As personally as rewarding as it is, Marketers and Brand Managers carry a heavy load of responsibilities. They need to make sure product launches happen on time, monitor labeling and packaging, tv commercials, consumer research, and other activities supporting their brand. Brand Managers get to do all the creative things associated with marketing. Using consumer insights to make every project better than the last.

Brand managers for Fortune 500 companies are dynamic and open to new ideas. They continuously seek creative ways to increase their brand awareness and raise their revenue. Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) are in the spotlight right now and continually sell out. Today challenges go more hand in hand with securing enough production and optimal supply.

So far, 2020 has changed how we do things; many innovations that blossomed from this crisis came to stay. Having a highly cross-functional role means Brand Managers will have to surveil and ensure profits keep increasing steadily.

Analytics and an eye for aesthetics are essential skills for marketing professionals as well as tolerance and the agility to adapt to evolving markets. So what have the CPG giants been up to since the world turned upside down? Some CPG Brands have experienced an increase in demand, and they’re genuinely committed to keep improving. However, there are several challenges CPG household names will have to acknowledge due to fast-changing circumstances.

The CPG power-players are thriving in a crisis. Without sounding harsh to other industries, this appears to be a happy problem—Reckitt Benckiser with their disinfectant brands, Lysol and  Sagrotan, P&G with cleaning and personal care products. Unilever is selling stratospheric volumes of its soap brands Lifebuoy and Dove. In contrast, people are not using as much shampoo nor deodorant, ewww. Bayer has also seen an increasing demand for contraceptives. Coty announced last month that they would be buying a stake of KKW beauty. Heineken had a boost in its online sales, delivering taste through e-comm. Demand in specific categories has shifted, and we can't ignore it any longer.

The art of Brand Management is not a simple task. It has a direct impact on the company’s revenue. Brand Managers and their assistants must be strategic to reach their goals and attract their target customers. Marketers and key stakeholders must be competitive, concerned about the brand’s profitability, and, most importantly planning for a new kind of future.

1. Shift on advertising channels

Shift to digital marketing is evident. By now, if you are not in e-comm, let me tell you, things will start turning south. The future is here, and after joining the e-comm club, you'll have to start coming up with creative ways to achieve active targeting and communication.

Mobile-first, if consumers were already glued to their phones, now they’re truly inseparable. If there’s anything that has to live online, make sure it’s compatible and fully functional with consumers’ mobile devices.

Until the past month's advertisers threw their content out to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and experimented with Tik Tok. Nothing lasts forever, but lately, the change appears to come out of nowhere. Tiktok is facing the risk of being banned in the US due to suspicion of mishandling users' personal data and Chinese government espionage. On the other hand, Facebook is facing a boycott from many power brands. We're all wondering what this means for advertisers and the people in charge of brand management.

Entire boards of directors had specialists evaluate the risks of making such bold moves. It's not like one day the company's leaders decide to step out altogether just because they felt like it. Considering the cost of opportunity is necessary. PR efforts and brand awareness might be at stake. But on the other hand, speaking out is well received by consumers. Brands need to take a stand. It’s no longer acceptable to be neutral about essential matters.

Elections are right around the corner, and companies and brands will no longer tolerate the spread of misinformation and hateful speech. All complaints were piling up. Businesses have historically disliked Facebook's auction-based ad system, and they're making their point heard.

According to the Washington Post, around more than 750 advertisers are boycotting Facebook and asking for better policing of hateful content. Among the companies are Starbucks, Diageo, Verizon, Unilever, Hershey’s, Coca-Cola, Clorox, Adidas, and Reebok. Microsoft also did so but without causing that much buzz since May. Procter & Gamble is still reluctant to make a bold move but has stated that they will not disclose advertising decisions until further notice.

The New York Times said Facebook cashed in around $17 billion in advertising revenue in this year's first quarter alone. According to Pathmatics data, the highest-spending 100 brands accounted for $4.2 billion in Facebook advertising in 2019; that's about 6% of the platform's ad revenue.

Change is definitely not welcomed by many, and fear tends to kick in. But today, we find ourselves laying a foundation for a new generation of everything. Thanks to companies' stand, stakeholders of power brands and smaller players are evaluating if it's worth it taking a stand or is better just to stay neutral. Some possibly don't have the luxury of just not advertising anymore, but it might be possible to diversify channels while integrating communications.

Demanding these platforms to update their policies to surveil and curate content is necessary to change the way we do business. There's plenty of advocacy to stop harnessing hate from certain groups to profit. Facebook's stock price tumbled since CPG companies and other industries began to release these statements supporting the improvement of advertising policies.

New platforms are gaining popularity, and influencers are organizing themselves to migrate their followers and expand their content to sites and apps such as Twitch, Dubsmash, Likee, etc. CPG brands will not stop advertising, but they will shift their spending from specific platforms to others.

2. Marketing under delicate circumstances

Don’t blow your position! Even if you are within the companies boycotting Facebook and the other platforms, brands that go dark during a pandemic take an average of 5 years to recover. This doesn’t mean you should jump out of these sincere efforts to change the way social platforms ethically operate.

After a few months, brands are thinking more clearly and not panicking that much. Taking action and being bold is required. However, brands must be capable of acknowledging the situation and being sensitive to matters going on around the globe. We live in a society where we are still fighting for equality in the workplace, for the LGBTQ community's rights, and race equality. Let's not forget we are in the middle of an unprecedented health crisis and massive unemployment because of it.

Listening to your audience will be crucial to understanding and acting upon consumers' insights. It's important to not jump out of social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram just yet. Having an overview of what your consumers are sharing and feeling will allow brands to share content that's ad hoc and sensible.

Overseeing advertisement placements is delicate; you’ll also have to surveil where and when your ad will appear and around which circumstances. Today you must operate with creativity and flexibility. We wouldn’t advise programming your post schedule that much in advance, nowadays everything is possible, and things are shifting way too quickly.

3. Managing High Volumes of Content

Executing an omnichannel strategy has its perks and challenges. You have to consider the stages and comprehend how a brand is owning the experience, reenergizing your relationships with your customers, and adapting and integrating a brand’s communication across channels successfully.

CPG  brands can’t miss out on selling directly to consumers; that’s why supporting their social channels that lead to e-comm is key. Ideas can be great, but the key is in the quality of the execution.

The most successful Brand Managers and Assistant Brand Managers know how to choose their partners and employees carefully. Creativity as a soft skill is being sought after platforms such as LinkedIn as well as in others. External service providers must be pre-approved by the procurement department and be ready to step in when the job calls.

Third-party agencies help brands launch new ad campaigns, develop new products, and create creative and overall media strategies, including digital. The good ones know how to turn and to maintain a product as a household name.

As consumers, we’re already used to consuming advertising, but great ads won’t even feel like ads. It’s valuable that brands take advantage of the underrated power of content. Choosing the right social platform for specific types of content is key to consider.

Typical constraints, when partnering with third-party agencies, are, for example, estimated delivery times. As a Content Powerhouse, we act as a dependable partner for global CPG companies to maintain and ensure brand consistency.

Speed in implementation
In an uncertain environment, we must act decisively and fast. As campaigns and digital assets have to be on point with ever-changing specs, and circumstances, brands need a partner that can adapt and implement faster than anyone.

Brands highly praise responsiveness, and our signature speed is what makes us stand out. 121 has an army of expert designers and video specialists that produce first-class content for all your power brands.

Maintaining content flowing through all your social and e-comm platforms shouldn't be a problem. Integrating your brand's communication will inevitably lead to higher conversion rates. Harness the power of content and keep your audience tuned in. You can always count on us; remember that our purpose is to make you shine!