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October 19, 2021 | Authored By
Every industry faces unique opportunities and challenges. But knowledge of specific operating environments has never been more difficult to gather—let alone translate into an effective advertising strategy. That’s because technology has decentralized the premium content advertising ecosystem and reshaped consumer behavior. Today’s viewers, for example, have 10 times as many content choices as they did five years ago.
As a result, marketers need informed partners with knowledge of general macroeconomic trends, as well as industry-specific insights, to maximize their advertising investment. At NBCU, we deliver this perspective. Our Client Strategy team has worked with hundreds of marketers and agency partners to develop expertise spanning numerous industries. Using that understanding, we help marketers navigate an ever-shifting consumer landscape and capitalize on constant change that will benefit them not just today, but long into the future.
We provide many services to ensure our partners achieve their goals, but here are three of the most essential ones.
1. Understanding the Marketplace
To discern shifting industry dynamics, our Client Strategy team runs marketplace analyses, examines customer attitudes, and conducts ongoing sector evaluations. The result is a 360-degree view of industries.
In addition to compiling exhaustive macroeconomic and industry research, our team works with clients to turn marketplace insights into actionable strategies. NBCU undoubtedly sits at the nexus of premium content, culture, and technology, so leveraging the power of our platform means helping marketers determine which activations will work the hardest for their investment.
For example, in the pharma space, we’ve identified a sizable cross-platform opportunity. We know viewers are shifting to digital, and yet, streaming comprises just 6% of pharma’s overall media spend. That disparity begs the question: How can pharma brands capitalize on the valuable white space in streaming? Our marketplace understanding ensures our clients are asking themselves the right questions, and sets them up for long-term success as they explore the solutions we provide.
2. Developing Evidence-Based Solutions
By immersing ourselves within industries and drawing on our breadth of experience, we use inside-the-industry knowledge to provide clients with outside-the-box solutions. For instance, our auto industry research showed that 2021 would be the breakout year for electric vehicles. Given the pandemic-related loss of auto shows, we counseled companies to drum up early awareness by taking their launches to Hollywood and turning them into tentpole moments. These moments can improve brand consideration by 41%, which is game-changing.
And we found another area to drive impact in the retail category. Our research showed that, compared to a completely offline shopper, the average omni-channel consumer makes purchases 70% more often and spends 34% more annually. To capitalize on this robust segment, NBCU is helping individual brands utilize our shoppable content and click-through technology. It’s how we move viewers through the funnel, leverage clients’ strengths, and bring our immersive knowledge to life.
3. Uncovering Value Today and Tomorrow
In addition to overnight shifts in markets and industries, our Client Strategy team identifies overarching trends around which marketers can build their own long-term strategies. And one of the past year’s most prominent has been the importance of purpose. Right now, 68% of Americans want brands to articulate their values.
That trend has specific implications for all sectors, even ones you might not expect, like travel, where consumers increasingly want to vacation with intention. And there’s a halo effect at work, too: Every dollar spent on travel leads to three additional dollars spent in indirect categories. That means every company should be thinking about how to align their brand, what story to tell, and who to reach.
We’ve also noticed another overarching trend—the growth of specific audience segments. Multicultural consumers are not only shaping culture but also have tremendous spending power, expected to reach almost $5 trillion in 2023. And since this influence will only continue to grow, every industry needs to reach this audience in relevant ways. The same is true for small businesses. Last year, a record 7.7 million businesses were founded, providing B2B companies a huge audience for the taking.
At NBCU, we want to make the most out of every partnership. To that end, we encourage you to take advantage of our Client Strategy team for ongoing marketplace analysis, industry insights, or just a future-focused point of view. With our consultative, category-focused approach, we will customize a solution to help you achieve your goals today, tomorrow, and for years to come.
