Don’t allow load shedding to put your marketing campaign in the dark!
By Kélyn Donough
Folk currently living in South Africa all cringe when they hear the words “load shedding” but unfortunately it appears that this is something that people in this country will just have to get used to. Despite all the platitudes and reassurances coming out of the state power utility Eskom, they still appear to be incompetent at keeping the lights on with not much light at the end of the proverbial tunnel if you can excuse the pun. Many South Africans are already learning to adapt to life with unreliable electrical power, as their northern neighbours in Zimbabwe have done for decades already. This includes making sure cell phones are fully charged, getting gas heaters, gas stoves and candles and seriously considering back-up batteries and inverters for their homes. Businesses are also having to adapt of course, installing backup generators and reducing their power consumption by switching to LED lighting and solar heating. Marketers have also started to have concerns that they are wasting their budget on television adverts that many South African’s won’t even see.
• The power reliability dilemma affecting so many people has brought up the question, “Is mobile and digital marketing the future?” Digital marketing has become very popular in South Africa, with established businesses realising that they have to find new ways to get their businesses the publicity that they need. There are some very well established benefits to digital and mobile marketing: Your marketing campaign will still reach your audience during load shedding through the use of mobile devices.
• There is a reduced cost compared to traditional media.
• The results are very easily measured.
• Results are produced in real-time.
• Digital and mobile marketing can allows for greater exposure to targeted audiences through numerous platforms online.
• Viewers can share content, increasing reach.
• There can be vastly increased consumer engagement.
No-one seems to really know just how long Eskom’s load shedding will be going on for, so now is the time to prepare well to make sure that your marketing campaigns are not left in the dark and your business doesn’t suffer as a result.
