I spent about a month and a half as a summer intern for Mason Interactive. Mason Interactive is a digital marketing company that uses holistic strategies to help brands grow. With amazing strategists, innovators, creatives, data wizards, digital natives, growth marketers, and analysts, it was an experience to see everyone working together to help bring satisfaction to our clients.
First Day
The moment I stepped into the DUMBO, Brooklyn office, I felt at home. The furniture and decorations gave the office a biophilia theme. The window and private patio had amazing views of the Manhattan skyline, as well as the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridge. Medina Shareef, the director of HR, introduced me to the office as I settled in. I proceeded with adjusting to my workspace and working on my Google Ads Search Certification.
Team Projects
I worked alongside Ashley Bruzas, the director of Business Development and leader of Team Killer. She taught me about the team’s goals and outlined how I would collaborate on projects over the summer. I was given an overview of how the brand strategy process works for an agency, which includes researching direct-to-consumer brands, creating competitive analyses, and providing them with opportunities to improve. Additionally, Ashley gave me a Photoshop tutorial which was fun to watch because you are able to customize logos or create anything that your mind wants to.
I attended a Meta Webinar which gave me insight into how companies can prepare for the upcoming holiday shopping season through key strategies which includes connection, interactivity, and community. In addition, I was also given the task of working on a project called the Q4 Outreach. Working on this project was my favorite because I got to research targeted brands and create analyses to uncover what they are doing well, and how Mason Interactive could help them improve. This project allowed me to see how big companies differ from smaller companies in terms of their SEO, digital advertising, and creative approach. Overall, the summer internship was an exciting and accomplishing learning experience.
Internships give students valuable on-the-job experience. If you’re interested in exploring internship opportunities at Mason Interactive, contact us today.
First party data refers to user information collected from direct interactions with your brand (email, site, app etc). Owning this data should now be an essential part of your marketing strategy–especially as platforms prepare to sunset 3rd party cookie tracking.
Today’s consumers are shopping online more than ever before, but they’re also more protective of their data than ever before. Despite the increase in user activity, it’s getting harder to tell who these users are and which are most likely to be interested in your products.
Apple’s new iOS privacy features allow users to refuse data tracking. Facebook & Google are moving away from 3rd party cookies. Changes like these mean that it’s up to your business to collect the data you need to understand who your customers are and which acquisition channels are the most effective.
In other words, you need to start collecting first party data.
Understanding First Party Data
Consider first party data the foundation of your marketing strategy from this point on. Since most sites won’t be able to collect the key identifier data, it’s on your business to collect it from your customers and prospects.
Asking users to share your data is challenging, but it’s much easier when the user has an established relationship with your brand. Therefore it’s incredibly important to build trust with your customers in order to collect first party data.
Want Proof? Nike Just Did It
Nike’s share price shot to an all-time high in 2020 thanks to its customer-centered DTC strategy.
The company couldn’t utilize its network of over 900 global stores in the midst of the pandemic, so it instead leaned into what it called a “Consumer Direct Offense”.
“[In] a future increasingly defined by e-commerce, fast-moving trends and, above all, the rising power of branding to drive consumer preference when competitors are just a click away, Nike realized that in order to thrive, it needed to take control of its distribution to better manage its brand and deepen its connection with consumers.”
Mapping the Customer Journey with First-Party Data
Connecting with your loyal customers is critical, and every single step of your customer journey should be optimized with that in mind. Here’s a helpful video on building trust with your customers and why that matters:
Many brands depend on Cyber Five, the days between Black Friday & Cyber Monday, to put them into the black for the year. Though Cyber Five 2021 was complicated and busy, it was also one of the most profitable to date. Our clients closed out the year on a high note thanks to a few pretty simple actions. What were they? Let’s take a look together in our 2021 Q4 After Action Report.
1. Start with a Plan
Everything starts with a plan. The sooner you have one, the sooner you can review it, make adjustments, and execute. Our winning clients invested heavily into prospecting in the months leading up to Black Friday, emphasizing list-building for owned 1st party data, allowing owned channels like email and SMS to scale. Thanks to the work they did early on, our clients were able to get in front of consumers well before their competitors and convert with assets they had ready to go.
What This Means for You
When you don’t plan ahead, you give up sales to your competitors who do. Fret not, this isn’t our first time at the Cyber Five rodeo. Send us a message at hello@masoninteractive.com and we’ll help develop a strategy with you.
2. Grow With the Flow
Scaling a digital marketing operation isn’t easy, and frankly, it’s not getting any easier. Industry research points to consumers being spread out across more platforms than ever before, and it’s only getting more difficult to track and target consumers across the digital landscape. More on that in just a bit.
Our winning clients isolate top geographical markets and focus on their most actively engaged audiences, letting us double down on purchase intent from two separate angles. Additionally, clients who met or exceeded their goals were in (on average) 6 advertising platforms.
