Day
three at GoaFest 2008 saw some more international advertising
experts share their gyan and gumption. And amid all the fun
and frolic, they managed to capture the audience’s attention.
On such expert was Shiela Byfield, Global Director-Insights,
Mindshare Worldwide, who talked about the ‘Bluring Effect’
of the media landscape as a trend happening across the world.
“Today, there is more and more time to spend and save time,
and with the kind of clutter we have in media, competition
for attention is fierce,” she said.
But with the changing dynamics of media consumption,
Byfield said that the traditional media was dead, and that
it would continue to survive. However, she agreed that with
pressure from new media, things were fast changing in traditional
media. “We need to think more about engagement than interruption,”
she advised. Byfield further explained that with growing media
complexities, powers of the consumers were growing too as
they now had various means to even turn off or avoid advertisement
completely. Advising on this front, she said that it was important
to adapt ‘subtle advertising’ as a means to retain consumers’
attention.
Talking about maintaining brand image in the
long run, Byfield was of the opinion that consistency in branding
message helped strengthen the brand recall among consumers.
She also spoke about retail, and how retail
dynamics in marketing changed with the influx of digitalisation.
“Technology has enabled the two-way communication pattern
in retail, and today you see a lot many shoppers team up for
better sales,” she said.
Byfield took the audience through various research
studies on global trends in consumerism. Concluding her presentation,
Byfield re-affirmed that the media landsacpe was getting blurred
with fragmenting media and content, and with consumers becoming
less receptive to traditional media. “Consumer trends will
keep on changing, and thus, it is vital for marketers to be
careful in their research and be wary of the data they procure
in understanding consumer behaviour,” she cautioned.
Byfield has worked with WPP in London for more
than 16 years. Today she sits on several international committees
as an advisor.
