Understanding Target Audiences: The Psychology of Consumer Behavior in Marketing
Matt: Marketing is a big field with many different parts and jobs. What part of marketing excites you the most?
Andita: Marketing is big, isn't it? It's about making people love your brand. For me, it started when I was young. I loved watching commercials and always wondered how they were made. As I grew up, I became interested in psychology and how people behave as consumers.
This is what marketing is all about - understanding people and getting them to like or buy your products. That's how my interest began. In college, I studied economics but focused on marketing. I knew then that I wanted to work in marketing.
Matt: I'd like to know more about what got you interested in customer behaviours. Also, what was it about those ads that made you interested in marketing?
Andita: When I was a kid, TV commercials were a big deal. In Indonesia, local people made the ads, and they were really good. I remember one commercial I really liked. It was for cigarettes, but it didn't show any cigarettes.
Instead, it focused on the brand and how they communicated it. The ad aired before the breaking of the fast during Ramadan. It showed a person on a journey, and at the end, he stops to break the fast with others.
Even though I was just a kid and didn't smoke, the ad intrigued me. It created a feeling of nostalgia and homecoming. That's what caught my interest - how ads could create emotions and tell stories without directly showing the product.
Matt: Storytelling is a key part of branding. When you tell a story that connects with people emotionally, it can be very effective marketing for any product.
Can you tell me about some customer behaviours you've noticed? How do these behaviours help you create good stories and marketing?
Andita: Consumer behaviour is actually about understanding the insights. What is the driver for this group of consumers? What motivates them to buy the product? What do they want? What are they afraid of? As marketers, we need to understand that kind of consumer archetype, then it's easier for us to communicate our brand based on their language.
Consumer behaviour is actually for us to understand how we're going to target our audience based on our products. It's actually about how, as marketers, we need to have a very specific target audience so we can be relevant to them.
Let's say, if we're targeting moms, then we want to create something like healthy snacks. What is the insight about moms? What tensions do moms have? Moms are also afraid of giving unhealthy products to their kids. We need to understand why they are afraid. They're afraid because it will have a long-term effect.
If we're giving them products with preservatives, then we need to actually communicate to moms whereby we're going to address their tension or fear about the snacks. That's how we communicate in terms of product benefits and also how we're going to convey our message in our commercial as well.
Navigating the Diverse Field of Marketing: Finding Your Passion and Growing Your Skills
Matt: All good marketing starts with insights and data. These form the foundation for building a compelling story.
I'd love to know what key lessons you've learned along the way. What advice would you give to young marketers who want to advance in their careers?
Andita: Marketing is a big and diverse field. It includes areas like branding, media, communication, and consumer insights. My advice for young marketers is to find your passion. First, figure out which part of marketing you love most. It could be branding, marketing communication, or media. Once you know, focus on learning that area.
After you've built your main skills, don't stop there and keep learning. Learn about new areas in marketing. The field is always changing, so you need to keep up.
After you've built your main skills, don't stop there and keep learning. Learn about new areas in marketing. The field is always changing, so you need to keep up.
Marketing has changed a lot in the past 15 years. It used to be all about TV and posters. Now we have influencers, TikTok, and many other platforms. As a marketer, you need to keep evolving with these changes.
Be humble and open to learning from all kinds of people. You can learn from those with more experience, but also from younger people who might know more about new trends. And, stay curious. The key to growing your career is to always keep learning and stay humble enough to learn from others.
Matt: There are many great points to take away. What do you think about specialising versus having broad marketing knowledge?
What would you advise someone who's wondering whether to focus on one area, like CRM, or to keep exploring different options?
Andita: It really depends on your career goals. If you want to become a top executive like a CEO or CFO, you need broad knowledge. You should understand many areas of business in detail. This means exploring different fields and learning about the unknown. People often think top executives don't need to know much, but that's not true. They actually need to know a lot about everything.
If you want to be a professional in a specific area, you can start with broad learning and then focus on your specialty. Specialising can also be good. If you're very knowledgeable in one area, you might be able to start your own business based on that expertise.
In the end, there's no right or wrong choice. It depends on what you want to achieve in your career. Both paths can lead to success.
Learning from Every Angle: Mentorship, Analysis, and Self-Advocacy in Marketing
Matt: What other advise would you give to a young marketer who wants to learn from many different people? How can they do this well?
Andita: I strongly believe in mentoring and coaching. It's a great way to learn from experienced people. But it's not just one-way learning. As a mentee, you can also teach your mentor new things, which helps them stay up-to-date.
I love mentoring and coaching so much that I always try to find a mentor for myself. I never want to stop learning. I look for mentors who know things I don't, whether they're more experienced or even younger than me. This way, we can exchange knowledge.
Another thing I do to keep learning is watch commercials. I love them! It depends on what part of marketing you like, but for me, it's commercials. When I watch them, I try to understand the insights behind them and if they fit the product well.
I challenge myself to think about the commercial's message, the product, and who they're trying to reach. As a marketer, I can always learn from this. In our daily work, we're busy with our own projects. But when I watch other commercials, I can see what's new. I ask myself: How did they make it? Why did they do it that way? Who are they trying to reach?
To stay relevant in marketing, we need to keep learning to stay excited about our work. It's important for junior staff to speak up about what they need. Your manager is busy and can't think of everything, so don't be afraid to ask for training or support.
To stay relevant in marketing, we need to keep learning to stay excited about our work. It's important for junior staff to speak up about what they need. Your manager is busy and can't think of everything, so don't be afraid to ask for training or support.
I always tell my team to speak up about what they want and need. You need to think about your own growth. And, a good manager will always try to help you achieve your goals.
