It seems like nothing is actually free anymore. However, I promise what I am about to tell you about are some completely free resources, that every marketer should keep bookmarked. More than ever it is important to see stay ahead of trends, react to changes in the market, and keep continuously testing your hypotheses (flashback to high school chemistry anyone).
Without further ado, here is our list…
Seasonality, new trends & competitive landscape are just some of the many ways we use this tool.
Let me show you how. Pretend we work for a very popular video chat platform. One might assume the demand for online meetings is a zooming topic right now. See what I did there? People are using them for business meetings, networking, and even family and friend hangouts.
Below you will see the trend of online meeting searches that peeked over a month ago and then there started to be a decline, which has leveled off recently.
What this tells us is that right as quarantine started people were rushing out to learn more about online meeting platforms, how they work, etiquette, how to mute yourself, etc. A month or so into quarantine people have adopted the online meeting platform and searches have leveled off.
Now you might ask how we would use this information to our advantage. As a marketer, we would pivot our strategy from acquisition to retention. Look at your value props and how your platform is better than the competition and use that in your messaging.
You may think you have a pretty good idea of who your customer is, but those consumer behaviors are completely different than they were 8 weeks or more ago. We see this, especially in the B2B space. Potential customers no longer have a “B” to go to. Their at-home consumer behaviors are mixing with their workplace behaviors, which makes targeting those audiences that much more difficult.
As we think about consumer behaviors, we need to ask ourselves three questions:
- How have their behaviors changed?
- How can I make their life easier or better with my product or service?
- What sets me apart from the other offerings?
Above all else, we need to be empathetic. I know it sounds corny, but walk a mile in their shoes. By understanding what is at the root of their concerns, we will know how to solve their problem.
eMarketer does have many paid subscriptions with very valuable information, but their free newsletter is a great starting place. With daily updates, you will have the most up-to-date news about what is happening in the marketing industry.
Here at Chacka we have a blog full of industry information. You can also subscribe to our newsletter, which is sent monthly and includes pertinent marketing tips and tricks to keep your business thriving.
Gartner has a whole section on their website with articles around employees, workplace changes, supply chain updates, and more.
One of our clients, Harvard Business Review, also has some great reads specific to COVID-19 which you can access without hitting a paywall.
Now you are going to ask, how you can take action on all this new information you just learned? That is easy, let’s go back to the original questions we asked around the consumer mindset, but use the resources above to answer the questions.
Here is an example to help you get into the right mindset:
A light goes off! How can we make it so consumers can tour prospective rental properties without feeling like they need to go into a bunch of strange people’s homes …with no guarantee that they have been fully wiped clean?
We show empathy by understanding the concern, but we solve the problem by doing the touring for our customers. Instead of them having to go into countless homes, you will do that for them and provide them a shortlist of 2-3 properties that fit their wish list and price. Now you have eased their concerns, limited their risk, but still made it possible for them to find a new home for their family whose lease was up at the end of the month.
In summation there are countless FREE resources that can help you make informed decisions for your business. However, the key takeaway is don’t just do this exercise once. Continuously look at your business and test new strategies. Focus on being ahead of the curve.
Janel Laravie our Founder and CEO talks more about these resources and how to activate these learnings in the full webinar she did with SocialX. Watch Below
Not sure you can do this all on your own? No problem, that’s what we’re here for. Fill out the form below and we can schedule a free opportunity assessment for your business.
