AIDA (Attention, interest, desire and action)

The 100 year old marketing framework -There is more life in the old dog yet

In recent seminars I have been asked to cover the AIDA framework as part of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) professional qualification syllabus. In my mind I had dismissed it as a model stemming from old fashioned advertising agency mentality, yes maybe useful for kick starting writer’s block when defining marketing communications objectives. There are so many other more useful, more contemporary models and frameworks out there. I am also a firm believer of an integrated approach, using different measurable communication tools not just focusing on one element of the mix.

Maybe my initial reservations were linked to this model initially being focused on advertising, and my professional roles focused on other elements of the marketing mix or maybe it was down to just pure shameful ageism. I now think the latter to be true.

After becoming reacquainted with AIDA in the context of customer relationship management I believe it is more relevant today than ever, over 100 years after its conception. Hats off to you Mr Elias St Elmo Lewis and thank you for this legacy that fits perfectly within a digital age you never knew. It takes time to build relationships with customers. If you consider Philip Kotler’s ladder of loyalty, it’s easy to conceptualise that loyalty can increase over time. The AIDA model certainly lends itself well to driving each stage of the loyalty and customer acquisition process, through the use of various content in multiple formats, to drive action at each stage of the process.