If Generic Ads Were Flavored, They’d All be Vanilla

Shopping used to be more of a sport than a necessity. People would look forward to leisurely walking the malls, stopping in at each store to see if there were any good deals on things that might interest them. Well, that ship has sailed!

Nowadays, everybody is in a hurry, and they want to spend every moment they can in the most efficient manner. We are now a nation of instant gratification, getting what we want now, and not having to wait until we happen to be in the right area of the store we suspect might have the merchandise. With a bit of online help, mobile or not, we can find out all the info we need before setting foot outside!

• Over the last two years, mobile searches for “open now” or “near me” have increased by 200%.¹ But, it’s not all about making the purchase, it’s about getting the product and pricing information before the purchase, and the level of customer service after it’s done.
• Mobile searches to inform the customer about product availability, like “Can I/to buy” and “near me” have grown over 600% in the last twenty-four months.² For example: “where can i buy gas near me,” “places to buy athletic equipment near me,” and “where to buy artwork near me."³
• In the last two years, mobile searches for product status like “track” and “package” have grown by over 120%. For example: “track my package” and “track a package."⁴
• “24/7” and “customer service” mobile searches have grown over 400% in the last two years. For example: “Southwest Airlines customer service phone number 24/7,” “General Electric customer service 24/7,” and “Wells Fargo customer service number 24/7."⁵

This sort of data allows marketers to anticipate when and where they can be most helpful to people.

Frankly put, we have become impatient customers, and we want instant information and gratification. This isn’t all bad, however, as it gives marketers an opportunity to soar over and above by keeping up with demands and always being there for customers. On the other side of the coin, though, it is detrimental to businesses who choose not to keep up in the “reindeer games.”

The good news is that lagging brands can actually catch up to the consumer expectations they’ve previously failed. If they would switch gears and worry more about being there for consumers in the moment, standing next to them as they make their way down the path to purchase, they can build trust with the consumers. In doing so, they will also gain their loyalty and appreciation.

With the competition that has been brewing since the dawn of our latter-day free enterprise, businesses must learn to run the kind of ads that appeal to their audiences. They will get nowhere by running a generic ad that contains only the basic information. You must tailor your ads as well as your website landing pages to have the very same message; one in which your customers will find the information they need.

As an example of a need for separate ads, let’s say that you’re targeting both male and female audiences for a particular product. You should consider having one ad for women that is tailored to answer their needs, and a landing page to match. On the other side of the coin, do the same for men, stating how it can help them. Another example would be a B2B business selling both direct to brands and 3rd parties; you should definitely have two different campaigns catering to each gender.

These efforts to always be there for the customers by varying your ads and avoiding generic messages certainly pay off for brands, as they gain more loyal customers who can be led down the path to conversion.

¹Google Data, U.S., July 2015-Dec. 2015 vs. July 2017-Dec. 2017.

²Google/Greenberg, U.S., “Rising Expectations in Consumer Brand Experiences,” n=1,500, 18-64 years old, March 2018.

³Google Data, U.S., July 2015-Dec. 2015 vs. July 2017-Dec. 2017.

^4/5Google Data, U.S., April 2015-March 2016 vs. April 2017-March 2018.