Conquering Consumerspace

By Michael Solomon

The consumer world for marketers is changing rapidly. Issues such as access to technology, the level of information and the degree of understanding of marketing tactics are amongst issues that have made the consumer far more complex today than in the past. This has profound implications for how consumers are targeted. Quite simply, the old and traditional ways such as mass marketing are less likely to be effective under this new scenario. 

Michael Solomon's Conquering Consumerspace looks to make sense of this new environment, showing the new elements that comprise consumer behaviour and how they expect marketers to behave towards them. One of the underlying driving factors is that control is passing from companies/marketers to consumers. No longer can companies launch a product or service and promote it to develop appropriate brand values and hope that as many of the target market as possible will buy it.

Consumers are far more brand and media aware. Brands are part of everyday life, not just a “badge” that says more about the consumer as a person but a lifestyle accessory. Under this scenario companies work with or partner with consumers to develop brands. Consumers are the best brand ambassadors and are happy to work in this role. Brand communications that reflect this partnership are more likely to succeed in Consumerspace.

Typical methodologies could include brand communities that work with groups of consumers that share a common interest. Consumers are likely to welcome the contribution of marketers to this  as long as the promotional messages are not overwhelming and dominant. Guerrilla marketing tactics are also prominent such as using actors to demonstrate products and services as if they were “normal” consumers. Immersion in the brand through elements such as branded experiences either as retail outlets or “theme parks” adds to the consumer connection. The general message is that marketers have to find new ways to connect with consumers. And of course, any connection has to be genuinely two-way, allowing dialogue on the consumer’s terms.

This is no longer about mass-produced broadcast messages to a segmented market but developing ways for consumers to buy into a brand on an individual basis. Consumers can add to brand communications, if they wish, and companies can provide ways and means in which they can do this. Furthermore, such an approach allows marketers to reach consumers (and vice versa) who may be cynical, at worst hostile, towards a traditional marketing approach. Creating buzz around a product or service is essential, developing hype or spin will work against the brand.

This is not about on-line and off-line marketing. In Consumerspace these two worlds are one, not merged as they were never really separated. There are no boundaries between on-line and off-line worlds and so a consistency of approach is essential. This is the real world now and consumers are growing up with this as normal while some companies remain committed to traditional and increasingly obsolete marketing techniques.

All in all, this is a very useful guide to how marketers can work with consumers in the new consumer economy or Consumerspace. It is an approach that is vital for new brands while it is important for established brands to start considering their marketing and brand communications under this new and rapidly evolving scenario. What may have worked well in the past will become more and more irrelevant in the future.

Review by Martin Payne