Consumers devour content across a variety of platforms on a variety of devices. Reaching these people requires developing cross platform marketing campaigns, and ideally with celebrities and influencers for leveraged success.
— By Karen White

There are two elements of the most successful marketing efforts in the digital world. One is the utilization of multiple platforms, from television to social media. The second element is the inclusion of celebrities and influencers in the marketing campaign. Integration of these two elements is what some call magical marketing because consumers are reached on their preferred platforms and are encouraged to purchase goods and services by people they trust or admire.

Trust is crucial to marketing success because consumers want to know they are buying something based on the truth and not hype. Cross-platform marketing on different devices enables following users from one marketing channel to another which adds exponential value and individualizes marketing efforts. Using celebrities and influencers adds another layer of value to create the magic.

Across the Great Divide
Marketing is not nearly as simple as it used to be when running an ad on television was the premier marketing approach. Now the average consumer may watch television commercials; pick up a mobile phone and check out a Facebook ad or view a YouTube video; and later on get on the internet where ads galore are found as pop-ups and static ads on most products, services, and information websites. A typical consumer day includes using a television, mobile phone, tablet computer and/or desktop computer.

Cross-platform or cross-device marketing says: What if we could reach the user on multiple devices and platforms that include websites, a variety of social platforms, and conventional and streaming television?

Global company Lotame works with marketers, agencies, and media companies to develop a data-rich marketing solution across cookie-less web, mobile app and OTT environments. OTT is the acronym for “over-the-top” audio, video, or other content that bypasses cable, satellite, and broadcast delivery and is transmitted via the network. OTT content is supported by connected TV (CVT) and Smart TV devices.

Lotame is an expert in cutting-edge marketing technology and supports cross-device marketing as a means of targeting individuals rather than a large group. Instead, cross-device marketing follows the customer from channel to channel, delivers consistent messaging, creates a better user experience, and enables customizing campaigns. Another advantage of this strategy is that a company does not know for sure when a consumer will actually purchase a product, so having a presence wherever the consumer is will greatly increase the chances of marketing success. Targeting a specific individual provides a wealth of data about when and how there is a conversion. The data is then used to target similar users.

Lotame enables what it calls “people-based marketing” that enables marketers to create a single, unified customer journey and experience across devices. Real-time behavioral data, trends and patterns are analyzed.

Cross-device marketing has three stages which are identification, data collection, and automation. Use Amazon as an example. The retail giant can identify many target audiences; collect data; and then use the information generated to create a customer experience through desktop, mobile web, Alexa, and Prime service.

Enter Celebrities and Influencers
Identifying the customer journey to follow through devices and platforms is the first strategy. Social media alone has a number of options – Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and many others.

Social media also has developed influencers. The influencers are people who create word-of-mouth advertising by sharing information with their audience or community about a company’s products or services or the company’s activities, like social and environmental contributions. An influencer's circle of followers trust the influencer, so a company’s image is enhanced in the minds of people listening and watching.

Influencers are engaged with their community, making posts on social media, answering questions, and sharing audience experiences. Influencers are specialists in a particular area. For example, an influencer is an avid outdoorsperson, so the company sends camping equipment or hiking boots to the influencer to try out and review. The influencer has control of the marketing content as the person produces and distributes product or service information.

There are influencers with large audiences, but more micro-influencers are available and very cost effective. Each micro-influencer can have up to 10,000 followers, so small-to-medium sized companies can use them as they build their businesses.

Using a celebrity endorsement is a different strategy. Celebrities use their fame (name recognition, popularity and large audience) to associate with a product or service. Unlike the influencer, the celebrity usually delivers a message on a platform, like a television advertisement or a website ad meant to reach a large audience, and s/he is not holding a dialogue with fans. Some of that has changed as celebrities embrace social media or choose to promote a product on their own. However, the celebrity does not have the same relationship with the audience and may or may not use or test the product. The celebrity is hired to add fame to the brand and will deliver a message scripted by the company.

Combine and Leverage
Blend the cross-platform and the use of celebrities and influencers, and marketing is taken to a new effective level for the digital age.

As consumers change their habits for media consumption, it is important to reach them on the devices used. The captive cable and local television audience has gotten much smaller and will probably continue to shrink as the younger digital generations continue to cut the cable. Businesses will have to access them where they are – desktop internet, streaming television, tablets and mobile devices – and on the platforms they use.

Adaptly is another marketing company, and it focuses on positioning marketers on paid social. Their research showed that ad recall increased for television and social over television alone. Facebook was three times more cost-efficient than television and was more successful at brand lift.

Companies can utilize any combination of platforms that best fit their target audience viewing practices. Cultivate influencers and add a celebrity, and a powerful marketing strategy is in the making.