Like Super Mario Bros we all strive to move our marketing strategies to the next level. We also have to constantly overcome obstacles to evolve our strategies to get there, however, do we spend enough time really analysing where we are and where we want to be in the future?

Marketing starts when you have good communication with an audience who have opted into your brand. Great marketing starts when you recognise your audiences needs and communicate with them accordingly to their feedback.

It all starts in the same way. With the same bulk email message to everyone, but your aim should always be to try to organically evolve to the ideal scenario where the consumer wants to know your opinion. Below are 3 levels of relevance, where are you now? and wouldn’t it be nice to jump to the next level?

Level 1 : Mass Marketing

Just the fundamentals. This basic build strategy consists of brands broadcasting their message to their whole database and expecting consumers to participate. There is no profiling of data, nor is there any customisation or personalisation in the message. Despite the obvious lack of effort in styling the email to the recipient’s preferences there is still quantifiable analysis for the marketer. The offers and incentives the consumer is seeing in the email will be tracked and basic behavioural reporting will be available to the brand (even if it’s not considered and used to go forward).

Level 2 : Group Marketing

Slowly evolving. After reporting and understanding how recipients are reacting to incentives, marketers implement a fundamental modelling strategy in starting to identify and target specific segments. In turn the incentives offered are beginning to become a slightly more personal, but not down to an individual level. Utilising basic open/click data marketers can reach the consumer with a more targeted approach. Clicks (or lack of) in the email naturally move individuals between segments and informed preferences (either taken from click data or preference centre in the email) steer some of the emails and some dynamic segmentation begins to lead to individual dialogue streams.

Level 3 : 1 to 1 Marketing

Where you need to be. Communications are becoming multi-channel and focused around consumer type by grouping recipients into categories based on demographics, purchase history, gender, age etc. These categories are combined to arrive at a personalised communication based on the intended recipient’s individual behaviour patterns. There is a little more targeting to individuals and consumers will now begin to see relevant offers across all channels.

This stage is more enhanced; the consumer is now carrying a dialogue with the business. By providing feedback the marketer can start an interactive conversation that meets the needs of the consumer and allows the marketer to be prepared to sell to the consumer when the consumer needs the product or service.