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5 Trends that Should Shape your 2017 Marketing Budget

Posted on by Ed Entecott

We’d all like a crystal ball to help us plan next year’s marketing budget so that we could spend more time engaging with our audience and less time planning. How nice would it be to know exactly which emerging technologies and trends are going to have the biggest impact on your bottom line? Or knowing exactly which digital channels your prospective customers will be using?

Unfortunately we can’t predict the future but that doesn’t mean we can’t draw upon some comprehensive research to help us make some informed predictions as to which way things are heading. The way in which the marketing industry drives forward is immense so here are our top five predicted digital marketing trends that should be shaping your 2017 marketing budget.

Video – Live Streaming

In the last year we have seen video skyrocket. Each social network now seems to offer its own video platform but live streaming is still relatively new. The first release of tools like Periscope and Meerkat only came about in early 2015. Facebook very quickly jumped on the bandwagon though and more recently, YouTube has introduced live streaming capabilities.

Live video streams can be used for marketing in various ways. They can build awareness, drive conversion and boost engagement. Very often this will be dependent on using the right social platform for your content though. By supplementing your current social strategy with live video, and hyping the build up to your content, you have a real opportunity to reach the masses. In fact, it is believe that in 2017, 74% of all internet traffic will be to video.

Despite the enormous growth of the apps there are still very few brands that have adopted video. Live content is now getting preference over all other content though. Its rate of user adoption and participation is driving the urgency to include this in marketing strategies. With live video being the best way to bring the full power of personal sales to social media, there is a real opportunity for ROI.

You can only do this though by adding value to your customers, so don’t just go straight in with a sales pitch. Give your customers an insight into the personality of your business. Stream company events, make live announcements, conduct interviews or even run a live video blog. Although it is safe to say that live video is here for the long haul, now is the time to determine how to best use it to build awareness and expand reach.

BoohooMAN recently worked with social media marketing agency Social Chain to deliver the most engaged live video ever. Customers were invited to engage with a live stunt on Facebook that saw air being pumped into a giant water balloon every time someone commented ‘pump’. The last person to comment pump when the balloon burst won a £250 gift voucher. This stunt received on 2 million impressions, 930,000 engagements and over 4,000 comments a minute! By creating content that they knew their target audience would react to, boohooMAN was the most talked about brand on Cyber Monday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year.

Cross-Device Retargeting

Consumers are much harder to reach these days, especially as they switch back and forth between all their different devices. DMA’s Statistical Fact Book reports that the average consumer is now connected through five addressable devices. This in turn means five opportunities to get your brand in front of them. Today’s shopper uses a laptop, a tablet and a smartphone and consumers will bounce back-and-forth between device before making that final purchase decision.

As these consumers move across devices, marketers must engage with them in personalised, meaningful ways. By tagging consumers at their first touch point with your brand and tracking their behaviour across devices, marketers are able to target them with display advertising that is appropriate for the device. This unified view of a customer helps deliver a consistent and engaging message across devices ensuring your brand is always at the forefront of their mind. So rather than sending one message to what appears to be three different consumers, you can reach one consumer three times with a consistent, relevant message.

Google recently announced that advertisers will soon be able to reach users across devices with Google remarketing campaigns. This is a significant development as this isn’t something Google previously supported. This means marketers can now monitor how frequently users see their ads across devices enabling them to seamlessly to deliver a cross-device marketing campaign.

Personalised Content

There is so much content on the web that it can be very difficult for brands to break through the noise. This can also make it difficult for brands to differentiate from other brands, especially if they are offering the same product or service and targeting a wide audience. If you’re producing content to appeal to everyone, it’s not going to be as valuable as content that is targeted. Treating customers and prospects as one homogenous group fails to maximise the potential of your messaging.

Consumers now expect more from brands and as such, are looking for you to add value to their lives, not disrupt it. In exchange, brands get their custom, loyalty and brand advocacy. We can only achieve this though by providing content that our customers actually want to read. If brands have a better understanding of the person they are targeting, they will have a better understanding of the information their customer might be seeking.

It is also vital to consider how your prospects and customers are consuming your content. With mobile traffic now outstripping desktop traffic, the importance of delivering content on the right device, in the right format and at the right time is vital to its success. For example, first thing in the morning on the commute, content should be mobile friendly and easily digestible. However in the evening, when content is more likely to be read on a tablet, it can be longer-form and more in-depth.

For brands to add real value to consumers though, they need to shift their focus towards narrower niches, personalised content and more targeted channels. Although this will undoubtedly generate lower volume, the quality of engagement will be much higher and the content is more likely to resonate.

