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20.06.22

Activating audience intelligence for the Welsh Government

Rosie Fleming

Audience Intelligence Strategist

How we activate audience intelligence

The current audience approach we activate for the Welsh government is to build a data and insight centric connection between the psychographic audience segments that have developed through the pandemic and the Keep Wales Safe campaign activation opportunities. These connecting insights have been leveraged to inform and feed our actionable digital strategy and wider Keep Wales Safe campaign activation recommendations. ​

Throughout the pandemic, we have carried out the following analysis and research quarterly:

Initial Market Research

Audience work always starts with research to inform audience identities. Using market research tools at our disposal such as Mintel, and world-leading audience intelligence tools such as Global Web Index (GWI), we conduct initial market research showcasing up-to-date attitudes towards the virus itself, restrictions imposed, the vaccine, the booster vaccine, and returning to the office in Wales. The goal here is to paint an initial picture of the Welsh population, a picture that can then direct our audience segmentation, spotting any attitudinal trends and new audiences that have emerged in recent months, within an ever-changing climate.

Audience Identity Development

Once we have data to evidence audience segments, we begin the deep dive into their finer nuances. We identify who and where each psychographic-based audience segment is active online through GWI survey data, highlighting online habits, behaviours such as social media preferences, and demographics including locations. The goal here is to better inform digital ecosystem planning, prioritisation, and potential targeting overlays for media buys​. The result is that we can reach the right people, in the right place, with the right messaging, minimising lost budget through any ineffective activity and placement.

Search & Social Listening

We enhance the depth of our understanding further by overlaying our audience insights with social and search listening, and in doing so provide a 360 view on each identity. Using our social listening tool Brandwatch we unearth conversations among each audience – displaying how people in Wales are discussing Covid at present, highlighting the themes driving conversation as well as topics igniting negative and positive sentiment. Meanwhile, using Google Trends and Google Keyword Planner we look at emerging search terms associated with each audience. People search things they would not necessarily post on their social accounts, so looking at both search and social allows us to gain a well-rounded view of what audiences require and desire, both now and potentially in the future. The trending and niche topics identified can then act as messaging, copy, and content opportunities. The goal here is to develop fertile areas of creative territory that will resonate with each specific audience and increase impact and engagement.

The above data, once compiled, then allows us to make informed decisions at a top line view as to where and how to engage each audience segment​ – from priority channels and targeting opportunities to comms requirements and priorities – ensuring that we are meeting the specific needs of each audience where they are most likely to engage​. This has enabled us to move away from a ‘messaging-first’ approach (identifying the users we want to reach based on the campaign needs), to a more efficient audience-first approach, that allows us to develop trust amongst audience identities by providing them with the focused information they seek.​

This in-depth package of work offered by the Audience Intelligence team – initial market research all the way through to content and targeting recommendations per audience segment – is a service increasingly sought after. In a world so unpredictable, in which consumer headspaces are constantly shifting, real-time insights into audience segments – and the attitudes held by these varying segments – enhances our ability as marketers to create highly targeted, highly relevant, and truly engaging content. This level of insight provides us with the tools to transform audiences into repeat customers.

Audience first approach

If you are interested in making the change towards an audience-first approach and would like iCrossing’s help in identifying and activating audience insights, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

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