MAZ marks the second phase of its 2023 Superbrand research process
The unveiling of the Top 200 brands by the Marketers Association of Zimbabwe culminates in the Superbrand Awards at year-end.
Marketing Predictions
Customer personalisation will be key in a troubled 2023 economy
By our News Team | 2022
Brands that pay the closest attention to meeting the individualised needs of their clients will stand a better chance of coming out on top.
Given that so many customers find messages from companies annoying if they are not personally relevant, those brands that pay the closest attention to the needs and desires of their customers will come out on top next year.
Dimitris Maniatis, global CEO of mobile marketing company Upstream Systems, believes this is especially true with goods consumers don’t deem as essential. As a result, brands will need to go the extra mile to demonstrate their relevancy.
Image by Nvodicka from Pixabay
In releasing Upstream’s marketing predictions for 2023, he lists several key points that are likely to be key to a customer personalisation strategy in the year ahead.
More marketers will move to first-party data
Growing concerns over privacy and the drive to end cookies by 2024 means marketers will have to shift towards less intrusive forms of data collection to continue to personalise campaigns and ensure accuracy in their targeting.
Mobile operators will increasingly be seen as crucial partners for brands, able to use the MSISDN (Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number) of mobile connections to act as unique markers of every mobile user’s identity.
With users’ consent, this highly reliable targeting can be incorporated into marketing campaigns, engaging consumers without the use of third-party data.
An increased drive to launch new monetisation strategies
With global growth forecasts at their lowest since the financial crisis (slowing from 3.2% in 2022 to 2.7% in 2023), mobile operators will avidly seek alternative revenue strategies.
One area of opportunity and increased interest will be the monetisation of first-party mobile data to secure a more prominent position within the advertising ecosystem.
By using data only available to operators to identify users on the open web anonymously, network providers can personalise offerings to not only upsell their services, but work with brands at a massive scale to do the same. This will be especially important as cookies phase out of use the following year.
SMS marketing will continue to make a comeback
Although often derided as a technology from the early 2000s, SMS still has a big role in reaching consumers.
By 2024, there will be more than seven billion mobile users worldwide. Due to its simplicity and reach, text messaging is seeing a remarkable comeback and can be easily incorporated into a brand’s mobile marketing mix.
Considering that SMS has a 98% open rate versus 20% for email, and a 45% response rate versus 6% for email, it is very likely here to stay and grow stronger.
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