Just like Macklemore, I wish that somebody once told me that these will be the good old days. Putting on my marketing hat and taking a retrospective view of marketing effectiveness, fair to say we have been blessed with a very fortunate recent history during those good old days. Facebook and Instagram ads were ROAS machines, Google delivered qualified leads all day long and consumers would open their wallet for anything a Kardashian would put in front of their eyes ?. Side hustles were aplenty and Millennials could finish their 9-5 and sell their eComm initiatives en masse within their after hours efforts.
This brings us to current day in 2023. COVID is in the rear view mirror and people everywhere are excited about returning to the new normal. But what on earth is the new normal? Based on my content feeds and discussions with network, AI is the talk of town and recession is one word gaining more media mentions than we’d all like to see. Property prices are on the slip n slide, money is becoming more expensive and our beloved tech industry has seen a brutal series of layoffs.
Doom and gloom stops now. Yes, business owners and marketers have had it easier. It’s a teensy bit harder right now as consumers are tightening up spending but it is still very possible to build brand and bank in those precise moments. It just takes good strategy, the right people, smart tactics and commitment to your cause. The markets may have moved, but the fundamentals remain.
What excites me most about 2023 marketing strategies is the need to be agile and adaptive. Rather than hit repeat on the same cookie cutter media plan, agencies and marketers need to be effective and efficient in defining where the gold is and how to differentiate from the rest.
We can no longer just send our merchandise to influencers, sit back in our comfy ergo chairs and await the sales to flood in overnight. We have to be clever and embrace what makes our product and service different to the pack. By now you should be seeing the theme of working harder and smarter. Budgets across many industries are starting to tighten and the CFOs are applying laser focus on the balance sheets. Cost effectiveness (ROAS, ROI, CPA etc..) becomes the metrics of choice and accountability is paramount.
This is bad news for lazy marketers that just want to run cookie cutter campaigns. It’s super exciting for the talented crop of marketers that understand it’s our jobs to find the silver bullets, magic moments and profitable opportunities amongst the channel mix. My advice for marketers this year is to leave your assumptions behind way back in the good old days and refresh your thinking and approach. Find cost efficiencies and revenue gains within the granular and execute with precision. Revisit those platforms that you may have previously dismissed and try again. Twitter is a prime example which has found its utilisation and ROI surging since Elon’s decisive actions.
One thing that Covid should have taught all marketers is that disrupt presents opportunity. Roll up your sleeves and have fun working hard to find profitable outcomes.
Even Macklemore followed the good old days with glorious. There’s an anthem for 2023.
