www.stickyeyes.com | www.zazzlemedia.co.uk | 0113 391 2929

The ecommerce evolution: Attracting & keeping the attention of consumers in an evolving retail economy.

2

Further Reading

We’ve got much more insight, advice and market intelligence available to download to help you with your digital strategy.

Catch our latest guides, reports and opinion pieces at www.stickyeyes.com/resources.

Don’t want to miss a guide? Sign-up for our email newsletter to be amongst the first to find out about our latest resources.

3

Contents04 Introduction

Why digital presents huge opportunities in FMCG and consumer packaged goods.

06 How and why consumer behaviour is changingCOVID-19 didn’t change our behaviour - instead, it accelerated it. A detailed analysis of consumer behaviour.

14 The new opportunities for FMCG brandsWhy the shift to digital presents new opportunities for FMCG brands to engage their target audiences.

20 How brands are using digital to engage audiencesHow brands can use key tactics including content, search and eCRM to engage audiences, drive sales and foster brand loyalty.

34 In summaryWhat you can do right now to better-equip your brand for digital in the post-pandemic era.

Authors & Contributors

Michael HewittContent Marketing Manager

Claire CookeAssociate Content Director

Phil McGuinDemand Generation Director

Sarah BarkerHead of Biddable Media

Mark PrestonClient Strategy Manager

4

The changing consumer is creating new opportunities in FMCG and CPG. The way in which consumers buy products is changing. The rule-book has been ripped up, the dynamics have changed and consumers are expecting more; more information, more convincing and more value.

Digital is now a key battleground when it comes to the FMCG sector. People are increasingly looking for and purchasing even the most everyday of products online and more and more, FMCG manufacturers are realising that they need to be able to cater to that digital demand.

Whilst it would be natural to look at the COVID-19 pandemic as something

of a seminal moment in changing how consumers engage with brands and purchase in the FMCG and consumer packaged goods (CPG) sectors, the reality is that consumers were showing signs that their behaviours were changing long before this pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic may have provided the catalyst for much of the consumer behaviour we now see, but the evidence shows that consumer behaviour was already headed in the direction we now find it travelling.

As consumers we are now looking to be more informed about the products we buy - even relatively low consideration products where for so

long, the key differentiators between products on the supermarket shelf were brand recognition and price. We’re now taking the effort to learn more about whether products fulfil our needs, looking for social proof that Brand X is better than Brand Y and becoming more interested in the provenance and the credentials of products that we are buying.

It was those behaviours that created the environment in which direct selling business models could emerge and thrive, taking market share from established brands and manufacturers, particularly with more digitally-active audience segments.

5

Direct selling brands have been able to use digital in particular to demonstrate that they can answer the questions that consumers are asking. They’re able to create a brand story that resonates with consumers, demonstrate that they can meet the consumer needs, reassure consumers with social proof and, just as importantly, deliver the product on the customer’s terms.

Many of those established names have, in many cases, been slow to respond to these changing consumer trends. Whilst there are certainly examples of brands making efforts to adapt to these digitally-influenced trends, there is still a lot to do for these brands to engage those audiences on their terms, to drive sales and encourage a greater degree of consumer loyalty.

As we enter a post-pandemic environment, retailers and FMCG brands are likely to find an environment where consumer confidence is low. Retail footfall is going to be unpredictable as many consumers remain nervous of crowded public places. Consumers are going to be looking for greater value, and that is going to see FMCG manufacturers

being squeezed on margin by their resellers. That all makes the case for investing in digital - in going direct to consumers and taking greater ownership of the customer journey - even stronger.

What we’re going to do in this guide is discuss how digital, and in particular search, has influenced those changing consumer behaviours in the FMCG and CPG sectors and, crucially, what these brands can do to cater to these modified expectations.

The techniques we discuss will offer marketers in FMCG and CPG sectors a flavour of the strategic and tactical changes that they can make to guide them through what will be a difficult period in the short-term following the pandemic, as well as providing a platform for long-term growth.

This guide will cover:

• How changing consumer behaviour affected the FMCG and CPG sectors both before and after COVID-19, and the role that the response to it has played in accelerating already-established consumer trends.

• How brands in the FMCG and CPG sectors can take advantage of these changing behaviours, highlighting the tactics and strategies that they can use to address those key consumer wants and needs.

• How brands can use content to engage audiences and take more control over the customer journey, using that content to reassure consumers in what is likely to be a very different retail landscape.

• How brands can innovate in paid search, Google Shopping and marketplace advertising to bring a direct selling proposition to market.

• How brands can foster a greater sense of brand loyalty, advocacy and enhance the customer product experience through eCRM.

6

How and why consumer behaviour is changing.

7

“How adept are FMCG manufacturer brands at serving

those audiences that are searching not necessarily for their brands

and products, but instead for the solutions that they provide?”

8

Consumers have developed a new relationship with FMCG and ecommerce.The FMCG and consumer packaged goods market is inherently competitive. Product categories are dominated by big brands, all looking to grab the attention of consumers both in-store and online.

But the sector has also seen significant levels of disruption in recent years and what is clear is that consumers now have much more choice in almost every CPG category.

With that choice, comes a degree of confusion, as a growing number of brands and retailers use their respective media armouries to grab consumer attention in a very crowded marketplace, where brand and

price have often been the primary differentiators between products on the supermarket shelves.

