Working with IT “A Marketers Guide”

Richard  Meyer  Online  Strategic  Solu4ons  

IT’s  percep*on    of  marke*ng  

Marke*ng’s  percep*on    of  IT  

However…    

With  consumers  now  communica4ng  with  brands  through  an  increasing  number  of  channels,  it  is  essen*al  

that  marke*ng  systems  are  properly  integrated  to  ensure  that  customers  

are  addressed  with  consistent  messages  and  offers,  whatever  the  

channel.      

For  this  to  happen,  marke*ng  needs  to  consult  closely  with  IT  to  ensure  

this  integra*on    

Miscommunica*on  ?  

IT  is  perceived  as  not  understanding  what  

marke4ng’s  needs  are,  and  marke4ng  is  

perceived  as  a  group  that  is  likely  to  undertake  a  

“rogue”  digital  marke4ng  projects  suggested  by  

vendors  without  IT  input.  

Bigger  Marke*ng  Budgets  =  More  Accountability  

•  Gartner  suggests  that  by  2017  the  CMO  will  spend  more  on  IT  than  the  CIO.    

•  Marke4ng  is  becoming  increasingly  technology-­‐based.  

•  Marke4ng  budgets  are  already  larger  (and  growing  faster)  than  IT  budgets.    

•  Indeed,  2011  B2B  and  B2C  marke4ng  budgets  as  a  percentage  of  revenue  were  almost  three  4mes  as  high  (10%)  as  IT  budgets  (3.6%).    

And  More  Dollars  Are  Going  to  Digital  Marke*ng  

•  Marke4ng  budgets  at  b-­‐to-­‐b  companies  are  set  to  rise  6%  in  2014.  

•  Two-­‐fiUhs  of  B2C  marketers  will  see  budgets  increase  at  an  average  of  3.4%  in  2014.  

•  Marke4ng  budgets  will  eek  back  up  to  4%  of  company  revenue  in  2014.  That's  s4ll  less  than  the  5%  to  10%  many  companies  had  in  place  before  the  2008  recession,  but  an  improvement  over  the  2.5%  Forrester  reported  two  years  ago.  

•  "Business  is  just  4ghtening  its  belt  all  around,"  said  Forrester  VP  and  senior  analyst  Laura  Ramos.  "You  have  to  really  prove  that  you're  going  to  return  value  to  the  business  to  get  more  budget  money.”  

•  An  emphasis  on  accountability  and  smart  spending  will  lead  to  bigger  bets  on  marke*ng  technology    

•  According  to  the  report,  61%  of  marketers  "expect  to  increase  the  propor*on  of  technology  spend  versus  marke*ng  communica*on/program  spend.”  

•  More  than  half  of  the  52  marketers  who  took  part  in  Forrester's  Marke4ng  Budget  Online  Survey  said  they  plan  increase  spending  on  digital  marke4ng  at  the  expense  of  other  channels.  

Marke*ng  and  IT  Need    Each  Other  for  Success  

•  According  to  the  IBM  survey,  60%  of  marketers  point  to  their  lack  of  alignment  with  the  company's  IT  department  as  the  biggest  obstacle  to  reaching  today's  consumers.    

•  When  IT  isn’t  engaged,  marketers  are  much  more  likely  to  wind  up  with  a  highly  fragmented  view  of  the  customer  that  result  in  a  disjointed  set  of  communica4ons  and  marke4ng  messages  to  customers.  

The  IT  department  is    reaching  a  crossroads  

•  IT  should  own  the  architecture  for  the  marke4ng  pla`orm  but  their  choice  should  be  more  flexible  so  as  not  to  limit  digital    marke4ng  strategies.    

•  Marketers  should  integrate  all  digital  marke4ng  vendors  with  IT  and  they  need  to  explain  the  “why”  and  the  “how”  in  terms  of  business  jus4fica4ons.  

So  how  can  IT  help  ?  

1.  By  sebng  technical  and  func4onal  specifica4ons  for  website  development  as  part  of  the  project  plan.  

2.  Tes4ng  &  valida4ng  all  website  func4onali4es  across  a  wide  range  of  Internet  connec4ons  and  browsers.  

3.  By  working  closely  with  outside  digital  marke4ng  vendors  to  ensure  they  are  using  best  prac4ces  as  they  develop  digital  solu4ons  

How  can  marke*ng  help  ?  

1.  Bring  IT  people  into  preliminary  mee4ngs  around  the  development  of  digital  strategy  so  they  understand  where  and  why.  

2.  Allow  them  to  integrate  fully  with  outside  vendors  and  set  up  key  contacts  for  technical  development.  

3.  Have  IT  sign  off  on  wire  frames.  4.  Allow  people  from  IT  to  afend  

qualita4ve  research  and/or  read  research  summaries  with  implica4ons.  

5.  Educate  IT  people  on  success  metrics.  

Why  Tes*ng  &  Valida*on  are  an  important  IT  Func*on  

(Example)  

What  is    Website  Valida*on?  

Valida4ng  a  website  is  the  process  of  ensuring  that  the  

pages  on  the  website  conform  to  the  norms  or  standards  

defined  by  various  organiza*ons.    

 Valida4on  is  important,  and  will  ensure  that  your  web  pages  are  interpreted  in  the  same  way  (the  way  you  want  it)  by  various  machines,  such  as  

search  engines,  as  well  as  users  and  visitors  to  your  webpage.  

Because  there  are  a  lot  of  different  browsers  in  use  

Source:  Net  Market  Share  Dec  2013  

Marke*ng  should  also  be    involved  in    

website  development  •  Throughout  the  development  

process  you  should  always  engage  our  target  audience  in  usability  tes4ng.    

•  This  is  a  cri4cal  stage  of  the  development,  and  informs  the  final  build.    

•  Upon  comple4on  of  the  ini4al  build,  you  should  immediately  begin  tes4ng  and  a  quality  assurance  process.    

 

In  summary…  

ü  Get  IT  involved  early  and  oUen  in  digital  marke4ng  ini4a4ves.  

ü  Ensure  that  there  is  4ght  integra4on  between  digital  marke4ng  vendors,  marke4ng  and  IT.  

ü  Understand  IT  requirements  and  never  go  outside  the  technical  &  func4onal  requirements  without  a  strong  business/customer  case.  

ü  Understand  the  tes4ng  &  valida4ng  process  for  any  website  changes.  

ü  Meet  regularly  in  small  cross-­‐func4onal  teams  to  review  current  project  plans  and  cri4cal  project  milestones.  

ü  Make  IT  part  of  the  solu4on  and  share  successes  throughout  the  organiza4on.  

About  me..  

•  17  years  digital  marke4ng  experience  working  closely  with  outside  vendors  and  internal  IT  departments.  

•  Author  of  hfp://newmediaandmarke4ng.com  and  hfp://worldofdtcmarke4ng.com  

•  MBA  New  York  Ins4tute  of  Technology