Mavens GmbH | We create a new category in digital marketing: Trust

People don't believe advertising anymore. They want information they can trust.

The internet has changed marketing fundamentally, but very few brands have made the transition to being genuinely digital. In our view, there’s a simple reason for this: despite all the technical revolutions such as social media and personalisation, too many brands still cleave to a unilateral understanding of marketing: “We talk, you listen”. The problem is that people just aren’t listening to this kind of broadcasting anymore. We want to help our clients find out what it is worth focussing on instead.

How can I become a trusted brand?

In order to become a trusted source of information and products, brands have to show a willingness to understand people. The more a brand interacts with its customers, the more it will be trusted; by not only offering access to knowledge, but also helping to solve problems, a successful brand brings together like-minded people and creates unique experiences. Digital pure players have blazed a trail here: they put direct customer interactions at the center of their marketing strategy. You need to do likewise.

Information | Solve users' problems
Conversation | Be a network of like-minded people
Interaction | Create personal experiences

trust interaction information conversation chart

It’s all about contact. Contact us!

Why should we act now?

Online marketing is failing: for  97% of all internet users, advertising is irrelevant; the average CTR (click-through rate) for banners is 0.06% – and 50% of those click-throughts are accidental.
Yet still, online marketing spends are set to grow by 65% by 2021, and efficiency will continue to decrease. So it’s time to start investing more wisely and more sustainably.

What should we do?

Information | Solve users' problems
Conversation | Be a network of like-minded people
Interaction | Create personal experiences

What to do?

Trust your customers
First things first: trust doesn’t come from doing the same thing, but from doing it differently. Customers today offer more insights than the products they buy. Yes, it is consumers themselves who create relevancy, so why not let them do your marketing? Give them the attention they deserve, motivate them, and show that you value their activities. And, most importantly, trust them.
Establish meaningful content
There are three types of content: brand content, customer content and expert content. Each has its specific purpose and effect, so it’s not about choosing between them, but about using them all in a focused way.
Discover native influencers
Trust needs genuine users: we call them “native influencers”. Native influencers are customers who publish personal experiences and enjoy exchanging information. In contrast to over-hyped social media influencers, their focus is on the content they create, and not on their reach or their number of followers. Customers who are interested in deeper cooperation are the basis of all digital marketing activity.
Set up an engagement hub
Combine your magazines, community, FAQ, service, ratings, and tutorials into one attractive topic portal: an engagement hub combines it all, bringing together customers old and new – and offering a perfect place for them to interact.
Create customer missions
Native influencers like nothing more than a mission, and so a good portal always offers them something to do: share their impressions, talk about their experiences, pass on knowledge, or give support to new users. Let them know how happy you are that they are your customers – and convert them into genuine brand advocates.
Reward native influencers
Creating valuable content is creating value, so incentivize your customers with reward and customer loyalty programmess, exclusive events, or access to limited product tests.
Talk to your customers
Online media is still the most efficient way to reach customers and generate awareness. Content produced by native influencers is much more effective than any other type and can come into play at all stages of the customer journey. So stop talking at your customers and start talking with them.

Information
plusConversation
plusInteraction

totalTrust

Welcome to the world of trusted brands

Why MAVENS?

The word “mavens” is derived from the Yiddish meyvn and means an “expert who inspires”. It became a popular expression when it was mentioned in Malcolm Gladwell’s book Tipping point.