New Game, More Defined Strategies

A couple of the newest buzzwords in marketing today are DOOH (Digital Out of Home) and CTV/OTT. CTV is the device used to watch TV content online, like a smart TV or a gaming console, while OTT is the delivery mechanism for TV content online, usually through streaming or video on demand, “over the top” of traditional providers.

Using connected TVs to disseminate messages through short videos increases the potential that viewers are watching. Marketers can associate these devices to a potential consumer’s house, knowing they can match it with other data points to reach the right audience at the right time. DOOH enables marketers to show clients ads on any billboard, including taxis, convenience store screens, gas pumps, airports, and about a dozen other places.

Craig Agranoff an award-winning contributor for ABC and CBS news, he covered the ever-evolving technology beat, says the innovation is increasing the opportunities to reach consumers and acquire invaluable data points. His agency uses myriad methods to hit their targets, including eye tracking, contrast analysis, consumer journey tracking, and many other proprietary and innovative methods.

“Big bangs don’t always target the right audience,” Arganoff says. “You need to define your strategies in order to catch the eyeballs from those who care.”

Christopher Tompkins says that today’s new landscape, with all of its challenges, remains an exciting time for marketers. The founder, head strategist and CEO of The Go! Agency says marketing’s strategy still comes down to refocusing, pivoting, and refining your approach.

“Rather than just throwing money at marketing and sales issues at hand, companies small and large are reevaluating their spends and focusing on meaningful and measurable results,” says Tompkins, whose latest book, “The Go Method,” offers 22 steps that marketers can use to create strategies that hit the mark.

“As many of the key business development activities are now moving virtually, marketers must embrace many of the things that they found uncomfortable in the past: video, virtual meetings, and larger online advertising spends,” Tompkins says. “The result if they don’t is they will fall behind the pack.”

For many of The Go! Agency’s prospects and current clients, Tompkins and his team have shifted to a massive annual strategy, broken into a more phased approach. This enables the team to do little campaign pops for a quarter and constantly evolve as we move forward.
“This saves budget and provides the client the ability to pivot if they need to-thus saving time and budget,” Tompkins says. ”

As for creating less big bangs and employing more defined strategies, Tompkins is a believer. “I think there are two reasons you do this: It creates a stronger online advertising presence and it gives you a focus on a solid content strategy. If you use these in connection with one another, you’ll not only boost visibility, but aid in conversion.”

In a time of mounting challenges, one thing Agranoff and Tompkins cannot stress enough is that now is the time for marketers to seize the opportunity in front of them. “Waiting for things to get back to normal is a bad practice,” Tompkins says. “You need to pivot and change and stay ahead of the curve. While the future is uncertain, you can still try to find ways of enhancing your approach, upping your marketing skills, and taking more calculated risks.”

This article appears in the January/February 2021 issue of Connect magazine published by NextPage, which can be found online here. If you would like a free print subscription to Connect, please click here.