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How do brands respond to “shopper tribes” research to drive sales? A recent study commissioned by Gekko Group showed that only 15 per cent of shoppers are influenced by Ethical Issues, however, many companies try hard to distance their brands from any ethically negative press. Could consumers who are not flouting ethical issues be telling brands through this statistic that they expect them to be ethical? The recession has fueled the priority of bargains for many consumers, as they seek cheaper deals; however, consumers simultaneously wish that brands remain ethical.

Can brands do both?

Take companies like Innocent, Green & Blacks, Body Shop. Ethical, fair trade, cruelty-free are your immediate assumptions, but they are all owned by conglomerates who you would not immediately associate with ethics: Coca-Cola, Kraft and L’Oreal. What these brands have done through acquisition is target Millennials who are all about niche brands, small start-ups and companies that they relate to. They want to support brands they like – those brands that reflect their values. However, shouldn’t we expect ethics from all brands regardless? Shouldn’t it be built into the essence of every brand to ensure they care about the planet, humanity and cultures without question?

The small percentage of consumers that consider ethics as key in their shopping activity indicates the trust they place in brands to already be ethical in their product. As with the great sugar/obesity debate, we make our own choices. This choice extends to the brands we use every day and how we choose to identify with them. Can an airline ever be truly environmentally friendly? And the same goes for cosmetics, processed foods, electronics and, in fact, everything we buy. Every brand tries to do their bit, but it should be done without question, as a matter of course and continuously challenged internally.

Packaging of these brands will happily shout out “Natural”, “Organic” and “Sustainable”, and are usually emblazoned across the majority of the packaging to strengthen brands’ credentials and continually build that perceived trust we have in them that they are doing the right thing. Look closer and those tiny ingredients don’t look as natural, organic or sustainable as they could be. This could certainly turn us off those brands little by little until we eventually stop recommending or, worse still, stop buying the products. It’s up to the brand to do the right thing or be honest and give consumers the choice.

The ethics debate is a debate that will never go away and one that will forever be relevant to every generation. However, whilst only 15 per cent consider it in the mix, we must remember that for the 85 per cent that don’t, it’s not that they don’t care, but that they trust every brand to act responsibly in all that they do – just like most people, I suspect, choose to do in their everyday lives.

Read the full article at http://www.brandingmagazine.com/2014/03/25/ethical-bargains-do-they-exist/

Field and experiential marketing can be costly but if a brand gets it right, it can reap the rewards.

Marketers often speak of starting ‘conversations’ with customers and prospects but, in reality, very few campaigns ever lead to a face to face chat.

Yet, despite the digital age, the saying that people buy from people still stands – and they are more likely to do so if they have an opportunity to try before they buy. In fact, TGI figures suggest that 41 per cent of shoppers who see a demonstration of a product go on to buy it from the store.

That is why experiential marketing and in-store demonstrating are growing industries in the UK. They now form a major part of field marketing which, in total is estimated to be worth £230m a year by the Institute of Promotional Marketing.

The latest branch of field marketing is a world away from brands having people dress up in outfits and hand out flyers at busy spots. A whole new industry has sprung up to line up prime in-store locations, train brand ambassadors and provide the latest technology so immersive experiences can be shared through social media.

For longer established brands, awareness and advocacy are still important goals of in-store demonstrations but, in most cases, sales will be higher up the list of priorities.

That is certainly the case for Gekko Client, Epson. Like other brands which regularly commit to using brand ambassadors, the company has a detailed message it needs to get over which is best conveyed face to face where a trained representative can show the benefits of its ‘premium ink’ packages.

Hence its sales manager Tim Bedward believes the key to its annual in-store demonstration programmes, across the peak Christmas and January shopping months, is in the training its brand ambassadors receive through in-store marketing agency Gekko.

“Everyone on the programme spends a day at Epson being trained on the products and shown how we’re all about ink quality,” he explains.

“The crucial part is we not only get this message across but we can also spot if we don’t think somebody is going to work out as a brand ambassador. It’s not common but we do fail people. We also finish off the training by showing people how to ‘close’.

“It’s key for our brand that shoppers don’t feel pressured and so it’s fine if we don’t sell a printer or ink so long as we leave the customer with a good experience.”

Field marketing: The big threee challenges

Budget and time

Very few brands carry out their own experiential marketing efforts because of the sheer time and effort required to coordinate booking the right positions in the best venues, training up temporary staff and putting together the equipment and technology required for an effective campaign.

For this reason the biggest challenge is finding the budget and coordinating at least one or two agencies, sometimes three, to ensure a campaign delivers on its objectives.

The right people

Once a marketing team has decided to run an in-store demonstration or experiential campaign, the most important aspect is to find the right people to represent a brand effectively.

Brand ambassadors must know the companies and brands they are representing and understands their key values. Only then can the required product knowledge, where applicable, be learned.

Top priority is to never be pushy but rather always give an enjoyable experience that may lead to an immediate or future sale.

In-store relations

Brand ambassadors need to work well with permanent in-store staff, and realise they are there to convey a brand’s messages and showcase products, without denigrating rivals, and then pass on a sale to a permanent member of store staff to process at a till.

Get this right and the brand will not only be welcomed back by the retailer but the positive impact should remain with the permanent staff too.

read the full article at http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/analysis/marketing-tactics/promotional-marketing/what-product-demonstrations-can-do-for-brands/4009770.article