trying to get a consumer to open a checking account, taking the time to produce a high quality digital brochure or a video ad explaining your value creates an opportunity to build high lifetime value. The average consumer retains the same checking account for an average of 17 years.

Establish yourself as a helpful guide throughout the financial decision-making process, featuring your organization’s subject matter experts as authorities in the financial industry. Also, use consumer intel as the foundation for your content marketing strategy. Then create informative, empowering content personalized for your target audiences that addresses those top of mind questions and helps them feel in control of their finances. 

Educating financial advisors vs end users

The process of creating and distributing content becomes slightly more complicated in a B2B2C marketing model. If a third-party business or individual is responsible for the final sale, you must arm them with information to best represent your value. With B2B content, you can be more technical and include common industry jargon. However, your B2C consumers need different materials. Lean into high-level content, providing enough information where the consumer understands the benefits without being overwhelmed or intimidated. 

Link these two paths by creating a series of content around the most important topics for explaining your product and service value. This allows the consumer to interact with multiple, digestible pieces of content that guide their research and discovery process.

Then, create a two-pronged advertising strategy to amplify content in key channels that make sense to each respective audience. With financial advisers, perhaps it’s serving amplified content alongside well-known financial journals, television programs, and LinkedIn, whereas content amplified for consumers could appear on YouTube, Google, or even TikTok. Either way, it’s critical to create an omnichannel experience with multiple touchpoints that keep your brand top of mind. 

Identifying the greatest opportunities

Even though you should be implementing an omnichannel experience, that doesn’t mean your strategy should be throwing dollars at the wall hoping something sticks. That’s especially true in terms of marketing channels and tactics. Use measurement tools, such as media mix modeling, to understand the channels driving the highest return in your campaigns. Then, align your most valuable, informative content with highly trusted channels. And finally, determine unique KPIs to define success and keep your marketing accountable. 

Breaking the mold

It’s easy to get into a rhythm of what’s comfortable and familiar in your marketing. But, it’s important to consistently keep a pulse on what’s happening across the finance spectrum.

  • What trends are impacting marketing execution?
  • What matters to your customers today? 

Based on these learnings, test a variety of content marketing executions. This can vary from your standard display banners to custom articles, podcast placements, email marketing – you name it. Begin building reach with expanded target audiences (achieving sufficient scale is key!) by using adjacent topics to your typical content. This will position your brand as a helpful thought leader.

Financial literacy is still lacking across much of the population, especially younger generations. Brands have a major opportunity to drive finance consumer leads through education – a pivotal, but often overlooked, part of the consumer journey. 

For tips on how to incorporate a financial content strategy into a full-funnel digital marketing, view our Ultimate Guide to Financial Marketing.

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. 

Q&A on Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Marketing Best Practices

Posted on by Coegi

Building business solutions for regulated industries is complex. At Coegi, we fearlessly take on clients across many regulated industries, and are well-known for expertise in healthcare and pharmaceutical marketing. Clients come to us regularly to build their knowledge in the space.

This Q&A blog shares our learnings over the years. Coegi’s subject matter expert, Account Strategy Director Colin Duft, and our technology partner PulsePoint’s Head of Strategic Accounts, Malcolm Halle, answer questions regarding healthcare and pharmaceutical digital marketing best practices. 

 

Q: What should healthcare and pharma marketers do to ensure they are being compliant in their digital advertising?

A: PulsePoint – The foundation of all digital advertising is the data behind it. While data sounds like something objective, in reality not all data is created equal. Do the homework and look under the hood to understand the data informing campaigns. From a compliance perspective, two things are crucial: 

1) Consent: guarantee healthcare audiences reached provide the brand permission to market to them

2) Deterministic data: the patient or physician information so marketers know they’re actually reaching person who consented to marketing 

Building on this, it’s also important to consider the data in totality. The goal is to aggregate enough pieces of data about an individual compliantly to create a complete picture. Then you can meet the patient’s needs accurately. However, this process needs to happen in a privacy-preserving way. Lastly, the freshness of data will affect its usefulness and accuracy. 