Optimise for Mobile First

Smartphones have now overtaken laptops as UK Internet user’s number one device. On average, we are spending almost two hours online on our smartphones every day. There has been an emphasis on optimising for mobile traffic for a few years and now it is clear that mobile first should be the mantra for the rest of the year and beyond.

Having a mobile-friendly website or app is just the beginning.  For the first time Google has started widening their first page search results to include mobile apps and they have recently released their “Mobilegeddon” algorithm. This will essentially phase out sites that have not been optimised for mobile access from showing in search results. This is very bad news for companies who have not yet optimised their website as their Google rankings will drop moving them further down the search page. Google has also introduced Mobile Accelerated Pages which delivers a lighter version of a web page that will load ultra-fast on mobile.

Desktop traffic is slowly beginning to fade away, and in order to increase the competitive edge of your company, mobile-focused online marketing is key. As it currently stands, one in seven Brits own wearable technology and the trend is set to continue.  This means marketers need to be prepared to produce content to fit the format, the channel, and the place.

Social Analytics

It may feel like social media has been around for a lifetime but it’s certainly still in its infancy. Although most companies have adopted one or two social media platforms, many of them are still not collecting data. Social media gives businesses an unprecedented opportunity for connecting with customers and prospects but 88% of marketers aren’t sure of the best way to engage their audience on social media which is potentially driving away consumers. With the move to mobile though and more brands relying on social platforms, analytics will offer the greatest opportunities.

The mass-target approach is out, and personalised data-driven marketing plans are in. Social media is competitive and it is crowded so it is essential to test and track results. By making greater use of social analytics, brands are able to drill down and gain valuable insight. There are certain nuggets of valuable data buried within the mountains of social media chatter. Organisations that are looking for a competitive edge can use social analytics to identify patterns in customer sentiment which in turn enables them to gauge their marketing effectiveness. This process goes beyond the usual monitoring of “likes” or retweets to develop an in-depth idea of who their social consumer is and this information is invaluable.

Using social analytics, brands are able to understand how their customers are making use of their services or products and what their views and opinions are about that particular company or product. There are countless blogs, tweets, comments and complaints regarding products and services and social media platforms are now the No.1 place for consumers to complain. This huge volume of information can be used to evaluate consumer’s experience which can then be used to help companies perform better.

Tracking data is also essential in helping brands get better results. If brands aren’t tracking their data, they are wasting their time on hit or miss type campaigns. Social media analytics is often the difference between success and failure for obtaining the results brands want.

So there you have it, five growing trends to watch out for this coming year and to consider adopting in your 2017 marketing strategy.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital, 12/09/2016

Building a Brand: The Building Blocks of Success

Posted on by Ed Entecott

Building a Brand – The Building Blocks of Success

We all know that there is no recipe for success when it comes to business, especially when there are so many internal and external factors that can either make or break a business. We cannot prepare ourselves for all eventualities but there are a number of steps that can be taken to minimise risks. When we think of large successful businesses, the key players that come to mind are Coca Cola, McDonald’s and Apple. But what have all of these companies got in common that have made them so successful? Strong branding!

Branding is bandied about a lot when it comes to talking about successful businesses. You brand represents everything about your business and it resonates with your customers and prospects. With this in mind, it is vital that you get the basic building blocks right. But what are the building blocks that have enabled these brands to triumph over others?

Building Block #1: Clear Strategy

Before launching any brand, you have to ensure that you have established your brand foundation. Your brand foundation can be identified by answering a number of questions:

What are our core values? What do we believe in? How do we want our customers to perceive us? What is our core messaging and visual identity? What do we want our company to represent?

After answering all of these questions, you will have a clearer understanding of what you foundation strategy should be. These foundation principles could be a list or statement, or a selection of carefully selected words. They essentially need to be referenced to by everyone who touches your brand internally, at every stage of any business decision making process.  Also, by understanding who your ideal customers are, you can ensure that you’re building a brand that aligns with their wants and needs.

Building Block #2: A Strong Logo

This is a given really but once you have established your foundation, you need to address your visual elements. Designing a logo is no easy task as there are so many components to consider. To put it as simply as possible though, make it unique, make it adaptable, make it timeless but most of all, make it memorable.

This is the first element that the public will probably come into contact with so it needs to be striking.  Remember though, your logo will set the standard for all your marketing collateral so it needs to be adaptable. Logos need to translate across different mediums but still evoke the same meaning.

Never underestimate the power of your logo either. Throughout a single company’s history, various logos serve as indicators of values, loyalty and togetherness. One of the most iconic brand logos of all time is the Nike “swoosh”. The logo was introduced in 1971 and since its introduction, it has only undergone four revisions but the Nike “Swoosh” has remained. It has now gone on to become the most iconic images in the world, so much so that in 1995 the company chose to remove the brand name of the original design, leaving the “Swoosh” as the sole symbol of the company.

