Andrew Hennings Predictions for the Digital Industry in 2008

2008 may be tipped to be the year that mobile marketing takes off, but it's also the year when ROI and delivering results will be under even more scrutiny.

Our answer to clients who ask 'should we be doing more with mobile' is 'if it's right for your target customer'. For some brands, for certain marketing communications, it is just not always appropriate. But it can be a fantastic enhancement, and deliver results as part of an integrated campaign or to do a specific job. But usability is key, and I think as people rush to ‘go mobile’ it’s easy to forget what an impact a poorly designed mobile site or communication can have. We make usability part of the design process here at Redweb. It has to be to ensure the customer is stimulated to engage with it and, hopefully, respond. The design, the creative and the copy are all key to this as well.

There is also a lot of talk about the potential of 'Second Life' and convergence, but I don’t see the point of trying to second guess the technology when the real driver is the customer. Let’s face it, none of us know what they are going to do and it could drive a revolution that does not even exist yet - sites like Second Life and Facebook were barely mentioned a year ago.

So for me the real issue is staying close to the customer. That means spending time and money getting to know your target customer behaviours then test, review, adapt and build on your knowledge. ROI will be the driver in 2008 and it is this that will drive the technologies and campaigns developed in the coming year.

This is where digital can really deliver. It is unique in it’s ability to learn quickly from a customer’s response and adapt instantly. This implicit personalisation is something you can’t achieve in so many other media.

Integration (of media) is a recurring theme at the moment. There’s sense in it; you only have to look at yourself. None of us are one dimensional beings, revolving in an isolated space yet we all make decisions and spend money every day. Motivational behaviour, at its core, does not change so much. The key is spending time understanding the customer journey and the motivating variables that affect decision making along the way and choosing your message, your creative and your methods of delivery accordingly.

So all the best for 2008. It’s going to be an exciting year!