In May 2016, the MEGA-Talk series of events was launched at etventure’s premises in Munich. On the first Thursday of the month, the employees gather together to discuss exciting, innovative and relevant topics, to pass on their experience and to compare notes. Last week, what was initially a purely internal series of events was opened up to external guests. Marketing expert Sven Wedig provided insights about new communication channels such as Instagram and Snapchat and about how to reach the 2.0 target group. Maren Lesche and Matthias Potthast from etventure described the ways that corporates and startups can work together and the opportunities for digital transformation that can flow from these partnerships.
Digital transformation and the human factor
In this context, digitization has huge potential. If these opportunities are exploited, Europe’s GDP could increase by 2.5 trillion euros by 2025. For this to happen, companies will need to seize these opportunities, adapt existing processes, introduce digital technologies and restructure entire business models. Yet many companies are not aware of how extensive the transformation really is. Many simply cannot comprehend that their tried and tested business models will not be profitable forever, especially when the current economic situation is good. Nevertheless, examples such as Kodak and the mail-order company Quelle show how quickly business models are being ousted by new competitors and vanishing into thin air.
Innovation strategies: from corporate VC to growing the company’s own digital unit
If companies are to master digital transformation, they must break the mold. Existing working methods, processes and assets are becoming less important and can even hinder the transformation. This makes it all the more important for companies to step down from their ivory towers and collaborate with startups. Typical strategies are to support startups by providing corporate venture capital or by offering accelerator programs. Yet in and of itself, providing finance does not help companies to ‘catch’ the mentality or methods of these startups. This is why the more promising approaches include innovation strategies such as co-working, Corporate meets Startup programs or founding the company’s own digital unit, which was the method used by etventure’s client Klöckner & Co.
Change of Perspective 2.0
At the MEGA-Talk, Sven Wedig revealed how to address users in the digital era. He is the founder and CEO of Vollpension Medien, an agency that focuses on influencer marketing. In his talk entitled ‘Change of Perspective 2.0,’ he demonstrated that when it comes digitization, it is important to see and understand the target group behind the products. “The product isn’t the star of the show, the target group is.” He used the example of the announcement of the new pope to illustrate the rapid, intense impact of digital transformation in our daily lives. Although in 2008, the crowd at St. Peter’s Square were watching in awe as the white smoke rose from the chimney, in 2013, there was hardly a single spectator that wasn’t using their phone to photograph or video the moment. Although the devices are changing, the most important changes are in the people and their behavior. “The target group is on the move,” he says, and things that were unimaginable a few years ago are becoming the norm.
New user behavior and new digital channels such as YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram provide companies with opportunities to address the target group in a more acute yet more authentic way. One option here is influencer marketing. Testimonials from well-known figures such as Justin Bieber mean that the associated image factors rub off onto the company’s own brand. Companies are also able to reach the figure’s social media followers, who can no longer be reached by conventional mass media.
The MEGA-Talk event was followed by a get-together with all of etventure’s Munich-based employees and the external guests.