Building Block #3: Guidelines

Once you’ve established your identity and you have a logo to match it, you need to ensure your other visual elements match the image and personality of your brand. This is essential as it helps develop a sense of familiarity for your customers. Fonts and colours which will be heavily influenced by your logo will have a big impact of your branded marketing materials. You need to consider how your fonts and colours portray your brand.

For example, if your brand is corporate, then your font should be slick, easy to read and professional. No Comic Sans please. However, if your brand is a bit more fun, then you can use a font that is energetic and slightly more elaborate.

Research has shown that colour also plays a vital role in the perception of brands. This is why it is so important in understanding your ideal customer. If your customers are looking for a brand that is exciting, you may choose to use red in your marketing collateral. Or if you want to convey sophistication, you may look to use purple. There are no clear cut guidelines when it comes to colour but when it comes to choosing colours, you must test. You cannot know how your audience will respond to your colours in your content and layout without testing to determine which colour combinations work best.

Your guidelines will also cover elements such as writing guidelines, web design and print design.  Once you have a set of brand guidelines, as long as they have been clearly established, it should help everyone from your team to your suppliers designing your marketing material make sure that everything is consistent and looking like it’s from the same company.

Building Block #4: Tone of Voice

Your tone of voice is not what you say, but how you say it. In relationship to branding, it embodies and expresses your personality and reflects the overarching foundation.  The words you use on your website and in your marketing collateral can define how people perceive your business.

When establishing your tone of voice, you need to think carefully about whom you are talking to. Do you want to appear casual and friendly or formal and sharp? Your tone of voice needs to be distinctive and recognisable. Carefully selected words can heavily influence customers and by picking a voice that fits your brand and culture can make you more memorable to customers.

One brand that hit the nail on the head in their very early days was Innocent drinks. Their branding is often held up as a shining example of how to get copywriting and marketing right. One of the most significant things about Innocent’s brand voice is that it is relatively informal and friendly. Instead of coming across as a company, it sounds more like a friend who has just made you are smoothie. If you have a look across any of their customer touch points though, you will see that this friendly, off-the-wall formula has been used across all of their content. By having this consistency, consumers are instantly able to recognise a marketing message from Innocent.

One of the most important lessons that can be learnt from Innocent is that success comes from building a unique brand voice. By developing this distinct tone that your customers are comfortable with, your customers are more likely to return to your website or connect with you digitally.

Building Block #5: Consistency 

Consistency is key for your business and does a multitude of things for your brand. It can contribute to generating trust, attracting more customers and also creating a professional feel across the business. Ultimately, consistency contributes to brand recognition, so you need to make sure all your marketing elements and messaging is cohesive. Not only does this help strengthen your brand, but it also drives positive sentiment and trust in consumers which ultimately leads to brand loyalty and lifelong customers.

New and returning customers are heavily influenced by the stability that is associated with a solid reputation, and this can only be perpetuated by consistent branding. By keeping a tight rein on brand consistency, marketers are able to drive customer perception for the onset of the engagement all the way through the buyer decision process.

We have seen the power of consistent branding in recent years with Apple. In the early stages, Apple was able to establish an identity that meets their needs, and they have stuck with it. Changing the look or approach of the Apple brand could easily undermine the consumers’ understanding of who Apple are as a company so Apple consistently places a lower case “i” on new digital products – the iPhone, iPad, iPod, iWatch. This ensures that consumers can easily identify a new product as coming from Apple, even if they haven’t heard from them. As a result, Apple is now the world’s most valuable technology brand, and has been the front-runner for the past six, consecutive years.

Apple’s global domination continues, and although their brand success would be hard to replicate, their strategy and tactics are easily transferable to any brand. Unfortunately it won’t come easily but the consequence of brand consistency is so crucial to a brand’s success, it’s worth investing the time.

Building Block #6: Brand Centurion

Consistency is the key theme that runs throughout all of the points above and any brand manager will tell you how vital it is for a brand to succeed. One of the biggest tasks faced by brand managers though is keeping their marketing consistent. With Brand Centurion, many of the daily struggles are alleviated by providing organisations with one, easy-to-use, powerful asset management tool. Brand Centurion automates all the demanding creation and distribution jobs and ensures that all marketing collateral is consistent every single time.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 30/08/2016

If you’re interested in developing your brand, call us today and up your marketing game!

Web-to-Print: The Must-Have for Multi-site Marketers

Posted on by Ed Entecott

You may have considered implementing an asset management tool on a number of occasions but not quite got round to it. You always seem find an excuse as to why now is not the right time – i.e. you don’t have the staff to implement the software, you don’t have the budget or maybe you already use Dropbox or other cloud storage tools so you don’t need an asset management tool. With their wealth of benefits though you are potentially missing out on an tool that for many successful marketing departments are indispensable.

