In advertising and life we all tend to talk too much about ourselves. About our own life experiences, likes, dislikes, and opinions at social gatherings. About our products, services, corporate identities, core messages, creative concepts, and media strategies at work.
The inbound lane, the listening side, is far more important and, in my humble view, far more interesting. Real communication means two-way communication. Listen before you talk. If you’re in Sales you know how important it is.
When I grew up I liked to draw and create stories. Fun, but no meaningful starting point for a communication job. So I started out spending 4 years in marketing research, ad testing, and analysis. Turning consumer data into insights about people’s consumption and media habits Testing their response to alternative magazine ads and tv spots, and so forth.
Extremely educational, but occasionally I still fall into the trap of talking about myself. Like I just did, a moment ago.
Today, the people that we try to reach and influence have easy access to information online. And via social media we have much easier access to their habits, likes, dislikes, and experiences.
Above all we try to monitor and influence their buying processes. The most sensitive and tricky phase of that flow is the zooming in, from general search and scrolling to increasingly focused and engaged fact finding. Buyers want more detailed information about specific products at their own terms, on their own time. Preferably without suffering a high-pressure sales dialogue
Modern car dealers present every single car in their digital catalog. Also the hundreds or thousands not displayed in their physical showrooms. All the way from marketplaces and social media to the dealers’ own websites. Their digital showrooms.
The key is video. Always-on, studio-quality video showing the cars from all angles and with built-in calls-to-action, inside each ad. Direct links to a qualified sales rep, ready to answer any questions about the specific car and related services.
End-to-end two-way communication.
Rolf Andersson
Phyron Writer and Editor