So many channels, countless vendor options
The rapidly growing marketing technology landscape is converging around content, customer data, marketing, and commerce. The marketing technologies landscape diagram from Scott Brinker best illustrates the complexities we face as marketers. In January 2014, there were 947 vendors listed. By 2015, the number of vendors exploded to nearly 2,000. CMOs and CIOs have their work cut out for them to determine how, when, what, and where to integrate systems in their stack.
How to decide which digital marketing platform is the right fit
Should your business opt for a best-of-breed or a single vendor suite of solutions? According to Forrester, it all depends on your business needs and objectives.
For example, an omni-channel retailer might prefer an integration of two best-of-breed solutions, one for marketing and one for commerce. A life sciences company might opt for a premier content management system because content-reuse is an important consideration. Or large, international organizations may opt for a suite of services built around their current CRM platforms to ensure continuity across brands.
I recently read a great post from Diginomica about what to consider when building a digital marketing platform. Here’s a quick summary:
1. Keep your eye on the customer
It’s important to not lose sight of the customer when considering which platforms work best for your business. Map the customer journey from before time of purchase to purchase and beyond. This helps you understand the content and processes needed to easily move customers along the path rather than being distracted by ‘shiny objects’ – the latest, flashy technologies on the market.
2. Build your platform on data & content
Data and content – they are like the peanut butter and jelly that holds a sandwich together. The technologies you choose to build your platform need to be able to share relevant customer data and content. This provides a more complete view of the customer so you can begin to personalize experiences along the journey.
3. Constructing the marketing stack
The majority of marketing teams have one or more platforms to create and manage their marketing programs, including a digital experience and marketing automation platform. These platforms need to seamlessly integrate to share customer data to create that 360-degree view of the customer.
When building your marketing stack, every technology should have a specific purpose. And best practices suggest your stack should be able to grow (or shrink) as your digital marketing strategy evolves.
Taking the next step
A digital marketing platform that contains a well-integrated set of scalable tools is essential for creating a personalized experience across digital channels. Whether you’re building a marketing stack or looking to improve upon what you have, learn how to harness the power of your digital marketing tools by checking out the on-demand webinar from our Digital Transformation series.