There are basic asset management tools will essentially act as centralised repository in which business can efficiently store, organise, access and distribute a large number of marketing assets. Whilst they offer similar benefits to cloud storage, there are a number of asset management tools that can deliver so much more.

When producing large volumes of print marketing content on a regular basis and delivering it to different audiences across different stores,  adopting an asset management tool with web-to-print capabilities offers an array of added benefits.

Brand Uniformity

Your brand is your strongest asset as it represents your company identity and your corporate values so it is vital that this is maintained across all your business locations. Your brand needs to communicate the same message across all channels because a lack of uniformity can weaken your brand. Within large, multi-site organisations, there will be more than one person responsible for branding and if tight controls aren’t in place, branding mistakes will be made. A web-to-print solution improves consistency across all marketing as design elements can be locked down meaning they can’t be changed. This allows you to have tighter control over your marketing assets.

Increased Efficiency

Ordering printed marketing material can be a laborious task. If you have to call multiple vendors, request quotes, design and send files, wait for proofs, make corrections, and wait for your products to arrive all slow down the time to market. This is valuable time that could be spent on more important tasks. A web-to-print solution can eliminate many of these tasks and help avoid costly mistakes. Costs are negotiated ahead of time, approved templates are uploaded onto a web based dashboard so you have instant access, and only agreed elements can be edited prior to printing. The order process can take a matter of minutes – instead of days.

Centralised Purchasing

If you have numerous people ordering printed stationery from numerous vendors, costs can very quickly spiral out of control. It can also become difficult to track what you are spending. With an effective web-to-print solution, you can manage budgets by seeing exactly who is ordering what before approving the order. By using a single vendor, you have tighter controls over your budgets.

Personalised Marketing

A massive 79% of people will act on direct mail if they feel like it is personal to them. Unfortunately though, many marketers are missing opportunities by concentrating their personalised marketing efforts online. With some web-to-print solutions, you can integrate and manage your CRM data to enable personalised marketing.  This means artwork can be pre-populated with personalised information so your direct mail piece makes a greater impact.

Digital Repository

As well as storing print marketing assets, many web-to-print solutions can also be used as a store for digital assets including Facebook banners, email signatures, videos, PDF’s or photography. This makes it incredibly easy to share approved digital assets. This ensures that your teams are using the right version of the right asset ensuring overall brand consistency. And because web-to-print software works away from your internal IT software, you can rest assured that your files are safe.

Cost Saving

One of the biggest costs relating to the production of marketing assets is the use of a graphic designer. From the original designs, to re-edits – the cost can quickly accumulate. Even for the simple task of re-working of business cards can be a huge expense if you have to produce multiple versions for different people. With a web-to-print solution, you can upload pre-approved templates that allow you to customise only the agreed elements. This could include elements such as the name field, telephone number and email address of a business card. With simple drag-and-drop, this removes the need for a designer to artwork these jobs. This means your designers time can be better spent on the more important tasks.

Web Based

As mentioned, web-to-print software works away from your internal IT software. This means there is no software to download and it be accessed 24/7 on any device, anywhere in the world. This also removes the hassle of phone calls and emails to get a print run started – you can do it all from the portal.

Brand Centurion

If web-to-print sounds like something that your organisation could benefit from, Brand Centurion from Burst Digital could be the right solution for you. We can work with you to ensure your branded marketing assets are consistent, accessible and centrally stored so you can access them as soon as you need them.

If you’d like more information about Brand Centurion or a demo, simply call 01293 660722.

Continue Reading: 5 Signs you Need Web-To-Print Software

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 08/08/2016

Direct Marketing Facts & Statistics, CMO Council, 2015

https://www.cmocouncil.org/facts-stats-categories.php?view=all&category=direct-marketing

Managing Your Marketing Assets

Posted on by Ed Entecott

Companies today have to work harder and harder to get the attention of their “distracted” prospects and customers. There have been seismic shifts in the way consumers expect brands to communicate with them. As a result, CMOs and marketers have to create more unique, personalised and targeted marketing assets. As more assets are created and new versions updated, it can become increasingly difficult for teams to locate and distribute the relevant materials.

This problem is experienced daily by large organisations and has highlighted the need for effective asset management tools. A marketing asset management tool goes far beyond simple media storage; it is one of the best ways to maintain consistency.

But why should marketers care so much about asset management tools? In short, these tools are transforming organisations by changing h how knowledge and resources are shared.

