iProspect, a dentsu company, officially launches Future Focus 2021: Brands Accelerated as the essential read for conscientious marketers seeking to explore and exploit the latest consumer and industry advancements for brand growth. The 75+ page report, which is free to download, addresses some of the most pressing aspects of modern marketing including the battle for attention, wholesale changes in data privacy, and the emergence of assisted commerce.
Combining evidence-based research with interviews and responses from over 200 brand marketers in 29 countries, the Future Focus 2021: Brands Accelerated report delves deep into the challenges and opportunities faced in the current global climate and within the immediate media landscape. And, convenience and relevancy of media to the consumer is key, as 61% of marketers, polled for the report, considered ‘building a highly convenient experience for the consumer’ as the most powerful lever to generate business growth*.
Although this is the sixth edition of the Future Focus series, this is the first large-scale report released by iProspect since it launched as a new digital-first end-to-end media agency last month and, its content typifies the intricacies of bringing brand and performance together to achieve growth.
Amanda Morrissey, Global President of iProspect, commented, “Despite the challenging times we live in, I believe there have never been so many opportunities in media. With our new and unique approach of performance-driven brand building, we are firmly optimistic about the future and resolved to make it happen, today. With Future Focus 2021: Brands Accelerated as their guidebook, I hope all marketers will be able to leverage the growth potential afforded at these significant intersections of media, data, commerce and culture.”
Prerna Mehrotra, CEO, Media, dentsu APAC and MD, Media Group, dentsu Singapore, commented, “Our aim is to guide marketers to explore these intersections at the new connection points for business and brand growth. By leveraging these trends where culture, technology, commerce, data and content converge, we can help them design experiences that are meaningful and valuable to consumers. The future focus at iProspect in APAC will be on working with clients to deliver on the promise of ‘Brands Accelerated’.”
Commenting on the report, Rubeena Singh, CEO, iProspect India said, “The report, is a detailed guide for marketers to help them with future-ready solutions, especially in the current uncertain times. It helps understand how consumers behave in the digital world, and how this learning can be applied that to real-world scenarios via a highly connected and creative use of media. As a digital-first, end to end agency, our perspective allows us to rapidly optimize the work and adapt to ever-evolving human intent at the pivotal intersections in life when culture, content, data, and technology meet.”
The findings showed that around 2 in 5 marketers (42%) still think the linear path to purchase is as relevant today as it was decades ago, despite the rise of digital. While at the same time 32% of marketers feel that expanding commerce capabilities was important for the 2021 roadmap, however, 26% see this as one of the most difficult challenges to face this year.*
Practical Advice to Marketers:
In addition to discussing and dissecting the impact of major global industry trends and innovations, the report spotlights the relevancy and opportunity for brands, regardless of sector, to capitalize on these seismic shifts in the media landscape.
Examples of the report’s advice and guidance for marketers worldwide include:
- #1: Commerce is Everywhere
Organizations should strive to build and maintain an accurate picture of their commerce capabilities across five key dimensions: desirability, availability, findability, durability, and repeatability. This will help them define the most profitable commerce model for their brand, better integrate their e-commerce and stores into an actionable omnichannel strategy, explore new growth channels, and turn media opportunities into transaction opportunities. - #2 The Battle for Attention
Brands should consider factoring attention into their media optimization and measurement efforts to elevate the impact and efficiency of their investment. To maximize audience attention, they should ensure the content and experiences they design truly align with consumer intent, and that the campaigns they develop do not relegate diversity and inclusivity as afterthoughts. - #3 The New Data Playbook
On the data front, organizations should embrace the new privacy-conscious world by re-evaluating the value exchange they offer to their audiences and anticipate technological changes to minimize business disruption. This is the occasion to explore opportunities for automation, evaluate the quality of the data they collect and process, and more broadly reflect upon how data is effectively used to inform decisions.
The last point is of particular significance as the report found in some circumstances there are huge disparities between what the consumer and brand marketer think when it comes to assessing data value. Only 9% of marketers believe helping a company improve products or services is an incentive for consumers to share their data, while 44% of consumers believe it is a good enough reason to release personal identifiable information (PII) to the brand.**
For more information about the new iProspect and to download the Future Focus 2021: Brands Accelerated report, visit www.iProspect.com
