Innovative marketing is no easy task, but Vuarnet, Fire + Ice and The North Face are inhaling some mountain air to get there.
The health benefits of forest bathing have been detailed in recent years. But three outdoors-friendly brands are focusing on the greater heights of mountains to entice consumers and authenticate their marketing.
Vuarnet, Fire + Ice and The North Face have used some ingenuity and extreme adventurers to portray their respective brands in new lights and welcome new customers. Connecting with little-known mountain ranchers, outfitting a K2 climber and his team and creating AI-generated reasons to explore nature are among the ways these three companies are reinforcing their respective messages.
With a French alpine heritage that has been stretched to other mountainous regions of the world, Vuarnet presented more than climbers, hikers and other outdoors enthusiasts in its spring 2024 campaign. For the latest Vuarnet Fellowship Expedition, creative director Boramy Viguier was keen to meet mountain guides, farmers, shepherds, ranchers, forest rangers, rescuers, biologists and vulcanologists.
“Those laborers of the mountains fully belong to this community and more globally to the outdoor culture. They surely deserve, as any athlete or alpinist, to be equipped with the best protection. They spend most of their time in nature, sometimes in the most remote and exposed places.” he said via email.
The spring 2024 look book features images of not just the athletic people that Vuarnet equips, but also forest patrol officers, biologists and scientists. ”I feel they are high level mountaineers too. By working in the mountains. They are very much in the environment,” the creative director said.
Courtesy Vuarnet
Another outdoors-oriented brand, Fire + Ice, has been going to new heights — literally. The snowboard and skiwear label that is owned by Bogner has supported Willi Steindl on a K2 expedition, providing the accomplished climber with high-performance Fire + Ice attire and tracking his progress on the brand’s site. Steindl’s Instagram also gives followers play-by-play lessons about the challenge of trekking up 8,611 meters.
Rather than magnify the products side of his apparel choices, Fire + Ice breaks down some of the challenges that such achievements take. More than halfway done at Camp 2 at 6,700 meters, Steindl said his first impression of the mountain of mountains, which is called “The Savage Mountain,” was that this nickname is not without reason. “The mountain shows you that you’re not welcome.”
Online visitors learn how the altitude induces headaches, loss of appetite, freezing, coughing and heart palpitations. “You have every symptom that you don’t want to have, but the body has to adapt to the conditions,” he explained online, adding that the 1,800-meter descent from Camp 2 to K2 basecamp — an acclimation rotation — enables the body to recover.
Steindl has ascended 8,000-meter mountains before, having hiked up Mount Everest last year. He is plugging Fire + Ice on his Instagram and has been posting footage of the icy wonders that he has been encountering.
He and his team are pioneering a new route from Base Camp 4 to the summit for this year’s expedition to try to avoid what is known as “The Bottleneck.” That arduous 100-meter stretch in the final approach has a 90 percent sloping overhang surrounded by glacier towers that can collapse at any time. The new route is considerably more demanding technically to master, but it eliminates The Bottleneck.
The North Face also developed an industrious marketing effort with the independent creative agency Fred & Farid Shanghai to create an AI-generated campaign titled “TNF 1,000 Reasons to Get Back to Trail.” The campaign showed the potential of AI to transform 100 reasons into 10,000 motivations to get back to nature.
This spring the campaign debuted on social media in mainland China, and then it appeared during the TNF100 Ultra Marathon that was held at Mount Mogan or Moganshan, a mountain that is located in Deqing County, which is about 200 kilometers from Shanghai. The ultramarathon winner Shēn jiā sheng covered the 100 kilometer distance in 11 hours, 43 minutes and 26 seconds. The film is still accessible on Weibo and WeChat. The North Face plans to use it soon in a few other activations,, according to a spokeswoman, who did not specify what those will entail.
Feature Image Credit: The North Face. Ultramarathoners at the start of a 100km trail race sponsored by The North Face at Mount Mogan in China.
There’s a hidden back door in the agency world that allows you to avoid retainer fees for a completely performance-based model. Imagine only having to pay your agency for every sale they generate for your business. This is called media buying arbitrage.
Explaining Media Buying Arbitrage
Let’s say you can afford to pay $75 to acquire a customer for your business. This factors in the value you expect to receive from each customer acquired, minus your costs. Whether you’re running ads on Meta, TikTok, Google, Pinterest or elsewhere, the money you pay for every customer acquired will depend on your agency’s performance, your ability to provide them with what is needed to perform, and external factors.
Media buying arbitrage allows you to pay a flat performance fee of $75 for every customer they acquire for you. If the agency isn’t successful in acquiring customers, you pay nothing. If they are successful in achieving profitability—say you’re paying them $75 for every customer acquired, but they’re acquiring customers at $55—they’re able to arbitrage the difference to make their profit and scale volume with the campaign.
Compared To Traditional Agencies
Not having to pay a retainer means having the flexibility to work with multiple agencies at a time. No agency is best at everything—there are so many traffic sources to advertise on—and it’s more common for agencies to have a few core areas of expertise. Being able to work with multiple channel experts as opposed to one that proclaims to be an expert in everything can be a massive advantage.
This lets you test much quicker, allowing you to gain learnings about what messaging, creative, landing pages and traffic sources resonate with your customers and most cost-effectively generate revenue. Being able to rely on multiple traffic sources is another advantage in itself, making you less risk-prone. If one channel goes down, you’ll have multiple others to rely on for consistent revenue.
The static nature of the performance fee can make your business less susceptible to seasonal fluctuations and provide cost consistency related to customer acquisition.
Benefits To The Agency
The agency isn’t necessarily getting the short end of the stick in this arrangement either. Many agencies actually prefer performance-based relationships. For one, they can work with a much larger number of brands. Since they’re only being paid to perform, these agencies test campaigns quickly and often to find their next profitable campaign.
There’s also a mutual responsibility between the brand and agency that’s created with performance-based partnerships. Building a successful agency relationship is a collaborative effort. Your agency will need your help to provide product knowledge, category insights, historical data, decision-making authority and more. When you’re paying several thousand a month in retainer fees, it may feel like the agency is winning in this arrangement no matter how they perform. Accordingly, more of the onus tends to be put on the agency. When it’s performance-based, everyone is incentivized with the goal to generate new customer acquisition.
Limitations To Consider
As quickly as a media buyer can start a campaign, they can end it just as fast, especially if they don’t see a quick path to profitability. Finding partners that will take the time to learn, iterate and test until they reach their winner are hard to come by. Without the cushion of a monthly retainer paying the bills, they can only lose so much of their own money to make your business work.
Test budgets and loss pools are popular ways of mitigating large upfront losses. This consists of paying the agency to cover advertising budgets for initial testing or covering losses up to a pre-agreed-upon amount. This is especially important for traffic sources, landing pages or products that are new or untested. This gives the agency the ability to gather initial data to identify opportunities to optimize and scale the campaign.
Although your agency may be incentivized to generate sales for your business, the quality of those sales should also be taken into account. It’s important to set traffic quality expectations before activating a new agency. This includes continuous monitoring of average order values, order cancellations and adverse customer responses.
