Only four? How would that help a business in Singapore?
Try staring at a lot of numbers, would that make your head spin and just bang your head because you can’t absorb it all? So there’s just four important statistics, scalable enough for any business owner or marketer to take in.
Each statistic has a voice of its own that could help guide your digital marketing strategy and gain more of the market share of your competitors this 2015. Now let’s start running the numbers.
1. Mobile penetration rate.
It’s a staggering 148.2% according to the IDA for telecom services on July to December 2014. Meaning each person may atleast own 2-3 mobile devices.
As a business, it means your audience and technology is intricately woven to each other. It’s a Singaporean lifestyle.
A lifestyle like this would need the right avenue and platform to reach those people.
It doesn’t necessarily mean that you go set up your website to be responsive in all types of devices or go make an app for your service. That would take some hard-core-technical-effort to make it successful.
That can wait. However, if you somehow have the resources to do so then by all means start the process.
But, you are missing the bigger picture here. Mobile technology is not just nailed on the mobile phone per se; it’s a sphere of technology to make information readily available for anyone, anytime, anywhere.
As a small to medium size business, crafting out a more scalable marketing strategy for you to connect to a technology-focused consumer would provide opportunities for long-term growth. Technology is changing so fast and so your marketing plan should atleast take on the impact and be elastic enough to take on future obstacles. Get to know your customers, the changes and trends of your target industries, vertical niches you can provide information, be knowledgeable of your audience needs and concerns and be there when they need it, how they need it.
2. The baby boomers of Singapore are a technology-savvy-bunch-of-people.
Aunties and Uncles in the age of 55 and above are not just lounging around today, 78% of them use the internet everyday for whatever reason. This data was taken by Google’s consumer barometer that aims to understand the internet usage in Singapore.
While most of the brands/companies try everything to capture the attention of Gen- Xers, Gen-Yers and Millenials, Baby boomers are getting no love. The most likely reason is because they are seen as, well old-suspicious-big-dinosaurs-with-memory-gaps. While the honest truth of memory gap cannot be erased, embracing technology and their love for a healthier lifestyle and reinvention is what keeps them at the prime of their lives. That is the key takeaway for this statistic.
Baby boomers may not have the tenacity for a music-pop-culture attitude of the younger generation, but they have what it takes (money and experience wise) to build a new phase in their life that involves entrepreneurship and being active on the field after retirement. They have the same love for all things like any other generation before them, except ofcourse a few tidbits like being a screaming fan of One Direction or a Bieber social media basher.
Dig through this demographic of Singapore baby boomers and if your service/company can cater to their direct and indirect needs, then you have yourself a future band of consumers. This goes the same for agencies doing digital marketing in Singapore. If your clients could provide a sweet spot for this bunch, then it would be a win-win situation for both parties.
Baby boomers are still consumers and customers. They have needs and the capacity to buy. Look beyond those wrinkles and thick glasses, there is an opportunity waiting to be unveiled.
3. Taking the word “following” to a whole new level.
In the old days, people purchase after numerous store hunting activities. Galloping from one store to the other, comparing features, prices and brand familiarity.
When social media took off, it produced a frenzy of platforms to get people to be well..social. This affected how we all buy something. How? Three words: Reachable Exclusive Lifestyle.
Social media is now an avenue for getting the juiciest news and tidbits of a new product debut, someone’s aesthetic change below the back, doing a Kanye-ish behaviour for any awards night, the most famous selfie and even simple sharing of an unknown beach island for a summer getaway.
Social media is a news outlet for anything, for anyone 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. People follow brands in order to get the latest and benefits offered. They follow brands that conform to their lifestyle or the lifestyle of their group of friends.
So if you are a brand that would like to turn this feeling into an opportunity, craft a social media strategy that will evoke the feeling of exclusivity, expertise and entertainment. Put out content that would make you tick and look irresistible in their eyes. No salesy pitches. Humanize your brand. Remember, the social media audience follow not because they want to be sold to or have stern corporate relationships with you, they follow because they see you (not your product/service) making their lifestyle feel and look spectacular, and your product is just the tangible thing of the whole experience.
So, this 63% statistic from DigitasLBi nailed the point of how a great social media experience would influence purchasing decisions of Singaporeans.
4. Digital word of mouth.
This last piece seals the deal of the previously mentioned “great social media experience”. Stemming from the same study did by DigitasLBi about Singapore consumers, the key marketing takeaway from this statistic is: Customers acting as brand ambassadors.
Having brand ambassadors will not only pull in additional leads but something greater will happen, and that is Allegiance. It’s a strong word to mention, but a very true phenomenon that is happening with brands in the social media space.
A great example would be Tough Mudder’s rise to fame and increased repeat user base. Tough Mudder is an endurance event series. But, they don’t just do endurance events; they take it to a whole new level. Theirs is hard. Really, really hard. But what made them tick? Co-founder Guy Livingstone said “It’s more of a mental challenge than a physical one, There are no winners and no losers; it is just about getting through it.” A simple philosophy right? But their social media takes that simple philosophy and channel it into bad ass posts that appeals to an audience who are even non-atheletes, without any flab of muscle anywhere in their bodies. Evoking the successful feeling of finishing the most painstaking event obstacle in the universe. The event made them feel T-O-U-G-H, and so they spread the experience.
No matter what industry you are in, knowing how to package your company or product with your user base would keep the ball rolling for your marketing strategy.
Your business in Singapore can be one of the companies who can benefit from any of these four statistics. Know what your audience want and their desires. Put out a scalable marketing strategy that will provide a sweet spot to entertain and inform them. Give them a great experience and they will take care of the rest for you.
