This post was originally written by Jennifer Connelly on the WOMMA blog.
Kathy is the president and founder at ComBlu. ComBlu specializes in content strategy, influencer marketing and thought leadership programs. Kathy, who is currently a member of the WOMMA Board of Directors, spoke about her agency being a WOMMA member since 2005 when WOMMA started – and how the WOMM industry network has benefited her business.
Why did you become a WOMMA member?
ComBlu was a charter member of WOMMA. We joined when the industry was nascent and wanted to both better understand how others were approaching word-of-mouth and how we could improve the approaches we were taking with our clients. We also believed we could contribute thought leadership to the industry.
What’s the WOMM trend to which marketers should pay more attention?
Three trends are really important right now:
- Influencer marketing is an important part of engaging with a brand’s community. If done right, the brand’s story gets told within the context of the creator’s world and offers contextual interest to the brand story. Brands are just starting to collaborate effectively with key influencers.
- Visual storytelling will continue to be important, with video a core asset. Facebook Live, video on Twitter, Periscope, Blab, Instagram, Vine and YouTube are all making video more accessible without leaving the native channel. Watch for the kluging of livestreaming, video and virtual reality to begin creating highly personalized, experiences that start to replicate the feel of face2face.
- Personalized experiences are on the horizon for both content and 1:1 brand relationships. We’re starting to see brands work very hard on delivering meaningful, contextually-based experiences that drive deeper affinity and shorten sales cycles.
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Principal
Engaging your customers is at the heart of successful marketing programs. For more than 20 years, Cheryl has been building and executing content and thought leadership strategies designed to do just that. She is excited to be applying that well-honed skill to a help companies like Microsoft, Cisco, 3M, Intel, Capital One and Barclaycard tap into their stakeholder communities and build sophisticated content strategies.
Her experience base spans a range of industries – from technology and financial services to retail, travel, consumer products and healthcare. Cheryl has served as an integral member of her clients’ marketing teams, providing counsel on marketing and brand strategy, thought leadership, media relations, product introductions, and event management.
Prior to joining ComBlu, Cheryl spent 10 years leading corporate marketing for large, complex organizations.