A: Coegi – Similar to other verticals, it’s important to keep a pulse on the regulatory committee guidelines. Compliance isn’t a black and white map. HIPAA allows room for multiple interpretations, so committees such as the NAI help provide greater clarity. Additionally, it’s important to always be transparent with the client. If something feels off, have a conversation to explain your compliance recommendation and hear their point of view.

Q: The ecosystem of healthcare provider (HCP) marketing is shifting, with the acceleration toward digital. What are the latest trends in healthcare and pharmaceutical marketing for targeting HCPs?

A: Coegi – No matter the strategy, measurement should always be the nucleus of a campaign. Companies like IQVIA and Veeva-Crossix provide marketing measurement products that tell a story and tie back success to a Rx. Use these solutions to complement and build on the brand’s sales team as they start to enter the doctors’ offices once again. 

A: PulsePoint – As digital becomes the dominant vehicle to reach HCPs, marketing to them doesn’t need to be restricted to office hours. Instead, understand and seamlessly align with HCPs’ shifting mindset as they go through their day. We can reach them with unique messaging during white coat moments as well as blue jeans moments. We see on our platform that HCPs are visiting work-related websites around the clock. But, we can also coordinate these marketing campaigns on other channels such as Hulu after dinner or on Spotify during a workout. These personalized touchpoints provide a more human experience.

Building on Colin’s point, PulsePoint offers an HCP measurement solution called HCP365. It enables healthcare companies to understand HCP brand actions across digital channels, including website, search and media, at the individual NPI level, in real time. This means brands can now know, with a very high level of certainty, that Dr. Susan interacted with a brand ad, or Dr. Patrick visited the web site. This kind of individual level analytics allows brands to understand, and therefore optimize, media performance with their specific target HCPs. 

Q: What outdated advertising strategies do healthcare and pharmaceutical marketers need to leave behind?

A: Coegi  – On the healthcare provider side, marketers need to come to terms with the fact that doctors don’t just read medical journals all day. HCPs are people too. Even with a smaller audience, you can hyper target the doctor and scale simultaneously. For consumer campaigns, patients also don’t just read endemic articles on a particular condition all day. Use media to reach them throughout their day across various touchpoints. 

A: PulsePoint – Marketers definitely need to break their ties with old school geographic and demographic targeting. This is especially problematic with connected TV. More than half of all CTV buyers in healthcare still use geo/demo targeting. They’re reaching broad audiences with significant waste. CTV offers so many more targeting capabilities, for example, targeting specific HCPs based on clinical behavior or targeting likely patients who have recently researched specific condition content. Take advantage of these capabilities. It may slightly drive up costs, but will significantly improve impact and ROI.

From the patient perspective, we know advertising and content marketing works to drive consumers’ health decisions. But it’s not a simple ‘if X, then Y’ journey. All consumers start their journey at different points, so they react to different messages in different ways. Yet we serve them all the same content and expect to see the same performance. Instead, use predictive analytics and machine learning to identify patterns and recommend marketing actions based on the customer’s profile and previous behaviors. This will maximize downstream results.

Q: Building on this topic, how can marketers reach patients with sensitive health conditions?

A: PulsePoint – The most direct, privacy-safe and effective way to reach people living with sensitive conditions is with contextual media. But don’t think of contextual media from five plus years ago. Contextual is now quite sophisticated. We can serve ads alongside relevant content, of course. When setting up contextual campaigns, it’s also important to understand co-morbidities and correlating factors associated with each condition, and use these to extend reach.

A: Coegi – If a particular health condition is sensitive, there are two primary considerations: 

1) How did we collect this targeting data? and

2) if ISI is needed, can it work within the experience I’m trying to deliver an ad within? 

