Intent or disruption driven?
What is driving your marketing?
Intent-driven marketing is a strategy that focuses on understanding the specific needs, wants, and motivations of customers- their intentions and tailoring marketing messages and tactics accordingly. The goal of intent-driven marketing is to create personalized experiences that are relevant, useful, and engaging to customers, build stronger relationships, and increase conversion rates. This approach requires a deep understanding of customer behavior, preferences, and intentions, and relies heavily on data analysis and segmentation to target the right audience with the right message at the right time.
Disruption-driven marketing, on the other hand, is a more aggressive and disruptive approach that aims to capture customers’ attention and create buzz through unconventional and unexpected tactics. This can include provocative advertising, guerrilla marketing, or creating viral content that generates a lot of buzz on social media. The goal of disruption-driven marketing is to break through the clutter and stand out from competitors, and it can be particularly effective in crowded or saturated markets. However, it can also be risky and may not always be well-received by customers.
Understanding the differences between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing is essential for businesses looking to develop a successful marketing strategy. Each approach has its own strengths and weaknesses, and what works for one business may not work exactly for another. By understanding the similarities, and differences between these two strategies, businesses can make more informed decisions about which tactics to use, how to allocate resources, and which metrics to track. This clarity allows us to better align our marketing with our product lifecycle and align strategies with market demands. For example, if a company value building strong, long-term relationships with customers, an intent-driven approach may be more effective. On the other hand, if a company is looking to disrupt a market or capture attention quickly, a disruption-driven approach may be more appropriate. Additionally, by understanding the differences between these two approaches, businesses can better anticipate and manage the potential risks and drawbacks of each approach.
This post will provide you with a deeper understanding of the differences between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing and explore the advantages and disadvantages of each. I hope to help you make a more informed decision about your approach to marketing and to provide insights into how these approaches can be used in different contexts and for different goals. This post will cover topics such as customer engagement, targeting and personalization, customer relationship management, and measuring success, to provide a comprehensive overview of these two marketing approaches. Ultimately, the goal of this post is to help businesses develop more effective and impactful marketing strategies that drive growth and success.
Deep dive: Intent-Driven
This strategy involves analyzing customer data and doing proper data segmentation to target the right audience with the right message at the right time. The key to intent-driven marketing is understanding the customer’s intent. This means understanding what the customer is looking for, what their needs and interests are, and how they prefer to engage with brands. By understanding the customer’s intent, you can deliver personalized experiences that are tailored to their specific needs, which leads to higher engagement and ultimately higher conversion rates. Intent-driven marketing is all about putting the customer at the center of the marketing strategy and delivering a seamless experience that meets their needs.
There are many different dimensions to implementing an intent-driven marketing approach. One common approach is content marketing, which involves creating valuable, informative, and engaging content that is tailored to the customer’s interests and needs. This content can take many forms, such as blog posts, videos, infographics, and social media posts. By creating high-quality content that speaks directly to the customer’s needs and interests, businesses can establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry and build trust with their audience. Another approach is customer segmentation through signals. This involves dividing customers into different groups based on their interests, behavior, and demographics, and targeting each group with specific messages and tactics. For example, a business might segment their customers based on their past purchase history or their preferences, and then use that information to deliver personalized offers and promotions that are tailored to each group’s specific needs. By segmenting their customers and delivering personalized experiences, businesses can create a stronger connection with their audience and increase the likelihood of conversion.
Of course, Intent-driven Marketing comes with its own uniqueness and advantages. One of the primary benefits is that it allows businesses to build stronger relationships with their customers. By delivering personalized experiences that meet their needs and interests, businesses can establish themselves as trusted partners and build loyalty with their audience. This leads to higher customer satisfaction and ultimately higher retention rates. Another benefit of intent-driven marketing is that it can lead to higher conversion rates. By delivering personalized experiences and targeted messages, businesses can increase the relevance and usefulness of their marketing efforts, which leads to higher engagement and ultimately higher conversion rates. This can be especially important in highly competitive industries where customers have many options to choose from. Intent-driven marketing can help businesses to optimize their marketing spend. By targeting the right audience with the right message at the right time, businesses can maximize the impact of their marketing efforts and reduce wasteful spending. This leads to higher ROI and more efficient use of resources.
You may want to be careful in your plan to use intent-driven marketing, as there are core factors that can influence the success of an intent-driven marketing approach. One such factor is the quality of the customer data. To deliver personalized experiences, businesses need access to high-quality customer data that is accurate, relevant, and up-to-date. This data can be collected through a variety of channels, such as social media, email, and website analytics, and must be analyzed and segmented to be useful. Another factor that can influence the success of intent-driven marketing is the level of personalization. While personalization is a key component of intent-driven marketing, it’s important to strike a balance between personalization and privacy. Customers are becoming increasingly concerned about data privacy and may be hesitant to share too much information with businesses. Therefore, it’s important to be transparent. If personalization gets overboard, it can also become creepy!