Consumers are more undecided, they’re less wedded to a particular brand than previous generations of consumer and they are looking to be more informed about which products are the right ones for them.

It has resulted in search becoming a much bigger part in the customer journey for CPGs. Consumers are not just researching brands, but the ability of products to fulfil their respective needs - particularly in the early stages of the customer journey.

Google searches in the UK that began with the phrase “shampoo for” were up 90% between 2016 and 2018, whilst searches appended with the phrase “to avoid” were up 150% in the same period (source: Think with Google).

Those trends tell a story of consumers who are not only undecided, but of consumers who are looking to be won over in different ways, using a greater number of touchpoints to find the right product for their needs.

That search journey also encompasses a growing number of touch points and devices. More than 60% of consumers in the biggest CPG sectors search multiple times throughout the journey,

9

diving deeper into the subject before they make their final decision (Think with Google).

It means that the purchasing journey much more closely resembles the ‘micro moments’ model suggested by Google in 2015. In this model searches, triggered by particular moments of realisation, progress through stages of informational search queries, eventually arriving at a commercial search query.

This trend is also fuelling the decline of brand loyalty in many sectors. Microsoft’s 2020 Retail-UK report found that 62% of consumers were not brand loyal but instead, searched for a brand different from the first domain they visited as part of their purchase journey.

This new trend presents a challenge for many FMCG and manufacturer brands, which have traditionally relied on the power of mass-media brand building to establish their position in the market, a degree of brand loyalty from consumers and on resellers (such as supermarkets and pharmacists) to provide their distribution. How adept are FMCG manufacturer brands at serving those audiences that are

KNOW DO GO BUY

“Do red wine stains come out

of a carpet?”

“How to remove wine stain from

a carpet.”

“Cleaning supplies near

me.”

“Best carpet cleaner for

wine stains.”

Informational Search

Commercial Search

“I want to...”

searching not necessarily for their brands and products, but instead for the solutions that they provide?

This combination of factors, with consumers looking into more detail at the products that meet their needs and a growing propensity to try new brands has provided something of a “perfect storm” for the wave of direct-to-consumer brands that have disrupted numerous segments of the CPG sector.

These new, digital-first brands have shown themselves to be particularly adept at engaging customers throughout those informational stages

of the user journey and creating a more personalised, tailored experience, whereas many traditional brands have struggled to replicate that level of consumer engagement.

What this has become is a battle for consumer attention throughout the customer journey. But, with so much activity focused on brand, direct selling brands have stepped into the void to answer those key consumer questions. Crucially, they have also bee able to devise business models that create a sense of loyalty that is otherwise difficult to foster without that ongoing customer engagement.

Source: Think with Google

10

How COVID-19 catalysed new search trends and consumer behaviour.Whilst both consumer and brand behaviours have been evolving for some time prior, these changing behaviours were catalysed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent ‘lockdowns’ that were imposed by governments around the world.

As social distancing restrictions were imposed, health advice strengthened, travel restricted and most ‘bricks and mortar’ businesses ordered to close, digital became the only way in which many consumers could actually engage with brands and get hold of essential products. Consumers who had never previously used online shopping were suddenly reliant on ecommerce for

100

80

60

40

20

0Source: Google Trends

UK Search Trends: “How to”

Jul 19 Aug 19 Sep 19 Oct 19 Nov 19 Dec 19 Jan 20 Feb 20 Mar 20 Apr 20 May 20 Jun 20

even the most basic of necessities, including groceries, medication, clothing and toiletries.

But amid the news reports of unseasonal booms in sales for toilet

paper, gym equipment and bicycles, what the response to the pandemic did was dramatically accelerate trends that were developing at a consistent trend for a number of years before the pandemic struck. In particular, we saw

UK COVID-19 lockdown announced

11

huge increases in searches beginning with the phrase “how to” when the UK government initiated lockdown measures in March.

As physical businesses, where there is a heavily reliance on face-to-face interaction, were ordered to close, consumers took to search to effectively ‘fill the void’ left by the closure of those businesses. The closure of gyms led to an increase in search activity for fitness and work-out related keywords. With tradesmen restricted from working, we saw increased search activity for DIY-related keyword terms. The closure of hair salons and barbers led to an increase in search activity for hair-care related terms.

But we also saw a significant increase in the level of searches that were appended with the qualifying term “online” - particuarly in ecommerce categories where there is still a significant (if not a majority) of purchasing done in physical “bricks and mortar” retail locations.

Groceries and food was perhaps the biggest sector to see such an increase following the lockdown measures,

and it was well documented at the time how many supermarkets had to carefully manage their delivery slots, but many other product categories saw similar changes in search activity.

Haircare, pet care, nutrition, face and body care and non-alcoholic beverages all saw significant spikes in activity for “online”-appended terms, indicating that consumers were looking for alternative ways to order products - even though many of these were still available via retailers that were permitted to remain open to the public

during the lockdown (grocery retailers, convenience stores and pharmacies).

Although relative to those initial spikes, trends have started to normalise, net interest is still considerably higher than pre-COVID-19 levels. For example, the phrase “order tea online” is up 190%, “hair dye online” is up 150% and “dog food online” has seen a 60% increase.

How these trends endure longer-term will largely depend on what the oft-termed “new normal” looks like as global economies recover.