Marketers can’t just take data and enter into a platform. They need to do their homework on the company, how they’re collecting this data and the targeting pool. With ISI, some channels fall off when it comes to channel planning. Not all forms of media make sense when you have a long ISI. 

Q: Lastly, we know it’s important to lead with empathy. How can healthcare and pharma brands keep patients at the center of their marketing strategy?

A: PulsePoint – Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings and perspectives of another. We can use data to uncover customer perspectives in real time. And we can go one step further: to use these insights to drive marketing outreach, also in real time. 

A: Coegi – It’s important to lean into research tools, as well as patient panels/boards. These tools allow you to hear and feel for the individual affected by a particular condition. Translate these learnings into insights. They will then allow you to reach the patient/caregiver where they are in their journey in an empathetic way.

Colin’s final word of advice is to not fall into a rhythm of copy and paste strategies. It may be tempting to go that route as the “safe” choice given all the  regulations in healthcare and . But, we must be creative and break the mold with out-of-the box thinking to continue delivering the best strategies using these healthcare and pharmaceutical marketing best practices for your brands.

Want to learn more? Check out Coegi’s guide to healthcare and pharma marketing.

Download Coegi’s Healthcare Marketing Guide

3 Higher Education Marketing Strategies to Boost Enrollment

Posted on by Coegi

Choosing which college or university to attend is often one of the biggest decisions a young adult makes. Higher education institutions need to be in tune with what the potential new student and others in their support system value in order to be that school of choice. Creating higher education marketing strategies that support college enrollment presents several challenges:

  1. A complex targeting strategy: How do you reach rising juniors and seniors, parents and guardians, and adults seeking advanced degrees or just starting their education?
  2. The popularization of alternate schooling routes (e.g. trade schools or certifications)
  3. A long sales cycle: Influences on college decision making begin at a young age. When do you start marketing and how do you keep individuals engaged over the multi-year journey? 

Fortunately, having a strong digital marketing strategy can drive enrollments with agility and efficiency. 

Here are my top three higher education marketing strategies to help you get started:

1) Mix Targeting and Messaging to Reach Both Student and Guardian Audiences

Persuading parents

Start by reaching parents and guardians first, providing long-term education to these key decision makers. Parents are the longer term play and require a unique messaging and channel strategy.  Promote the value of a degree from your university or program five years after graduation. That’s what parents are typically thinking about and value most – how will your school set their child up for success? 

Persuading students

With young students, you want to persuade them with their hearts. Communicate the experiential benefits of your school and how they will become part of the community. Capture the campus life vibrantly to show what makes your college or university special. Lastly, help them see how your school will prepare them for the future, while offering a safety net to learn and grow.

Persuading non-traditional students

Don’t forget your non-traditional students. Showcase benefits like flexibility to forge their own education path. Highlight programs with online options, night classes, or part-time schedules, allowing students to create custom experiences for their individual needs. Additionally, create personalized marketing campaigns to promote the value of advanced degrees. 

2) Select Channels that Resonate with Your Key Demographics

Video

Video offers a solid foundation for higher education marketing strategies. The medium naturally lends itself to strong engagement, and offers a more personal view into day-to-day life on campus. Videoed student testimonials are a great way to build relatable content for students. Similarly, videos of professors can instill confidence that students will thrive in the school’s learning environment. Complement the video with a QR code or landing page to a PDF or brochure that reinforces the video content.  

Placing these videos on more premium channels such as Connected TV (CTV) and YouTube is a great place to start. YouTube is a channel people go to for advice, perhaps looking for content such as “top 10 universities for engineering.” CTV offers the non-skippable, large-screen format to establish brand trust and recognition across the household (with greater flexibility than traditional cable TV). 

Social Media

Social media is a huge part of decision making for students thinking about next steps in their lives. Content on social is a major source of influence and inspiration. Video marketing ties in very well with a paid social media strategy, especially on TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. 