How To Leverage Arbitrage Relationships
You can find agencies and media buyers to work with on performance-based networks. Many of these networks are segmented by vertical, with health and wellness, consumer tech and subscription services being popular categories. Some of the more popular networks include Squaredance, Madrivo and GiddyUp.
There are also agencies that will help you to find performance-based partnerships and manage these relationships for you. These often come with a monthly retainer. Nevertheless, working with one of these agencies can allow you to gain access to multiple partners, each with individual channel expertise.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to an agency directly that sparks your interest. You’d be surprised that some agencies would rather take a larger performance fee than a cushy retainer with a percentage of ad spend. If they’re a true channel expert and are confident in your product, the only last piece of the equation is you being a good partner to them.
Ganiyu Razak, recently unfolded a new branding odyssey for “Rewrd”. Commissioned between May to June 2023, the project’s compass pointed toward Visual Branding, Illustrations, Graphic Design, and Guidelines. Tunbosun Tobiloba chipped in with motion graphic marvels, amplifying the project’s vibrancy.
Rewrd isn’t just another platform; it’s a celebration of everyday purchases. It romances the idea that every purchase, big or small, deserves a pat on the back. By simply uploading a purchase receipt, Nigerians are ushered into a world of exciting rewards, all while championing their go-to stores and restaurants. Plus, in a world drowning in data, Rewrd offers brands an underwater telescope into the depths of user behaviour and buying patterns.
Diving into the logo, Razak’s ingenuity shines. After thorough research, the star and ribbon were chosen as visual mascots for Rewrd. The logo, thus, emerges as a beacon of exclusivity and exhilaration. The brand mantra, “Shop. Earn. Repeat.”, succinctly captures this essence, establishing a cyclical dance of buying and earning.
Typography has been wielded with precision. The header font, Familjen Grotesk, oozes reliability and modern flair. Meanwhile, the body text finds its voice in General Sans. The colour palette is a vibrant nod to Gen Z, mirroring the brand’s youthful, energetic aura.
Illustratively, Razak opted for simplistic perspective illustrations, fortifying Rewrd’s visual lexicon. More than just design elements, these illustrations are emotive conduits, weaving deeper connections with the audience. Furthermore, the photographic choices, a collage of youthful zest, beautifully complement the brand’s ethos.
Razak’s creation for Rewrd isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s an experience. An experience that hopes to resonate, foster trust, and firmly place Rewrd on a pedestal in the industry. Once again, his 20-year journey in minimalist design has given birth to a brand identity that is as profound as it is beautiful. And for those who engage with Rewrd, it promises to be a delightful ride.
Branding and visual identity artefacts
For more information make sure to check out Ganiyu Razak on Behance.
Rachel Klaver is a marketing strategist, specialising in lead generation and content marketing.
OPINION: I’ve used buyer profiles in retail businesses before, but they have just as much merit when applied to a service-based business. I’m not sure why we seem to think humans will be any different depending on whether they are buying a vacuum cleaner or contracting a cleaner. In the end, your services are still products that humans are choosing to spend their money on.
There are nine key buyer profiles we can intentionally (and unintentionally) attract. No one is better than the other, but you and your business will fit some more than others. It’s a matter of being aware of who you’re attracting, who you are ignoring that you could attract, and who you have consciously decided to repel with your marketing and sales style.
I’m a big fan of using the marketing and sales process to help find your ideal clients, by showing them at the outset what your own business values and boundaries are for. A simple example of this is choosing to only email your prospects during work hours, if that’s what you have as a core way of working with your clients. For me, we do the vast majority of work via Zoom. This is why we also do our sales calls via Zoom too. If the person is uncomfortable with this, they may also be uncomfortable with working with us, too.
When I went through the nine buyer profiles I found several I don’t want to attract, and a few I’d like to do better in drawing in. Use this list, and mentally check against it what you could do in your marketing to help these types of people want to buy from your service-based business.
The Browser
For me, my whole marketing approach is to help the browser. I’ve got people on my email list who’ve been there for three years or more before becoming a client.
These curious individuals stumble upon our content, and while they may not be ready to make a purchase right away, we can capture their interest by infusing our content with personality and emotion.
It’s essential to let them get a real sense of who we are, to truly understand our voice and the way we do things. When they resonate with us, they’re more likely to choose us over our competitors who don’t evoke the same connection. These people will choose us because we consistently resonate with them. They didn’t find us when they were ready to buy. But as soon as they are, they’re coming to us (I often get people emailing me saying: “Love your content. Not ready for you yet, but I’m going to be one day!”).
The Bargain Hunter
In writing this I realised this was me. I’m definitely always sniffing around for a good deal. This is an issue because I also don’t believe we should be discounting our products and services to get the sale.
However, we can cater to these types of buyers without discount. We just need to provide great deals.
To grab their attention, we can offer them lower-cost options or limited-time promotions. For me, I’ve learned that by providing resources, workshops, or even my book, that they can engage with at a lower price point, they can get a taste of what we have to offer and develop a stronger connection with us.
I also use free content. I provide that with things like this column, my podcast, my email newsletter and my blogs. They get value, and then it’s my job to show them that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to working with me.
Showroomers
Showroomers are one type of buyer I’m starting to work harder to attract. I’m weirdly reluctant to share testimonials (of which I have hundreds) and feedback. I literally have to force myself to do it.
What I’ve learned is these types of buyers can take a while to make a decision but they are locked in once they decide, and they become incredible word-of-mouth referrers to others. For me, they are worth connecting with.
These savvy buyers are thorough researchers who want to know all the details before making a decision. Testimonials and feedback from other customers become crucial in gaining their trust.
Sharing testimonials that highlight the benefits and outcomes others have experienced can be a powerful tool in showcasing the value of our services. Testimonials help potential customers understand the benefits they can receive by working with us, and they serve as social proof of our expertise and credibility.
The “I’m on a mission”
These are also great clients, and again a section I’ve ignored in my marketing without realising it. Again this comes down to a reluctance to “show off” in my content. I’m working on this as I’m teaching my clients to become better at it, and I don’t like being a hypocrite as I do!
These individuals come prepared with a detailed checklist of requirements. To cater to their needs, we must clearly outline the features and benefits of our services.
It’s important to highlight what sets us apart and the specific outcomes they can expect to achieve.
Testimonials play a vital role here as well. They help potential customers envision the results they can achieve by working with us.
However, we don’t need to give them everything they want. It’s ok to have boundaries. I’ve encountered mission shoppers who requested to see strategies I’ve created for other clients. That’s a no from me, as it’s sharing someone else’s document, and also my intellectual property. It’s also often showing them the wrong part of the process, which is the completed document. The strength in my work is in the conversations we have to create it (which again is why I prefer to get them on a Zoom instead).
The Impulse Buyer
This might be a perfect fit for your business, but not for me, unless it’s a lower-cost product like a webinar, my book or a small course.
I often recommend service-based business owners don’t target this type of customer unless you’ve got one that solves a pain point that’s easily resolved, and you aren’t necessarily looking for a repeat purchase.
