Since 2016 Smartson has worked with SF Studios and their streaming services SF Anytime and SF Kids Play. A strategic and operational collaboration where the starting block was an insight analysis and focus interview. This was the basis for a long term partnership with the goal of creating more recommendations, conversions and user-generated content.
During the journey, we have been impressed by SF Studios’ focus on digital growth. The fact that the services SF Kids Play and SF Anytime have quadrupled their consumer business over the past two years shows a successful strategy and implementation. Here, Jim Ankare Head of Consumer Sales & Marketing at SF Studios gives his views on the reasons for the rapid development:
- Test and learn is the short summary. We are a small team that brainstorms, tests and evaluates target groups, channels and product packages to identify scalable activities at reasonable costs. As soon as we identify a scalable commercial activity, we allocate budget to it at the expense of less efficient activities. This has resulted in both a fast growing business and motivated colleagues. We celebrate success but also attach great importance to learn from the tests that do not give a positive result.
This has resulted in both a fast growing business and motivated colleagues
Customer insights create business benefits
Keeping an eye on the market and transforming data-driven insights into business benefits is one of the success factors. Here Jim gives his reasoning about how SF Studios worked with consumer insights to develop service and promotions:
- We place more emphasis on what the customers do than what they claim to do or think. The hypotheses we test are mostly based on observed customer behaviour. Sometimes we seek inspiration through qualitative studies where the results are quantified. We have also worked exploratively with test pilots from Smartson. We have also broken down the more visionary ideas into testable MVPs.
We place more emphasis on what the customers do than what they claim to do or think.
By being curious, fearless and willing to try many different methods, SF Studios has gathered important knowledge about potential and existing users. Smart! Speaking of smart working - this is how Jim Ankare answers the question of how he would define the concept of smart marketing:
- It depends entirely on the context. Performers of smart marketing have the ability to adapt. For our consumer business, it is possible to work a lot with converting activities because the brand is so strong. For an unknown player with the same promotion and market, a completely different marketing is required to succeed. I think smart marketers are needed rather than hoping for something called smart marketing.
Finally, Jim´s thoughts on what makes him most proud in his role as Head of Consumer Sales & Marketing at SF Studios.
- I feel both proud and grateful to work with the people who have quadrupled the consumer business in two years. It is stimulating that the team at the same time become more efficient with our resources, which ensures a profitable growth.
Smart marketers are needed rather than hoping for something called smart marketing.
Meet Jim
Broad education in law, economics and behavioural science. He utilised these skills to create growth in completely different industries as a management consultant. Business growth has also been the focus of his work as a line manager in the hotel and film industry.
Ready to talk about growth through user generated content? Drop us a line: hello@smartson.se