Marketing and design teams spend countless hours creating assets, from uploading branded assets, to incorporating new assets into the creative. By creating a central library for all these assets, organisations are able to improve efficiencies and ensure that the right version, of the right asset is used every time. For small and large businesses alike, asset management tools are becoming indispensable. By integrating an asset management tool with existing processes and technologies, marketers are able to streamline their campaign management. You must first plan, then effectively implement, integrate and market your application if good profits are to be made.

To ensure the greatest success from marketing campaigns, organisations are making better use of ‘big data’. These data sets are continuously scrutinised by analysts to reveal patterns and trends relating to human behaviour and interactions in response to an ad. This data and what we can learn from it is worth its weight in gold.

While most marketers will recognise the importance of this analytics-driven approach, too few are actually implementing it. The importance comes from understanding the data and learning from it to draw actionable insights. And of course, this learning can feed right into planning. By implementing an asset management tool that enables an organisation to integrate their customer data, they are able to produce timely assets that react to their prospects and customer’s needs and learn from their successes and failures.

But do I really need an assets management tool?

Well, with the number of platforms, targets and markets set to increase, it is now more important than ever to design an efficient workflow that centralises marketing activities and minimises the cost of creating marketing materials.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital -25/07/2016

Brand Centurion

Brand Centurion can solve many of the issues surrounding asset management by providing sales and marketing teams with instant access to the right version, of the right asset, every time. A dynamic web-to-print portal and digital asset management tool that can enable organisations to maintain brand-consistency, prevent costly mistakes and allow them to order branded print marketing materials instantly.

It’s web-based – so can be accessed from a browser, with no software to install. All you have to do is upload your approved design templates and brand assets, choose who has admin access to the portal, and then request print runs whenever you want. All transactions are logged to give you complete control over your budget.

Ready to protect your brand? Talk to us today and try out our demo. 

Packaging Innovations: The Future is Digital

Posted on by Ed Entecott

The potential of digital print is constantly broadening, and its benefits for packaging are only just being realised. In terms of customer engagement, personalisation, and re-usability, digital print has opened up a whole new world of opportunity. As the print quality has improved, the advantages of digital print have become clearer. In 2016, we will see more digitally printed packaging on retail shelves than ever before.

With millennials now considered the most influential generations, the behaviour of brands is changing. Packaging is consistently identified as one of the major influences on everyday purchase decisions and with generations engrossed with anything visual, packaging design characteristically outweighs the practical attributes of a product.

The challenge that is faced by brand owners now is how to leverage digital print to drive profit from innovative marketing campaigns. With customers desire to connect with brands on all levels, brands have to work harder to get their market share by offering consumers a truly special experience with their product.

Personalised Packaging

Personalisation is the latest buzzword and has become a novel way to reach out to the masses. We have seen this from big brands such as Coca-Cola, Nutella and Marmite who have utilised digital print technology to personalise their bottles and jars.

In 2013, Coca-Cola started their infamous ‘Share-A-Coke’ campaign. The campaign saw them print 100,000 of the most popular names on the Coke bottle labels all over the world. This delivered a 6.8% increase in their global Facebook community and their values sales have increased 4.93% year on year since the campaign started.

Personalised packaging has proven popular amongst brand owners. It can give brands more direct contact with customers and strengthens the relationship that they are trying to build. Digital print has enable personalisation on a scale that wouldn’t be possible using the more traditional printing methods.

Interactive Packaging

Packaging has always been interactive. The look, the colour and the shape are just a few elements that subconsciously impact our perception of a brand. As mentioned, the design of the packaging for many is more important than the actual product attributes itself. With this in mind, digital print has allowed brands to explore interactivity with use of electroluminescent inks and conductive inks.

Packaging Oculto Light Up Beer BottleOculto, a lager blended with beer aged on tequila barrel staves recently unveiled two new interactive packaging innovations. These included a first-of-its kind illuminated bottle design that featured smart label technology. The smart label was created using electronic pathways, paper batteries and LED lights that were activated with a pressure switch. The switch was placed where the thumb naturally falls while holding a beer bottle, and once pressed; the LED light began to shine. This technology was a clear demonstration of how packaging and marketing can give customers a full sensory experience.

Brand owners aren’t just concerned with marketing gimmicks though; they are much more concerned with the practicalities interactive packaging can offer. Packaging for prescriptions could soon connect to your phone to give you a reminder when you need to take your next dose. Researchers are also working on an early-warning system that enables packaging to sense changes in the condition of the packaged food. Smart labelling and colour changes would be used to transmit those changes informing the consumer their products are no longer fresh. This development in intelligent packaging could dramatically reduce food waste.