Impulse buyers make quick decisions based on their gut instincts or limited-time offers. To capture their attention, we can create enticing, low-cost options that allow them to experience a taste of what we offer.
If you’re going to target these buyers, having a chat on your website and being quick to respond to social media questions is key. These buyers want it right now.
The Chatties
I’ve got nothing against this type of buyer, but they aren’t a fit for my personality and business style. It’s not a “them” problem. It’s a me issue. I’ve got ADHD and love to talk. I can easily overshare, and add too much value in a sales call. I’ve had to learn to be pretty strong about moving people off phone calls and on to zooms that we’ve scheduled to prevent my entire week to be filled with chats with potential clients that often lead to nowhere. Boundaries are needed when it comes to me, clients and time.
Chatties are enthusiastic individuals who often seek free advice or consultations without genuine intentions of becoming paying customers. It’s crucial to set clear boundaries and protect our time and expertise.
This is also why I teach my clients to ditch the “discovery call” and rename it a “check the fit” call which has a higher sales intent. You may get less of them, but your conversion rate will go up.
Rather than offering endless free consultations, transitioning to structured sales meetings can guide them towards a more committed decision-making process. It’s an area where I’ve struggled in the past, as I genuinely enjoy helping people and can sometimes give away too much for free.
I’ve learned the importance of creating boundaries and directing these individuals to group interactions where others can benefit as well.
The Indecisive Shopper
Indecisive shoppers take their time when making purchasing decisions. They often have specific obstacles or objections that need addressing.
Patience, providing necessary information, and offering support are key in navigating the indecisiveness. It’s important to stay true to our values and clearly communicate the benefits of our services.
Addressing their objections and concerns while giving them the space they need to reach a decision is crucial.
I’ve learned that when faced with a money objection, it’s not merely about the cost but about the perceived value and trust that need to be established. Giving them time and ensuring they have all the information they need is incredibly important
I personally can find the key is to not over push, and allow them to take the time they need. Follow-up is key, but be wary of converting them before they are ready. It will cause you no end of pain as they stay indecisive as you work with them.
Unsplash
Indecisive shoppers take their time when making purchasing decisions. They often have specific obstacles or objections that need addressing. (file photo)
The Fully Educated
These buyers are slow to act, but when they do they come in hot. Educated buyers are well-informed individuals who have followed our content for years. They have done their research and have a deep understanding of what we offer.
Nurturing these relationships requires consistently providing valuable content through various channels. Our website should be clear and informative, while regular promotions and offers can keep them engaged and interested.
It’s important to provide actionable opportunities for them to take the next step in their journey with us. I normally recommend dedicating 10% to 20% of our content to serve these educated buyers is essential. They have invested time in us, and we should reciprocate by offering content that caters specifically to their needs.
The Loyal Customer
Service-based businesses can build a highly successful business by harnessing the magic of these types of buyers. They book and rebook with us, they tell others about us, and they always remember to pay.
Our loyal customers deserve our utmost appreciation. They have stuck with us through thick and thin, and they become our biggest advocates. Offering exclusive discounts, early access to new offerings, and free resources is a way to reward their loyalty.
These loyal customers often refer others to our business, and their support is invaluable. Recognising their loyalty and showing gratitude helps solidify our relationship and build long-lasting partnerships.
Understanding these nine buyer profiles allows us to tailor our marketing approach and connect with potential customers on a deeper level. By recognising the specific profiles that resonate with our business, we can identify areas where adjustments can be made in our marketing strategies to help talk to the best buyer types for our business model. It’s important to remember that patience, value, and consistency are key when engaging with different buyer profiles.
It’s absolutely fine to have several types that you don’t cater to. The key is to take the time to really think about which types work best for your business, then create content in your marketing that helps them get ready to buy. This can grow your business, without significantly changing what you are selling.
Feature Image Credit: Mark Taylor/Stuff
By Rachel Klaver
Rachel Klaver is a marketing strategist, specialising in lead generation and content marketing.
Talent management firm Collective Artists Network, which represents Bollywood stars like Ranveer Singh, is focusing on the creator economy and has launched an app called Big Bang Social to expand creator economy.
The app will enable commerce, brand collaboration, upskilling and a peer-to-peer network for building a creator community. It has launched three e-commerce platforms on the app and plans to launch more such brands by creators going forward.
The app, which is made for creators, will let them build communities, connect with brand partners and also offer online training for better content creation. Through this, they expect creators to increase their earnings.
“Creator economy in the country has always been considered for marketing but there is more to it. Also, there are not many creators who are able to monetise their content,” said Vijay Subramaniam, Founder and Group CEO of Collective Artists Network.
He is looking to increase the revenue contribution coming from the creator economy segment from the current 35 percent to 50 percent in the next three years and create job opportunities for 100,000 creators in the country.
“We do not have two-three million creators who are making money. The number of creators being able to monetise their content in the country is small. The app will help us with strong distribution and reach,” Subramaniam added.
Globally, there are over 200 million creators and India is set to have the largest base of social media content creators with the figure crossing 100 million this year, according to a report by influencer marketing firm Zefmo. The report predicts that the ‘organised influencer marketing’ sector is expected to reach Rs 3,000 crore by 2024 and the revenue share of micro influencers is set to rise from 9 percent to 14 percent by 2024.
Big Bang Social that looks at creator economy is expected to scale Collective Artists Network’s overall business. “This business was over Rs 110 crore last year and we have a double digit market share in the influencer marketing space. We are looking at doubling that number to Rs 200-250 crore this year,” Subramaniam said.
AI character generators are AI tools that use artificial intelligence to create fictional characters for all kinds of different purposes.
They help to streamline the creative processes by rapidly producing diverse and detailed characters, benefiting writers, game developers, and artists. Beyond character creation, AI‘s role in creative industries is expanding, from generating music and art to aiding story writing.
On top of that, AI-driven human-computer interaction is growing, evident in virtual assistants and AI chatbots. As AI continues to evolve, it becomes an indispensable collaborator, enhancing creativity and interaction across multiple domains, reshaping how humans engage with technology.
What is an AI character generator?
Put simply, an AI character generator is a computer program that uses artificial intelligence to create fictional characters.
It employs algorithms and data to design characters’ appearances, personalities, backgrounds, and even stories. By analysing vast amounts of existing character data, AI generates new and unique characters, saving time for writers, game developers, and other creators.
These tools streamline the creative process by offering a variety of options and details that can inspire and enhance storytelling, game design, and other creative endeavours. They are a testament to AI’s ability to assist and augment human creativity in various industries.
3 of the most popular AI character generators today
Now that we know what an AI character generator is, let’s explore some of the most popular tools available in 2023.
Toolsaday’s AI character generator is a cutting-edge tool designed for writers, game developers, and creative enthusiasts seeking to craft compelling characters for their projects.
The generator streamlines character creation through an intuitive interface and unique features, including seamless character generation, in-depth character profiles, dynamic personalities, interactive plot integration, and AI-generated images from text.
