Marketing strategies are small sets of actions to get a more significant objective. It generally divided into two types – 1st comes under ATL category in which a company takes big policy decision, spend big in media buying and investment-related strategic choices such as Blue ocean strategy is one of them.
2nd type of marketing strategy is BTL when communication is more specific, local, customized, and basically, used to generate sales or customer acquisition.
Fusion Marketing is a strategy which majorly used to leverage of having the same audience group in non-competitive products. Instead, when two products may complement each other, subsidiary or supplementary in nature, then fusion marketing works. It is not a new concept, but an age-old marketing theory and traders have been practicing this for years.
It improves customer experience and helps to retain the customer by providing them a different product ecosystem in which they are locked with two or more substitute products. Now with the development of smart appliances, it is getting better and better, and more products are coming together to give an improved experience to its customers.
When would Fusion Marketing happen?
Similar customer
Non-Competing Product
Let’s understand from the very basic examples.
Examples: –
1) Tailor sitting just in front of a cloth store.
2) Carpenter setting in Hardware Store or maybe that hardware store dealer sharing the visiting card of carpenter and plumber
3) Medical stores near dispensaries and hospitals, even doctors, suggest to the patient to buy medicine from particular medical shops.
4) Cement selling dealers recommend their customers to purchase tiles from one specific shop.
5) Grocery stores pass the visiting cards of nearby laundry shop.
This strategy is simply the sharing of a joint customer base with non-competitors product and service providers.
I have used this marketing strategy many times in the last decade, knowingly or unknowingly. Here, I am sharing some instances from my experiences.
COMPANY:- Arvind Mills – Telecom division
Product:- EPBAX and telecom hardware
TG:- New offices, commercial buildings, call centers. Partner:- Office automation and Xerox machine dealers.
Story: –
In 2006, the company was expecting me to make some new direct dealers and contribute to overall sales. Since it was my 1st job as a management trainee into business development, so I had to prove my worth and secure my position. Luckily I bumped to a dealer who was selling Xerox machine and office automation products at Singhad Road, Pune, but was reluctant to invest in this new business. One day I was sitting his office and trying to convince him with my so illogical reasoning about how EPBAX is the lucrative business, and it is the future of telecommunication. Suddenly one phone call came from his staff to deliver some stationery products to a new upcoming office nearby. I got an idea and offered him that you may pass this inquiry with your recommendation to our other dealer of EPBAX and share the profit.
COMPANY :- MTS
Product:- Data card Dongle
TG:- Laptop users and buyers
Partner:- Laptop and desktop selling MBOs and brand retail outlets.
Story: –MTS was a Russian conglomerate who was selling CDMA based mobile handsets in basic phones and smartphones category. The other significant product was Data card or internet dongal. It was the time when smartphones were not so popular and affordable too, and people had to depend on data card dongle or broadband connection for internet access. A desktop can run with a wired broadband service, but for laptop users who wanted to enjoy the Internet on the move on a laptop were compelled to buy a data card for this. Therefore our strategy was simple, to tap all customer touch-points with communication and offers. Still, it was not easy as till that time we were selling it through retailers and engagement activities in colleges, malls, and corporate offices. We were needed some breakthroughs ideas to push the Datacard to sell, so we had arranged with these retailers of profit-sharing with laptop sellers at Tilak Road that was the hub of laptop selling outlets in Pune. 1) we put promoters inside the shop as well as outside with promotable, steady, umbrella, banners, and other freebies. 2) A bundle offer and to promote this as a free dongle with each new laptop. It was a Win-Win situation for both the parties for us and that laptop selling dealer.
COMPANY :- Dishtv
Product:- HD Set Top Box and Ten Sports package of Football channel
TG:- viewers who love football
Partner:- HDFC bank
Story: – In the year 2018, during the Football World Cup, I was in goa managing the Fifa campaign. We had designed a contest among our key retailers to engage and motivate us to push our football subscription packages.
So along with trade engagement, we had also an outdoor campaign in which there were 20 hoardings displayed across GoaGoa, but nothing concrete was coming in terms of customer engagement. Due to the budget crunch, we could not have the luxury of executing a full flexed event to engage customers on a large scale. After having brainstorming, we thought to propose to other companies to have the joint screening of football matches to engage viewers, and luckily, we got a positive response from HDFC bank.
And I must thank, HDFC bank Marketing Manager – https://www.linkedin.com/in/soniakerkar/, who supported me to have this activity together.
We carried out customer engagement activities in which screening of quarter-final to final matches held at multiple locations at Goa with HDFC bank. Both brands got benefited and saved the lakhs of money. In a nutshell, Fusion marketing is good when resources are limited, and customer footfalls are low. It can be designed to capitulate the available tools and scale the benefits. I welcome more ideas and suggestions in this regard.
How to do fusion Marketing?
Find a Partner: – who’s businesses have the same target customer and not competing with each other.
Offerings: – Value of each partner would create in this activity.
Responsibility agreement: – An Agreement of shared responsibility should draft before the commencement of the activity. This agreement includes the cost of action, if applicable.
Activity Planning and execution: – Entire activity should be planned and coordinated well in advance to avoid any goof-ups.
Share the cost and leads: Post activity, leads should be shared accordingly, as well as a loss too.
Feedback, analysis, and way forward: – A Detailed report should happen for future activities. If this goes well, such actions should plan more often
BENEFITS:-
- Increase product awareness and visibility.
- It Helps to sellout in slow-moving goods.
- Marketing reach has increased, a broader customer base.
- The budget doesn’t increase.
Few Examples of Fusion Marketing: –
Apple with Amazon, Dishtv with Panasonic and Samsung, LG washing machine and Ariel, Indian Oil and Axis bank, Uber and Mission Impossible, Uber and Spotify,
Way forward: –
Fusion Marketing is evolving now, with the rise of IoT, consumers are set to experience a new, improved way of buying which was just a dream ten years back. The Internet of things is the future.
For example – Uber and Spotify linked their services so that customers can connect their accounts, and when taking a ride in Uber, he can use their Uber App to play music through the car’s speaker via Spotify account. This fusion shows how two apps are taking together and then talking to a car. This is a perfect example of fusion marketing on the Internet of things.
IoT provides a fantastic opportunity for products to market themselves. Just imagine an ecosystem in which Amazon and a Detergent brand – Tide are talking to each other, whenever you see an empty bottle of the Tide at home, you need to press a button on your IoT based smart washing machine and its done. It will be connected in-home wi-fi and order on your amazon, and a new packet of Tide will deliver to your home.
So Fusion marketing is being evolved a step ahead with IoT and on the platforms of smart appliances. They are coming together to trap their customers in their ecosystem. A customer doesn’t need to go anywhere and do the research, he needs to push the button, and things happen.