The pandemic had accelerated digital development, businesses must embrace digital branding so that they could remain relevant for their consumers and the market
Surabaya, 16 April 2020 IGB Media sponsored by PT. Pakuwon Jati, PT. Helmig’s, and PT. Viva Cosmetics successfully organized its first webinar to celebrate its company’s 4th anniversary. With the theme “Digital Branding in 2021.” This webinar was delivered by Dr. Nathalia C Tjandra, BA (Hons), MA, Ph.D., PGCE, SFHEA, an Associate Professor in Marketing and the Head of International Development at Edinburgh Napier University Business School, United Kingdom, which is the biggest business school in Scotland, United Kingdom. This event was moderated by Tiffany Roselin, SE, the owner of Exquise by Tiffany bridal boutique and Tiffany Rose Beauty Studio.
Webinar “Digital Branding in 2021” discussed how digital branding was needed today. In addition, our speaker, Dr. Tjandra, also gave several tips and tricks that could be applied to businesses. Our moderators also responded and summarized the materials well.
Dr. Tjandra discussed the concept of branding and the characteristics of a strong brand. Then she continued with the landscape of E-Commerce in Indonesia as well as digital transformation. She also discussed the concepts of brand mantras/essence, tactics, and engagement. In her last segment, she continued with the trends of influencer marketing and social media celebrities as well as content marketing.
According to Dr. Tjandra, digital branding focused on how we identified ourselves with competitors and how we developed our brands to suit the consumers/target market in the digital world. Identifying target segments, brand positioning, digital value proposition, and tactics were part of digital branding. She emphasized that brand positioning was very fundamental to digital branding because it was about how to differentiate ourselves from competitors in the eyes of our consumers and stakeholders.
Dr. Tjandra highlighted that consumer behavior had changed dramatically during the Covid-19 pandemic. The number of digital platform users had increased dramatically during the pandemic. As Covid-19 had accelerated digital development, businesses must embrace digital branding, so that they could remain relevant for their consumers and the market. Whilst we could not be certain about the marketing landscape after the pandemic, we could be very confident that most consumers would be more familiar with online activities and expect businesses to offer online services. Therefore, to survive and thrive from the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses must familiarize themselves with digital platforms and methods. The final segment also highlighted that content marketing held a pivotal role in creating interests and curiosity around the brand and generating discussions about topics relevant to the brand, which would contribute to the development of strong digital brand awareness.
Mrs. Roselin concluded that the biggest homework for businesses was to focus on building a strong brand with a long-term view. Consumers were likely to remember and choose brands that had a strong presence in both offline and online markets. Facing the challenges of consumer behavior in this digital era, businesses must be ready to build a digital brand, which can meet consumer expectations. Businesses must recognize the characteristics of each digital platform in order to optimize brand communication and engagement with consumers. We could not underestimate the change in digitization, and we must be able to adapt to the digital platform in order to maintain our brand.
The event was attended by 151 participants with different backgrounds, such as students, academics, entrepreneurs, and workers. The webinar lasted for about 3 hours from 19.00 to 22.00 WIB. We gathered participants’ feedback using an online evaluation survey. Some of the responses are presented below.
Jordan Jiwantono (Student) – The material presented during the webinar was very good and added insight into the world of branding and digital marketing.
Ellice Carina Hariyanto – A lot of useful knowledge and in-depth explanations about the structure of product and service branding. Can answer participants’ questions well and clearly.
Eunike Debora Prayitno (Student) – Gives me new insights and knowledge about digital branding that I can use in the future.
Anisa Meirayanti (Worker) – The presenter in the webinar gave me very broad knowledge that I had never heard or known before, so this webinar created a very useful new experience.
Through this webinar, IGB Media hopes that the participants have gained knowledge and understanding of Digital Branding. We also hope that businesses are able to embrace digital transformation in strengthening their brand presence and loyalty in the digital world.