The latter feature, the AI-Character Image Generator, produces lifelike visuals based on character descriptions, enhancing visual storytelling across various mediums. Toolsaday empowers users to unleash their creativity by providing a comprehensive platform for character development and visualization.
Pros:
Streamlines character creation for writers, game developers, and creative enthusiasts.
Offers seamless character generation with customizable traits and backstories.
Creates intricate and lifelike personalities using advanced algorithms.
Facilitates interactive plot integration, suggesting plot twists and character arcs.
User-friendly interface for easy navigation and efficient workflow.
AI-Character Image Generator produces detailed and realistic visuals for characters.
Vast customization options for character images, enhancing visual representation.
Integration of generated images into storyboards, proposals, and marketing materials.
Sparks new ideas through visualizing characters, inspiring unexpected plot developments.
Sign-up provides access to both character generation and AI-generated images.
Cons:
May have limitations in generating highly specific or unique character traits.
AI-generated character images might not always perfectly match the envisioned appearance.
Potential dependence on the tool for character creation, limiting personal creative exploration.
Discover limitless creative potential with VEED.io’s AI character generator, a groundbreaking tool for professionals and content creators.
By inputting simple text, users can harness the power of AI to craft customized characters that cater to branding, marketing, and various creative endeavours. From crafting cartoon personas to designing gaming avatars and 3D models, VEED’s AI technology produces captivating characters that resonate with audiences.
Elevate storytelling videos, marketing campaigns, and social media content through distinct and attention-grabbing characters. Further enhance your creations with VEED’s AI video editing tools, enabling the production of engaging teasers, explainer videos, and more. VEED.io empowers creativity while simplifying the character generation process.
Pros:
Empowers professionals and content creators to generate unique characters.
Utilizes AI technology to transform simple text into captivating characters.
Versatile application for branding, marketing, storytelling, and social media content.
Extensive creative possibilities for cartoon characters, gaming avatars, and 3D models.
Enhances content with distinctive characters that stand out.
AI video editing tools offer the potential to create animated text, sound effects, and more.
Allows the incorporation of generated characters into videos and other content.
Offers an intuitive process: type a prompt, generate images, and enhance with video editing.
Simplifies the character creation process for those with varying levels of creative experience.
Provides a convenient platform for elevating brand identity and engagement.
Cons:
Generated characters might not perfectly match the user’s envisioned appearance or style.
Limited to the capabilities and variations provided by the AI technology.
Users may require additional editing or refinement to achieve precise character representation.
Experience the transformative capabilities of Fotor’s AI Character Generator, a powerful tool backed by advanced character creation technology. This generator brings your character ideas to life based on descriptions you provide.
By processing your input through AI algorithms, the generator swiftly produces characters that match your vision. Fotor’s online character creator allows simultaneous creation of multiple characters, adjustable via a convenient number bar.
The tool offers a Random Character Generator mode, providing endless possibilities for AI-generated characters across various styles, from realistic and fairy tale to cartoon and fictional characters. Discover Fotor’s exceptional AI Character Generator, enabling artists to explore diverse concept art styles and bring their creative visions to life effortlessly.
Pros:
Utilizes advanced character creation models to transform descriptions into characters.
Efficiently generates characters based on user-provided input.
Allows for the creation of multiple characters simultaneously through a slider.
Offers a Random Character Generator mode for exploring diverse AI-generated options.
Supports a wide range of character styles, including realistic, fairy tale, cartoon, and fictional.
Provides artists and creators with an array of concept art character design possibilities.
Enables customization to match envisioned character designs and styles.
Expands creative freedom by facilitating swift and hassle-free character creation.
Ideal for artists, writers, and creatives seeking inspiration and versatile character options.
Cons:
AI-generated characters might not always align perfectly with the user’s creative intent.
The range of customization might be limited to the capabilities of the AI model.
Users may require additional editing or refinement to achieve precise character representation.
FAQs about AI character generators
What is the best AI to generate characters?
Determining the “best” AI for generating characters depends on various factors such as your specific needs, the type of characters you want to create, and your personal preferences. Try out the tools we’ve suggested in this article and see which one you prefer!
How can I create my own AI character?
Creating your own AI character involves a combination of creative input and leveraging AI tools. Here’s a general process you can follow:
Define Your Character:
Start by outlining your character’s traits, personality, backstory, appearance, and any other relevant details. This will provide the foundation for the AI to work with.
Choose an AI Tool:
Research and choose an AI character generation tool that aligns with your needs. Some tools specialize in text-based character generation, while others can also produce visual representations.
Input Descriptions:
If the tool you’ve chosen works with text input, provide detailed descriptions of your character’s attributes and personality. This could include physical appearance, personality traits, motivations, and background.
Customize Parameters:
Depending on the tool, you might be able to customize certain parameters like age, gender, profession, and more. Adjust these settings to match your character concept.
Generate Character:
Use the AI tool to generate your character based on the input you’ve provided. The AI will use its algorithms to interpret your descriptions and create a character accordingly.
Review and Refine:
Once the AI generates the character, review the results. If needed, make adjustments to the generated character to ensure it matches your creative vision.
Iterate and Experiment:
Don’t be afraid to experiment and generate multiple versions of your character. AI tools can offer a range of options, and trying different inputs might lead to unexpected and inspiring results.
What other kinds of AI generators are there?
AI generators come in various forms, catering to different creative needs and industries. Here are some types of AI generators:
Text Generators
AI-powered text generators can create written content such as essays, stories, poems, and even code. They use natural language processing to produce coherent and contextually relevant text.
Image Generators
AI image generators create visuals, drawings, and paintings based on textual descriptions or prompts. They are used in graphic design, art, and creative projects.
Music Generators
AI-driven music generators create original compositions or modify existing music based on patterns, styles, and genres. They are utilized by musicians and composers to aid in music creation.
Video Generators
AI video generators assist in automating video editing tasks like trimming, enhancing, and adding effects. They save time and streamline the video production process.
Storyboard and Concept Art
AI generators can turn textual descriptions into visual storyboards or concept art, aiding filmmakers, game developers, and other visual storytellers.
Code Generation
AI can generate code snippets, templates, or even entire programs based on requirements. This accelerates software development and coding tasks.
Language Translation
AI-powered translation generators offer accurate and context-aware translations between languages, enabling communication on a global scale.
Data Synthesis
AI generators can synthesize realistic data sets for training machine learning models, helping to create diverse and representative training data.
Character Dialogues
AI can generate dialogues and interactions between characters, useful for scriptwriting, game development, and interactive storytelling.
Fashion Design
AI generators assist fashion designers in creating new designs, patterns, and clothing styles based on existing trends and inputs.
Poetry and Stories
Specialized AI story generators focus on generating poetry, short stories, and literature that mimic specific styles or authors.
Chatbots
AI can create chatbots or user profiles based on demographics, behaviors, and interests, aiding marketing and user experience design.
Logo and Branding
AI logo generators help businesses and individuals create logos and branding assets quickly based on design preferences.
These are just a few examples, and AI generators are continually evolving to serve various creative and practical purposes across different industries.
