The year 2021 begins with the implementation of a new communication model in the company where I work, an in-house operating digital media execution for all of Latin America, and of course, with the expectation of having more control, agility and access to data for better decision-making.
It's an evolution since our first experience with an internal communication management model in 2017. In 2017, we launched a product category considered to be disruptive with a communication and go-to-market plan broken down into 4 phases, all supported by digital media. Six people were assigned to the global head office to manage digital investment for priority markets, Brazil being one of these.
At first, this team was created to ensure that the markets followed the strategy defined in conjunction with the global team. The KPIs for 'phase change' were clear and the launch would only go ahead if all the activities and targets were met.
The positive points were many, in fact the learning curve for a team focused on running a campaign for several countries was much faster, and the correct allocation of funds between the vehicles was proven with each management report. Having a comparison between markets also made it easier to make decisions about investments and transparency of actions for the company's board. In addition, this team could easily understand the commonalities in consumer behavior, refining the target for each market in which the category was launched and creating instant connections.
Of course there were losses, the campaign was truly global, with no adaptations to the campaign/parts for the markets. Even local activations, such as media plans in cooperation with the main retailers, used the original film. Anyone who works for a multinational knows how complicated it is to activate a global campaign without adapting to the local universe. We also had to practice detachment during execution, we were no longer in daily control, deciding which piece to activate and in which vehicle.
This strategy of centralized digital media execution proved to be a winner, especially for the global team, which began to publicize the gains in agility, costs and control over the data generated for all business units, and little by little, new products, categories and businesses were incorporated into the model. The lessons learned in recent years, driven by a global pandemic and the relevance of digital media, led to this new decision: to internalize the execution of digital media in all markets, for all campaigns, with the creation of regional structures. And this is what is starting to work now in 2021 for Brazil.
This time, an internal team of around 15 people will be responsible for managing our campaigns. These are people who live the brand's principles and values and know what tone of communication is appropriate for each vehicle. Knowing the company's way of working has allowed us to speed up stages in the process, such as eliminating the briefing phase and minimizing budget alignment discussions, gains that have already been noticed by the team. And other improvements should also happen soon. I'm reassured about the improvement in the main awareness and conversion indicators, after all, we'll have a 100% dedicated team for our campaigns.
This, which is one of the main bonuses, also brings a great burden, the loss of all the infrastructure of an agency that I will no longer share, the oxygenation of people who move between different segments and companies, who provoke you to do more and who inspire you about new vehicles, tools and formats available to the local market.
One of the initiatives implemented in 2020, as a way of anticipating this change, was to bring in professionals from different sectors to talk to the marketing team during 'Innovation Week' and develop a sense of curiosity about everything as a new mindset. Over time, I hope to refine the relationship between the in-house and the marketing team, making the in-house more connected to management challenges and local needs and the marketing team more connected to the creative and innovative side of digital media.
2021 started with good challenges!
