The New Role of a Marketing Company

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Unless you have been busy petting a fluffy bunny in the forest and didn’t get the memo, it is no secret that the world of marketing, PR and advertising has changed.

Yes, the role of a marketing company is a business that helps other businesses grow. But that is just the basics. From social media to virality, the world is more connected, but with that comes more voices trying to get their message across. This makes marketing a more complicated task as having a quality offering is just not enough. You need to have something more, and that is what a marketing firm provides.

Selling Ideas

The means of communication between the company and the consumer audience have forever changed. These days, marketers help to make your business or brand become more visible by whatever means and medium necessary. A marketing company is your idea generator, your guru of social media, video director, graphic designer, media buyer and that’s just the beginning. Think about them as your football coach with a whistle around their neck whipping your company in to shape. That is their purpose.

This brings us to our next point. Ideas are what sell now. More than that, screen time is what really sells. Competition for attention has never been tougher. No matter the industry, everyone is fighting for screen time, to get in front of the eyes and be seen by the consumer. You need to be authentic, funny, heart warming, or truly unique to make people even blink an eye at you. And on top of that, you need to avoid cliches or jumping on the latest trend just because it worked for someone else. You need to be fresh.

Predicting the Future

The days of Mad Men are long gone.

  • It used to be that things were neatly divided into pretty categories:
  • An advertising agency created ads (and if they did media placement).
  • A marketing agency could do a variety of things depending on their specialty ranging from brand identity (design, slogan, etc.), perhaps creating your website, some paid advertising (overlaps a bit with an advertising firm), may be helped with events and other ways to get the word out (such as digital fun things like search engine optimization or more traditional like direct mail).
  • A public relations agency focuses on media attention. This used to be limited to pitching traditional media for articles, placement, etc. Some firms helped you put on events. Some of course were better than others.

Then the social and creative web started to become mainstream, and the game has completely changed. Things are smarter, faster, and cheaper, as opposed to dumber, slower, and more expensive. The cutting edge isn’t even the cutting edge anymore. You have to be one step ahead of the competition. Scratch that, you have to be ten steps and twelve months ahead.

Agencies Become Enrichers

Agencies of the future are hopping on the content train because that is what works (for now). Content consists of videos, blogs, stories, cross platform advertising. It’s not about “marketing” anymore, it is about engaging and enriching customer views of the brand, and steering it in the direction it needs to go.

All in all, these are VERY exciting times for both agencies, consultants, business owners, entrepreneurs, and marketers looking to evolve and maximize the newest era of business.
Some will be left in the dust, of course, but those who accept and embrace creativity, positivity and engagement will thrive.

It is a Proven Formula (for now)

Spanx started as panty hose without feet, but with clever marketing, screen time and listening to women, they managed to disrupt an entire industry. It’s not just about selling anymore. With social media, it is more about getting people to like you and serve as your brand ambassador; kinda like tricking your audience into becoming your marketers. Make them care about you, make them want to talk about you, make them your friend.

In 5, years it could be totally different. For now, marketing is a merger of branding assistance, selling ideas, and spreading the words by any means possible.

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