He is the owner of jeffbullas.com. Forbes calls him a top influencer of Chief Marketing Officers and the world’s top social marketing talent. Entrepreneur lists him among 50 online marketing influencers to watch. Inc.com has him on the list of 20 digital marketing experts to follow on Twitter. Oanalytica named him #1 Global Content Marketing Influencer. BizHUMM ranks him as the world’s #1 business blogger. Learn More
Sarah Jenkins, partner and executive vice president, The Romans New York: “As creative marketers, we’re in the business of imagination. We develop brand campaigns based on insights that strike a chord with aspects of consumers’ personalities (often a playful side): ideas that push us to think beyond what’s possible. We should never, ever limit ourselves to traditional reality, because that would stifle the curiosity that’s critical for creative evolution.
“When you’re working on a campaign that has potential negative impact, you have a responsibility to disclose when things are generated by AI. But let’s not hold back from exploring the what-ifs. Consumers of all ages are craving levity; often, that comes from the powerful escapism of make-believe. Just proceed with caution, consider negative impact, and act in a way that doesn’t pose risk to individuals or groups.”
Henry Challender, associate creative director, Bray Leino: “Realness is blurry. Neither physicist nor philosopher can tell you what reality ‘really’ is. Some people (hey Elon) even contend it’s all a big simulation. But before we get into a metaphysical pickle, let’s agree on the everyday distinction between ‘real’ (genuine, authentic, true) and ‘fake’ (false, deceitful, artificial). On those terms, it’s hard to claim marketing’s ever real. Artifice is almost always baked into the deal. Are we being ‘real’ when pricing something 99p rather than £1? When we retouch that burger?
“Even the worthiest purpose-led campaign may be tinged with an ulterior motive. AI brings new toys for tricksters, making it easier to be wilfully deceptive. As the line between the real and the fake gets blurrier, perhaps transparency will set the good actors apart from the bad. But maybe the fun is in not being quite sure.”
Jordan Dale, creative director, Amplify: “Did people think that John Lewis actually sent a man to the moon in 2015? Is Tom Holland actually living as Spiderman in New York City? Does a TikTok face filter actually change my face?
“The question is: why is this Maybelline ad being judged any differently to the thousands of ‘artificial’ entertainment creations that we consume on a daily basis through our screens? That word, ‘artificial,’ has negative connotations that we should get rid of. The best stories in the world are, by definition, ‘artificial’.
“Being nowhere near the target demo of Maybelline and struggling to avoid the ad means one thing and one thing only: it’s a certified banger. The ownership from the brand on the creative process behind it (shoutout @origiful), and turning that into its own story, means they created a richer connection with their audience. Sure, there are watch-outs to consider around AI being used for malicious intent. But let’s not let that get in the way of killer creativity and storytelling.”
“Authenticity in brand experiences is key, but executionally not essential. The fake lashes and similar ideas shouldn’t cause too much soul-searching. They’re the result of technology changing and good, opportunistic, creative storytelling.
“If we’re going to worry about fakes, let’s keep an eye on what really matters. Real work (digitally crafted or not) created with a brand’s endorsement that does a real-world job versus award-entry-only executions. We’re all under pressure from external creators who want the money and notoriety of not asking for permission, or caring about the negative effect fake work can have on a brand. We’ve got to protect brands and not allow our industry to worsen its self-obsessed reputation. While the wider economy remains perilous, we need to demonstrate our worth, not our egos.
“So let’s all go be beautifully, wonderfully creative, but a little less so when it comes to the truth.”
Julio Taylor, chief executive officer, Hallam: “Creativity has always been about pushing the boundaries of what is perceivably possible. From CGI to AI, we’ve been defying the limits of what’s possible for decades. But, with AI’s power to create seemingly impossible scenarios with ease, we’re about to enter an age of unprecedented scale and speed of production that will overshadow anything we’ve seen so far.
“As the world is flooded with fast, high-quality, AI-generated content, consumers will learn to tune it out, and seek authenticity and meaningful experiences in a world of neon satisfaction. Just as vinyl made a comeback during the streaming wars, human nature will drive people toward emotional fulfilment, authenticity and meaning.
Stella Thewes, account director, Disrupt: “I like the Maybelline ads because they’re obviously not real, allowing the brand to venture into new creative realms without misleading customers. However, there’s a grey area between real advertising and visibly fake ads. For example, mascara ads featuring retouched models with fake eyelashes, giving the consumer an illusion of what is possible to achieve with their product. The same goes for deep fakes. Marketers should question whether their work is ethical – either by being truthful with their claims and concepts, or by creating something that couldn’t be mistaken for reality, but still gets consumers talking.”
Joe Murgatroyd, partner and creative director, BrandNation: “Creatively, the Maybelline ad is brilliant. The magic lies in it looking real, blurring the lines between virtual and reality – and putting a new spin on DOOH.
“While the ad itself isn’t harmful, it does pose valid ethical questions on the approach amid a broader societal debate on AI and computer-generated imaging.
“Advertisers should be setting a precedent and using this technology responsibly, signposting where AI has been used. There needs to be accountability and industry policing, given that this technology can be harnessed for more unscrupulous ends (like cybercrime and disinformation). This doesn’t need to stifle creativity, but with new transformational technology, there’s a moral obligation to act with transparency.”
Diana Tran Chavez, senior vice president & group creative director, Evoke Mind+Matter: “We don’t control how technology develops around us, but as marketers we should be trying to find ways to use it to bring more creative, fantastical ideas to life – ideas that previously were discarded as ‘too difficult’ or ‘too expensive’.
“AI is transforming creativity and advertising, and in healthcare marketing and medical comms, the stakes are higher (and much more sensitive to misinformation). Without industry-wide regulation, the moral line is surely about intention. If it’s to misinform, that’s bad. But if it’s to inspire and delight, why not? If we create responsibly, and maintain our human judgment, intuition, and intelligence, we can still get the point across in an impactful and memorable way.”
Melissa Harvey, content marketer, Social Chain: “First Jacquemus, now Maybelline: brands are catching on to the appeal of synthetic out-of-home.
“As the digital world bleeds into our reality, brands’ playful embrace of digital art highlights the potential of the ‘fake out-of-home’ ad for brands, and the future of the PR stunt. Virtual activations like these more sustainable and low-cost than their real-world counterparts, and there’s no end to what you can create.
“Even if people are hoodwinked into thinking these ads are real, it doesn’t do any harm. Not directly. But conversations about the danger of deepfakes are worth having. As we increasingly rely on social media as a news source, independent research and fact-checking becomes crucial.”
Annie Shortland, digital PR executive, Builtvisible: “Deepfakes are becoming increasingly sophisticated, becoming sources of misinformation and potentially breaching consumer trust for those buying into the phenomenon. But the Maybelline advert is far from a deepfake. This inspired activation takes creativity to new heights, using AI to get more traction with a lower budget.
“Now, marketers can jump hoops to get their campaigns live and viral (mostly), without having to get buy-in from collaborators and external sources. The logistics of creating the ad ‘for real’ are not feasible, so digital activation encourages creative, inspired ideas at pace, without the roadblocks that usually come, allowing brands to reap measurable results much faster.
