Experts Warn Brand Preference Not As Important as Interactive Usability

21 October 2011

Ben Logan

Director

Passionate about improving services and experiences for the people that use them.

Matt Walsh, the Executive Experience Director at advertising agency Crispin Porter and Bogusky, has spoken of the need for brands to capitalise on the narrative links between touch points to prompt action and interest from consumers.

Speaking at the Guardian’s Changing Advertising Summit recently, Walsh said: “You need more than emotion. It’s an important part of a creative strategy, but as consumers access brands across a variety of touch points, marketers need to ask themselves how this frequency impacts ad creativity from an experience design standpoint.”

He stressed the importance of brands staying fixed on their customers solutions and warned of the danger of companies becoming focused on the latest platforms which are nevertheless often not of benefit to their true goals.

“Building brand preference is not enough. Everything is connected to everything for brands now, from retail environments to smartphone devices. Consequently sales can come from any of these touch points and brands need to focus more on generating action.”

In other words, brands need to keep their eye on multi-channel usability that is tailored to customer needs rather than getting caught up in fads – as AKQA’s Andy Hood put it at the same advertising summit: “Technology should be used to support the brand rather than the other way.”