Conal Byrne, CEO iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group.
The marketing community has great power to influence and guide what people think, value and ultimately purchase.
But to achieve this, marketers must build a bridge to consumers by understanding what motivates and drives them. We are at an important moment in time to ask some simple questions: What kind of divide might exist between the marketing community and the American consumer it’s trying to reach? How does human bias play a role in creating this gap?
Simply put: Marketers and American consumers see the world differently. In this article, I’ll break down what that means and how marketers can overcome this disconnect to win over American consumers.
1. Don’t get too far ahead of your consumers.
While the instinct to tap into the next trends comes naturally to marketers, consumers may not know or care about them. Instead of chasing the next big trend, prioritize activities and topics that are immediately relevant to their lives.
At iHeartMedia, we wanted to take a closer look at this potential disconnect between marketers and the consumers they’re trying to reach. So, as part of iHeartMedia’s ongoing Audiocon program, we conducted a study of 2,206 adults in August 2023, using Morning Consult and Advertiser Perceptions, and in partnership with Malcolm Gladwell’s Pushkin Industries.
The results were notable. For example, 40% of consumers still have never even heard of the term “NFT” at all— while, a year ago, a marketing executive might have been shown the door if they didn’t have a proactive, edgy pitch involving NFTs and cryptocurrency in general.
When you play out simple stats like that, you begin to understand how marketers may be driven by different language, substance and technologies than the consumers they’re trying to reach. This rift between what marketers think versus what consumers know can lead to a lack of connection with the company’s intended audience.
2. But make sure you don’t fall behind, either.
Letting consumers lead the way on new trends is important, but so is paying attention to the types of content they already consume and prioritize.
I’ve covered this fundamental disconnect before: The average marketer likely doesn’t realize that audio makes up almost a third (31%) of all the media people are consuming. (And, as I’ve covered before, most of that audio consumption—in fact, 71% of it—is broadcast radio; and in terms of ad-enabled audio, that number rises to 85%.) Because of this, marketers are generally underinvested in audio–streaming, podcasting and especially broadcast radio.
Our recent research fell in line with that stat, finding that consumers think podcasts are the hardest habit to give up. Yet even though over 100 million Americans are expected to listen to podcasts each month in 2024, according to Statista—and broadcast radio makes up 72% of ad-enabled audio—my company’s previous research found that only 9% of a marketer’s budget is typically allocated to audio.
This disconnect between what a marketer and consumer value can lead to real-world decisions by marketers to incorrectly allocate budgets to reach consumers. Investing in the types of content consumers already love bridges this disconnect, delivering products to established audiences already primed to receive your messaging.
3. Inspire more, scare less.
Different outlooks on life between consumers and marketers—what’s vitally important and what’s not—can have a material effect on what marketers brainstorm and create for their campaigns.
For example, according to our recent study, family and friends are far and away consumers’ biggest motivators—different than a marketer’s motivator being money, fame or fear. In this case, leaning into positive messaging centered on the things consumers care about most can help marketers find ways to win consumers over by connecting with their priorities and values.
4. Lean into the data more than your personal experience.
We went into our most recent study with the hypothesis that, despite having more data than ever in the history of marketing, human bias still informs marketing decisions. We were largely proven correct. This knowledge allows us to remedy the disconnect between marketers and consumers in ways that naturally appeal to them—all backed by data.
It’s not enough to just rely on what marketers believe Americans want—companies wanting to expand their reach must consider what these audiences actually want and need. Let’s check our biases at the door to prevent them from getting in the way of growth.
It’s time for a level set in the marketing industry. And this time, it behooves us to have the consumers be our guide.
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