“Engaging in digital stunts is perfectly acceptable, provided the idea or concept isn’t harmful in its illusion. These stunts serve as a fun way for brands to flex personality and connect with audiences.”
Joe Veal, account manager, Rawnet: “As modern generations have become sceptical and unsympathetic toward overt selling, advertisers must step outside traditional boundaries to engage audiences effectively. This led to the emergence of these ‘fake’ ads using AR technology like Sony, LG, and Maybelline’s billboards in Times Square or Deutsche Telekom’s deepfake/AI work featuring manipulated images to demonstrate online misinformation.
“While this new landscape offers endless creative possibilities, an ethical question arises: just because we can, should we? Audiences are often aware of the fakeness, making it crucial for marketers to consider overall impact and avoid spreading misinformation. Failure to do so could result in harsh repercussions.”
Keeping up with Google’s algorithm updates is tough. The algorithm updates tell you the SEO tactics that worked a few years ago may no longer be effective.
Maintaining each algorithm update’s details will be very frustrating and time-consuming. This is crucial if you want to keep your visibility and avoid getting penalized.
With that said, let’s look at how SEO has evolved over the years. Why? As long as Google search stays guided by a few guiding principles, its direction will stay the same.
A Brief History of SEO
When webmasters began experimenting with ways to improve their websites’ rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs) in the early days of the internet, SEO began to take shape. Initially, SEO was relatively straightforward, as search engines relied only on a few factors to determine rankings. The more sophisticated search engines got, however, the more complex SEO got.
In the late 1990s, Google’s PageRank algorithm revolutionized SEO.PageRank refers to the number and quality of links that point to a website to decide how important it is. Because of this, SEOs were forced to create high-quality content and build links from other reputable websites to manipulate search engine results.
The early 2000s saw SEO becoming a hotbed of activity, with businesses and individuals racing to improve their websites’ search engine rankings. Consequently, unethical practices such as keyword stuffing and link building developed. Search engines such as Google and Bing began cracking down on these practices, making search engine manipulation more difficult for SEOs.
In recent years, SEO has focused more on long-term, sustainable results. This means focusing on creating high-quality content, building relationships with other websites, and improving the user experience of a website. By focusing on these factors, businesses can improve their SEO and boost their website’s visibility in search results for the long term.
The following key events shape SEO’s history:
1991: The first website, dedicated to information on the World Wide Web project, goes live.
1993: The launch of Excite changes the way information is categorized.
1994: Search engines Alta Vista, Yahoo, and others enter the market.
1996: Founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page begin the creation of Google.
1997: SEO is first used in marketing materials by the Webstep Marketing Agency.
1998: Search Engine Watch founder Danny Sullivan popularizes the term and assists clients in optimizing their content to rank well in search engines.
1998: PageRank is introduced by Google.
2000s: Businesses and individuals compete to improve their websites’ search engine rankings as SEO becomes a hot topic.
2003: The Penguin update of Google penalizes websites that use unethical SEO techniques.
2012: Low-quality content is penalized by the Google Panda update.
2015: Google’s Hummingbird update focuses on natural language processing and semantic searches.
2016: Search results for mobile-friendly websites are prioritized by Google’s Mobile-Friendly update.
2018: The Google Core Algorithm update changes the way search results rank websites.
2020: As Google’s algorithm continues to evolve, manipulated searches become more difficult for SEOs.
While SEO’s history is long and complex, it is one of innovation and progress. Search engine optimization will continue to evolve in response to more sophisticated search engines. In the future, businesses can maximize the success of their websites by staying on top of the latest trends.
How SEO is Being Used Today
As a refresher, you can use SEO or search engine optimization to improve your website’s ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). In the long run, SEO can lead to increased traffic and leads for a website by improving its exposure to a variety of keywords and phrases.
Ranking in SERPs is influenced by several factors, such as:
Content quality: For SEO, content quality is crucial. It is easier for Google and other search engines to rank a website with high-quality, informative content higher than one with low-quality content.
Keyword research: Search engine optimization involves identifying which keywords and phrases people use online to locate information. You can use these keywords in your website’s title, meta description, and throughout your content once you have identified the right keywords.
Technical SEO. A website’s technical SEO refers to the factors that affect its SERP placement. A website’s speed, mobile friendliness, and security are all factors to consider.
In the field of SEO, things are constantly changing and becoming more complex. However, it is essential to the success of any online marketing campaign. By following the best practices for SEO, you can improve your website’s ranking in SERPs and attract more traffic and leads.
Today, SEO is used in the following ways:
Local SEO. Optimizing a website for local search results is called local SEO. Create a Google My Business listing for your business and include the address, phone number, and hours of operation in the footer of your website. It is worth noting that 87% of consumers used Google in 2022 to evaluate local businesses.
Ecommerce SEO. In eCommerce SEO, websites are optimized for search engines. Creating and managing product reviews can help you improve your product pages for relevant keywords and phrases. Search engine queries are the starting point for 44% of online shoppers.
Content marketing SEO. Optimizing content for search results is known as content marketing SEO. The best way to accomplish this is to create high-quality and relevant content and promote it on social media and other platforms. Semrush reports that content marketing will be more lucrative than ever in 2023. As a matter of fact, 69% of businesses plan to increase their content marketing budgets in 2023.
The use of SEO can help improve a website’s ranking in search results and attract more website visitors. A successful SEO strategy can be developed and implemented by an experienced SEO professional if you are trying to improve your website’s SEO.
Where is SEO Heading?
Search engines and search habits are constantly evolving, which means SEO has to evolve as well constantly. Among the key trends shaping SEO’s future are the following:
Increasing use of artificial intelligence.
The use of artificial intelligence in SEO is growing, and this trend will only continue. The following are some ways that AI is being utilized in SEO:
Keyword research: Search engine optimization professionals can use AI-powered tools to identify the most relevant keywords for their websites. Aside from helping SEO professionals identify the difficulty of ranking those keywords, these tools can also help them focus on the most valuable keywords.
Content optimization: Using AI-powered tools can help SEO professionals optimize their content for search engines. In addition to suggesting relevant keywords and phrases, these tools can help to create informative and well-written content.
Link building: SEO professionals can build backlinks to their websites using AI-powered tools. Tools like these can tell companies which websites are likely to link to their websites, and they can also help them create content that is highly likely to be shared and linked.
While AI is still a relatively new technology, it has already impacted SEO significantly. In the future, AI will likely have a more significant impact on the field as it develops. As a result, this can lead to benefits like improved accuracy, increased efficiency, and reduced costs.
To summarize, if you wish to improve your website’s SEO, consider using AI-powered tools. With these tools, you can improve your website’s ranking in search results, resulting in more traffic and leads.
User experience is crucial.
It has been proven over the years that the user comes first with search engines. To improve user experience, search engines constantly refine their algorithms to provide the best possible results. Marketers and business owners, therefore, have the task of creating a website that delights and engages visitors and attracts them.