Multi-Use Packaging

Packaging McDonlad's VR Headset

As a nation we have become more conscientious about our waste and the UK now has the fastest growing rates of recycling in the UK. With that in mind, brands are working to transform packaging from otherwise useless receptacles into useful items. Last year saw Ogilvy and Mather Tokyo turn Pizza Hut’s cardboard box into a working film projector. Powered by the user’s smartphone, the box contained a small lens which was inserted into a perforated hole in the side. When the user’s smartphone was placed in the box, the screen was displayed onto the wall.

Brands are also striving to make new technology accessible to all through their packaging. When Google released Cardboard, its paper-and-velcro VR headset, the guys over at McDonald’s Sweden noticed an opportunity. In March of this year, McDonald’s began selling a limited number of Happy Meals in special boxes. With a little construction, these could be transformed into VR headsets. By tearing eyes and nose holes and inserting lenses, kids got free a VR headset. Customers who bought one were then also given an access link to download the Happy Goggles VR game, an animated skiing-race game called ‘Watch Out on the Slopes’. Investing in this new and exciting technology has proven a smart way at making consumers feel involved with a brand.

Retail continues to change at a dramatic pace and the demand for personalised and engaging experiences call for new approaches to packaging. With end users making the move to digital, print is now the major player in bridging the gap between physical products and the digital world.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 27/06/2016

Burst Digital

We are constantly pushing the boundaries with print. We also house some of the latest digital print technology that will allow you to produce dynamic and personalised marketing print assets that will open up channels to your customers and products.

 

 

The Evolution of Print – Technological CPR

Posted on by Ed Entecott

Technology is constantly evolving and believe it or not, traditional print media is getting a technological overhaul. There is some hearsay in the industry that print is outdated but by combining print with some digital wizardry, print is being brought back to life. As a result of this, we are seeing big brands re-embracing print and incorporating it back into their marketing strategy.

With strong evidence to support the fact that engagement with print is now much higher that with ‘new media’, is print becoming the new ‘new media’? We believe so. With a little bit of technological CPR, print is now a multifaceted media that is making its comeback. Here is a quick look at the future of print as we see it:

volkswagen-polo-the-polo-principle-2-600-52358

3D Printing

3D Printing has been on the lips of a lot of people for the past 2 years. It has rapidly grown momentum and is set to be the next ‘big thing’ in the print industry. As 3D printing has become more viable, big companies are now starting to utilise the tool. Customers now have the ability to produce completely bespoke products such as personalised clothing, accessories and toys.

Volkswagen recently encouraged its Danish fans to design their dream Polo through the Volkswagen website. Forty of the best ideas were created using a 3D printer and displayed at a Copenhagen exhibition. An overall winner was then selected and the winning design was turned into a real, full size car.

3D printing still has a long way to go before it becomes “main stream” but with the number of applications, materials available and scales, the possibilities with 3D printing really are endless.

Augmented Reality

This is another big player in combined print and digital technology with marketers as it is currently one of the most accessible and it can offer customers the immersive experience they are looking for from brands. It also makes everything in the world seem way cooler! AR works by overlaying digital information onto the real world. Using your smartphone camera, a target image is detected and your phone can then project digital information onto that target image. This essentially brings the image to life.
layarar

Domino’s Pizza is one brand that has successfully adopted augmented reality in its marketing efforts on its billboards. By encouraging passer-by’s to view the billboard ads through their phones, customers were privy to special deals. These were then automatically uploaded to the Domino’s mobile app on their device. Customers were then able to order pizza directly from their phone.

Conductive Inks

Although this technology is still in its early stages, its applications offer marketers the opportunity to do something truly exciting. Conductive inks work by combining ink with metals such as carbon, copper or silver. When printed, this serves as a wire for an electronic device. Eventually conductive ink could be used to bring print to life by generating a noise, pulling up an app on a smartphone or even turning on a light. This will essentially turn printed paper works into a touchscreen.

conductive inksA collaboration between the University of Central Lancashire and leading newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror explored the future of publishing using conductive inks. In celebration of Steven Gerrard’s career at Liverpool and his 8 most memorable moments, an interactive print supplement was produced. Users connected a clip to the supplement and it allowed users to listen to audio snippets from momentous games. When the clip was connected to the edge of the print, pressing a printed button triggered online interactions. This CMS also gave publishers a dashboard view to monitor the analytics data from the supplement.

Final thoughts…

Technology is now altering the way customers interact with brands and their marketing. The take up of these technologies is still in its infancy but it is believed that by 2018, there will be over 200 million users of augmented reality apps. The challenge for marketers is to offer interactive editorial content that is exciting and relevant. This can only be done by converging the physical with the digital. The most holistic way for this to happen is for marketers to re-embrace print and the possibilities it can now offer.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital

At Burst Digital we are constantly pushing the boundaries when it comes to print marketing. Although these technologies are currently beyond the reach of many, with our expert knowledge in print, we can help you identify ways to ensure your print marketing stands out.



