Nowadays, you’d be hard-pressed to find a business that doesn’t invest time and money in building a solid marketing strategy. Indeed, investing in marketing can support a variety of goals, whether the business wants to develop its brand image or boost its market position. The clue is in the name; you need marketing to get to market.
However, the marketing landscape as we know it now is making uncomfortable statements. For businesses and marketers alike, it’s time to ask whether there is a future for marketing.
Marketing aims to know too much about me
Digital marketing is a data-based activity, using data to make informed decisions and to target new or existing audiences. While users appreciate that brands need their data to tailor the experience, many are beginning to find targeted advertising and content too invasive. The knowledgeable and attentive brands are developing borderline stalking behavior through the excessive use of data. Unfortunately, privacy is a growing concern, as Facebook former ad analytics firm,
BrandTotal, discovered when the social media platform filed a lawsuit for the unauthorized data extraction protocol used as part of its services. How much should a brand ever know about users, and when do brands use data too freely? The question remains without an answer.
Marketing is a constant disruption
When was the last time you watched a video on Youtube without wasting time skipping or watching ads you didn’t care about? If you don’t remember, you’re not alone. Advertising is actively disrupting our digital experiences and our day-to-day lives. According to surveys, people struggle with the constant and obnoxious presence of ads, autoplay videos, and other popup and display content. The bottom line? People hate bad ads. Too many digital ads don’t seem to sell anymore. They only disturb users.
Marketing is repeating itself
A quick Google search will rapidly show the most popular content types. Infographics, memes, product reviews, and lists are some of the preferred content formats around. While it can be helpful for businesses to know what the audience expects, it can be counterproductive. Indeed, it’s fair to say that most people have seen countless renditions of Lord of the Rings inspired memes. Similarly, lists and reviews also lack creativity, as they often fall into the trap of semi-plagiarism.
The authentic emotional tear-jerking marketing
A popular approach in digital marketing is the drive for authentic story-telling. Stories are part of human culture. So, it makes sense for brands to reach out to their audience and share engaging stories. However, the desire for authenticity drives high emotionality in content. Highly personal stories populate the social feeds on LinkedIn and Twitter, designed to boost commercial and personal brands. Were those stories ever effective? The truth is that if they hadn’t been successful, there wouldn’t be so many of them now. However, the overdose of emotion can leave users feeling detached and tired.
Is it the death of marketing? Marketing as we know it needs to evolve. It is creating an uncomfortable environment for the audience. Disruptive content, intrusive know-it-all ads, the same info reheated in a popular format, and emotional attention-seeking behavior are draining the marketing drive. It is time for a change. We, as marketing receptors, need to redefine authenticity, targeting, and content excitement.
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