100

80

60

40

20

0

Volume of searches including the term “online”

Goo

gle

Sea

rch

Inte

rest

Jul 19 Aug 19 Sep 19 Oct 19 Nov 19 Dec 19 Jan 20 Feb 20 Mar 20 Apr 20 May 20 Jun 20

Cleaning SuppliesPet Care

NutritionGroceries & Food

Non-alc BeverageFace & Body Care

Haircare

UK COVID-19 lockdown announced

Source: Google Trends

12

The nervous normal? How COVID-19 could establish new consumer behaviour.Whilst consumer behaviours inevitably changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a key question for marketers over the extent to which these behaviours will remain as governments around the world start to relax their respective restrictions and open up their economies.

As physical retail and leisure spaces reopen to the public following the easing of social distancing restrictions, will consumers continue to display these behaviours, and if so, for how long, or will they revert to their previous spending habits?

Will those who sampled online grocery shopping for the first time be won

over to digital for good? Will the longer-term economic impact of the pandemic change spending behaviour further? Will consumers remain nervous about venturing back to the High Street and, if so, for how long?

What is likely is that the oft-discussed “new normal” will be somewhat more nervous than the world that brands and marketers are perhaps used to. There will be a nervousness from consumers about venturing out to crowded High Streets and shopping malls, and they will have a nervousness about the economy and their job security. That nervousness is likely to lead to an increased aversion to risk, where consumers avoid ‘unknowns’

and resort to making purchasing decisions where they know and can trust the outcomes. But to what extent will those consumer nerves take hold?

The EY Future Consumer Index on global behaviour suggested that more than half of consumers globally (52%) will change the way they shop. The reasons for this vary but the survey suggests that hygiene and sanitation

plan to do a greater proportion of their grocery shopping online.

of consumers will change the way they shop after COVID-19.

13

is the biggest consideration, with 60% claiming that they would consolidate their shopping into larger, less frequent trips, 44% suggested that they would do a greater proportion of their grocery shopping online and 68% planned to home cook for themselves more often.

These trends are likely to be influenced by the level to which individuals were impacted by COVID-19. Unsurprisingly, those sections of society that were hardest hit by the pandemic are likely to reduce their outgoings but there are also suggestions over an overall degree of nervousness across many different consumer segments.

EY’s Future Consumer Index suggests that the aftermath of the pandemic will lead to the creation of five core consumer segments, each of which will have been impacted by the pandemic in different ways and will, as a result, revert to different behaviours as the economy recovers.

Some segments, particularly younger segments that typically spend disproportionately on leisure, those that have possibly saved money during the pandemic and those that

have been largely unaffected by the lockdown, will likely return to similar, if not higher, levels of spending as lockdowns ease. In particular, these groups are likely to spend most heavily in sectors such as travel and leisure.

Those at the other end of the spectrum, such as those working in at-risk sectors or those that have lost their work entirely, will reduce their spending habits. Luxury and leisure purchases will be significantly cut back and they will look not only to avert risk, but also seek value in their purchases.

So the ‘new normal’ is not only one where consumer nerves over getting back out to the shops may turn them increasingly to digital, but one where they are also looking to enjoy life in a more frugal manner by getting more value from their purchases. For ecommerce, manufacturer and FMCG brands, the task is to ensure that they can not only allay consumer fears about a product, but that they can also add real value to the end-user at every touch-point - including digital.

“Keep Cutting”

Most impacted. Out of work or

working in most at-risk jobs /

sectors.

“Stay Frugal”

More considered

spending due to concerns over

job security.

“Back to Normal”

Largely unaffected by pandemic. Will

get back to normal.

“Cautiously Extravagant”

Optimistic mid-high earners.

Will still spend big on their

passions.

“Back with a Bang”

Young people who had their

social lives disrupted by

lockdown.

Least Optimistic Most Optimistic

Source: EY Future Consumer Index

14

The new opportunities for FMCG brands.

15

“As consumers show a greater willingness to research their purchases, and as the retail landscape goes through

a series of changes, the methods and techniques that FMCG and CPG brands

can use to engage consumers are inevitably going to evolve.”

16

Three core priorities to successfully engage audiences through digitalThese changing consumer behaviours present challenges for FMCG brands, particularly in those segments that have been disrupted by more agile direct selling brands. These brands have managed to command a growing level of market share in their respective segments, largely by targeting those audiences that have a greater propensity to make online purchases, as well as a much lower propensity to remain loyal to a particular brand.

As consumers show a greater willingness to research their purchases, even in previously low-consideration product segments, and as the retail landscape goes through a series of changes due to both the COVID-19

pandemic and the growth of online retail, the methods and techniques that FMCG and CPG brands can use to engage consumers are inevitably going to evolve.

But the boom of digital in these sectors does create a number of opportunities for these brands, and we have identified three in particular.

1. The opportunity for brands to build trust and authority amongst their target audiences, using digital as a compliment to typical media-led approach to brand building.

2. The opportunity for FMCG and CPG brands to take greater control

of the customer journey, utilising enhanced data to guide consumers from acquisition through to loyalty.

3. The opportunity for brands to use digital technologies and techniques to optimise the various touchpoints along that journey, for whatever the “new normal” happens to be in the retail landscape.

Whilst capitalising on these opportunities will undoubtedly require a change in strategy for many brands, they provide an effective route for engaging audiences on a much more personal level.

17

Opportunity One: Build authority by reassuring consumers about their choice.