We’re currently seeing high engagement on TikTok ads with our higher education clients. When done well, higher education institutions are able to reach stakeholders in a way that feels more organic. People inherently use the platform to search for valuable information, not just to seek entertainment. So it’s great for building intent, beyond awareness

With paid social creative strategy, the key is communicating your value authentically. Don’t try to be deceptive and act as if your ad isn’t an ad. But do be natural and avoid over-curation which sticks out and can cause more harm than good. Think of social media as a way to initiate a conversation, not just create demand.  

Paid Search

These individuals have lives outside of social media. Sure, they’re likely spending several hours a day on social media. But, you need to reach them across various touchpoints. Video advertising across programmatic and social channels starts to drive education and consideration of various programs you offer. Then, look into mid-bottom funnel tactics to start supporting conversions.

This is a great time to introduce paid search – a very reliable conversion driver for higher education brands. Use insights from your awareness campaigns to inform the keyword and audience targeting strategy on this channel. Paid search can be a vehicle to promote downloadable educational materials or even applications now that your audience is at a higher intent phase. 

3) Use Lifecycle Messaging to Keep Decision Makers Engaged

Understand the multiyear cycle of a collegiate decision making process. Lifecycle messaging engages students and influential decision makers from initial awareness to application. 

Awareness

Start the cycle by investing in broad awareness early on. Focus on reaching parents first, then students, placing your school on the map as an option for their future. Use compelling video and other visual content to create a memorable impact. In this stage, use messaging to evoke positive emotions while making audiences aware of the higher education options you provide. 

Consideration

Work to establish yourself in the consideration set – those top 5 -10 higher education institutions. Shift to more conversion-based tactics, such as lead generation display ads or swipe-up campaigns on social media to gather prospective student information. In this phase, offer more details about the value of your programs, the campus experience, and the differentiators making your school special. 

Application & Enrollment

Once a new semester is approaching, how do you get interested students to take the leap and apply? Use data and insights to find audiences who are ready to take action. Then, drive conversions using tactics like paid search, email marketing, social, and SMS ads with the call-to-action of “Apply Now.” 

If you need a marketing partner to create your custom higher education marketing strategies, contact Coegi today to learn more. 

We’ll guide you through the process of in-depth research to identify your ideal target audience and how you can reach them. Then, we’ll partner with your team to activate a strategic, omnichannel media plan based on your core business goals. 

Travel and Tourism Marketing: The Digital Guide

Posted on by Coegi

The travel and tourism marketing is rebounding as the industry surges above pre-pandemic levels.

Are you taking advantage of it?

This digital guide to travel marketing gives you everything you need to know before launching a campaign. 

How to Succeed at Travel and Tourism Marketing

Travel books and printed pamphlets are a thing of the past. Now, it’s time to lead with digital tactics.

Today’s travelers are finding inspiration for trips on digital channels. Younger travelers in particular are taking this a step further by shifting to mobile devices over desktop, looking to the brand’s website or Instagram to get a sense of what they can expect. 

To reach the modern traveler, brands need to create a seamless experience across digital channels from awareness to check out/visit.

You’ll also need to create a strategic, customized approach to target your optimal audience on the most impactful channels.

Your Guide to Success

Download this guide to learn how to:

  • Leverage the latest travel and tourism marketing trends
  • Create the optimal media mix for your brand with the most impactful channels
  • Implement cookieless solutions to reach your target audience
  • Measure the ROI from omnichannel travel marketing campaigns

Ready to take off?

View and download the guide below!

The Return of Travel and Tourism Marketing

After the tumultuous years of the pandemic, travel and tourism is finally experiencing a surge in demand. Travel digital marketing spend dipped 51% in 2021 but is now growing by 14.2% in 2022. An additional 12.1% increase is expected in 2023, according to eMarketer. 

Pathmatics Travel and Tourism Marketing Spend Data

What do travel and tourism marketers need to do to prepare for this opportunity?

Lead With Digital Tactics

Travel books and printed pamphlets are a thing of the past. Today’s travelers are finding inspiration for trips on digital channels. Younger travelers in particular are taking this a step further by shifting to mobile devices over desktop, looking to the brand’s website or Instagram to get a sense of what they can expect. 

