Vision - January/February 2008 - (Page 58) they began their entire research process on manufacturer websites.” The manufacturer’s site is an important step in the information-gathering stage, but there’s more work to be done. “While consumers may feel they are coming away with some good information, it’s still not a complete picture. Often the content is not oriented toward the consumers’ needs and contains lingo that is too technical,” says Mathies. Audits of six manufacturer websites reflective of the larger manufacturer landscape in the ForresterChannel Intelligence report “Must-Haves for Manufacturer Web Sites” found that among other shortcomings, “While the sites were clear to showcase the breadth of their product assortment, they provided little help in the form of guided navigation tools or comparison charts to assist customers in evaluating the offerings.” Finally, the Truth in Advertising: Tying Marketing Dollars to Sales Savvy electronics consumers now leapfrog among multiple touch points as they piece together the complete picture that finally results in a purchase. They may ask opinions of friends, assess product features on a manufacturer’s site, click on a timely email promotion or banner ad, compare brand pricing on a shopping engine and visit a store for a demo. For marketers assessing the performance of their advertising campaigns, this presents a conundrum: How can you know with any certainty the role each marketing channel or advertisement played in a sale? Evaluating performance of marketing efforts is more important than ever as CE marketers reach out to consumers in new and innovative ways. But typically online marketing efforts suffer from two breakpoints in essential data: where leads come from and which of those leads eventually convert to sales. A new end-to end tracking and analytics tool unveiled in late 2007 by Channel Intelligence, a technology company focused on Web-initiated commerce may provide some answers. Named TrueTag Analytics, the tool offers the ability to attach online sales to online marketing dollars in a manner previously unavailable, providing insight into buyer behavior across the entire online medium to help marketers make more effective campaign and channel management decisions. “With TrueTag Analytics, both brand and retail marketers can now follow traffic from their online initiation point right through to the sale,” says Rob Wight, Channel Intelligence president and CEO. “From the time a consumer engages online advertising, whether clicking a link in an email, comparing features of models on a manufacturer’s site or visiting online retail partners, marketers can see which campaigns ultimately contributed to what sales.” One thing is certain in the competitive CE playing field. Marketers who can provide the right touch at the right time and in the right place to consumers are sure to gain an edge. • It comes down to providing information and choices. “Consumer electronics retailers can differentiate themselves by providing more accurate and complete product information beyond what other retailers are providing to consumers and gain an advantage,” says Mathies. Online shoppers’ short attention spans are another factor to consider. “The instant access to information on the Internet has created the expectation that everything should be rapidly available— from complete product guides to images and reviews. Shoppers additionally expect that prices and points-of-sale can be easily compared,” comments Wight. better armed to resist superfluous marketing, and more skeptical than ever. With thousands of messages bombarding them everyday, buyers just want brands they can believe in from companies they can trust,” says Lynn Upshaw, principal of Upshaw Marketing and a member of the marketing faculty at Haas School of Business, in his book, Truth: New Rules for Marketing in a Skeptical World. Maintaining consistency of brand messaging throughout your channels, from manufacturer websites to retailer websites, comparison shopping engines, and vertical search engine listings can help contribute to the perception of brand trustworthiness. Most CE marketers have yet to find the right fit for their organizations to take advantage of the transparency demanded by consumers online. Still, there are a few making efforts to meet this challenge, from running blogs that help consumwww.ce.org What About Retailers? In the traditional retail world, the manufacturer typically provides the packaging and branding materials to retailers. But the paradigm online has evolved to where online retail stores are merchandised and goods are packaged by retailers. “It would be absurd to think of a traditional offline retailer taking those materials provided by the manufacturer, redoing graphics and wording, essentially repackaging the product, and then putting them up for shoppers to view, but that is what is essentially happening online,” says Rob Wight, CEO of Channel Intelligence, which specializes in Web-initiated commerce solutions. “You also must consider the role the manufacturer’s site plays in the trade channel and balance this with how information is provided to consumers,” says Wight. “While only eight to ten percent of shoppers may buy direct from a manufacturer’s online store, the amount of commerce that touches the Web is several times as much. You can maximize your multi-channel performance with up-to-date stock information for your authorized online retailers as well as local outlets. This allows you to give the consumer more of the choice they want to complete the purchase where, when and how they prefer,” Wight adds. The Skeptical Consumer As consumers draw together pieces of the picture from different places, you can bet they notice inconsistencies. “Consumers today are better informed, 58 January/February 2008 http://www.ce.org
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