The user should be at the forefront of every aspect of your website’s design and content, from its layout and navigation to its quality and relevance. In order to make it easy for visitors to find information, products, or services, we strive to make it as intuitive as possible.
If you want to enhance the user experience, then make sure that your page load quickly, is easy to navigate, and is optimized for mobile.
Voice search is growing in popularity.
Search engine optimization is being impacted by voice search, which is growing in popularity. As such, voice-optimized websites will rank higher on search engines.
How does this affect you? Essentially, voice search optimization is becoming increasingly important. A voice query tends to be longer, more conversational, and more focused on natural language than its text-based counterpart.
Overall, in this era of voice-activated search, marketers need to adapt their strategies to remain visible and relevant.
Keywords with long tails are important.
Search engine optimization is becoming increasingly dependent on long-tail keywords. To those unfamiliar, long-tail keywords are phrases that are more specific than short-tail keywords. Generally, they are longer, more descriptive, and fewer people search for them.
The good news is that long-tail keywords are often easier to rank for, and they also tend to bring in more qualified traffic. Long-tail keywords are beneficial for SEO for the following reasons:
Less competition: Long-tail keywords are less competitive, so ranking for them is easier.
More qualified traffic: People using long-tail keywords tend to be closer to the point of purchase, which means they’re more likely to purchase.
Better conversion rates: Keywords with long tails often cause better conversion rates since the people searching for them are more likely to be interested in your products.
A new era of local SEO is upon us.
With more and more people searching for local businesses on their smartphones, local SEO is becoming increasingly important. In local search results, local SEO can help businesses improve their visibility.
The result is that local search optimization is no longer a luxury – it’s a must for businesses of all sizes. You can build brand awareness, drive foot traffic, and build customer relationships by focusing on geolocation and local SEO.
The first step is updating your Google My Business listing with your business name, address, phone number, and website link. As well as earning positive reviews, incorporate keywords specific to your location into your website’s content, metadata, and URLs. In addition, write blog posts about local events, neighbourhood guides, or case studies featuring local clients that speak directly to your local audience.
Don’t overlook the importance of social media.
Thanks to social media, you can reach a larger and more diverse audience and engage with your others in real-timeThe. Creating and sharing high-quality, engaging content on social media can help you gain online visibility, retain and attract customers, and build relationships.
In addition, social media shares, likes, and comments can influence search engine rankings. You need engaging, high-quality content optimized for social sharing to improve your search engine ranking.
The importance of social media in SEO continues to grow, and businesses are creating and promoting high-quality, engaging content on social media to reach and engage their target audience. Creating and promoting engaging, high-quality, social media-friendly content is the key to reaching your target audience online.
As a result of social media’s growing importance in SEO strategies, social media has become an essential component.
Final Words of Advice
The following trends are shaping the future of search engine optimization. Staying up-to-date with these trends will help businesses optimize their websites for future success.
In addition, here are some tips for improving SEO in the future:
Create high-quality content: Most of all, search engine optimization depends on this factor. It is vital to create informative, relevant, and well-written content.
Optimize your content for search engines: Include relevant keywords and phrases throughout your content, and make sure your titles and meta descriptions accurately describe your content.
Build backlinks to your website: Google uses backlinks to determine the credibility and trustworthiness of your website.
Keep your website up-to-date: Fresh content is highly valued by Google. Keep your website updated with new content regularly.
Monitor your progress: Keep track of your progress with SEO tools.
Follow these tips to enhance your website’s SEO and boost its visibility in search results.
FAQs
What is SEO?
SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of getting a website to rank higher on search engines. By using SEO, you can increase the visibility of your website for a variety of keywords and phrases, which can lead to increased traffic and sales.
What are the benefits of SEO?
The following are some of the benefits of SEO:
SEO can improve a website’s ranking in search results, which can increase traffic.
SEO can boost lead generation.
SEO can boost your website’s sales.
Enhanced brand awareness: SEO can improve the brand awareness of a website.
SEO can make your website more credible.
SEO can help reduce the marketing costs of a website.
How does SEO work?
In search engine results pages (SERPs), SEO improves the ranking of a website. There are a lot of factors that can affect SERPs, like:
One of the most critical factors for SEO is the quality of a website’s content. A high-quality, informative website will rank higher on search engines than a low-quality website.
Researching keywords and phrases will help you identify what people are typing into search engines when looking for information online. You can use the keywords you have identified in your titles, meta descriptions, and throughout your content.
Basically, a backlink is a link from another website to your own. The more backlinks you have, the higher your website will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs).
A website’s technical SEO directly impacts its ranking in the search engine results pages (SERPs). In addition to page speed, mobile friendliness, and website security, this includes other factors.
How has SEO evolved?
There has been a shift in SEO toward localization, and searches have become much more contextual. For ranking, SEO considers not only the on-page factors but also the website’s authenticity, quality, and user experience.
Does SEO have a future?
SEO is still relevant today and will continue to have a future.
Using advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, SEO will be more localized, personalized, and tailored to people’s needs.
People-based marketing is a term that we hear regularly, but is often misunderstood. It’s a highly effective media buying strategy that has helped the ‘walled gardens’, including Google, Facebook, Instagram and increasingly TikTok, take a disproportionate amount of global advertiser spend in recent years.
So what is people-based marketing? A definition
People-based marketing enables brands to bring their own first party data, such offline and online CRM data, and match it with a publisher’s data so that they can deliver more effective personalized advertising. Many scaled premium publishers and broadcasters have been striving for years to match these capabilities that the walled gardens enjoy, but it’s only recently that they’re starting to see this become a reality.
People-based marketing has previously been touted by some as the sole answer to the cookie conundrum. But the reality is that no ‘silver bullet’ exists for the entire ecosystem to solve the removal of cookies. Instead, publishers need to employ an arsenal of solutions to overcome the loss of third party cookies and other signals. These include contextual targeting options, first party cookie-based audience segments, but increasingly, authenticated audiences are a vital asset to ensure they remain competitive. Authenticated audiences that power people-based marketing is a lucrative opportunity and must be considered an essential part of a publisher’s digital media toolkit moving forward.
Why should open web publishers prioritize people-based marketing?
Thanks to the ease and sophistication with which the walled gardens have enabled people-based marketing, many brands already have a solid understanding of its power. In fact, a disproportionate amount of ad spend has been diverted to the walled gardens as a result – an OpenX study found that 63% of UK ad budgets went towards logged-in environments, despite the fact that users spend more of their time on the open web.
Increasingly, however, brands have expressed strong interest in investing outside of the walled gardens. A survey conducted by LiveRamp earlier this year found that more than two thirds of UK brands are likely to increase their open web ad spend. Coupled with the rapid growth of retail media, whose people-based approach has fundamentally changed the landscape and is driving significant investment, many brands are rapidly evolving their media buying strategies to incorporate people-based marketing. So, the opportunity is there for publishers to emulate the success of digital retail media, and capture some of these growing ad budgets.