As the saying goes, “not all who wander are lost.” Allow yourself to experiment, becoming smarter by letting continuous learning guide your marketing strategy. The best way to do that is to start with digital, where flexibility and agility allow for quick learnings and pivots.

Digital marketing is the perfect petri dish to test out tactics and creatives before making a major investment. For example, you can run a short-form video ad on social media and identify which creative is performing best. Then, use those creative learnings to inform a more premium CTV placement or Cable TV buy with an added layer of confidence.

Is your travel brand ready for a digital-first marketing strategy?

Here’s your digital housekeeping checklist to prime your digital travel and tourism marketing for success:

High Impact Travel and Tourism Marketing Channels 

When choosing travel marketing channels, consider these four aspects: 

  1. Budget: If budget is limited, maximize spend on fewer channels. If you have more dollars, consider diversifying, testing something new or incorporating premium placements. 
  2. Audience: Identify where your audience is most active and receptive to advertising. 
  3. Customer Journey: Understand how your customers behave, and shape your advertising around their decision making process. 
  4. Storytelling: Include highly visual channels that allow storytelling to tap into their emotions. 

To keep pace with digital-first users, prioritize your digital marketing efforts on these key digital channels: 

Facebook

  • According to Pathmatics data, Facebook is the leading social media channel for Travel/Tourism ad spend. Explore various ad formats to help lead your traveler down the funnel, such as Facebook Lead Ads. Tailor educational resources to unique audience groups to establish trust and consideration. 

Endemic Travel Sites

  • Travel blogs and sites are highly valuable for travel brands. 59% of families use travel websites to plan vacations. Another 13.5% of leisure travelers use travel blogs to plan trips. Use these sites establish brand awareness and trustworthiness among potential travelers. 

User-Generated Content 

  • UGC is used by 58.2% of travelers for planning leisure travel. Word of mouth is, and always will be, the most impactful form of marketing. Encourage customers to leave quality reviews on your site or other travel pages to boost your brand status. In addition, encourage users to create content FOR you. 

Paid Search

  • Speed and agility are crucial for travel brands. You need to appear as a top option for during the research and discovery process. Optimize a combination of branded, unbranded and competitive paid search terms. This will help you show up for relevant, high value queries.

Twitter

  • Twitter is especially effective for targeting luxury and business travelers on a platform where users are highly engaged, especially surrounding news and business. To expand your targeting pool, use the platform’s AI to find follower lookalikes from competitor brands.

Online Video 

  • While a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is priceless. Online video placements across YouTube and Display allow brands to tell a rich, visual story. YouTube offers various travel category targeting options such as Business Travel, Family Travel, and Frequent Travel. You can also layer these with geo targeting to narrow in on your core audience. 

Connected TV

  • Connected TV amplifies online video by placing it on the largest screen in the household. It’s one of the most impactful visual mediums travel brands can use, while offering more flexibility and addressability than linear TV. CTV ads are a great option to reach family travelers or promote kid-friendly destinations. 

Influencer

Instagram

  • Instagram is a go-to source of inspiration for Millennial and Gen-Z travelers. Travel brands can build community by interacting with users through various formats – reels, stories, and posts. Use post comments, story polls, and Q&As to start a conversation with interested travelers. Avoid being overly curated and don’t be afraid to use trending phrases, sounds or hashtags. 

Pinterest

  • Travel engagement on Pinterest is at an all time high with travel-related searches increasing by over 60%. Pinterest is primed for planning and purchasing, and can facilitate real bookings. This platform is a great place to hone in on ‘Travel’ and ‘Foodie’ audiences. 

