Brands need to engage consumers if they are to survive, and this trend is only going to increase and brands will have to find more reasons to be engaging. In the last five years the consumer has changed drastically, meaning that for a brand to exist beyond today it has to understand that it is no longer about awareness. This is not good enough; and the brand's role has to be meaningful.
"It is about understanding how brands are relevant in consumers' lives today," says Andrew Ross, Managing Director, Havas Sports & Entertainment South Africa.
"The social media revolution has brought us clutter and this means we cannot rely on just awareness. You have six seconds to make an impact or you are not forgotten about, you are deleted," he says.
Adding to this Fredda Hurwitz, Chief Strategy Officer, Havas Sports & Entertainment, on a visit to South Africa, explains that in the future for brands to secure consumer loyalty, it will have to understand the triggers to brand love. "Music is a powerful trigger for brands and a passion point for consumers," she says.
This is not an assumption Hurwitz is making; it is a finding from the recently released FANS.PASSIONS.BRANDS global survey which was conducted in May 2015 across 17 markets including South Africa. The research method involved online questionnaires given to a total of 18,000 people, aged 13+, carried out by YouGov.
The survey examined the role of music in engaging consumers. The survey found that: "With music is the most universal of passions, it is an effective channel for brands looking to connect with target audiences through what they love. However brands need to understand the motivations and behaviours of music fans in order to target them effectively."
Coca-Cola is a pioneer in this space, not only through music but in drawing different passion points together, says Hurwitz. "For example, with the last FIFA World Cup, the brand ran a campaign for consumers to upload their pictures and messages. The total of which were unveiled as a poster across the football pitch during the tournament."
She adds: "It is a demonstration of how to bring the pieces of the puzzle together and what a brand can do to bring consumers who are passionate about an activity closer to your brand."
The football sponsorship environment is an example of an environment where it is difficult to stand out she says, but if you look at the logics of engagement and craft multi-passion point campaigns then you can talk to more audiences in a more compelling way that makes you stand out - like Coca-Cola.
"For example, Brand X sponsors the players' vehicles that drive them from point A to point B. The outcomes are obvious. But now compare that to getting one or two of the football players to say they like this music, and that player is supported by Brand X as it creates a world that gives it the opportunity to talk to people through music. Then you are leveraging more than the obvious sponsorship outcomes."
Ross adds that the Coca-Cola brand's involvement in sponsorships is successful because it leverages its sponsorship constantly to resonate with audiences across the globe. "The strongest brands understand that they have to utilise their sponsorship and make it part of their brand DNA."
