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APERTURE
March 2005
BY STEVE FARELLA & AUDREY SIEGEL
From Media Magazine
Engaging Via Experience
| "Agencies that are developing leading-edge media strategies have already learned that you don't reach consumers unless, and until they want to be reached." |
Aperture. It's an opening or a space, a crack to look through, a way to narrow the focus and zoom in on a subject. Looking through the lens of media, as we see it, the media aperture is not the opening though which we view a brand's consumers, but rather the opening through which these consumers view brand messages.
Since the inception of modern advertising we've planned media as if it were a war. Who's the target? How can we reach them? How many times can we hit them? Giving little credence to the rather strong possibility that they may not want to be hit, reached, or targeted.
Consumers in our fragmented communications environment often see advertising as an interruption, and tune-out brand messages; this has encouraged us to turn the development of media strategy upside down.
Agencies that are developing leading-edge media strategies have already learned that you don't reach consumers unless, and until they want to be reached. Developing a competitive media plan requires a thorough understanding of the consumer, the media paths that most resonate, and the methods and tools to mix, blend, and hype them. Most importantly, it's the measure of relevancy – knowing when the consumer, your customer, is open to receiving your message.
Through the practice of channel planning we have created a variety of ways to zoom in, gain perspective, and ultimately better connect with consumers. Channel and ultimately better connect with consumers. Channel planning is our way of turning the lens inward and outward, with the consumer always in sight.
Take, for example, the elusive consumer group of adults who enjoy luxury cars, financial services, and collecting art. Tough to reach, they are light viewers of TV, selective magazine readers, and discriminating Internet users. Many of the plans targeting this group are comprised of the old standbys – golf and tennis on TV and Sunday morning talk shows, business and travel magazines, and a few national newspapers. There's certainly nothing wrong with these vehicles. We've all used them at one point or another, but is that really when and where these consumers are most open to receiving luxury-goods messages?
Recently, through a variety of proprietary tools and techniques, our agency conducted one-on-one interviews with upscale consumers and confirmed our findings in an in-depth quantitative survey.
The process began with the hypothesis: "It's better to deliver communications about luxury brands to upscale adults when they are experiencing 'like-minded events.'" In short, we believed that hitting the upscale market with a message for a luxury brand via general market/upscale media was a wasted occasion. The aperture was open, but the vision was cloudy.
We prompted interview subjects to get a better understanding of their lifestyle – what's important to them, how they interacted with media, where they recalled seeing luxury brands, and most importantly, when they would be most open to receiving messaging about luxury brands.
So where is the media aperture for the luxury market? We can't ell you everything here, but we can offer some eye-opening insights. We know that this sophisticated group surrounds itself with the best that life has to offer – exotic vacations and stylish cars, theater performances, and private clubs. While TV and magazine advertising topped the list of media that drove brand awareness, members of the group admitted that neither drove their purchase behavior. Brand experiences within the context of the luxury lifestyle were the most engaging.
Further, we discovered that targeting upscale consumers while they were living their luxury lifestyle enhanced their purchase behavior. In fact, we found that the luxury consumer wanted to be engaged when they were on vacation or visiting their club, as long as it contributed to their experience. The correct aperture for this consumer market relies less on traditional media vehicles, and requires us to emphasize message development and a delivery strategy that leverages appropriate luxury occasions and experiences. Marketers must be invited into the consumer's world. Channel planning places the customer first and allows marketers to build a communications platform around the specific "apertures" of their target market. Keep your eye on the media aperture; the view is amazing.
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