The changing search patterns over recent years, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, have shown that consumers are being more considered in the products and services that they purchase. Not only are they looking for products that meet their needs, they are also paying greater attention to a product’s provenance. In the US, 50% of CPG growth from 2013 to 2018 came from products that were marketed as environmentally sustainable (NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business).

Whilst the idea of consumers doing online research has been historically associated with high-consideration and ‘big ticket’ purchases, this behaviour has become something of a norm in more low consideration products, including FMCG and CPGs.

It creates an opportunity for FMCG brands to engage audiences in the intitial moments of the customer journey and establish the product and brand as the right solution. By providing engaging and insightful

content for early-stage informational search queries, brands can establish themselves as authorities in their respective categories and reassure those audiences looking to purchase.

Whilst brands in the FMCG sector have developed propositions to capitalise on those searches, many have struggled to put themselves in prominent positions in organic search.

A good example of this is the Unilever site ‘Cleanipedia’, which acts as an information resource for home cleaning and hygiene, recycling and sustainable living. The site features

content that is designed to address core questions around household cleaning, with clear signposting to Unilever’s respective product brands where appropriate, but there is significant room for the domain to be more visible in organic search results.

Whilst competition will vary from keyword to keyword, the lack of search strategy from many of these brands does provide opportunities for competitors to taker market share at that stage of the customer journey - putting their brand in prime position in both the search results and the consumer mindset.

cleanipedia.com

18

Opportunity Two: Take greater control of the whole customer journey.

The customer journey across many segments of FMCG and CPG can actually be quite fragmented. Consumers may begin their journey online, as we have discussed with those changing search trends, but in many cases the transaction is completed in physical locations through third-party retail distributors.

By placing a greater emphasis on engaging with consumers through digital channels, brands can also take much greater control over more of the customer journey.

By controlling more of the customer journey, FMCGs can unlock and take advantage of a wealth of data that provides a greater insight into their consumers and how they engage with their brands and products.

This makes it easier for FMCGs to build a more accurate map of the journey that their consumers take, from initial brand discovery, through to acquisition and loyalty, helping them to better

identify and optimise the effectiveness of their marketing activity.

In taking greater control of the customer journey through digital engagement, FMCGs can actually see the impact of much of the upper-funnel search strategy that we have discussed earlier in this guide.

In many market segments where transactions are typically performed offline, it can be difficult to quantify the return on investment from top-of-funnel digital activity. This often results in marketing activity in such sectors focusing disproportionately on activity towards the bottom of the funnel.

But by taking more of the customer engagement strategy online, FMCGs are able to address this problem, creating a broader picture of how their customers engage with the brands and products.

Not only does this allow brands to better understand and realise the value of digital engagement, but it can be used to better inform their wider marketing and advertising strategies.

One such example where this insight can inform wider marketing strategy is in the area of media planning and customer persona building, where Stickyeyes has supported FMCG manufacturers to better understand where their respective brands sit amongst different consumer personas in the segment. Using that insight, we’ve been able to advise those brands on how to optimise their media buying strategy, leading to a much more efficient media strategy.

By taking control of more of the customer journey, FMCG and CPG brands can capitalise on further opportunities to use eCRM to keep audiences engaged and drive further brand loyalty, building a community of fans than can be turned into advocates for the brand, and engaging that community with high quality experiential content.

19

Opportunity Three: Digitise key customer touchpoints for the new retail environment.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made taking ownership of that customer journey even more important.

As consumers enter this ‘nervous normal’ following the coronavirus lockdown and alter their behaviour to a more risk-averse and, in some cases, digital-first form of purchasing, it creates a challenge for FMCG and CPG brands to find ways to engage with those consumers. If the distribution of a product relies heavily on physical retail point-of-sale, how does that model engage consumers during a period of reduced retail footfall following the COVID-19 lockdown?

By having that more complete ownership and understanding of the customer journey, FMCG and CPG manufacturers can more effectively identify how they can ‘digitise’ many aspects of that journey.

With this insight, it becomes easier for brands to understand where they can use digital techniques to either

optimise physical touchpoints or to replace those physical touchpoints entirely. That reduces the reliance that brands have on physical retail POS for engaging consumers, overcoming the challenge of reduced retail footfall whilst at the same time, broadening the reach of the brand message.

We’re seeing, for example, many brands use digital to more effectively demonstrate products that would have previously relied on an in-store demonstration. A range of retail brands, from fashion to ‘big box’ retail are using technologies like augmented reality to demonstrate how their products look in the way that the consumer intends to use them. Estée Lauder, for example, have created a way for consumers to communicate with a ‘night time routine’ expert through Google Home devices. L’Oréal invested in the beauty technology business Modiface and according to it’s 2019 results, ecommerce now accounts for 15.6% of it’s overall sales.

And of course, we’re seeing more and more FMCG and CPG brands develop their own ecommerce platforms and direct-to-consumer propositions,

ensuring that their products are accessible to those consumers who are either unable or unwilling to visit physical retail environments.

Many of these brands, particularly in the food and drinks sector, are actually using existing supply chains and logistics infrastructure, which was left largely redundant when the lockdown forced the closure of many of their traditional outlets (such as restaurants and bars).

But direct selling can effectively be used to overcome those consumer concerns about in-store purchasing, alleviate the reliance on ‘bricks and mortar’ point-of-sale and provide a way for manufacturers to reduce their exposure to the risk of reintroduced or expanded lockdowns at local, national and international level.