How to Utilise Your Strongest Asset: Brand Consistency

Posted on by Ed Entecott

Whether you like it or not, every business has a brand and it has the potential to be one of the strongest assets you own. Your brand represents everything your business does and is the impression people have about your brand. For that reason alone, it is vital to nurture your brand and make it a priority. Your brand should convey what you do, what you stand for and what makes you unique. This collection of interlinked attributes essentially give your business its identity.

Branding Blog

Now caring for a brand is often easier said than done. I’m afraid to say it but there is a lot to consider and a lot of work required. Putting your logo on all your marketing materials or using the right pantone is a step in the right direction but it simply doesn’t cover it – building a good brand takes time. Strong, consistent branding reinforces your identity and creates a positive sentiment. This can only be done though by aligning the look, feel and tone of voice throughout your brand messages.

But why is it so important?

Consumers trust brands that they recognise and can get to know of a more personal level. We all know that making a purchase is more of an emotional decision than it is a practical one. John Lewis is one of the UK’s favourite household brands and it is all down to their strong brand identity. The brand resonates and this has allowed customers to connect with the brand. As a result, this has implanted a real sense of loyalty and trust for the brand.

We buy the same brands because we know what to expect, feel at ease purchasing and know we like the product. This same concept can be carried across all our marketing channels to ensure there is a seamless look and feel on all our customer touchpoints. Consumers will feel more comfortable with your brand and are more inclined to become a lifelong customer.

‘Just Do It’ is one of the simplest, most recognisable slogans of all time and is a line that Nike has used for the past 15 years. Compare this with major competitor Reebok though who has changed their slogan 14 times since 1988. Nike’s strong branding has enabled differentiation against the competition as it has allowed people to identify Nike’s products and services at a glance. And it seems Nike’s consistency has paid off as it is now the global market leader in the sports shoe market. Consistency goes far beyond a slogan or a logo though.

Consistency Equals Dependency

Whilst a CMO may have the final say on what marketing content is released, it is at that point that they lose all control. With the array of social media platforms, review sites and blogging sites, customers can constantly talk to each other and share their opinions (both positive and negative) about your brand. People love telling others about the brands they like and this can very easily sway another person’s opinion. Strong brands create followers who are not shy about sharing their stories and these endorsements are extremely important in building a brand’s trust factor.

Coca-Cola is an outstanding example of how brand consistency increase company value,

Without brand consistency, you lose the ability to cut through all this noise and position your brand positively in the consumers’ minds. Consistency across all your marketing channels and customer touch points is essential as brand inconsistency immediately leads to poor brand experiences.

Consistent branding doesn’t mean that all your communications should look exactly the same, far from it in fact. But it does mean you should strive for cohesion by sticking to a set of visual standards that can be developed through your brand guidelines. Keeping your visual identity consistent will help effectively distinguish and give your brand recognition. As a result it creates the ‘desirability’ factor for existing and potential new customers, supporters and stakeholders.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 09/05/2016

Burst Digital

We can help control your brand consistency through a dynamic asset management portal. Brand Centurion allows business with multiple locations a portal to access, create, monitor and print their latest marketing assets quickly and efficiently. This includes everything from posters to leaflets, business cards to digital assets. Brand Centurion can maintain your brand consistency; prevent costly mistakes, save money in reduced design and artwork time and enable you to order your branded print marketing materials instantly.


Ready to up your marketing game? Talk to us today!



Why Personalised Marketing is Critical to your ROI

Posted on by Ed Entecott

When it comes to marketing, a massive 94% of businesses will tell you that personalisation is vital to their strategy. However, only 72% of marketers know how to successfully implement a personalised marketing strategy.
Personalised Direct Mail

In the age of the connected consumer, most marketers focus their personalisation efforts online due to the relative ease associated with it. However, opportunities are being missed by excluding offline personalisation in delivering a multi channel marketing campaign. With the variety of communication and social platforms available, brands have to work harder in getting their message across. Although online personalisation is a cheaper and time saving option, it doesn’t have the same impact as offline marketing.

The importance of personalisation comes from the customers need to be shown that you understand their preferences and their lifestyle. Brands need to be able to talk about individual products and services that may be of interest. When customers like what you have to offer, they are more likely to keep your company on their radars. Relevant and personalised communications across multiple channels can deliver a 20-30% increase in ROI!

How to Add Offline Personalisation into your Multichannel Marketing Campaign

One of the key factors affecting the success of personalisation is the  used to understand your customers behaviours and habits. The more detailed information you hold on your customers, the easier it is to personalise your marketing materials. Collecting data on demographics, preferences, past behaviours and real-time behaviours all help build up a well-rounded picture of the customer as an individual.

