Coronavirus has forced a rethink - the pandemic has led to an immediate drop in advertising spending.
The traditional term for hybrid marketing is a promotional approach that combines traditional marketing and digital marketing. Instead of focusing solely on online platforms or in-person touch points, hybrid marketing merges both approaches to create a more effective and extensive outreach plan.
But there is a new definition of hybrid marketing that is on the rise and that is Human-to-Human hybrid marketing, it is content that is designed for native platforms that doesn’t feel like marketing. Let me explain. Brands have had a long history of advertising whether it is a hilarious super bowl commercial or paid advertising on facebook, we all knew that people paid a ton of money to buy our attention as potential customers.
In today’s world, marketing simply doesn’t work as well as it did in the early days due to the fact that our attention span has significantly reduced as the explosion of social media platforms began. The challenge companies faced was ineffective marketing, it was difficult to get people to care.
In today’s world everything is on-demand. You don’t have to look far to recognize the trend that Netflix started with the streaming service industry. It seems like everyone has got a streaming service, Disney, Hulu, Discovery, etc… Youtube even has their premium streaming service. So what does this mean for marketing? In the traditional world of advertising, companies like Coca-cola, Nike, Apple, would create an ad on tv that demanded people’s attention. Those commercials are what people were looking for when they wanted to know about a new product. Today it’s reversed. If people want to know about a new product they will go straight to their favorite information platform, youtube, instagram, tiktok, and find out more information through social media.
Consumers find out information either from the company or brand themselves or influencers who have early access to the product or service and have created a personal review that shares their experience.
So, what does Hybrid Marketing mean for us in the world that we live in today?
COVID-19 is changing consumer behaviour – and therefore advertising.
What does this mean for brands today? It means that brands need to stop thinking about the old way of marketing and start making content on these platforms that integrate within the community. Content is no longer king, community is king. It’s all about the direct message, the conversation consumers have around a product or brand that creates connection and affinity.
It’s about understanding how these platforms operate and what the psychological effect of who is on these platforms are. People on TikTok love to consume quick valuable and entertaining content. If you’re on youtube, you are learning or researching something you love. If you are on twitter, you’re most likely into the latest information or politics. Linkedin is dominating in the business sector. Brands are building massive affinity by creating their own podcast show because it humanizes their company and connects consumers to their mission.
Adopt Hybrid Marketing into your strategy and you will finally begin to see exponential growth in your business and your personal brand.
Need help navigating this new terrain?
Contact our team today and we can get you up to speed!
