Communication

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 19 feb 2015

Apart from providing excellent products and services, businesses have to ensure that their brand connects with customers with a uniform and consistent message. Small companies and startups have to be even more careful to provide the unified message all across the different media as they have limited budgets and are trying to build their reputation in a competitive business environment. As a small and emerging business make sure that you answer the following questions with diligence - (1) Are you presenting a universal message? (2) Is your theme always consistent? (3) Do you have clear brand guidelines? Read on...

Startups: Why consistency is crucial in on and offline branding
Author: Lucy Wayment

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 12 feb 2015

Recent research by Bell Pottinger Digital suggests 15 top digital trends that are going to change the way brands communicate in 2015. The data is obtained through searching the web (blogs, social media, comments etc) and finding out the most talked about and mentioned trends online in 2014. According to James Thomlinson, Partner and Managing Director of Bell Pottinger Digital, 'While technology will be one of the biggest drivers of marketing change in the New Year, the key focus for brands will be on delivering truly integrated strategies.' The following 15 trends are ranked in order of percentage increase throughout the year 2014 - (1) Near Field Communication (NFC): Increase- 358%, Mentions- 42530 (2) Internet of Things (IoT): 283%, 1126700 (3) Wearables: 220%, 1793574 (4) Internal Communications: 167%, 6597; (5) Storytelling: 145%, 82618 (6) Branded Content: 73%, 165898 (7) Beacons: 64%, 348468 (8) Personalization: 49%, 68443 (9) Big Data: 41%, 5032773 (10) Content Marketing: 41%, 3216165 (11) Augmented Reality: 38%, 400242 (12) 3D Printing: 35%, 1160336 (13) Real-Time Marketing: 16%, 252537 (14) Mobile: 6%, 1433582 (15) Gamification: 4%, 384938. Read on...

Bell Pottinger Newsroom: Infographic - 15 digital trends for 2015
Author: NA

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 31 aug 2014

Presently about 97% of marketers use social media to connect with buyers. But most of them are still trying and experimenting with it to build and develop a personalized, relevant and enjoyable experience for their users. A bad execution of the social media strategy not only affects relationship with the audience but in some cases can cause it to go viral and become a catastrophe. Avoid the following at all cost for effective social media engagement - (1) Being all talk (2) Putting on a one-man show (3) Forgetting to think before you post, share & tweet (4) Thinking all social platforms are created equal (5) Putting your customers on mute (6) Forgetting to be a human (7) Assuming your social strategy works. Read on...

Mashable: 7 Sins of Social Media Marketing
Author: Mike Volpe

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 08 aug 2014

With access to 21st century communication and sharing technologies, both brands and customers are connected the way they have never been before. Social media and mobile are transforming the way brands interact with customers. But there are certain basics that remain the same. Companies and brands should emphasise on creating and facilitating communities of interest around them and consistently share and propagate their values through both words and action. Moreover to create lasting relationships the need is also to create a platform that facilitates connections among the consumers with each other. Brands can play a leadership role within the community and must share relevant content and experience that the members can relate to. Marketers have to align themselves with the consumers and help strengthen their bonds with each other. This provides members to talk to each other and discuss and share what is valuable to them. Thus resulting in the most powerful form of marketing. Read on...

Fast Company: WHY BUILDING YOUR BRAND IS ALL ABOUT SHARING YOUR VALUES
Author: Dave Hawley

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 30 jun 2014

Although the purpose of advertising and marketing is intended to communicate the message about products and services to the consumer in the best possible and attractive way but the following statistics point in a different direction - Consumers are bombarded with over 5,000 marketing messages a day, up from around 2,000 just a few years ago; Two-Thirds of us are on the "Do Not Call List" to avoid telemarketing; 86% of us skip TV ads; 44% of direct mail is never opened and goes straight to the trash; 90% of emails are never opened and 99.5% of emails receive no clicks; 99.9% or more of banner ads receive no clicks; Recent eye-tracking studies show 18-34 year-old millennials do not look at banners on the web pages they visit. Long time ago advertising guru David Ogilvy suggested marketers to concentrate on the 'content of your advertising, not its form.' And today marketing leaders are advising to pubish content instead of advertising. Businesses that will potentially succeed in future will be the ones that will be able to create emotional connect with consumers and serve their information needs. Companies should publish content and entertain customers through a content strategy that holistically considers audience content and channel needs. Read on...