WhatThis Means for You
Brands that diversify into more platforms and begin planning for the Holiday season earlier, ultimately see more success during the Cyber Five. Planning ahead and building diversification into those plans enables you to layer on complexity to your marketing mix as the year progresses towards Cyber Five. More on how you can do this in our After Action Report.
3. Own Your Data
In case you haven’t heard, the data game has changed. Apple’s iOS14 update has impacted advertisers’ ability to target users online, and Google’s new policies expected in 2023 will only affect things more.
Where do you turn? Your own data. 1st party data, or the data your company collects about its customers (interactions, purchase history, behavior, preferences, etc.), is becoming more valuable than ever. Since the changing attribution methods of digital platforms makes them a less-reliable partner, 1st party data gives you a solid single source of truth to rely on.
What This Means for You
There are many ways to start collecting 1st party data. A lot of it can live in a platform like Shopify, Salesforce, or Google Analytics. Organizing, interpreting, and acting on your 1st party data can be a headache. We can help with that too.
You have the keys, now let’s open doors.
The digital landscape changes all the time. You know that. We know that. What we don’t know yet, is how we can use our 13 years of experience to help you keep up with the shifting tides. Download the report, send us a message, and let’s get you started with a free marketing analysis today.
Are you transitioning from B2B to D2C and joining the eCommerce revolution? Fitting the direct-to-consumer roadmap into your wholesale model seems like an impossible puzzle to solve. You have all the pieces, but putting them together to create a bigger, better picture takes a bit of problem-solving. Owning your consumer while balancing your B2B relationships is possible by refining your message, finding the right partners, and supporting retailers.
Speaking a New Language
Expand your operations team to include customer service and small-order processing. Plan sales and marketing campaigns that reach your audience in their everyday lives. Make space for your customers as they discover, consider, purchase, and return for more.
Understanding your consumer journey helps you determine what message you need to convey and when. First, make consumers aware of your brand’s positioning in the marketplace. What problem are you trying to solve for them? How will they identify with you and become aware of your solutions?
Second, figure out where your buyers are likely to take action. What social media platforms do they use? How much information do they want before making a purchase, and how can you provide that information to them? Lastly, nurturing customer relationships is much different than business relationships. Be prepared to take extra efforts to make repeat business a healthy revenue stream.
It’s worth considering creating a sub-brand within your business, specifically for D2C. Find out which of your products and services make the most sense to market to consumers directly and develop a brand around those solutions.
The language and content you use to target your target audience will depend on which platform they use.
Find the Right Partners for the D2C Model
Manufacturers, distributors, and other wholesale partnerships were your MVPs for the longest. You likely generated and retained business with a team of account managers. Now it’s time to consider partners in marketing and payment processing specifically for direct-to-consumer/eCommerce.
Get ready to up your marketing and advertising game. If you are tweaking your branding, a creative agency can help you create the perfect look. At the same time, appearance isn’t everything! Use a performance marketing partner focused on data and testing strategies, so your beautiful ads and landing pages produce results. Not sure where to start? Try our free marketing analysis, and we’ll get you on the right path .
Find an electronic payment system that makes it easy for customers to make purchases (#getpaid). Your website may need to be updated or completely redesigned, but ensure your developer integrates an excellent checkout platform. Processing payments from other businesses, usually done by invoicing, is much different than taking payments from a customer. Be prepared to find a new solution partner so customers can place orders efficiently and quickly.
Your customer journey plays a huge role in
Manage B2B Relationships while becoming a competitor
Hopefully, your retail partners support your transition. Either way, be mindful that you are becoming a competitor by selling directly to consumers. Ultimately, if you do not end your wholesale operations, striking a successful balance between B2B and D2C requires a little synchronizing with retailers.
Don’t be afraid to own your consumer and make no apologies for it ! Building relationships with your customers directly increases brand awareness, which drives traffic and retailers to your website. Collaborate with your retail partners to find ways to elevate business for both of your companies.
In addition to being collaborative, be supportive. Appeal to traditional shoppers who use their senses to make purchase decisions by letting them know where they can find your brand. Include web pages like “Find us in stores” or “Find us elsewhere.” Sure, that might mean you don’t win their direct sale at first. But, if a retail partner has a trustworthy reputation, customers may be more likely to purchase from you directly next time.
Transitioning, growing, evolving – whatever you want to call it – it all means that your business is changing and moving in new directions. Going from wholesale to e-commerce is a business decision you’re not making alone. Consumers are aligning their purchasing behavior with private, personal lifestyles. So, building brand equity is a smart move. Learn the D2C language and start speaking it in every part of your business. Find a marketing partner specializing in profitable growth and scaling customer acquisition. Then, collaborate with and support your business relationships. If you still feel like a piece to your puzzle is missing, let’s find it together .
