Real time marketing is also known as agile marketing or real time social response.
As consumers, we've all experienced it but perhaps we've not known exactly what to call it. The first time it happened to me I was on a passenger boat headed for Macau, just off the coastline of Hong Kong. As I neared the island montropolis my mobile phone started to receive texts promoting 2 for 1 meal deals and discounts off entertainment packages. That's an example of real time marketing, when a consumer receives direct messaging that is highly relevant to their geographical location or what they are doing at a particular moment in time. It's widely used by sponsors at sporting matches around the world.
You would be wrong to think that real time marketing is just for the bigger brands who have an unlimited marketing budget. It's not the size or the stature of the company that counts, it's the way the company thinks. Real time marketing is driven by the desire to create meaningful dialogue that opens up new possibilities with your target market.
We're all familiar with the personalised customer content or the advertising that we see based on our recent searches and interests. When you know exactly who your target market is, you are able to be responsive to their needs. To do this you need to be integrating social listening and social data into your marketing strategy. There are a number of companies that can assist with this social monitoring where social profiles are evaluated based on the person's likelihood to use your products or services. The companies that are doing this are doing it with great success because their messaging is relevant to the needs of their consumers.
Imagine the impact sponsors can have outside the large stadiums but in smaller sponsorships and across the range of sponsorship categories. Real time marketing in sponsorship is not just limited to the sporting stadiums. Flower shows, fashion festivals, art exhibitions and triathlon events are also places where sponsors can get in on the act.
Sponsors also have a range of communication techniques at their disposal to reach their consumers. Video, photos and infographics all proving to be popular choices for a real time social response. Text is of course also widely used. There's no limit to where, when or how real time marketing can take place. It's just about providing highly relevant messaging to a highly receptive audience.
Brands need to change their thinking around sponsorship to make the shift from it being a numbers game where the more people at an event the better. It's no longer about how many people a brand can reach. Sponsorship needs to start being about who the people are in the relationship. It's got to be a one-on-one personalised approach where we have meaningful conversations because we've taken the time to listen.
We hope our blog on real time marketing has given you something more to think about. Want further help with your strategy? Register on our website at www.eventsponsors.com.au or email directly at info@eventsponsors.com.au for all your sponsorship management needs.
