The year 2020 was like no other. The covid-19 pandemic has changed the way the world does business. We can see that consumer behavior has changed dramatically. People are now increasingly engaged on digital channels to fulfill everything from their grocery needs to academic learning to communicating with their loved ones at a distance.
Throughout most of 2020, people across the world were in lockdown. Naturally, their consumption of online content and media increased. This has resulted in brands changing the way they reach out to their potential customers and interact with them. A trickle-down effect of this has been felt by the ad agencies. Where traditional ad agencies had the flexibility of running advertisements and marketing campaigns over both online and offline channels to maximize eyeballs, they now have to adapt to the changing brand expectations.
Let’s look at what has changed in terms of branding expectations and how ad agencies are coping with them.
How Ad Agencies are Managing the Branding Expectations Post-Covid
Brands are creating new marketing strategies to reach their audience, changing their messages to be more relevant, and working on increasing their brand penetration online. Here’s how ad agencies are managing the evolving branding expectations.
1. E-commerce and Digital Experiences Have Become a High Priority for Brands
Brands have started to invest heavily in digital infrastructure in an attempt to reach consumers on social media and mobile devices. With so much content being uploaded onto social media every minute, it’s essential that businesses carefully evaluate their content and present high-quality content that is consumable and relevant to their audiences to capture their waning attention.
The fact is that customers today place tremendous value on the digital experience provided by brands. Brands that don’t have an online presence are suffering because shoppers care just as much about the digital experience as they do about the brand’s products or services. Consumers want the ability to have a personalized shopping experience. Brands must win their consumers’ hearts through personalized content. Businesses are no longer to bully their competition with a massive marketing budget. Quality now trumps everything else.
2. Brands Wish to Generate a Greater Share of Voice Online
Right now, consumers are demanding their favorite brands to have a digital presence and to have a strong voice. The challenge brands, especially the older ones, have used the same blueprint for success over decades. Even though that blueprint has changed, there are still companies that are stubbornly sticking to the past.
Ad agencies are now partnering with clients to help them navigate this new online world and create a relevant brand identity for them. There is no doubt that brands need to dedicate a greater share of voice on the topics that their audience cares about. Ad agencies must create content around concepts regarding health, wellness, and safety – topics highly relevant to our pandemic-ridden world – but this has to be done creatively.
3. Data-Driven Insights Are Essential for Brands
The data analysis continues to show its dominance as we transition into a post-Covid world. It’s the magnifying glass that reveals how a brand’s target audience is behaving and responding to its outreach efforts. However, the data itself isn’t enough. Brands must be able to interpret the context of that data.
This is where an agency can play a crucial role. They can present their clients with just the insights they need to gear up for success by helping them spot gaps, look for new revenue-generating opportunities and help create more cost-effective ad campaigns.
4. Brands Are Building Agile Capabilities
Brands must be able to adapt to a rapidly-changing world. Since more of their target audience is now present on social media, traditional surveys are becoming passé. A much better strategy is to tap into the pulse of the users online to assess how consumer behavior is evolving in real-time.
Ad agencies are reacting to this by proving more holistic and innovative solutions that go beyond the mere designing of illustrations.
Conclusion
To deal with the changing branding expectations, ad agencies need to think out-of-the-box. From designing ad campaigns to helping their clients keep a tab on the pulse of the consumers who are actively engaged in the online space, is becoming one of the mandates of agencies partnering with brands.
Artwork Abode is an expert outsourcing provider of creative advertising solutions including graphic design, advertising illustration, and digital illustration, supporting agencies from across the globe. Contact us today to discover how we can help you keep up with the changing expectations of your branding clients.
