Immediate Responses Through Real-Time Marketing

2 min read
Mar 18, 2020 6:02:33 PM

Real-time marketing is a communications strategy that includes current events and customer needs into a marketing message to achieve better customer loyalty.

  • Real-time marketing utilises current events and customer needs for a prompt customer approach.
  • Real-time marketing succeeds when campaigns are prepared appropriately. When executed online, they can resort to marketing automation.
  • In the B2B sector, real-time marketing is more complicated because here, purchasing decisions are often made by groups of people rather than by individuals. 

Keep in Touch and Draw Attention to Offers

Two critical requirements for successful real-time marketing determine what is currently driving potential as well as existing customers. Real-time marketing means not only to carry out prepared campaigns but also to respond directly to current trends. This could be a political or sporting event or just the weather. With this mindset, Uber swiftly repurposed their drivers to mobile ice cream suppliers when temperatures reached record levels for many days last year. Such a promotional use of current events can, of course, be realised wonderfully quickly and cost-effectively via social media. However, there are also good examples of real-time advertising in print media.

The smart picking up of current issues is an excellent way to draw attention to one’s own company and its offers. Additionally, real-time marketing is more effective if the immediate customer’s needs are addressed. This means that the advertising message should not only be funny but also relate directly to the customer’s needs. If possible, suitable offers should be created directly for this purpose.

Marketing Automation Helps

Real-time marketing campaigns are usually only successful if they were prepared before the event occurs. If everything is developed and implemented spontaneously, it could lead to significant delays that jeopardise the campaign. This is where bright and effective marketing teams or automation tools (when referring to online marketing) are essential. If the required database is based on interactions between customers and platform users, marketing measures can automatically be tailored precisely to this, considering location, season, weather and the position in the customer lifecycle. If automated reactions to user actions occur in real time, it is referred to as real-time marketing automation.

Real-Time Marketing Is More Complicated in B2B Interactions

B2B marketing looks slightly different when compared to B2C marketing, as it does not address the preferences and needs of individuals. In target companies, procurement is often decided among several stakeholders. In this setting, the “customer" is much more composed of several people, instances and interests. This complicates continuous data gathering, which constitutes the foundation for real-time marketing. In the B2B context, it is vital to determine the interests of the potential customer through empirical indicators such as purchasing behaviour and its activity across industries and networks. Marketing automation caters to business customers by itself but must be paired with competent customer service representatives.

A Useful Tool for Customer Loyalty

Regardless of B2B or B2C, real-time marketing is an excellent tool to increase customer loyalty. Owing to the volume of interactions at different touchpoints, the customer and the company are always in close contact. In this way, the company is less likely to be forgotten, thereby increasing its availability when the customer requires it. On the other hand, advertisers should not contact customers too obtrusively, as personalised campaigns can also backfire. Automated marketing campaigns must be able to recognise disinterest or even defensive customer behaviour. The best way to check the processes from time to time is through account managers of flesh and blood.

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