Consider a scenario,

You are driving through the city, stop at a red light, the radio is playing, you scroll through the phone notifications surrounded by numerous billboards. You reach home and see a poster pasted on a wall nearby. As you enter your home, you only remember the poster.

This is Recency Bias. 

It is our tendency to remember or best recall the primary (at the top of the list or priority) or the recent ones (end of the list). 

Consumer attention span has reduced drastically, leading to Brands not leaving even a single opportunity to put their content out. The ideas, format, and themes are eerily similar on every platform. Every Brand jumps on the bandwagon of topical content or moment marketing, defeating the purpose of creating their own moment or differentiation. Trends only provide momentary consumer engagement and create recent imagery. They do not develop consumer loyalty or long-term relationship with the Brand. 

Marketers should now focus on how they can remain a part of consumers' lives and add value to them. We live in a world of data, personalization, and content; a proper blend of all three is required for effective communication and not just to stay relevant. Brands such as Adidas, Amazon, and Apple are successful in being a part of the larger ecosystem. Brands should take their example and move forward. 

How can a brand try to control Recency bias?

1. Acceptance

Accepting that it exists is the first step. Engagement on your social media might be better than the competitors but analyze the increase in sales, consumer conversion rate as compared to the likes, shares, and comments.

2.  Have a long term goal

Take the little wins but visualize the long-term goals and work towards them. Try not to get lost in the pool of similar content. Stay relevant with the trends while creating differentiation with original campaigns and ideas. 

3.  Adapt Consumer Lifetime Value Strategy

Develop a relationship with consumers; brand recall is more robust when there is an emotional connection. Be a part of the consumer's journey, set yourself apart and gain customer loyalty. 

The Digital space has cut-throat competition, and consumers get swayed with something as small as a discount coupon. These strategies create Brand and user relationships. With user data points, consumer behavior, trends, and patterns, you can measure your marketing strategies' success, which is far more effective than analyzing only social media engagement.