Forbes: Why Does Most Marketing Stink?
Author: Michael Brenner

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 30 jun 2014

Social media platforms are an effective tool for communication and marketing for companies. But caution has to be taken while pursuing social media strategy considering its ubiquitous and viral nature. Most often the platforms are not moderated and there is a probability of their been hacked and misused. Moreover companies sometimes also outsource their social media strategies to inexperienced professionals that may result in erroneous and socially insensitive communication. In some instances companies have themselves often been found guilty of poorly judged promotions causing strong adverse consumer reactions. There are numerous examples from the Indian business community where social media management has been found lacking and became a cause for embarassment. According to Sunil Abraham, executive director of the Centre for Internet and Society, 'Automation of social media interactions can be useful but without careful human oversight, it can very easily be gamed by rogue elements online.' Read on...

The Economic Times: Social media promotions can backfire, too
Authors: Ratna Bhushan, Varuni Khosla

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 23 feb 2014

Content Marketing Institute defines 'Content Marketing' as "Marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience - with the objective of driving profitable customer action." Over a period of time the content has grown enormously in all media like internet, TV etc and so do challenges related to differentiating and competing on the basis of content for brand development. In the article author provides strategies to have effective content marketing on the internet - First, Stop Calling it Content (brands need to become publishers); Define Your Mission (for successful brand publishing define what is being offered to the world); Strive to Hold Attention, Not Grab Attention (think in terms of delivering experience that not only brings the users back but also motivates them to share the content with their circles); Creating a True Value Exchange (focus on value proposition to the world alongwith the specific benefits of the brand to users); Forget About Content Strategy and Focus on Content Skills (develop skills that provide useful and meaningful content experience). Read on...

Forbes: How To Do Content Marketing Right
Author: Greg Satell

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 14 nov 2013

Most companies have been putting technology enabled customer service systems at place to fulfil their customers needs and resolve issues. But are these systems sufficient to satisfy customers? According to a report '2012 Customer Service Barometer' by American Express (based on 1000 customer surveys and interviews) - Most customers still don't think service is good enough, much less getting better; Most people will spend more, significantly more, for great service; Quality personal connections still matter most; And those live interactions can be make-or-break propositions. Moreover the customers, with enhanced communicating and sharing technologies (social media etc), find it easier to propagate their customer service experiences. They tell on average 15 people about their good experiences and 24 people about their bad ones, while nearly 50% consumers always tell others about good customer service experiences while 56% always talk to people about their poor experiences. Read on...

CBS News: Most companies fail customer service test
Author: Michael Hess

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 15 oct 2013

Social media's success as a communication tool during Arab Spring has initiated its use as a marketing tool for businesses in Middle-East countries. Companies are adopting various social media platforms to connect and interact with their current and potential customers. But the challenge is to manage the social media strategy correctly and efficiently as it has very powerful dynamics to share and propagate information. Businesses should tread with caution and care as mistakes can become a big public relations fiasco. In UAE few companies learnt it the hard way when they posted careless, insensitive and unprofessional comments leading to a negative and strong reaction from customers and public. Read on...

Gulf Business: Tough Lessons - How Not To Manage Social Media
Author: Aarti Nagraj

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 14 oct 2013

With global expansion of businesses and readily available social media tools to connect, interact and build relationships with customers and businesses across the world it has become necessary for organizations and businesses to have an international focused social media strategy at place. The challenge is to successfully manage multiple social media platforms for maximum value. The article recommends - Do a thorough website analytics to understand user statistics and know where the target audiences are located both physically and virtually; Before investing time and money in managing multiple accounts (country specific, language specific) ensure understanding of the user connection and interaction on your social media main account in the English language; To make user engagement more efficient and targeted post focused, specific and original content on your social media profiles; Be patient and persistent with your international social media strategy as it takes time to evolve and provide desired results. Read on...

Business 2 Community: How To Develop An International Social Media Campaign
Author: Sam Lowe

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