As technological advancements continue to make new strides, consumer behaviour is also transmuting, presenting a dynamic landscape that poses challenges as well as opportunities for marketing professionals to leverage and navigate.
Though much has changed and will change, several aspects continue to govern and reflect the very essence of successful marketing strategies.
They include understanding consumer needs, delivering value, effective communication, brand positioning, innovation, agility, measuring impact, building partnerships and connecting people.
RISING ABOVE THE NOISE
In today’s complex world, where millions of companies and a sea of brands exist, we must think out of the box to stay relevant.
Estimates show that over 333 million companies exist worldwide, including 186 million in Asia, 62 million in Africa, and 33 million in Europe. There are also at least 500,000 brands globally in more than 2,000 product categories and about 58,200 listed companies.
Thus, marketing strategies require thorough consideration to distinguish themselves and ensure effective communication.
Marketing becomes more challenging when it comes to ‘less glitzy niches’ like logistics. Given the market size that accounts for $8 trillion globally and is expected to be worth around $18 trillion by 2030, the logistics industry is growing exponentially so are its offerings, including digital solutions. Therefore, logistics marketing needs a lot of strategic thinking processes and a bespoke approach to reach the right audience with the right information at the right time.
ARAMEX’S SECRET INGREDIENT
At Aramex, which has a presence in 65+ countries worldwide, each with diverse languages, lifestyles, and purchasing power, we took a different approach to reach this wide range of audience. Over the years, we have been focusing on doing things differently and bringing fresh perspectives to the logistics industry.
Many logistics companies categorise marketing as either Business-to-Business (B2B) or Business-to-Consumer (B2C). What often gets overlooked is that it’s always B2C marketing, even in the B2B world. Why?
Because at the end of the day, we are engaging with consumers, who have families and friends, they go out, enjoy life, and shop online – they’re just like any other consumer. So, at Aramex we decided to introduce a consumer-style approach to our B2B marketing which has set us apart and continues to differentiate us from other major players in the logistics industry.
We took a page out of B2C marketing strategies. Our campaigns, our tone of voice, the way we engage on different platforms – we focused on speaking directly to consumers, even in the B2B realm. And all these campaigns tend to catch people off guard. They often say,
“Wow, we never thought seeing this from logistics companies like Aramex”. It’s been about three years since we embarked on this journey. Whether it’s our “Delivering wonderful memories this Ramadan” campaign that garnered over 5 million views and raised awareness about the importance of human connections and essential topics like Alzheimer’s disease or other campaigns on UAE Hope probe/ the Emirates Mars Mission and the Royal Wedding in Jordan, we have been continuously working on new ideas and campaigns. Moreover, to share knowledge with our audience including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), we have also launched ‘the latest trends’ section on our website that serves as a knowledge hub where we regularly share essential insights from experts.
What’s more, recognising the importance of catering to the Arabic-speaking audience, we were the first company in the region to introduce a female version of Arabic on our website, a pioneering move that also gained huge traction.
All these marketing approaches with a consumer mindset have proved to be very effective and remarkable.
HARNESSING THE POWER OF AI
In today’s business landscape, marketing budgets often fall short of grandiose proportions in many companies. Consequently, there is an immense emphasis on optimising outcomes within these financial constraints. At Aramex, we owe our success in this endeavour to our exceptional in-house marketing team, who have consistently delivered high-impact content.
Moreover, as a globally renowned provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation services, boasting over 40 years of experience, our priority on cost efficiency also aligns seamlessly with our commitment to be innovative and integrate cutting-edge technologies.
We therefore have continually reshaped our marketing strategies and harnessed the potential of innovative technologies, including IoT and AI, to achieve more with less.
We are integrating AI to conceive and execute creative digital campaigns which are both cost and time efficient, while yielding outstanding results. For instance, instead of engaging multiple production companies or incurring extensive travel expenses and spending weeks on each production, we prefer devising campaigns that minimise travel and equipment requirements.
Additionally, the innovation in digital marketing has significantly enhanced our ability to develop campaigns and create content, such as videos, which were once both time-consuming and expensive endeavours.
Our commitment towards innovation has also garnered recognition on various platforms. For example, last year Aramex won the Most Innovative Company in Last Mile and Most Innovative Company in Logistics Awards at the Transport & Logistics M.E. Innovation Awards 2022.
In an ever-evolving world, the realm of marketing will continue to present us with greater challenges as well as opportunities in the form of disruptive technologies, which is set to further impact the world of marketing and media.
It’s expected that by 2025, 30 per cent of outbound marketing messages from large organisations will be synthetically generated, up from less than 2 per cent in 2022.
Its therefore evident that embracing new and experiential strategies and pushing the boundaries of conventional marketing will be essential in reimagining the pivotal role of marketing in shaping the logistics industry and beyond.