20

How brands are using core digital techniques to engage audiences

21

“Consumers are using digital to look for content and information that they can believe and relate to, and

the onus is on brands to cater to that demand.”

22

Using informational content to engage, answer questions & build authority.As consumers revert to search to better understand the suitability, the provenance and the social proof of a product, content becomes a major part of any brand ecommerce strategy.

A high quality content marketing strategy can help brands to build authority, complementing traditional brand building activity, engage the audiences that they are looking to reach and help those consumers to make an informed purchasing decision.

Consumers are using digital to look for content and information that they can believe and relate to, and the onus is on brands to cater to that demand.This is particularly important in the

context of Google’s ‘EAT’ guidelines and policies, which are designed to reward those pages that can deliver content with a high degree of subject matter expertise, authority and trustworthiness.

In a nutshell, content that can answer a searcher’s query in a manner which is seen as being impartial, helpful, useful and created with a high degree of research and skill, is more likely to be rewarded in the Google search results for those relevant queries.

The challenge for brands in the FMCG sector therefore is to not only understand the types of queries that their target audiences are asking,

but to also deliver content that can effectively answer those questions.

Identifying the questions to answer.

We have already discussed how searches including the phrase “how to” have grown consistently, even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. This trend provides an important starting point for FMCG and CPG manufacturers to understand how they can use content to engage audiences throughout the customer journey, but particularly at the top of the funnel.

It is important to understand the nature of the searches that are taking place in your respective market

23

segment. Follow the search trends, but remember that those trends may not necessarily reflect areas that your brand can be an authority in. First and foremost, focus on the queries that your brand has a right to claim to be an authority in.

Using the Google ‘micro moments’ model that was referenced earlier, consider the ‘trigger points’ that would initiate a search. Research the keywords that are likely to be used in that search, and the intent behind the search. With that insight, you can then identify the appropriate types of content for that particular query.

The right content for the right intent.

As a brand, you also need to ensure that your content reflects the intent of the searcher. Whilst your brand site is likely to have an abundance of brand-led content, it is unlikely that this would adequately serve the needs of a user looking for more informational content.

If a searcher is looking for information on the best way to clean a particular stain, or for the best food for a particular breed of dog, brand-focused

content is unlikely to fulfil that need. The user is looking for more considered, impartial content at that point.

This is where our Complete Content model helps to identify the role that different content types play in the journey, and how they can be used to cater to different customer intents.

Informational content is a key opportunity for brands to aid product

discovery, using indirect messaging to educate, advise and engage audiences about solutions, rather than overt product promotion.

Creating what the audience is looking for and

making sure they find it.

DISCOVERY

Creating what will engage the audience and pushing

it in front of them.

DISTRIBUTION

Messaging that is directly about the brand, product or

service.

DIRECT INDIRECTMessaging that is specifically NOT about the brand, product or service.

INSIGHTS

INFORMATION

ALFU

NCTIONAL

ENGAGINGADVERTIS

ING

STRATEGY

STRATEGY

Further Reading Download our detailed guide on our Complete Content model.

stickyeyes.com/completecontent

Source: Stickyeyes

24

We worked with the haircare brand ghd to help them engage new audiences, make the most of their brand to build authority online and to protect their brand reputation by taking greater control over the customer search journey.

Taking control of the customer journey

One of the key challenges facing ghd in the digital world was the battle against counterfeiting. With many unscrupulous operators using the brand’s terms and, in many cases, outranking both the brand site and official stockists in the Google search results, our first task was to protect the brand reputation.

In order to do this, we developed a digital brand protection strategy that would ensure that ghd could protect its brand from these threats, as well as making sure that audiences looking for ghd products were only receiving official, genuine brand sources.

This process involved an aggressive approach to enforcing the brand’s trademarks on paid channels, including Google Ads, whilst reviewing the brand’s keyword strategy and building ghd’s authority in organic search to ensure that it was the prominent brand not only for it’s core brand terms, but terms that both it’s audiences and the counterfeit resellers were using.

Building authority and relevancy

Having helped the brand to improve its performance on key commercial terms, we wanted to help the brand really own the conversation around hair styling in search.

We analysed almost 18,500 keywords that we believed ghd could build huge levels of authority from and, in turn, attract and inspire highly relevant audience segments. Of those keywords, ghd was accessing just 2% of the available opportunity, with mainstream publishers and emerging hairstyle blogs capturing most of that search traffic.

Case in Point:Protecting a brand and growing sales with digital content for ghd.

25

The brand already had a huge amount of high quality, style-focused content, but it wasn’t as authoritative as the big magazines and not as relevant as the new blog sites. We knew that, by getting it right, there was a huge opportunity to be strong in both areas by focusing on growing content relevancy, which would in turn reach and engage new audiences.

Essentially the task was to align the brand’s content with what the audience was actually searching for.

Content for the Google EAT era

What we proposed was extremely high-quality content that was much more closely aligned to real-world search, with the ghd product range woven into the content in a natural and unobtrusive manner.

We would detail how our target audiences could find their perfect style, whether it was recreating a sought-after style or mimicking those top celebrity cuts.

But this wasn’t just about following the crowd - our approach was highly data-

driven, with huge levels of analysis and keyword research going into identifying exactly which hairstyles to focus on.

