VIEWPOINT: Build, build, build ... and then you build some more

<p>We have read the signs, and we do not like what they say. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>We thought we knew it all, but now it looks like we don't really know </p><p>what we're supposed to be doing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>This is a fact. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>According to a MindShare survey of university students in Hong Kong - </p><p>these are the consumers of the future, the alleged "early adopters" - a </p><p>piffling 13 per cent had ever bought anything over the Internet. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Alright, so it could be argued that university students are not big </p><p>spenders in any case, even though they have access to the credit cards </p><p>required for payment of goods purchased online. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>But here is a far more frightening statistic: 70 per cent of respondents </p><p>could not recall seeing any advertising at all while on the </p><p>Internet. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And remember, these are users who log on up to seven days a week, </p><p>spending up to 2.5 hours online each time. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>At the recent Reader's Digest Superbrands seminars in Hong Kong and </p><p>Singapore, speakers repeatedly made the point that branding and </p><p>brand-building had become even more complex now that the 'Net was a </p><p>daily reality. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>With competition now able to copy products and services in a matter of </p><p>days (rather than months, as was the case in the past), a new 'P' had </p><p>been added to the traditional Four Ps of marketing: perception. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>At the end of the day, all your hard-fought battles to build a </p><p>recognisable brand that delivers on its promise can be a waste of time </p><p>if no perception management is applied within the marketing </p><p>framework. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And when you're talking cyberspace, the issue becomes even more critical </p><p>- winning or losing the war can hinge on something as simple as whether </p><p>or not users think your website sucks. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And don't forget your online ads - if you can't get users to remember </p><p>them, let alone click on them, the race is over even before it has </p><p>begun. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>So, again: we don't know it all, we never did, and it's more than likely </p><p>that we never will. The best we can do is keep trying. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>