The global pandemic has moved much of the world online and accelerated the digital retail space. As a result, a clear opportunity has emerged for brands: optimise your marketing mix and reach consumers online.
Marketing teams need to reconsider their advertising strategies and reach consumers where they are right now – on social media.
Retailers who previously relied on brick-and-mortar sales are now looking into omnichannel strategies. With new consumer purchasing options – such as buy online, pick-up in store – and changing local in-store conditions, retailers are launching localized offers at scale, targeting shoppers with customized messaging, local store inventory and store condition information to drive initiatives.
Shifting budgets in 2020
The turbulence in the social-advertising landscape over the past several months saw the biggest decline in CPM occuring in March. Since then prices have been on the rise again. CPM levels continue to be volatile, and thus, advertisers need to stay on their toes and continue to adjust strategies as the situation develops.
While there may be an end in sight to the pandemic, variations in ad performance and consumer behaviour are here to stay. Understanding these shifts will be the key to success in social advertising in the coming months. The secret for advertisers is agility. Winning brands will continue to monitor consumer behaviour closely, offering products and services that are relevant, timely and valuable, and adapting their advertising channels and messaging accordingly. Understanding your audience will translate into more consistent brand advocacy – and greater return on ad spend.
What consumers want now
If there’s one thing we’ve learned from these unusual times, it’s that pausing marketing is not an option. Brands that made the decision to stop communication during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic have effectively been invisible.
We asked 5000 adult consumers across the globe including Australia, Singapore, India and Japan how they have used social media during the pandemic and if social ads have impacted the way they view brands.
Our findings reveal that consumers know exactly what type of content they prefer to see on social media ads.
How brands can best navigate their social presence online to offline
People want help preparing for normalcy while getting key deals and offers. This poses an exceptional time for new brands and categories to emerge. Research shows that consumers care most about the creative elements in an ad – and the most effective ads are memorable because they had powerful visual elements.
Purchases made directly through social-media ads went up as a result of the pandemic; however, a majority of sales still take place in-store. That said, retailers need to adopt an omnichannel strategy, connecting online clicks with offline conversions.
However as the world continues to progress through the pandemic in different stages, retailers must note that a blanket marketing strategy won’t work. Instead, brands will need to track consumer behavior and act locally.
Retail Re-UP: The Next Normal of Social Advertising offers actionable takeaways on how brands can master:
- Best practices to create localised offers at scale
- Tips on growing user acquisition and sales with customised creative
- Benchmarks on analysing omnichannel results and more