Our approach has gone on to deliver significant levels of audience engagement, search visibility and, ultimately, return on investment.

Long-term audience engagement

Our strategy played a significant role in helping ghd to generate a huge

increase in traffic from informational search. Not only that, but we also put the brand at the heart of many conversations on the latest hair trends and tips – exactly where it wanted to be.

Our approach has also been a driving force for a wide range of site-wide improvements including, most importantly, in the search visibility of those key commercial search terms – putting ghd in prime position for those revenue-driving keywords.

26

Using Marketplaces, Google Shopping and Paid Search to go directly to consumers. The COVID-19 pandemic acted as a catalyst for changing behaviours that were already occurring in the retail landscape. As more consumer spending shifted from offline to online, and as physical retail declined, the opportunity for manufacturer brands to develop a direct-to-consumer proposition grew and grew.

Whilst organic search provides clear opportunities for brands to engage audiences, it is a channel that tends to deliver results over the medium to long term. Paid search and biddable media, on the other hand provide much faster route to market for brands, allowing brands to launch a direct-to-consumer proposition extremely quickly

Paid search and Google Shopping results in particular have been commanding a much greater proportion of digital real estate on the search engine results pages and, with the right approach, can provide a quick and often cost-effective route to audiences that are searching with much more of a purchasing intent.

Marketplaces offer fast routes to market for direct selling models

Marketplaces have become a major platform both for ecommerce and for paid media, providing brands with quick and direct access to a captive audience of consumers who are very much in a purchasing mindset.

Marketplaces, particularly Amazon have, emerged as search engines in their own right. Around 51% of consumers now start their online shopping journey on Amazon, with 11% starting on eBay (Salmon Future Shopper Report, 2018).As a result, the platforms are growing not just as ecommerce platforms, but also as media platforms in their own right, with ad revenues on Amazon growing particularly on the CPG sector.

This makes it an effective platform for FMCG and CPG brands to get their products to consumers in a purchase-ready mindset very quickly, but the greater benefits come by taking much greater ownership of the process.

27

The search results as your shop window.

The search results are increasingly becoming an extension of a brand’s ‘shop window’. As Google has evolved the results pages to become much more than just links and ad copy, visual elements have started to play a much greater role in product discovery and brand engagement.

A growing amount of Google Shopping placement share is being awarded to Showcase Shopping ads – as much as 35% of the total available real estate in some categories and territories. This makes it increasingly important

of UK consumers start their shopping journey

on Amazon.

likely to complete their purchase on Amazon.

will check Amazon prices whilst on other

websites or in store.

80%55%51%

Source: Salmon Future Shopper Report 2018

for brands to ensure that they can leverage those visual ad formats, which typically show for broader search terms, to maximise the performance and effectiveness of their campaigns. This is particularly the case in those upper-funnel searches.

AI and automation plays a big role.

One of the key advantages of using paid search is the ability to make use of data to optimise media buying, bid management, keyword targeting and audience targeting, particularly when using Google’s automation and artificial intelligence technologies.

Dynamic targeting is one of those tactics that makes retail brands apprehensive, but we’ve seen much improved results where we have deployed it in retail campaigns, particularly when we combine this with automated bidding.

Indeed, some bid strategies no longer require any historic campaign data as they actually factor in wider search trends for chosen keyword sets. Therefore, at a time when search behaviour is constantly changing – perhaps at a rate faster than manual optimisations can keep pace with – advertisers can leverage portfolio optimisation to better achieve business goals and react to the changing consumer landscape.

It makes biddable media strategy less labour-intensive, drives down cost-per-aquisition (CPA) and increases return on as spend (ROAS).

Further Reading Combining paid and organic search for greater effect:

stickyeyes.com/onesearch

28

Stickyeyes has been a trusted digital partner for this leading UK fashion brand for over two years. In that time, we have driven forward key performance marketing initiatives, making a significant impact on the brand’s ecommerce performance.

From innovative paid search and organic search strategies, through to user experience and CRO strategies to maximise the value of every click, we have driven significant growth from the brand’s core digital channels.

A smarter approach to paid search.

Throughout the course of our partnership, we have been developing

and deploying innovative solutions for the brand to ensure that it is getting the most from its investment in PPC and biddable media.

One such innovation has been adaptive bid strategies on paid search, taking into account real-time organic search rankings to ensure that ad spend is used as efficiently as possible.

We have also led on the brand’s Google Shopping strategy, social media advertising and programmatic ad campaigns, ensuring that the brand is reaching the right audiences at the right time.

Solid SEO and content foundations.

This paid activity has been supported by an ongoing strategy of technical search engine optimisation and content marketing.

Content has been used to ensure that the brand is guiding customers through the customer journey, finding the right products for their needs and keeping them informed about the latest products and trends.

This additional content has been supported by a thorough and ongoing technical review to ensure that every piece of content has the best possible chance of being found.

Case in Point: Effective digital media strategy for a designer fashion brand.

29

Enhancing UX to make every click count.

Driving traffic is one thing, but every wasted click is a lost opportunity for the brand. If our paid and organic activities were going to realise their full potential, we had to ensure that the brand was capitalising on that traffic as well as it possibly could.

We worked with the client to perform a complete user experience and conversion-rate optimisation review,

identifying potential barriers and leakage points, all with the aim of increasing average order value and basket size, reducing cart abandonment and ensuring that any retargeting activity was effectively re-engaging those audiences.