Enough on intent-driven marketing before it looks like I have a bias toward intent-driven marketing. Let’s take a deep look at disruption-driven marketing.
Deep dive: Disruption Driven
Disruption-driven marketing is a marketing strategy that seeks to break the mold of traditional marketing tactics by introducing new, innovative approaches that challenge established norms and expectations. This approach involves taking calculated risks and thinking outside the box to capture customers’ attention and create a memorable experience. The goal of disruption-driven marketing is to stand out from the competition, create buzz, and ultimately increase brand awareness and conversion rates.
Disruption-driven marketing is all about taking a bold approach to marketing that challenges the status quo. This may involve using unconventional marketing channels, adopting an unusual tone of voice, or taking a stance on controversial issues. Whatever the approach, the goal is to create a memorable experience that captures customers’ attention and leaves a lasting impression.
There are many strategies that businesses can use to implement a disruption-driven marketing approach. One common strategy is guerrilla marketing, which involves using unconventional and often low-cost tactics to promote a product or service. This can include things like flash mobs, public stunts, and creative advertising campaigns. By taking a bold approach to marketing, businesses can create buzz and capture customers’ attention in unexpected ways. Another key strategy in disruption-driven marketing is influencer marketing. This involves partnering with influencers and thought leaders in the industry to promote a product or service. By leveraging the influence and reach of these individuals, businesses can gain access to a wider audience and create a more authentic and engaging experience. This can be especially effective in industries where customers are highly influenced by peer recommendations and social media.
One of the primary benefits of disruption-driven marketing is that it can help businesses to stand out in a crowded marketplace. By taking a bold and innovative approach to marketing, businesses can create a memorable experience that captures customers’ attention and sets them apart from the competition. This can lead to increased brand awareness and ultimately higher conversion rates.
Another benefit of disruption-driven marketing is that it can help businesses to create a more authentic and engaging experience for their customers. By adopting an unconventional approach to marketing, businesses can create a more human and relatable brand image that resonates with their audience. This can lead to stronger relationships and higher customer loyalty. Disruption-driven marketing can also help businesses to drive innovation and stay ahead of the curve. By taking calculated risks and pushing the boundaries of traditional marketing, businesses can create a culture of experimentation and innovation that drives growth and success over the long term.
However, there are several factors that can influence the success of a disruption-driven marketing approach. One key factor is the level of risk tolerance within the organization. Disruption-driven marketing involves taking calculated risks and challenging established norms, which can be uncomfortable for some organizations. Therefore, it’s important to have a culture of experimentation and innovation that encourages taking risks and learning from failure.
Another factor that can influence the success of disruption-driven marketing is the level of creativity and innovation within the marketing team. Disruption-driven marketing requires out-of-the-box thinking and a willingness to experiment with new and unconventional approaches. Therefore, it’s important to have a team that is creative, innovative, and willing to take risks to succeed. It’s important to have a deep understanding of the target audience and their preferences. Disruption-driven marketing can be a powerful tool for capturing customers’ attention, but it’s important to ensure that the approach is aligned with their needs and interests. Therefore, it’s important to conduct thorough research and testing to ensure that the approach resonates with the target audience.
Differentiation
I believe there are these four concerns that clearly differentiate these two approaches to marketing and will be the best way to explain them in detail. While I will try not to draw a strong conclusion on one against the other, your marketing goal will be a good judge here while I try to open your mind to both approaches and their similarities.
- Customer Engagement and Interaction
One of the key differences between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing is the approach to customer engagement and interaction. Intent-driven marketing focuses on providing relevant and personalized content that meets the needs of the customer. The goal is to build a relationship with the customer by providing them with valuable information that they find useful. In contrast, disruption-driven marketing aims to create a memorable experience that captures customers’ attention in unexpected ways. The goal is to create buzz and generate excitement around the brand. The approaches to customer engagement and interaction differ yet, both intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing share a focus on creating a positive customer experience. Both approaches recognize the importance of building a strong relationship with the customer and creating a brand that resonates with their needs and interests.
2. Targeting and Personalization
Another key difference between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing is the approach to targeting and personalization. Intent-driven marketing uses data and analytics to target specific customer segments with personalized content that meets their needs and interests. The goal is to create a highly targeted and personalized experience that resonates with the customer. Disruption-driven marketing, on the other hand, focuses on creating a broad appeal that captures the attention of a wide audience. The goal is to create a memorable experience that stands out from the competition. Yes, a different approach when it comes to the data involved but how the data is used is very similar. Both intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing recognize the importance of targeting and personalization in creating a successful marketing campaign. Both approaches aim to create a relevant and engaging experience for the customer, whether through personalized content or through an innovative and memorable experience.
