There is an element of creative destruction in the global marketplace. The Internet turned the tables on the old brands in terms of marketing. Printed ads and media attention are not the go-to ways to market products and services in this age of technology.
The Internet and social media sites changed the way consumers view brands. Brands have to incorporate a more personal approach in order to attract new consumers. Brands also have to keep their existing clients happy to stay relevant in the ever-changing marketplace.
A Key Opinion Leader Can Change A Brand’s Internet Marketing Game
Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) are not new. In the pre-Internet days, people like Jimmy Dean became a KOL by lending his country music credibility to a Nashville-based food company that launched a breakfast sausage. Dolly Parton used her music and her name to bring people to her hometown of Pigeon Forge when an investment group developed a theme park called Dollywood.
Dollywood had stiff competition from Opryland back in the 1990s. But the owners of Opryland did not have a KOL like Dolly to promote their country-western-type theme park. The Opryland theme park closed, and Dollywood is still open. Some news reports credit the country music singer for being a key opinion leader. She helped make the theme park a success.
When the Internet became a global supermarket and retail mecca, KOLs became important for new brands that needed web exposure. Brands like Coca-Cola and other big corporations hired a social media analytics company to handle the ups and downs of Internet marketing. Coca-Cola put its marketing faith in NetBase Quid. NetBaseQuid is a social media analytics company that uses Artificial Intelligence to increase brand awareness.
Social Media Analytics Is A Complicated Venture
Several social media analytics companies surfaced as the Internet took over as the store where bargains and chatter set the buying pace for new brands with techie-type products. In order for brands to succeed, they need a marketing strategy that includes social media posting, blogging, and texting. Brands also need accurate and timely market intelligence to stay ahead of the competition.
A key opinion leader adds credence and a voice to the arsenal of marketing tools a brand needs. Coca-Cola picked NetBaseQuid (NBQ) to handle its marketing. NetBaseQuid helped develop the right KOLs in different segments of the company’s consumer market. NBQ’s AI platform gives clients a complete picture of who they are in the Internet marketplace. NBQ also shows brands how to increase their market share without spending a fortune on focus groups and ads that fall through the advertising cracks.
Key Opinion Leaders Set The Marketing Pace
A KOL is an expert in a specific sector of the economy. Celebrities act like KOLs, but they are more influencers than opinion leaders. Celebrities are not experts. But they have enough clout to influence a buying decision when emotional-driven consumers want help selecting a brand. Supporting a brand can be emotional, but letting emotions influence purchases can be a slippery buying slope.
There is an element of faith when a brand puts all its marketing marbles in the hands of an AI marketing platform. And there is a sense of excitement when a key opinion leader steps up and sings the praises and accomplishments of the brand they represent.
Once all the marketing tools are in place, a brand can use those tools to change new product development strategies to meet the ever-changing demands of new consumers. And brands can also reinforce their image by giving their voice to an expert who tells it like it is without all the buying drama.