TikTok

  • No other social platform enables the potential virality or mass reach as TikTok. Users spend an average of 52 minutes per day on the app, and 90% of TikTok users use the app multiple times daily. Although TikTok has a strong younger presence, 51% of users are now 30+. The app is growing in popularity amongst millennials with disposable income for travel. DisneyParks has over 4M followers on TikTok and Delta Airlines gained nearly 19.5M views in the initial 36 hours of their first TikTok campaign.

Retail Media

  • Activating first-party shopper audiences through retail media networks is a great way to reach travelers. For example, the Marriott Media Network uses search and reservation data to serve relevant ads to consumers.  

DOOH

  • Digital out of home spend is soaring as people are traveling again. Screens in airports, inflight video, taxi cabs, bus stations, billboards near attractions, and more can place your brand in front of traveling audiences. DOOH is a great tactic to educate users once they are at a destination. 

Local Partnerships

  • 78% of survey respondents want to support local small businesses when they travel. State and city tourism brands can leverage this trend by partnering with local artists, chefs or businesses. Thise partnerships can drive travel consideration and boost awareness for both parties. Consider unique creative options like how-to videos, downloadable guides, or co-branded social posts about the partnership. 

Ad Targeting for Travel and Tourism Audiences

It’s important that you don’t create a one-size-fits-all approach when marketing to future tourists. Consider who your existing traveler base is, and identify attributes to qualify other individuals in your prospecting audience. From there, tailor messaging to drive education and consideration. 

Are they solo travelers seeking adventure? Young families looking for a cost effective, kid-friendly trip? Foodies wanting luxurious and avant garde dining experiences? Create profiles to understand these individuals from a 360-degree perspective. Build as many personas as makes sense for your brand. 

Personalize Messaging 

Next, personalize your messaging to meet their unique motivations, behaviors and interests. Speak to each group differently and adjust visuals to resonate with their interests. If you’re looking to reach the adventure seeker, show fun activities like zip lining, hiking, concerts, etc. If you’re speaking to the budget-friendly family, showcase the value of the experiences you offer, without a major bill.

Reach Your Travelers Throughout Their Journey

To reach today’s consumers, brands need to create a seamless experience across digital channels from awareness to check out/visit. 

An omnichannel strategy is vital to keep a loyalty loop and encompass all phases of the customer journey. Use your marketing mix to show up at key moments in the consumer journey from planning to experiencing. ThinkWithGoogle identified four core micro-moments in the travel process: Dream, Plan, Book, and Experience. 

  • Dream – Spark inspiration and educate during the dreaming phase
  • Plan – Provide helpful information and build trust
  • Book – Offer a compelling value proposition and enable seamless transaction
  • Experience – Ensure the visit is positive and meets expectations. Follow up with post-visit marketing to keep customers engaged. Encourage reviews and social media posts during and after. 

Measuring Travel and Tourism Marketing Campaigns

Create a Data Terminal

It’s easy to get absorbed in the performance of individual channels. However, this causes campaigns to quickly turn from strategic to tactical. Instead, manage your advertising holistically within one dashboard. Doing so allows you to share and optimize performance trends and learnings across tactics. By looking at the data from a macro lens, you can identify important signals and weave a cohesive story. 

Check your unnecessary baggage 

Marketers need to ensure they are looking beyond vanity metrics to identify trends that signal success. It is especially important to synchronize data sets as we prepare for cookie deprecation. Instead of solely looking for direct attribution, explore a variety of business and media metrics over time. This will unveil unique learnings and better show the incremental impact of advertising.

Onboard advanced measurement 

When media metrics do not answer your business questions, layer advanced measurement tactics, on top of traditional media efficiency metrics. These data points will provide a more robust view of marketing’s impact on business goals. 

https://www.insiderintelligence.com/chart/241007/types-of-ad-measurement-andor-research-that-will-become-more-important-cookieless-world-according-us-marketers-agencies-sep-2020-of-respondents

For tourism brands, foot traffic lift is especially impactful in providing a clear view of how advertising drove incremental increases in visitors.

Refuel with continuous learning

When creating a marketing strategy, it’s critical to fuel ongoing campaign learnings to answer key questions and improve results for future initiatives. 

