Marketing a ‘Moment’

Sneha Nayuni | President | Crowd Core

“Moment marketing is the ability to take advantage of an event to deliver relevant and related, seemingly spontaneous, and often fleeting interactions with customers in real time.”

—William Grobel, Senior Manager, Deloitte Digital. Toolkit 2016; Moment Marketing

The act of sending the correct message to the appropriate audience, at the right time, in context, is referred to as moment marketing (or right time marketing). Moment marketing entails incorporating news, current events, or trends (political and non-political) into advertising campaigns to elicit immediate emotions and engagements from the audience.

Moment Marketing is a low-cost strategy for raising brand recognition. Brands that are just getting started might use moment marketing to reach their target demographic. With the rise of social media platforms and increased internet accessibility, more consumers are connecting with companies. If companies develop content that is relevant to their brand and is based on current events or subjects, they have a better chance of increasing brand recognition.

And the people behind these campaigns aren't psychologists. They simply have a better understanding of situations and consumer behavior than others. They understand the value of moments and when it is advantageous to seize them.

After all, in this world of overwhelming information density, those who know how to communicate the right thing at the right time are the ones who stand out.

Since the inception of social media platforms, moment marketing has taken the centre stage. They communicate at a time when the customer is most receptive to listening and interacting. This method of “right-time marketing” as it is often called, is the shortest path between the brand and its customer. In these kinds of efforts, speed is crucial. Brands must respond quickly to capitalize the moment while it is still relevant. This is how brands will be able to become part of the continuous debate.

For example, Battle of Winterfell (episode 3) of Game of Thrones. Social media went berserk for - as soon as the show aired.

It being so DARK and its epic dialogue – “not today”.

Now was the time for companies to seize the opportunity to join the conversation and become viral....and a lot of people did.

However, this does not imply that brands should discuss everything that goes viral. The most important component is to discuss topics that are related to the brand and its basic idea.

Amul is a pioneer in the field of Moment Marketing, having begun by running topical commercials in 1966. It is the world's longest-running outdoor advertising. Amul has leveraged its iconic "utterly butterly girl" to stay relevant by being innovative and funny with the day's headlines.

Amul used to run one advertising per month in the 1960s; in the 1970s and 1980s, it ran one every 15 days; in the 1990s, it climbed to one every week; and today it runs up to five advertisements per week, with continual participation on various social media platforms. The campaign's target demographic is 16–25-year-olds. This audience is always on their phone, has strong opinions, and is aware of their surroundings.

Amul has never shied away from expressing their views. It accomplishes this by making the advertising amusing. The most critical requirement, though, is that the commercials and campaigns are always relevant.

Moment marketing has been there for a long time and will continue to exist as digital platforms gain traction. Because people's attention spans are shortening all the time, hence quick and brief yet relevant material will always be in demand. Brands just need to be conscious of their choices of the material they develop and concentrate on how quickly they can deliver it to their target audience.