Why agencies need to consider people-based marketing

Thing is, there’s plenty of evidence that those methods no longer work. Not in the sense that they’re supposed to.

All the metrics so beloved of digital advertisers – views, clicks, engagement, time on site, etc. – mean little if they don’t produce meaningful results for the client.

When you’re sending out marketing messages to the broadest possible audience, there’s no way you can guarantee those results.

That’s about to change in a big way. Digital advertising is set to become a great deal more personal, with the data companies allowing them to target highly relevant messages at an individual level.

That, in turn, has the potential to produce real business results. It’s an approach called people-based marketing, and it’s a total game changer.

What do we mean by 'people-based' marketing?

To illustrate what people-based marketing entails, it’s worth taking a look at how current attempts at targeted online marketing work.

Let’s say you visit your bank’s website. A cookie will be served and ads for your bank will follow you around the web. But, because the only information that cookie generated is your interest in the bank, there’s a good chance that the ads you’re served will be for products you already use.

This approach is predicated on the idea that agencies somehow hold the key to all the data a business should use in its marketing efforts. In truth, however, most agencies can only access data provided to them by third parties – such as Google or Facebook.

In reality, most companies are sitting on a veritable treasure-trove of data. Most notably in the shape of their CRM databases.

Knowing this, people-based marketing narrows things down much further. So, for instance, if you were looking for a car online, you might be served ads for special rates on the relevant financing offering from your bank. 

It is, in other words, an approach that recognises that you’re an individual with your own unique wants and needs.

How does it work?

People-based marketing uses data layering, user location, online user behaviour, purchasing behaviour and publisher data to create custom profiles.

These profiles are then matched with advertiser needs to ensure that people receive marketing that is relevant to them, which serves the best business interests of the consumer.

The technical side of people-based marketing

People-based marketing entails combining first and third-party data by building data management platforms (DMPs) and then connecting this data to DSPs (Google double click manager) to communicate to people interested in an advertiser, via digital media.

It might sound complex, but it’s really the best way to target real people. Even better, it’s an approach that allows its practitioners to customise tech integrations and consult on the best tech solutions – all depending what data advertisers and brands are sitting on.

The companies who do people-based marketing well will take things one step further. Not only will they customise your data, integrate and build tech, they’ll also know how to engage and communicate with these audiences once created and segmented.

The data that companies are sitting on is a goldmine. Used properly, it can completely transform the way a business talks to its consumers.

For more information, visit www.hoorahdigital.com. You can also follow Hoorah Digital on Facebook or on Twitter.