SOUTH BAY DIGS | Digital Edition Online

30 DIGS.NET | 1.25.19 Warren J Dow | Publisher wdow@Southbaydigs.com | 310.373.0142 x2461 MARKETING AND THE NEW NOISE POLLUTION PUBLISHER'S MUSE If I was still playing guitar in a band, that's what I would name it. It perfectly captures the irony and discontent of this precarious moment in time that "we" marketers live in. That "we" by the way, is you, me and ever yone else. Today, ever yone is a marketer and practicing marketing in some form or fashion. WHAT EXACTLY HAVE WE DONE HERE? The demand for consumer attention has spiraled out of control and marketing as we once knew it, has become the new noise pollution. (Second thought, I think I will create a new band with that name!) As a star ting point, just consider the following for a moment: The average American consumer is exposed to 4,000 media messages per day, (this number is widely debated and is said to be as high as 10,000, but whatever the actual number is, it's too high and will continue to grow). www.bizjournals.com The average American adult's attention span declined from 12 seconds in 2016 to eight seconds in 2017 (one second less than a gold fish). www.time.com There are currently over a billion blogs posted on the internet. With roughly 7.5 billion people on ear th – that's one blog for ever y 7. 5 people. www.NeilPatel. com There are now over 3 billion social media users in the world, about 40 percent of the global population. www.mashable.com Today there are more than 5,000 platforms available to help businesses achieve their marketing goal – and only 9% of marketers focus on just one. www.martechtoday.com In 2018 adver tisers will spend $46 billion on programmatic ads. www.emarketer.com WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE - THE CONTENT BUBBLE ERA We've officially entered the platinum age of spam – too much data, too much content, too many distribution channels and an overabundance of noise! The disturbing truth – we will never reach an apex and the supply and distribution is infinite. With attention spans declining and content messaging accelerating, the relationship between brands and consumers is under intense pressure and marketers are star ting to experience decompression sickness, known to divers as "the bends." The marketing buzzards have ruined everything. It's no wonder that marketing has become tired, bored, predictable and diluted - it doesn't deserve our attention. IT MAY GET WORSE BEFORE IT GETS BETTER. Trust. The most impor tant word in the marketing dictionar y. That coveted and personal relationship that consumers have with brands. This is the holy grail that drives consumer behavior and each and ever y transaction they make. Once trust is destroyed, the battle is lost. Yet the over messaging and spam (the industr y term is content marketing) continues unabated. MARKETERS, (THAT'S YOU!) WHAT TO DO NEXT. FOR REALTORS… Star t here – read the book Permission Marketing by Seth Godin. Recognize the power of consumers to ignore marketing. Permission marketing is the privilege (not the right) of delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to people who actually want to get them. This concept so inspired me that it became the foundation of our mission at DIGS when I launched back in 2010. In today's connected digital economy, personalization of ads doesn't mean permission. Unfor tunately, brands (and the marketing buzzards they hire to promote them,) are doing more damage and destroying hard earned goodwill with careless/thoughtless marketing. Build a brand. Building a successful brand is the best way to create and sustain a business that is built to last. Your brand needs to be authentic and define the unique value that you bring to the market. Over time, brands earn trust by delivering on their promises, being consistent and staying visible in the market. Focus entirely on the consumer. It's not about you and how great you are! It's about the success you create for your customers and the passion you have from doing it. Create a stor y around the benefits your customers will receive when they do business with you. Don't take shortcuts. Think strategically and long-term. Avoid buying "the next great thing" and rushing to market with the latest crappy product or ser vice the marketing buzzard sold you. Don't be a sheep and follow the herd. You need to differentiate your brand and make sure ever y thing you do passes the "who cares test." In closing, remember that slow and steady wins the race. Patience is a vir tue. Permission is critical. Trust is absolute. Brands that are preeminent in the market win. If you change your strategy, you can change your results and Find your Place in the market! Until next time ~

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