Are you in sync with your customers? In real time? Really?

#engagementmarketing

B2B customers create and guide their journeys—they have access to so much information, in so many places, that they are self-directed. Marketers have to be able to move with the discussion whenever and wherever their customers are—in real-time. We, as marketers, have to be always on—anticipating the start of the race and pacing ourselves to guide and react throughout the journey.

In the Economist Intelligence Unit’s conversation with Jim Stengel, former CMO at P&G, a different metaphor for today came up. If marketing used to be an assembly line, with marketers coming in at the end to figure out how to sell a product, they are now in a trading room, he explained. Marketers need to be able to respond to events as they happen. And here’s a really good example from the consumer and sports world we know and love. A much discussed example is how Oreo responded during the blackout at the 2013 Super Bowl with “you can still dunk in the dark.” It was quick, witty, and memorable. It seized the correct moment. Even a day later, and that response would have been DOA and utterly forgettable.

If you take a look at data from “The rise of the Marketer,” a survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit on behalf of Marketo, you can see these ideas emerge in the numbers.

When marketers need immediate responses, they won’t always be able to act based on a pre-established plan or journey that they dictated for their customers to follow. They will need to think quickly, and respond appropriately, in the right channel, at the right time and with the right message—at scale.

When CMOs and other marketing leaders were asked what skills were the top areas they needed to develop, the #1 answer, at 40%, was “digital engagement”, and the #2 answer, tied at 40%, was “marketing operations and technology.” Furthermore, 38% of marketing execs are looking for strategy and planning skills in the next 3-5 years. Among companies that see an urgent need for change, the number is even higher, climbing to 44%. Marketing leaders are recognizing that living in a real-time world requires much stronger strategic thinking as we all seek to adapt.

Lead from your strengths. And we’ll add ours to create your greater success.

As the way customers prefer to communicate evolves, marketers need to respond with speed and agility. And to do this, we need to invest in skills and technology that allow us to meet customers on their level, in real-time. We need both marketing vision and marketing operations.

In the next era of marketing—Engagement Marketing—agility will rule.

Outsourcing even a portion of your marketing functions is a big decision for any company. Used correctly, it can bring plenty of measurable value by putting your organization in expert hands. The key component is to truly know and understand your company and its needs, so you make the right choice for the future growth of your company.

Then engage. And grow your internal team as you grow and prosper. Start with an FCMO and they will bring the specialists.

Call us and we’ll listen – 512 799 4676.