Customer data can be gathered through social media profiling tools, customer service interactions, internet searches and transactional data to name but a few. It’s not sufficient enough just having the data though; it’s what you do with it that will impact the success of a campaign. Whether you are sending out personalised marketing by name, location, past transactions, interests or a combination of these, it’s vital to ensure the data you have is correct and up-to-date. There is nothing more frustrating for the customer than receiving personalised marketing with the wrong information. Ensuring your customer data is clean and correct will instil confidence in the customer. It also increases the chances of them responding to your marketing efforts.

The Digital Print Revolution

With the introduction of digital print technologies, the production of relevant and responsive direct mail has now been made easier. The process has become flexible enough that it allows businesses to customise anything from a single line of text to an entirely different piece for each customer or prospect. In a recent survey from the Royal Mail, it was established that it is now 25% less expensive to implement a digitally printed communications than it was 5 years ago.

Personalised campaigns can be rolled out across a number of channels, giving you the opportunity to speak to your customers through their preferred channel. Customers increasingly expect to have a personalised experience when they engage with a brand. The is no secret formula to success with personalised marketing but having a clear understanding of your audience is a great starting point.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 25/04/2016

At Burst Digital we believe that combining print media with smart technology creates better campaigns. We house some of the latest digital printing technology that will allow you to produce dynamic, personalised direct mail that will open up channels to your customers and prospects. In short, it can mean more conversions, more enquiries and more sales.
Ready to up your marketing game? Talk to us today!

Data from Smart Focus, “Why True Personalization is Critical to your Business”, 2016
http://www.smartfocus.com/en/system/files/smartfocus_ebook_-_true_personalization.pdf



Direct Mail: A Vital Tool in Your Marketing Strategy

Posted on by Ed Entecott

Personalised direct mailIn this digital marketing revolution, there has been a rapid change in marketing and communication planning. There are now many marketers who will dismiss direct mail and accuse it of being obsolete. The fact is though mail is still thriving! With the introduction of modern technologies, the way mail can be used has transformed and direct mail no longer has to be considered as just a piece of “junk mail”.

With the availability of refined personalisation techniques and carefully targeted data, a highly creative DM piece should play a vital role in any integrated campaign. You may be surprised to hear it but many people actually miss receiving personally addressed mailings. Customers like to feel that they’re engaging in conversations directly with a brand and this can be done through DM.

A well-crafted piece of personalised mail is hard to ignore and can be a direct entry-point into the consumer’s consciousness. As a result, it can create a pivotal moment in the customer journey. According to the Royal Mail, over 92% of all personalised mail in the UK is opened. Furthermore, a DM piece is essentially delivered directly to the customers’ hands so they’re virtually guaranteed to see your message.

This fact shouldn’t be taken advantage of though. Time still needs to be spent ensuring that a personalised message is relevant to the individual. The more relevant the DM, the more likely it is a consumer will engage and respond. On average, 79% of people will act on a DM if they feel like it is personal and of value to them. However, only 45% of people said they would act on an email, so are you really willing to miss out on potentially reaching that other 34%?

We are not saying that DM is the “silver bullet” and should be sent out as a standalone, but incorporating DM into your overall marketing strategy can act as a pull-through to get your customers talking to you. In conclusion, hitting them with a well thought out DM campaign could be the first step to breaking down walls for closer communication with your potential customers.

Written by Liam Beauchamp for Burst Digital – 11/04/2016

Burst Digital

We believe that combining print media with smart technology creates better campaigns. Using DM to compliment your campaign will allow you to open up channels to prospects and nurture them into a customer. In short, it can mean more conversions, more enquiries, and more sales. Using our digital printing capabilities, we can create those high-impact pieces that will stand out on the mat.

Ready to up your marketing game? Talk to us today!

Data from Royal Mail, ‘It’s All about Mail and Email’, 2016:
http://www.royalmail.com/corporate/marketing/insights/mail-and-email



Increased security with ISO 27001

Posted on by Ed Entecott

We’ve successfully gained ISO 27001:2013, the ‘holy grail’ of Information Security Management. This achievement compliments the ISO 9001:2008 accreditation for Quality Assurance that we have held for over 10 years.

“Achieving this new standard is a big deal for us and our customers. ISO 27001:2013 lays out a set of industry standards designed to manage and protect client data and information. We’ve implemented a series of policies and procedures that ensure all information is handled securely ” said Myrion Webley – Information Security Manager.

With data management being such a hot topic of discussion, we felt the need to tighten up our procedures and we hope this shows that we are serious about protecting client data.

If you’re concerned about the security of your data, be sure to pass this important information on to your IT and Marketing managers.