At Coegi, we combine a measurement strategy and a structured learning agenda. This ensures we are optimizing campaigns toward business goals while also continuously improving. 

Key Takeaways for Travel and Tourism Marketers 

  1. Lead with digital tactics to reach the growing audience of travelers 
  2. Lean into highly visual channels such as social media and online video
  3. Understand your unique audiences and tailor ads to their consumer journey across channels 
  4. Implement a comprehensive measurement strategy to see the impact of your campaigns

For more strategic insights and campaign activation, contact Coegi to set up a meeting with our travel marketing experts. 

Gain Finance Consumer Trust with Thought Leadership

Posted on by Maggie Gotszling

You’re often asking your finance consumers to make major decisions – getting a mortgage, opening a child’s college fund, investing in their future… the list goes on. While the majority of financial consumer touchpoints have moved to digital formats to create convenience, it can also create more confusion. Less human interaction with financial advisors and customer representatives means the online content has to work even harder to gain finance consumer trust and influence decision making. 

That’s where thought leadership comes in. 

Thought leadership is any form of content shared by a subject expert with their audience to build credibility, trust, and loyalty. Some of the core benefits of thought leadership for finance brands are: 

  • Greater online visibility – For example, SEO ranking for long form content addressing top consumer banking questions and concerns
  • Competitive differentiation – Providing new insights, opinions, or research to stand out from other finance brands
  • Increased customer lifetime value – High value content establishes relationship building that keeps your brand top of mind

Build a reputation

Having a well-crafted and regularly updated blog on your website is a fantastic place to start building an organic reputation. To further increase your thought leadership efforts, establish publisher content partnerships to create a name for yourself in the industry. Look at high value placements your audience over indexes for, such as Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg News, etc.

Then, use these three factors to evaluate publishers: 

  1. Audience: Does the demographic match your core audience? Will your content be relevant to these readers?  
  2. Content Quality: Is this a highly reputable and trusted source? 
  3. Distribution: Does the readership number align with your target reach as well as budget? 

Find a sweet spot of high reach and high composition to drive the best results.

Think outside the box

Premium placements do come with price tags for the brand value and readership volume. However, there are other lesser utilized channels brands can find success in. Some great examples are Reddit and Quora. Both of these channels are informal, but trusted resources for people searching for answers to specific questions. You can show up in a more casual way on these channels, but still provide high quality information and build rapport with niche finance audiences. 

To really hone in on thought leadership at your financial organization, consider video and audio. Visual and audio content formats are supreme when it comes to engagement, recall, and retention. Consider alternative forms of content such as: 

  • Podcasts – starting your own, or appearing on others 
  • Informational videos on YouTube 
  • Live-streamed videos on LinkedIn

Humanize your finance brand

Thought leadership content humanizes brands in an industry that can seem cold and impersonal. Through content, you can guide your customers through their finance journey. 

That said, you must not lose focus of what’s most important: the customer, not highlighting your brand. Relay empathy – show an authentic understanding of your customer. Let them know you understand the topics they need more information on and the hurdles they are facing when it comes to financial decision making and planning. 

Walk in your customer’s shoes

Before you start touting what you think are the most important benefits your brand offers, stop to listen and learn about what your customer really desires. Is it financial freedom? Business success? Peace of mind? Security in their child’s future? 

Think about where your customer is now and where they want to be. Then, use your thought leadership and creative messaging to facilitate that transformation. 

Support your customers’ needs and concerns

As a financial brand, you undoubtedly have a large range of consumers with an even larger range of needs. From commercial and retail banking to financial services and advising to retirement planning and investing – there are ample opportunities to share information and gain finance consumer trust, ultimately growing your business. 

To understand these needs, make sure you stay on top of trends. Understand what is likely top of mind for your core consumers:

  • Is there an impending recession making older adults rethink retirement? 
  • Is there a housing market boom driving a demand for mortgages? 
  • Are there global crises affecting the stock market and investment decisions? 

