Big data was once the domain of the chief information officer (CIO) but it is now the chief marketing officer (CMO) who is being handed the reins. Photograph: Alamy
As Surjit Chana wrote for the Drum recently: “Marketing has always been based on a few core principles: understanding customers, meeting their needs, and doing so in a way that builds trust.”
Since the earliest days of marketing, those goals have never changed, and rightly so; customer centricity has and always will be at the heart of the greatest campaigns. But one thing that has changed (and quite dramatically) is the way in which marketers now have to approach achieving those goals – and it’s all because of technology.
From tablets to touchscreen, the average customer is now more digitally empowered than ever – they can engage with and consume content through an ever widening range of devices and platforms. Interaction with technology is far greater than ever before, so how does a marketer adapt? The answer is big data.
Big data (and analysing that data) means that marketing professionals are now getting even closer to the customer – they know more about audiences than ever before, with pinpoint precision. At their fingertips a marketer now has detailed facts and figures about consumer browsing habits, their favourite brands, how they use social media. It means that campaigns can be targeted, analysed and proved better than ever.
But with this convergence of marketing and technology, what impact does this have on traditional marketing roles?
Big data was once the domain of the chief information officer (CIO) – a technical science that no one else could possibly master – but it is now the chief marketing officer (CMO) who is being handed the reins. As Garnter predicted last year, CMOs will spend more on IT than CIOs by 2017. It was a bold suggestion at the time, but one recently backed up by a CMO Council study, which found that 80% of marketers and 88% of IT professionals believe that working together is critical to ensure customer centricity.
So how can C-suite marketing and information officers make that relationship work? Is it about collaborating on new projects together or can too much overlap be detrimental to results?
What about wider business culture: how can company structures better facilitate this kind of relationship? And finally, is good ‘gut feeling’ – which might once have been what makes a good campaign great – still relevant?
We want to answer these questions and more, so join us and a panel of experts from 11am-1pm on Wednesday 7 August.
You can post your own questions, comments and observations ahead of time below.
Working across a variety of industries, he has deep knowledge of collaboration software, supercomputing and the technology requirements of mid-sized companies. His career includes regional and worldwide IBM leadership roles, with his latest European role following an assignment at the company’s New York corporate headquarters.
Brian leads planning, development and implementation of StubHub’s marketing across all international businesses to generate traffic, customer acquisition, retention and revenue.
Vincent van den Boogert, general manager marketing,
As the general manager for marketing at ING, one of the leading banks in direct channels, Vincent strongly believes customer preference is built on the ability to convey a meaningful purpose and the use of technology to maximize the number of customer contacts perceived relevant by the customer.
Vincent has served before as head of retail at ING Turkey, obtained his master’s degree in Econometrics and an MBA/MBI from the Rotterdam School of Management.
This content is brought to you by the Guardian Media Network in association with IBM
This content is produced by Guardian Professional to a brief agreed with and paid for by IBM– all editorial controlled and overseen by the Guardian
Since the earliest days of marketing, those goals have never changed, and rightly so; customer centricity has and always will be at the heart of the greatest campaigns. But one thing that has changed (and quite dramatically) is the way in which marketers now have to approach achieving those goals – and it’s all because of technology.
From tablets to touchscreen, the average customer is now more digitally empowered than ever – they can engage with and consume content through an ever widening range of devices and platforms. Interaction with technology is far greater than ever before, so how does a marketer adapt? The answer is big data.
Big data (and analysing that data) means that marketing professionals are now getting even closer to the customer – they know more about audiences than ever before, with pinpoint precision. At their fingertips a marketer now has detailed facts and figures about consumer browsing habits, their favourite brands, how they use social media. It means that campaigns can be targeted, analysed and proved better than ever.
But with this convergence of marketing and technology, what impact does this have on traditional marketing roles?
Big data was once the domain of the chief information officer (CIO) – a technical science that no one else could possibly master – but it is now the chief marketing officer (CMO) who is being handed the reins. As Garnter predicted last year, CMOs will spend more on IT than CIOs by 2017. It was a bold suggestion at the time, but one recently backed up by a CMO Council study, which found that 80% of marketers and 88% of IT professionals believe that working together is critical to ensure customer centricity.
So how can C-suite marketing and information officers make that relationship work? Is it about collaborating on new projects together or can too much overlap be detrimental to results?
What about wider business culture: how can company structures better facilitate this kind of relationship? And finally, is good ‘gut feeling’ – which might once have been what makes a good campaign great – still relevant?
We want to answer these questions and more, so join us and a panel of experts from 11am-1pm on Wednesday 7 August.
You can post your own questions, comments and observations ahead of time below.
Panel
Surjit Chana, chief marketing officer, IBM Europe
As a member of IBM’s global senior leadership team, Surjit speaks with authority about IBM product development, research, sales and marketing strategies and has held a range of high profile roles within the company.Working across a variety of industries, he has deep knowledge of collaboration software, supercomputing and the technology requirements of mid-sized companies. His career includes regional and worldwide IBM leadership roles, with his latest European role following an assignment at the company’s New York corporate headquarters.
Brian Streich, international marketing director, StubHub International
Brian joined StubHub in 2004 and has worked across almost every marketing discipline helping to increase traffic, conversion and net promoter scores. In his latest role, he brings his experience and expertise in building StubHub into the world’s largest secondary ticketing marketplace to help recreate its success on a global basis.Brian leads planning, development and implementation of StubHub’s marketing across all international businesses to generate traffic, customer acquisition, retention and revenue.
Vincent van den Boogert, general manager marketing,
ING Netherlands
As the general manager for marketing at ING, one of the leading banks in direct channels, Vincent strongly believes customer preference is built on the ability to convey a meaningful purpose and the use of technology to maximize the number of customer contacts perceived relevant by the customer. Vincent has served before as head of retail at ING Turkey, obtained his master’s degree in Econometrics and an MBA/MBI from the Rotterdam School of Management.
This content is brought to you by the Guardian Media Network in association with IBM
This content is produced by Guardian Professional to a brief agreed with and paid for by IBM– all editorial controlled and overseen by the Guardian