SPOTLIGHT ON MARKETING

We are running a series of articles that focus on an exceptional marketer and their career journey. This month, we cast the spotlight on Vanessa Taylor, head of marketing at realestate.co.nz in Auckland.

Why did you choose a career in marketing?

I loved the idea of working in a discipline where the customer is at the heart of everything that you do.

What is your proudest ‘marketing moment’?

One would have to be the DNA and campaign work we have completed over the last 18 months at realestate.co.nz. Not only was it a great experience to shift the organisational focus to be customer led, but this piece of work has been recognised for a 2017 TVNZ Marketing Award. A lot of hard work goes into what you and your company does and it’s very rewarding to be recognised by your peers.

What have you done recently to improve your customers’ experience with your brand/business?

This is a really interesting question as I believe we have had a significant shift in the way brands have to interact with their customers. Over the last 20 years, it’s been all about providing and digesting as much information as we possibly could. Our focus is now clearly on the shift to an experience era which is not just one dimensional for customers, but is about the experience you create with that information. The product or service is just a by-product of that experience.

At the core of it, our clients want results, they want serious buyers, renters and investors to engage with them through our platform. They want the opportunity to build their brand presence and connect with their next listing. So we have a focused marketing strategy that gives them this experience. But to sweeten the deal, we also have a great ‘surprise and delight’ strategy to delight those top clients who support us. We’re talking rugby games, drifting fast cars on ice, Wearable Arts, pampering sessions, golf days and horse racing to name a few. We make sure we know our customers well and share the experiences they love, with them.

Our customers want to find their perfect property as fast as possible. This is what we identified when we conducted our DNA research in 2015. Being an online company means our work is never done. We are constantly continuing to improve the experience of our users. We delight our customers with fewer clicks to shorten the path to their perfect property and provide enhanced information – as we all know that is a great experience when browsing online. We also have a great pipeline of enhancements, which we’re excited about, when it comes to the user experience.

How do you keep up to date with marketing innovation?

Read, network, conferences and talking to people. Making sure you are keeping up with international thought leadership.

Also, disciplines used to be so siloed but I think there is a lot to learn from those outside of marketing and seek to work out how you can apply it to what you are doing.

In-house or outsource for your specialist marketing functions and why?

I am a firm believer in sticking to what you’re good at and letting others do the things you are not good at. People will deliver on what they are passionate about. I’ve been a ‘Jack (or Jill) of all trades’ in the past and in my opinion it doesn’t get you the best results.