According to Ebbinghaus’ forgetting curve, brands don’t have long to make a lasting impression on prospects and customers. Bearing this in mind, we look at seven important considerations in making your digital strategy memorable.
Goldfish have nothing on us. While we may think we possess more superior memories than our pets, Ebbinghaus’ forgetting curve argues otherwise.
Ebbinghaus’ forgetting curve hypothesizes the decline of memory retention in time. And according to the curve, after 20 minutes, you retain only 60% of information you take in. After one hour your retention rate goes down to less than 50%.
It’s better than a goldfish’s alleged 20-second memory perhaps, but it doesn’t bode well for brands hoping to make a lasting impression on our recall with their ads.
So the question is, how can we apply (and maximise any benefits from) this theory to the current climate?
Ebbinghaus’ forgetting curve theory is more relevant today than ever. Why? Because the brands who pull their marketing budget right now and stop advertising are the ones who are more likely to stop existing.
Seven things you need to do to make your digital strategy memorable
The simple truth is that if you want to avoid falling foul of the forgetting curve you need to keep your brand firmly visible – and memorable – to your audience.
Here are seven considerations to help you achieve this.
1) Make the most of new online behaviour
Ad spend on digital advertising has increased 2.8% year-on-year and 90% of current remote workers are audio streamers.
Behaviours have shifted, and not just within retail. And now is the time to ensure these behaviours are here to stay. So align your ads with your audiences, highlight what online is offering (for example, free delivery, discounts etc.), advertise the benefits of ordering online and make the user purchase journey as simple and efficient as possible.
2) Make sure your ads are relevant
If you didn’t get on the DCO boat in 2018, now is the next best time. Every single advertiser is ready for DCO – use this approach to bring new customers into your lifecycle, combine the right message at the right time with the right audience and finally up-sell/cross-sell via customised messaging.
Crimtan specialise in intelligent lifecycle marketing and have built strategies to deliver maximum value to our clients. This is powered by our proprietary technology and trading expertise, as we understand the key to a successful campaign is personalisation.
3) Embrace video
Video is the format that saw the most growth in 2019, and is likely to see even more growth in 2020 considering all the other external factors impacting day-to-day information consumption.
Although video is considered a branding piece, it is critical to making online purchases (especially more expensive purchases) as it helps you see the product up-close while also building trust via human voices.
4) Give your ads the human touch
82% of Generation Z trusts a company more if the images it uses in its ads are of actual customers.
People trust brands that advertise based on real customers as opposed to generic images, so show actual people in your ads. In addition, anything that can make your audiences feel connected to real people will resonate better with audiences in these times and in many months to come.
5) Use socially conscious messaging
Being socially conscious is important, and key to success or failure for brands; socially conscious messaging resonates well with users today (especially Millennials and Generation Z), so mention what your brand stands for; if it supports a charity – if it is carbon free – if it is green – if it is socially conscious.
6) Remember that not all news is bad news
Time spent on news digital sites and apps are up 29% with younger people (18-29) having experienced the greatest shift.
So stop excluding news sites. Not all news is bad news! Australians have been engaging with news sites heavily and this change in behavior is here to stay.
7) Go mobile
35% of Australians have significantly increased the time they spend on their mobile phones. Mobile devices now drive over 52% of web traffic and account for two out of three minutes spent online.
This shows how important it is to reach audiences across this device. We recommend video, audio and display advertising across this device as people are consuming most of their content while also making majority of their purchases across smart phones.
How will you make your brand noticeable – and memorable?
It is important to remember that the new normal is likely to look quite different. Many more people will be working from home, consumer demands will change and online advertisements will need to cater to changing behaviors.
Relevance and personalisation is key to the success of your brand while ensuring you remain socially conscious and relevant. Find the mix that works for your brand and navigate your advertising in the right direction!
Written by Rahila Nadir. Rahila Nadir is a Senior Technical Account Manager in our Australia office. You can get in touch with Rahila via our Sydney office.