(CNN Philippines) — Despite the burgeoning role of big data in marketing, some industry leaders believe that a human element will always play a crucial part in the trade.
“Big data is the new normal, but small moments matter the most,” said Jasmin Vinculado, marketing director of Coca-Cola Philippines.
During the second Media Conference of the Media Specialists Association of the Philippines held on Tuesday (April 14), Vinculado stressed that experiences and emotions can never be replaced by raw data.
The marketing director cites, for example, Coca-Cola’s recent “Share a Coke” campaign, which printed different names in the beverage’s packaging. According to Vinculado, the campaign was successful in large part because of a peculiar way it made consumers “feel good.”
According to her, some consumers who bought the soda during the campaign did so not because of their names, but because of the names of their friends and loved ones. Vinculado pointed out how one individual bought the drink as a gift for an office security guard.
Her sentiments are echoed by Margot Torres, senior vice president for marketing at McDonald’s Philippines. During the same event, Torres explained that the modern paradigm of marketing involves not only all of the five human senses, but also the “entire person” of every customer.
“Let the consumers know the essence of your brand through their own experiences with it,” Torres remarked.
She cites McDonald’s third “National Breakfast Day” as an example. Apart from giving away free sandwiches to the first 1,000 customers of selected branches, the company conducted a special campaign that celebrated “early risers” — those whose go to work before dawn.
“The power of storytelling can really change a culture, a generation, or a nation.”
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And although emotions play a major role in modern marketing, Vinculado points out that their use could backfire if overdone. “You don’t have to sweat the drama. Emotions are best when they’re authentic. More and more people can see through the un-natural.”
Nevertheless, big data has grown to have an expanded role in marketing — and it’s a role that keeps on growing, especially in out-of-home advertising.
“The whole amount of data that’s bombarding us now is changing the advertising media radically,” said Ron Graham, managing director for Media on the Go.
Graham explained that big data have given advertisers the ability to profile sites and locations and subsequently analyze their exposure to audiences, such that “more data” gives “more value.”
His sentiments are echoed by Haresh Nayak, regional director of Posterscope APAC. “The future is going to be fast, its going to be cluttered, and it’s going to be very complex,” Nayak said. “We are in an information society where the world has become a giant network.”
