Marketing. It seems like everyone’s a marketer but they’re not achieving their desired results. The beauty of marketing is that it always seems to be a bit of a work in progress, and it should be! No matter how successful your business is, you can always improve your marketing strategy and you’ll need to – especially as your business grows and evolves. We looked into how marketing is part art, and part science by conceptualising our “left” and “right” brains.
There’s a reason why professional marketers refer to marketing as a psychological tool. Psychologists often refer to the brain as an organ with two functions, the “left” and the “right” brain. The right brain inspires creative thinking and artistic intuition and the left brain drives logical thinking and factual analysis.
Marketers tend to be thought of as right-brain thinkers. They’re tasked to come up with unique content (or reproduce tired content). Whether it’s cut-through social media content, blog writing, or creating a video with a strong storytelling lens – personalised, emotion-led content gets results. Campaigns with purely emotional marketing content perform twice as well (31% to 16%) compared to those without. So ensuring you have people on your team with a strong right brain is a real strength for your business. They can personalise content and engage buyers because they can make buyers think about your product or service in an entirely new way.
We often see bosses who press stereotypically “right-brain” creatives for tangible results. The problem is that pure right-brain marketers aren’t often wired to generate data-driven insights. This is where your left-brain marketers come in. They’ll set clear objectives, track metrics and analyse results. In other words, they gather data-driven insights to fuel your marketing strategy. Sure, you have the right-brainer who can smash out enticing content, but you also need a left-brainer who can direct where, when, and how that content is being shared. Left brainers can provide far-ranging valuable insights from structuring a client webpage to scheduling a morning Twitter post. Overall, they’ll tell you when, where, and how to invest your time and money. They’ll help you identify gaps in the market and analyse what you’re doing well and what areas of your business need a little extra love.
Due to common stereotypes around marketing being vague or generalist, some employers will value “left-brain” employers more, especially if they’re hyper-focused on generating revenue and ROI. Don’t underestimate the capacity of your “right-brainers” to generate income. Soft metrics like thought leadership (hello blog writers) and brand awareness may be harder to assess in the short term, but trust us, they do generate results.
Brand awareness is a huge factor in the B2B consumers’ decision to purchase a product or service, with inconsistent brand messaging being a pet peeve (and a barrier to purchase) for 27% of consumers. Still not sold? Take a multinational conglomerate like Ikea – they make exponential profits, working with creative advertising agencies that develop creative campaigns and a robust brand strategy. That’s why each time you need affordable, flatpack furniture you think of Ikea (and maybe their $2 meatballs). Your right-brainers are more likely to use creative thinking to problem-solve their way out of what may seem like a dead end. But we mustn’t discount our left-brainers. On many occasions, we’ve witnessed professionals who use their logistical strengths to mine data and develop extraordinary insights that inform their marketing strategy. And remember, your left-brainers may be more logical, but this doesn’t mean they can’t be creative or intuitive as well.
While most of us have some left and right brain capabilities, most of us have a stronger side. For us, one doesn’t trump the other. By valuing the varied strengths of our employees, you can help them develop their skills and your business. After all, a well-rounded team of employees with dynamic, complementary skills leads to a successful business.
If you want to find out more or you’re looking for some specialist marketing support, contact us.
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