Proving the value.

As part of our digital strategy, we overhauled the reporting and analytics process to make it easier for the

organisation to see the true value of its investment.

That process saw us improve the brand’s tracking setup and brought all of the brand’s separate channels into one, integrated reporting structure, providing clear, easy-to-understand insight into its digital performance.

56%increase in year-on-year traffic generated through Google Shopping.

42%decrease in year-on-year cost-per-click across Google Shopping.

71%increase in year-on-year UK revenue from paid search activity.

30

Using eCRM to build brand advocacy and foster consumer loyalty. One of the core benefits of moving to a more direct, digitally led approach is the ability to access much greater levels of insight and data into your brand’s consumers and how they behave. This data then becomes a crucial asset in optimising those customer touchpoints in order to drive sales, build brand advocacy and foster a greater sense of consumer loyalty.

This is one area where direct selling brands in particular have been in a strong position to keep their customers engaged and to grow market share in their respective niches. With a predominantly digital focus, these brands have been able to build clear and accurate pictures of not only

who their customers are, but how they behave online. They’ve also been able to use eCRM and retargeting techniques, along with alternative revenue models (such as subscription-based models) to drive loyalty and increase customer lifetime value.

We have seen some manufacturers look to do this and invest in permission marketing, either through new initiatives or aquisitions. Examples include Danone’s launch of the Cow & Gate Baby Cub as a resource for new parents, whilst Mars acquired the pet food subscription brand Tails.com.

This is where taking that greater degree of ownership over the customer

journey comes into its own, providing you with the key insight needed to optimise those key customer touchpoints, engage with customers on a much more personal level and create that sense of loyalty and brand advocacy amongst your most important customer segments.

Delivering a more personalised experience

The notion of delivering a truly personalised experience has been oft-discussed as one of the key ambitions of marketers in the retail sector. Whilst many retailers and manufacturers, particularly those with strong digital engagement and distribution, are very adept at delivering a personal

31

experience, those brands that rely much more on physical distribution find it much more difficult to replicate such a degree of personalisation.

But the business case for introducing greater elements of personalised marketing and messaging are clear. Research from McKinsey suggests that retailers that do introduce personalisation into the customer journey can see sales uplifts of between 10% and 30%, alongside a 5% percent improvement in customer acquisition (McKinsey).

Advanced analytics can essentially allow brands to identify key customer buying signals, such as search activity or previous purchasing behaviour. This insight can then be used to tailor and then use that insight to deliver a personalised experience that is relevant to the target audience.

This insight allows, for example, a brand to identify relevant content themes that can keep audiences engaged and use eCRM and email distribution to deploy that content in a way that is personal and reflects the consumer’s intent at that particular point in time.

If the signal from the customer is a purchasing signal, content should reflect this. If the intent is more one of seeking support, information or advice, the content should reflect how the consumer can find the information that they need in order to improve their experience with the product. This process works both with new content and existing creative assets.

With these eCRM and marketing automation tactics, brands can show a greater understanding of their audiences’ wants and needs, cultivating that degree of customer loyalty that significantly increases both customer lifetime value and return on investment.

Building brand advocacy

With this customer data and insight, brands put themselves in a stronger position to be able to not only foster a sense of customer loyalty, but to turn their loyal customers into customer advocates - an increasingly important part of the process in an environment where consumers are increasingly looking for social proof as part of their purchasing decision.

What many direct selling brands have been able to do very successfully is build a subscriber community that is not only ‘locked in’ to the brand through the subscription model, but is also heavily incentivised to advocate for the brand (commonly through schemes such as ‘refer a friend’ incentives).

As CPG and FMCG brands begin to take ownership of a greater part of the customer journey, their ability to adopt a similar model grows.

Through eCRM, they can maintain that more personal level of communication with their audience, enhance the experience that they have wth the brand and product and later encourage them to share their experiences and advocate for the brand.

Further Reading Read more about putting this into practice with our free guide:

stickyeyes.com/crmautomation

32

A leading alcoholic drinks brand approached Stickyeyes looking for digital engagement strategy that would get people talking. It wanted to increase the level of conversation around the brand and build a community that would advocate for the brand across digital channels.

Our mission was to harness the power of digital for the brand, building an engaged and loyal community of brand advocates to place it at the heart of those key conversations.

Not only would we need to harness the power of the brand’s existing advocates, but also reach new audiences to build an active and

engaged digital community, spreading advocacy for the brand far and wide.

Create market-leading content.

The first stage of the process was to ensure that the brand was creating content that could engage its audiences, get people talking and enhance the experience that consumers have with the product.

Content and new engagement streams provided the nucleus of the eCRM nurture strategy, directly aligning to the target market and providing a range of engaging content about the experience of the brand’s products.

We worked with the brand to identify key content themes, understand how they could use digital content to enhance the customer experience with the product, and how they could create something that was truly shareable and engaging.

The result was the creation of a new brand website that would act as a digital hub for a wealth of new digital experience content. From lifestyle content through to tips and tricks to creating the perfect drink, this content was at the heart of our strategy for engaging audiences and creating new brand advocates.

Case in Point: Building advocacy and customer loyalty for a leading drinks brand.

33

Making the most of those assets.