3. Customer Relationship Management
Do these two strategies have the same approach to customer relationship management? Intent-driven marketing focuses on building long-term relationships with the customer by providing them with valuable content, and experiences that meet their needs and interests. The goal is to create a loyal customer base that will continue to engage with the brand over time. Disruption-driven marketing, on the other hand, focuses on creating a buzz and generating excitement around the brand and products. The goal is to create a short-term spike in interest that captures the attention of a wide audience howbeit, with a long-term goal in mind. Despite these differences, both approaches recognize the importance of customer relationship management in creating a successful marketing campaign. Both intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing aim to build a strong relationship with the customer and create a brand that resonates with their needs and interests.
4. Measuring Success
Finally, a key difference between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing is the approach to measuring success. Intent-driven marketing focuses on metrics like engagement rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates. The goal is to measure the effectiveness of the marketing campaign in terms of driving customer engagement and conversion. Disruption-driven marketing, on the other hand, focuses on metrics like brand awareness and social media buzz. The goal is to measure the effectiveness of the marketing campaign in terms of creating a memorable experience that captures customers’ attention. Both approaches recognize the importance of measuring success in creating a successful marketing campaign. Both intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing aim to evaluate the effectiveness of the campaign in achieving its goals and making data-driven decisions for future campaigns and both work for performance marketing (I hope you have not been reading this far to see if I will choose one against the other).
Will you or will you not?
I have managed to get this far without knocking anything off. I think a bit of knocking will be healthy for this kind of topic. Yes, let’s do the pros and cons. Don’t worry, it will be on both sides.
Advantages of Intent-driven Marketing
One of the advantages of intent-driven marketing is that it is highly targeted and personalized, which can lead to higher conversion rates. By understanding the needs and interests of the customer, marketers can provide them with relevant content that meets their needs and encourages them to act. Intent-driven marketing also allows for a more long-term approach to customer relationship management, as the focus is on building a strong relationship with the customer over time. By tracking metrics like engagement rates and conversion rates, marketers can evaluate the effectiveness of their campaigns and make data-driven decisions about how to improve their strategies.
Disadvantages of Intent-driven Marketing
One of the disadvantages of intent-driven marketing is that it can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. To create highly personalized and targeted content, marketers may need to invest significant resources into data analysis and content creation. Additionally, intent-driven marketing may be less effective for capturing the attention of new customers who are not yet familiar with the brand or customers with no intent known. Another disadvantage of intent-driven marketing is that it may be less effective in highly competitive markets. In markets where there are many similar products or services, it can be difficult to differentiate the brand based on personalized content alone.
Advantages of Disruption-driven Marketing
One of the advantages of disruption-driven marketing is that it can create a memorable experience that captures customers’ attention and generates excitement around the brand. By creating an unexpected and innovative experience, marketers can stand out from the competition and create a lasting impression on the customer. Another advantage of disruption-driven marketing is that it can be highly effective in generating buzz and social media attention. By creating a unique and shareable experience, marketers can leverage the power of social media to increase brand awareness and reach a wider audience.
Disadvantages of Disruption-driven Marketing
One of the disadvantages of disruption-driven marketing is that it can be difficult to measure the effectiveness of the campaign. While metrics like brand awareness and social media buzz can be tracked, it may be difficult to attribute these metrics to specific business outcomes like increased sales or customer retention- a big concern to finance managers. Another disadvantage of disruption-driven marketing is that it can be risky. By creating an unexpected and innovative experience, marketers run the risk of alienating some customers who may not appreciate the disruption. Additionally, disruption-driven marketing may be less effective in markets where customers are more risk-averse and prefer more traditional marketing approaches.
Let me look for a way to close this discussion here.
Intent-driven marketing and disruption-driven marketing are two distinct approaches to marketing that can be used to achieve different goals. Intent-driven marketing involves using customer data to create personalized content and build long-term relationships with customers, while disruption-driven marketing involves creating memorable and unexpected experiences that generate buzz and increase brand awareness.
Both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages. Intent-driven marketing is highly targeted and personalized, which can lead to higher conversion rates and stronger customer relationships. However, it can be resource-intensive and less effective in highly competitive markets. Disruption-driven marketing can be highly effective in generating buzz and social media attention, but it can also be risky and difficult to measure the effectiveness of the campaign.
The choice between intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing ultimately depends on the goals and needs of the business. For businesses that rely on strong customer relationships, such as those in the service industry, intent-driven marketing may be the more effective approach. On the other hand, businesses that are looking to generate buzz and increase brand awareness, such as those in the fashion or entertainment industries, may find that disruption-driven marketing is more effective.
It’s important for businesses to carefully consider their goals and resources before deciding on a marketing approach. While both intent-driven and disruption-driven marketing can be effective in their own ways, choosing the wrong approach can lead to wasted resources and missed opportunities. Choosing the right marketing approach is crucial for businesses that want to achieve their marketing goals and maximize their resources. As customer preferences and market conditions change, the most effective marketing approach may also change. By staying attuned to these changes and being willing to adjust their approach, businesses can stay ahead of the curve and remain competitive in their industry.