In this series, the Chairman of idio, David Barrow outlines his vision of conversational marketing; where a customer-centric approach pays dividends for customers and businesses alike. David Barrow was the Founder and CEO of KiQ, which transformed the CRM landscape in the UK, and was acquired by Chordiant in 2004.
People “talk” to each other; face to face, by instant message and tweet, by email and letter, in article comments and personal blogs. They inquire, ask questions, state opinions, offer answers and paint pictures all with the aim of influencing or being influenced. It happens all the time. These interactions offer an opportunity to see what is being communicated, an opportunity to participate in people’s consciousness, in their journeys of increasing understanding and confidence, and an opportunity to simulate, influence and facilitate demand and develop loyalty.
Forming Identity: If you wear Nike, you are a gritty winner, who lives life to the full.
Businesses can and should participate in such interactions to stimulate, influence and facilitate. They should help people establish and develop their sense of identity, help explain situations people may find themselves in and the problems or aspirations they may have. They should help such ideas coalesce into an understanding of the implications and needs, and help create the confidence that is necessary to act. Finally they should facilitate their achievement with the sale, implementation and support of solutions, i.e. products/services. The whole process is a series of interactions with the purpose of stimulating and satisfying demand for a particular set of needs and subsequently to develop loyalty and evangelism through a positive experience. And the process can be repeated for further needs, each contributing influence to those that come after.
Traditional models
While traditional brand marketing seeks to create awareness of brand name, values and propositions, and the traditional funnel metaphor creates a managed process transporting consumer to customer, lifecycle marketing focuses on the product/service, emphasising the quality of the experience. All three are relevant approaches but somehow miss the point – it’s the conversation during and over the course of many interactions that actually does the job of influencing.
Conversational marketing puts the focus not on the demographics of the person but the conversation during his/her interactions. It extends the funnel at both ends – adding participation in social interactions prior to the funnel and experience at the end and even after the funnel – it’s a continuum and cycle of participation in interactions with the aim of influencing and facilitating, repeated endlessly for different needs and wants (which much more accurately reflects the complexity of human decision making).
Example: Even a simple product is bought based on a complex, and often subconscious decision process. I don’t choose a mobile phone using a cost benefit analysis – based purely on tariffs and functionality. The phones that my friends have bought influence the decision, as do the associated lifestyle as portrayed through advertising and sponsorship. The previous phone that didn’t work also provides a strong input into the decision process, and the reputation of the network coverage and battery life might prove more influential than the total cost.
Conversational marketing does what your very best salesperson, agent and branch staff can do – dynamically engage with the person, reacting to the current topic and level of understanding and confidence and to the “body language”, communicating the most appropriate material, whether content or proposition. They can carry the conversation from the most general of discussions anywhere it needs to go in order to simulate, influence and facilitate demand and develop loyalty.
Who gains?
People have greater access to helpful influence at earlier stages in the development of their ideas and intentions; brands have a direct link between their awareness and values and ultimate sales and experience; businesses get to stimulate and influence demand and manage the influence that subsequent customer experience has on others. It’s a win, win, win.
The next post in this series is The Cloud & Plume of Interactions.
