If you work in brand management you now have the liberty to consult a consumer whenever you want…the value of actually listening to real consumers is immense and I am slightly obsessed with doing the below. I thought I would put it up here as although I am sure Gen Y marketers are doing this without thinking…the Gen X-ers might need a little push…
1. YouTube
YouTube is rich in customer reviews – especially in beauty. The consumers go detail by detail to try out new products and compare competitors. It is fascinating and eye opening and you can even interact with the vloggers.
What I learnt in 5 min - don’t believe your customer can’t be outsmarted - on a competitor new mascara the packaging features the 7 Must Haves of Perfect Lashes - cleverly worded and placed that although it does not claim to deliver on these (would never get through legal)the consumer makes the link and presumes that it does. I thought people would never fall for this obvious trick – WRONG – 10 people just repeated themselves believing that the mascara did all 7!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaAHnY2e9t0
2. Twitter
On twitter you will find reactions from people that are not so engaged in the category – people also do not think too much about what they right here so it is more spontaneous.
What I learnt in 5 min - our latest Ad campaign is rubbing people up the wrong way! But at least they are talking about it…
3. Facebook
Fan sites for my brand, Fan sites for competitors. Lots of people that want to talk about the products, advertising etc.
What I learnt in 5 min – some people feel very strongly about false lashes used in advertising…luckily we don’t use them 
4. Work Instore
I spent last Friday working in-store at the make-up counter talking to people whilst they bought cosmetics, finding out what they want, how they look at our offering, what they think and feel about cosmetics and why they need cosmetics. This is the best exposure to the customer one can get. We are so far away in our offices – an exercise like this re-focuses you on what is important.
5. Spezify
I am slightly obsessed with searching for my brand on here and seeing what’s hot. The website scans all sites for mentions of your brand or search words then displays them graphically based on popularity. At any moment of time you can get a great visualization of how consumers view your brand or the category. Try it out!
In conclusion, nothing gets you closer to the consumer than spending time with them, shopping with them and interviewing them … but these options are free and can be done at any time! Anyone else have some more suggestions?
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Hello, my name is Sarah. English girl, born in Canada, educated in Scotland and Spain, living in Sydney and working in Marketing for P&G . Love good advertising, cause marketing and beautiful branding. If you want to know more about me click
