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Separating yourself from the ever-increasing competition has never been more necessary. So, follow companies like Netflix and IKEA and start investing in innovative marketing.
Over 800 companies were registered per day in the second quarter of 2021. The need to separate yourself from the ever-increasing competition has never been more starkly visible.
In this cut-throat business world, customers are no longer happy to settle for the status quo. They want newer, better, flashier products and services with more options for personalisation and more tools for help. To meet their demands, you need new products, processes and services, with new marketing strategies to match.
Some of the biggest companies, from Netflix to IKEA, are trying out new approaches to marketing in a rapidly evolving business world.
Innovation marketing can help you reach new audiences and transform brand awareness into a sale.
Let’s delve a little deeper into what innovation marketing is, why it’s important and how you can use it to maximise sales.
Innovation, the implementation of new ideas to create new products, processes or services, is a boon to any company, as it encourages investment in growth and promotes an engaged clientele and personnel.
Innovation marketing, as simple as it sounds, is the place where innovation and marketing join. Marketing, the method of communication between business and customer with the intent to sell, is fused with an innovative spirit which results in new and exciting ways of expressing a message.
From market research to launching products, innovation marketing should be employed at every stage of the process. Its primary role is to engage audiences more effectively and keep up with the digital age.
In today’s fast-paced world, embracing change is the only way to stay afloat. The vast majority (80%) of marketers said that innovation was “important” or “very important, showing how much of the industry is already embracing the wave of innovation marketing.
Advances in the field of innovation marketing are happening at an exponential rate and if you don’t move with it, you risk getting left behind and having your brand associated with stagnant marketing practices, especially for consumer brands.
Not only does innovation marketing allow you to keep up with your competitors, but it also increases sales. The experience customers have with a brand is often just as important as the product or service they’re interested in. Brand experience is rapidly rivalling product experience, and few companies can rely on their superior product alone.
If your company is innovating its product or service line, the marketing department needs to match the energy to build a brand identity that is constantly engaging customers.
In this digital age, customers are overloaded with information at all times. It’s important to find a marketing strategy that allows the right people to see the right messages at the right time.
Although there are now more options for making that 1-1 customer connection, more options mean more chances to get it wrong. Innovation marketing is a way to offer customers new, creative channels to interact with your brand.
So, how do you use innovation marketing to your advantage?
Firstly, focus on the customer as the foundation of your innovation marketing. As said before, innovation marketing should be present in every step of the marketing funnel, including market research and identifying customer needs. It’s not a case of reinventing the wheel but using new technologies and techniques to expand or refine your target audience. Identifying future market opportunities also falls in here, ensuring constant new opportunities for sales.
Embracing the culture of change is the only way to embed innovation marketing into your long-term strategies. Accept that the status-quo might work, but other techniques will work better and it’s a case of finding those techniques. Start by identifying your core brand concept and working outwards on what can be changed for the better.
To successfully embrace change, building a business whose employees all have a spirit of innovation and an understanding that failures are only failures if you can’t learn from them. Staff should be encouraged to propose new ideas and follow them through, alongside investment in innovation. R&D tax credits and innovation grants are opportunities for companies to put some financial backing into their growth plans and demonstrate their desire to develop the business’ innovative outlook.
Practically speaking, innovation marketing can be tough. It’s not clear which direction to move in and the best strategy will vary from industry to industry, business to business. Let’s look at some examples of those who got it right:
Netflix is ubiquitous; we all know about it, the majority have it (even if it’s through someone else’s account). However, few know why it’s so successful.
Netflix went through a process of “reverse engineering Hollywood”, taking data on a vast amount of watchable content and tagging it, to create a set of data that allows them to show you content you’ll enjoy and informs their production decisions. In this case, their innovation marketing is more hidden than most, with a wealth of real-time data analytics happening behind the screen to show you what you want to see.
When it comes to experiential marketing, Glossier has nailed it. The make-up and skincare brand focused on brand awareness, creating an almost cult-like following who fall into the niche bracket between luxury and drugstore.
Their in-store locations are less about selling products than selling the brand, with their exclusive settings in New York, Los Angeles and London, Instagram-worthy décor and no end of sample products. Customers are encouraged to come by to try out the products and post a picture. Innovation marketing doesn’t have to be all tech and Big Data; sometimes understanding your customers and catering to their needs in a new way is enough.
The world’s favourite furniture-cum-Swedish-meatball outlet emphasises customer experience, offering more than just products but also unparalleled customer service. With options for childcare in some locations, family-friendly restaurants, a platform for reselling used items and even an augmented-reality app that allows customers to see products in their own homes, IKEA emphasises customer care and transforms potential customers into return buyers.
If you need further advice on R&D tax credits, innovation funding, or the importance of embedding a culture of innovation into your business, give us a call on 0207 118 6045 or use our contact form to get in touch.
Please contact us to discuss how working with Myriad can maximise and secure R&D funding opportunities for your business.
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