Hint: Linking relevant data points is the key.
Hint: Linking relevant data points is the key.
According to an Econsultancy and Adobe survey of client-side marketers worldwide, 65% of respondents said improving their data analysis is a very important factor in delivering a better customer experience. That was the most popular answer for the second year in a row, up from 63% in 2017.
Today's modern marketer has to seek out every opportunity to learn new ways to engage consumers. In this case, Agile isn’t meant to be a synonym for nimble, but it may include project management elements that let modern marketing organizations act in a way that is more consistent with how businesses have changed in the 21st Century.
Sound the death knell...
There is some truth in all of these statements. But, none of these statements reflects the true state of marketing.
This week, I delivered a keynote at the Hewlett Packard (HP) Innovation Center in San Diego, California. The title of my presentation was “Data, Disruption and Decisions. Reinventing the way people, machines and insights work together.” One of the main topics of the presentation was “A New Digital Marketing Channel. Direct Mail.” Direct mail, new? Digital? Isn’t direct mail a 20th century analog channel?
Modern marketing is nothing like the practice of marketing just a few years ago. It’s more data-driven, focused and relevant. Digital marketers have had the ability to use variable data in email, landing pages and websites for years. It was a little harder for direct mail to have same level of relevancy and focus. Toner-based solutions (laser printers) also enable variable data printing. But direct mail produced on toner-based systems is slow, expensive and has limited formats.
Email marketing automation has become a competitive necessity for many organizations. While still not in use among all categories, marketers that have adapted email marketing automation report great success. This blog post will explain email marketing automation, describe its benefits and explore some ways that email marketing automation can be used to improve marketing response and conversion in different kinds of organizations.
Personalization in communications is not new. Direct marketers have used it in direct mail since the first computers and printers were used for marketing in the mid-twentieth century. Today, variable data printing technologies mean that marketers can personalize every word of a direct mail package, from outer envelope to letter, brochure and response device. Email marketers have had the same option since email’s first day.
Today, personalized email or direct mail communications don’t seem optional. Yet many marketers that use personalization often report poor results. So, what has held personalization back?
By nature, I am not a contrarian. I have written research papers, articles and books that are well researched and cite multiple sources. I seek agreement among more than one expert on best practices. That’s a safe and establishment point of view.
The article below originally appeared in the April 2018 edition of the J&C Newsletter. If you are not already receiving the newsletter, sign up on the form at the bottom of this article.
I recently returned from attending the MarTech Conference in San Francisco. Curated by Scott Brinker of ChiefMartec, it was a three-day firehose of information on marketing and advertising technology. I learned something new in every keynote and breakout session. I have become a martech evangelist.