Tips to Create Effective Brand Marketing Communications Strategy

For most of the corporate professionals, implementing marketing communications strategy is often kept in the to-do list, but usually pushed back. Since “marketing communications strategy” can seem to be a tongue twister, is has been shortened to “Public Relations”, known for using software and online platforms to communicate with suitable stories, so as to get wide media coverage. Quite often, the marketing communications strategy refers to building awareness about the product or services amongst your audiences. Yes, it is as simple as that, yet complicated and done in all the wrong possible ways. It entirely depends on your experience in the industry and the budget allocated for the same. Let’s say you kept aside a budget of a million dollars to reach out to the target market, you can choose to have a promotional mix of event marketing, TV or even Facebook ads for larger target market tapping. However, if you decide to reach out to people without hurting your wallet, there can be no better way than taking strategies and PR campaigns in your own hands. Does it mean that it can be as free as lunch is? True that! If you learn to implement the marketing communications strategy, you can build up a whole empire with long-lasting relationships, in order to attract loyalty among customers. The role of a marketing communications manager needs endless dedication and understanding of product branding. While hiring for this one single position, “If it’s a maybe, it’s a complete no” among candidates. What is Marketing Communications Strategy? The term marketing communications strategy covers the entire range of activities that you implement to communicate about your products. This involves includes everything from public relations to even paid marketing. There are three guiding principles to implement marketing communications strategy in the market:

• Alignment with the Brand Concept: No matter which marketing channel that you use, it should bring out a similar perception about the brand that you have. Let’s say for an instance that you have a start-up of dealing with luxury brands, you can start with TIME magazine for better coverage.
• Alignment with the Customers: If you remember the old school rule of marketing – ‘Stand where your customers sit’. It intends to make you choose channels that are most popular among your customers. If you’re planning to target the young generation, you can easily pick social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, LinkedIn, and not TV advertisements!
• Alignment with the Budget: Pick a channel that readily fits in your budget expenses. Try not to step into something that will be way out of your reach. Even if you get to have free presses mention on some popular website by reaching out to its team, it will be worth the efforts.

There are several campaigns that can be run simultaneously on multiple platforms at a single point of time. The time and effort management on all these platforms such as PPC, SEO, social media, TV advertisements, print advertisements, radio marketing would be the ideal “marketing mix” for implementing the framed marketing communications strategy about your brand. A huge number of start-up business tends to adhere to one or maximum two marketing channels dedicatedly to reach out to their target customer base. Else might end up diluting the whole budget and even the focus of your team. For startups and small businesses getting started with branding, consider this to be a checklist for more sophisticated marketing strategies in the year to go ahead.

Tips to Create Effective Brand Marketing Communications Strategy

1. Keep it Short- Simple and Clear.   

A huge amount of information can spoil your whole lunch plan, isn’t it? People do not have much time these days, neither are they left with any more patience! Present your case specifically by connecting the words carefully that brings out value for your customers. With fewer words, try to bring out more value and impact. Stay clear of what all you want to say, and then cut it down to a maximum of 3-4 strong words that leave them all with great impact, state your case strongly.

2.  Make it about THEM, not YOU. 

Something that consumers do not care about is the size of your company or even your shining bank account. The repetitive advertisements with similar messages have made your consumers alert but not attracted. It should not be you talking about your power, but more about empowering your customers and let them resonate their feelings with your brand message. Make sure the brand message talks more ABOUT them and not TO them.

3. Power of asking the right questions, to get your brand as the answer to everything

The more focus while framing the marketing communications strategy must be to find the common thread with shared values that surpasses all the boundaries and cultural norms. The messages should be more focused on WE than ME. The questions framed should be framed in a way that lets the audience share their goals as the first step of building relationships.

4. Start talking with your audience and not about them. 

The new rulebook says to develop groups with purpose, build relationships that have shared goals and values with no digital, social, or even cultural boundaries. It is not about persuasion, but more about connecting through transparent communication, involving collaborative spirit.

5. Having a goal equals profit.

There are multiple levels on which the purpose of communication is equal to having profits.  When the requirements for shelter and food get met, the next requirement is to feel valued and contributing greatly to taking important decisions. If you are planning to send across a message that readily stands out, it makes a bridge out of words that opens all the eyes and ears, igniting all the hearts and heads.

6. Time to let others say more about the brand than us. 

The commanding way of saying things might get you the job done, but the results are usually short durational and readily comes back to your face. Understand that you’re dealing with new consumer, new employee, all belonging to our new generation who trust and put their faith in real news, that stands upright for transparency and integrity.

7. Fail forward.

It’s time to take on the high road by resolving misunderstandings and come up with newer ways to bring the discussion of your product or services in the center of the table. Use conflict resolution to bring in connections, as a shared connection with values can surpass any conflict and gives an opportunity to deeply connect further.

8. Content with communication is the king.

The consumers feel lost if the content doesn’t lead them to open their eyes, ears, and minds in a way that resonates largely with their shared values. Plan to communicate well in order to get personal, business and professional success in your company.  The one, who knows how to communicate well, also needs to design a message that stands out and apart. It could be quite challenging, but is similar to an adventure that makes you grow and come up with new tactics of saying, thinking and doing!

9. Stay honest and genuine

You might not need some celebrity to be a brand ambassador for your brand name if you let your brands advocate for you. If your own loyal pool of customers are talking about your brand, and further sharing a good review with their known ones, what else do you need? Their positive word-of-mouth and publicity are all that you can ask for in the name of genuine feedback. These customers are the most authentic source of your brand promotion. Now you have to make sure that all marketing communication strategies from brand communication from your end should be spontaneous. Do not go for automated generated answers or bot replies. Give out a humanized and authentic voice about your brand that will give a feel of human connection built on trust with the company.

10. Involve in the Conversations

Whenever you receive a positive experience or feedback from the customer, go beyond the words ‘thank you’. Come out with open-ended replies and get into conversations that will bring out the humanized voice, attached to the brand. People love to have one on one conversation when it’s about their satisfaction and products. Keep it a playful conversation, as that way they will memorize your brand name, making them feel good. Soon enough, you’ll see them doing the marketing for you.

11. Get engagement

The whole world is full of brands and it will be a smart move to ask your audience to be your brand voice and share, or comment, or even suggest openly about the feedback. If you hear them out, they will surely listen to you. That is how you can expect your customers to be the co-creators in your content marketing.

12. Don’t be the only one promoting yourself

People put in more of their faith in the brands that people boast about and not the ones that gloat about themselves. Brands that keep promoting themselves are usually on the verge of losing their customers without any valid explanation. It majorly fails in the concept of trust-building. Now you can work on overcoming the whole chaos with a planned and cohesive approach towards Marketing communications strategy, involving all the departments such as customer service, marketing, operations, as they all are a vital link in providing the best customer experience out to your audiences.