Having a wealth of content assets was only part of the story. We had to make sure that we were maximising the value of those assets, ensuring that our content was not only found, but that it was actively distributed to the audiences that we needed to reach.

Audience profiling and persona building played a major role in ensuring that we were able to create a valuable community. The information and insights ascertained from the audience profiling process not only informed the nature of our content, but also the distribution strategy that would allow the brand to reach those audiences.

Using carefully optimised email communications and marketing automation, we were able to deliver the right content, to the right people, at precisely the right time.

Build a community of brand advocates.

Using this content and a range of eCRM and content distribution techniques, we were able to build a community of true brand advocates.

Through engagement scoring, we could measure the true value of each and every member of the brand’s digital community. This methodology ensured that we understood the value of engagement, measuring just how consumers were engaging with the content. We could then determine how to use that engagement and those audience interactions to deliver sales-focused content at the right time in the customer lifecycle.

That insight ensured that we could see exactly how we were engaging with audiences, fostering brand loyalty and delivering increased customer lifetime value for the client in this incredibly competitive sector.

34

In Summary

35

“People who had rarely, if ever, dabbled in the world of ecommerce actually got used to the idea of ordering products from the comfort of their own home.

“We will find out just how much of that behaviour actually sticks, but

there is a compelling case that the post-coronavirus world will inherently be

more digital.”

36

Digital becomes a key battleground as we head to the ‘nervous normal’.The post-COVID-19 economy is one that is going to be full of uncertainty and challenges for almost every marketer at every brand. When and how consumers start reverting to their usual spending patterns is somewhat unknown, but the pandemic has potentially altered many buying habits for the long term.

The lockdown forced millions of consumers in the UK to online grocery delivery, to ordering basic essentials online and people who had rarely, if ever, dabbled in the world of ecommerce actually got used to the idea of ordering products from the comfort of their own home.

What we will find out in the coming months and years is just how much of that behaviour actually sticks, but there is a compelling case that the post-coronavirus world will inherently be more digital.

Consumers will become wary of crowded shopping centres for some time to come. They will likely reduce their retail visits to the bare minimum. They will become much more considered about what they buy and how they buy it, and they will look for more value from those products.

Digital provides brands with the opportunity to not only deliver that reassurance to consumers, but to

provide them with the products that they need on their terms.

The techniques that we have discussed in this guide will allow brands to engage audiences and build trust and authority with those audiences, allow brands to come to market with an effective direct selling proposition and allow them to build lasting relationships with those consumers.

Deployed effectively, these techniques enable brands to make their investment in digital work much harder, deliver greater returns on investment and ensure that they are in position to respond to how consumers find products in 2020 and beyond.

37

The Next Steps

Understand what your consumers are asking, how they are asking it and reassure them that they are making the right decision.

As consumers look to make more informed decisions about the products they buy, even for traditionally low-consideration purchases, there is a growing demand for content that tackles common consumer questions and queries.

Consumer brands are well positioned to provide that content, using their brand equity and expertise to provide content that guides and reassures consumers to make the right purchasing decision.

By understanding the questions that your audiences have, identifying what triggers those questions and understanding how that translates to search behaviour, brands can engage consumers, build authority and drive sales both online and in store.

Take greater ownership of every stage of the customer journey, from initial engagement through to customer loyalty.

We have seen a shifting pattern of FMCG and CPG manufacturers taking greater control of the overall customer journey, as consumers have shown an increased willingness to research their purchases, try alternative products and remain less loyal to traditional brands.

Several FMCG brands, either through start-up projects or through brand acquisitions, have embraced direct-to-consumer ecommerce in many product categories, using alternative business models to overcome the challenge of more transient consumers and enhance overall customer lifetime value.

This trend looks set to continue post-COVID-19 and it is up to brands to understand what the customer journey looks like in this new retail environment.

Review your customer touchpoints, digitise those that you can and reduce your reliance on those that you can’t.

The retail industry is likely to see a dramatic shift following the COVID-19 pandemic and that is largely going to be driven by how motivated consumers are to visit physical retail outlets.

Many may remain nervous about crowded shopping malls and supermarkets. Others may have been permanently won-over by the convenience of ecommerce.

Both of these scenarios mean that brands need to think about their customer touchpoints, reviewing how relevant each one is in this new retail environment, digitising those that can be digitised and reducing the reliance on those that can’t be.

38

How can we help?With a pedigree in search marketing, we understand how to engage audiences online, and we use that experience to develop effective marketing automation strategies.

Our technology is like no other, with dedicated, proprietary tools that provide the insight and the intelligence to find the right audiences and make your content assets work harder.

And as part of IPG, we have the support of more than 54,000 colleagues around the world, helping us to deliver the results that you want at a local level, but on an international scale.

We can support you with:

• Search engine optimisation (SEO). • Search engine marketing (SEM).• Content Marketing.• Paid Search and Biddable Media.• Web Design and Development. • CRO and UX Optimisation.• Digital Strategy and Consultancy.• Marketing Automation

To discuss how Stickyeyes can help your brand, contact:

Simon Purkis, simon.purkis@stickyeyes.com0113 3912929

39

West One, Wellington Street,Leeds, United KingdomLS1 4LTT. +44 (0)113 391 2929

42-46 St Johns SquareLondon, United KingdomEC1M 4EAT. +44 (0)207 073 7185

www.stickyeyes.com /stickyeyes @stickyeyes /company/stickyeyes /stickyeyes