Take, for example, a major CPG brand who wants to reach all of their known “premium brand item” customers to promote a new product launch. In partnership with a leading retail media network, the CPG can identify those customers to personalize their campaign messaging. Previously, this budget would have gone straight into the social platforms via their “custom audiences” solutions, but now every publisher with authenticated audiences can take their share. This is a big win for the CPG. They’re no longer restricted to advertising on social media websites, they can run campaigns using different creative formats and ultimately reach their audience in more places than before.
With publishers facing increasing pressure to drive growth, they must focus on maximizing the value they are delivering for brands and ensure they have the tools to capture people-based marketing budgets. Those that fail to cater will continue to face revenue pressures and put at risk existing brand relationships.
How do publishers leverage people-based marketing?
An “authentication strategy” needs to be at the top of every premium publisher’s agenda in 2023. This strategy should identify the value exchange you create with your users to provide you with the data you need. While log-in is one method of authentication, there are plenty of routes that publishers can explore, such as newsletter click throughs, social media logins or commenting widgets. Every publisher is different, but every publisher has the opportunity to create a more personalized experience for their users.
Many publishers already have authenticated audiences today, but often believe they don’t have enough users that are logged-in, and thus have limited consented, first-party data to offer this type of targeting at a sufficient scale. Even if just 10% of your audience is authenticated, it’s highly likely that these are your most engaged users, and are probably generating in excess of 40% of your advertising inventory.
What are the strategies you can deploy to increase authentication? What is the value exchange you can create with your users? How will this also increase engagement of your users so that they spend more time on your site? Once a user authenticates, and provides the required consent, you have a great opportunity to increase your ad revenues whilst also improving the user experience.
A powerful tool in the publisher’s arsenal
By itself, people-based marketing is not a magic cure to the deprecation of third-party cookies. Nevertheless, while publishers must look at a range of options to maintain ad revenue, people-based marketing’s potential is not to be underestimated.
Brands across verticals are spending large amounts of budget on people-based marketing strategies and are open to exploring new relationships with partners that can offer the same authenticated, first-party data at scale. Those publishers who have already taken steps to optimize their authentication strategies, improving the value exchange with their users and leveraging addressable identity solutions, are reaping the rewards, including stronger bonds with their users and profitable partnerships with their brands.
Re-creating the success of the walled gardens before them, people-based marketing offers publishers an invaluable means of staying ahead in the privacy-centric future of digital advertising.
Social media branding blends platforms’ expansive reach with the potent influence of finely crafted brand messages. This dynamic duo becomes the bedrock of highly effective marketing campaigns, fuelling amplified brand awareness, trust and audience engagement.
In less than two decades, social media has transformed how people communicate. Social media platforms have also dramatically altered how brands reach potential customers and build long-term relationships.
Social media enabled brands to break down barriers and reach their audiences directly. As a consequence of making it easier for companies to reach audiences, more businesses are leveraging social media for growth. Effective social media branding can help companies stand out in busy marketplaces and strengthen their brand identity simultaneously.
Social media platforms may have started as a way for individuals to connect. But as millions and now billions of people have joined them, they have also become powerful marketing tools. The latest statistics at the time of writing showed that more than four and a quarter billion people globally used social media at least once a month.
While that figure is impressive, the power of social media is not limited to user numbers. According to industry experts, nine out of ten people buy from brands they follow on social media platforms. There is no doubt about the strong connection between an engaging social media presence and conversions. Social media platforms are powerful tools to help build brands.
Defining social media branding
Social media branding combines the strengths of two cornerstone elements of successful marketing strategies — branding and social media marketing. To deliver transformative results for a business, social media branding strategies must do more than add a logo to a post.
Brand teams must integrate the brand’s unique value proposition with its look, voice and feel to craft memorable messages. Some of the most captivating social media branding is focused on encouraging interaction and engagement between a brand and its audiences.
Using social media branding to build brand awareness and reach
Through social media platforms, brands have an unparalleled opportunity to extend their reach beyond their existing audiences. By developing captivating content, companies encourage their existing audiences, or followers, to share it with others. Without additional effort on the side of the business, the audience grows.
Hashtags are another excellent way of reaching new audiences interested in a topic the brand is discussing. As non-followers pick up your company’s content and share it, there is an opportunity for it to go viral and be seen by thousands or even millions of social media users who may otherwise never have known about your company.
Establishing brand identity and differentiation through social media branding
Building awareness and reach are only two components of successful social media branding. As social media use grows, more brands use these platforms for their marketing, and it is becoming increasingly more challenging to stand out from competitors.
Social media branding allows companies to show their audiences what differentiates them from their competitors. Few other channels offer the same level of choice of communication, what to talk about and how to interact with their audience without a barrier. This is why social media platforms are such powerful tools for sharing value propositions and clarifying how brands are different.
Engaging and connecting with target audiences
Connecting with audiences has been somewhat of a side note throughout this article. However, connecting and engaging directly with an audience is perhaps the greatest strength of social media channels.
This immediacy allows brands to listen to feedback from their audience, respond to it directly and build stronger relationships. At the same time, brands can show their personality more easily than on other channels. For example, Taco Bell’s social media content and interactions have a distinct funny and sarcastic tone to them.
But brands can also showcase their values to their customers as Starbucks does with its community-focused Facebook content. One of the keys to maximizing the impact of social media branding is consistency in both verbal and visual messaging to reinforce the brand’s identity.
Leveraging user-generated content
The next step in building engagement is utilizing user-generated content. For example, by sharing a genuine product review, brands can highlight their unique value propositions through a third-party endorsement. User-generated content is a powerful tactic to build audience trust.
Influencing consumer perception and trust
Consistent social media branding, especially user-generated content, consumer reviews and testimonials, can influence and change consumers’ brand perception. Today, many consumers are sceptical of companies’ statements in their marketing campaigns.
Content that has been created by a product’s or service’s users automatically benefits from greater credibility and helps build trust between the brand and the audience. Brands can reinforce that trust by ensuring their messages resonate with users’ content.
Driving website traffic and conversions
Aside from allowing brands and consumers to connect directly, another strength of social media platforms is driving website traffic and conversions.
Social media posts are an excellent tool to introduce a topic and entice the audience to visit a website and learn more. Clear calls-to-action are imperative to encourage users to click on a link. Without them, it is too easy for content to get lost among competing messages.
Measuring social media branding success
Without measuring the impact of different social media branding activities, brand teams cannot know which campaigns have been successful and which need refinement.
Tracking critical metrics like views, reach and conversions is essential. To make analytics even more meaningful, companies can analyse the sentiment underlying reactions and adjust the effectiveness of their activity. Most social media platforms continue to develop more sophisticated metrics and tools to help brands in their journey.
Social media branding combines the reach of social media platforms with the impact of carefully crafted brand messages. Together, these two can help companies build highly effective marketing campaigns. Increased brand awareness, brand trust and audience engagement all drive business growth for years to come.
Founder and CEO of Valux Digital and uPro Digital.
Jessica is the Founder and CEO of nationally recognized marketing and PR firms, Valux Digital and uPro Digital. She is a digital marketing and PR expert with more than 20 years of success driving bottom-line results for clients through innovative marketing programs aligned with emerging strategies.