Whatever is going on externally, use challenges as a way to serve as a trusted resource and help them navigate what can be overwhelming financial decisions. 

This is not a sales pitch

Wherever you are posting thought leadership, share your knowledge and expertise, not your sales sheet. The content you create should be relevant to a specific consumer issue that is tangential to the solutions or services you provide. Once you’ve established credibility and authority, you no longer have to sell yourself. The consumer will be convinced already – and if not, they were unlikely to ever convert. 

So whether your goal is to improve industry recognition, differentiate from competitors, or enhance customer lifetime value, give thought leadership a try. And remember these keys to gain finance consumer trust through your content: 

  • Use publishers with the right reach and audience composition
  • Be creative with your content formats
  • Keep your content authentic and readable
  • Understand customer needs and concerns 
  • Avoid giving a sales pitch

For more strategic insights to improve your financial marketing strategy, view our Ultimate Guide to Financial Marketing.

Coegi’s Ultimate Guide to Finance Marketing

How to Drive In-Store Sales With Digital Advertising

Posted on by Monica Herschelman

CPG brands operate in a highly competitive industry which requires marketing efforts across various media channels to ultimately drive in-store sales. While in-store activations are important in driving purchases, digital touchpoints ahead of store visits are critical in the customer journey. In the article, you’ll learn how to use digital advertising to directly impact sales revenue by answering three key questions:

  1. How can CPG brands use digital advertising to stand out?
  2. How can brands prime audiences to make in-store purchases? 
  3. How can you measure the impact of digital media on in-store sales?

How Can CPG Brands Use Digital Advertising To Stand Out?

Consumers are inundated with ads every day. It’s important to be strategic with your creative messaging and media placements to ensure your ads are impactful and not disruptive. By carefully curating a strategy focused on the consumer experience, you have the ability to drive meaningful moments rather than creating noise.

  • Be discovered. Get in front of potential customers early in the discovery phase. Use search and commerce channels to show up where consumers are actively looking for products.
  • Be memorable. Create intriguing story lines of what the product or brand can do for users beyond basic utility.
  • Be different. Showcase your unique value proposition to stand out among competitor products. 
  • Be loyal. Re-engage your current customers and nurture them to, in turn, stay loyal to your brand. Use follow up offers, new product suggestions, and special promotions to show your appreciation and build up that relationship. 

How Can Brands Prime Audiences To Make In-Store Purchases?

To drive in-store sales, you need to establish awareness and consideration before that shopping trip. However, crossing the boundary from ad impression to ‘add to cart’ can be challenging. Use targeted messaging and effective frequency exposure across channels to make sure your product is included on the shopping list. 

  • Reach users across various media touch points from social to display to CTV with an omnichannel strategy.
  • Use loyalty card data to understand frequency and cadence of purchase to serve your ads in the right place at the right time. 
  • Understand how many interactions are needed before a new customer will remember and purchase once in store. 
  • Keep previous customers engaged with relevant messaging and offers to maintain brand loyalty. 

How Can You Measure The Impact Of Digital Media On In-Store Sales?

It can be complicated measuring online and offline channels and tying media spend back to brick and mortar purchases. Thankfully, there are measurement tactics and tools we can use to showcase ROI. 

Here’s how we approach measurement at Coegi:

  • Use advanced measurement tactics to uncover sales lift from your media.
    • Measurement partners like Catalina, IRI or Ibotta help connect the dots of ad exposure to in-store sales.
  • Look at success through the lens of incrementality. Test how product sales change year over year when an ad is in market versus out of market. 
  • Consider external factors like seasonality to make decisions based on non-media data.

In essence, shift the conversation from vanity metrics and click through rates because those don’t equal sales. 

Want to learn more about how to create a best-in-class media strategy for your CPG brand?

We’ve got you covered. View the complete CPG Digital Marketing Playbook here.

 

Coegi Partners

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