Continue reading »]]> Where does Digital & Traditional Marketing intersect?

Probably one of the biggest areas of confusion for marketers working to understand digital marketing is “how does digital marketing fit in with traditional marketing?“  Actually the questions don’t come that way they sound more like:

1. Do we need a Facebook page?
2. Does social media mean we should spend less on our website?
3. What if someone says something we don’t like, can we delete it?
4. Shouldn’t we build a iPhone app?

Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing

The figures below show the difference between the old world (traditional marketing techniques) and the new world (traditional marketing enhanced by digital marketing).

The noticeable difference is the addition of a “Social Outreach” circle.  But before we go into that, let’s go over how the traditional elements are recast in their digital world.

“New” Core

The core are your owned media properties – your company and product websites.  To address the early concern of “do we still need a website”, yes.  Never abandon your owned media. The various social media networks have varying policies regarding who owns what when you post on their networks.  For that reason alone you want to maintain your main web presence.

As hinted, the content of your website must change.  Posting 20 page whitepapers is becoming rather staid. Your main content needs to be updated to be more interactive and interesting.  You’re not just competing with your typical product and service competitors, you’re competing with everything that may steal the attention of your audience.  Make sure website visitors have their questions answered and the interest piqued. Further, your new core needs to allow your customers/prospects interact with the content.  This may be accomplished by allowing thought leaders to maintain blogs and allow readers comments. [A word of caution, the more anonymity commenters are able to have the more likely the comments will be ugly]

“New” Amplifiers

Traditional amplifiers include TV, radio, print and display.  To that equation we add technical amplifiers like Search Engine Marketing, mobile, RSS feeds and email registration.  These Digital Marketing techniques improve your ability to get the word out.  The name of the game is “Lead Generation.”

Social Outreach

So what’s new? Social Outreach.

Let’s review some examples of social outreach:

• Using LinkedIn groups for feedback, idea generation and updates
• Organizing formal or informal Meetups (or tweetups)
• Active social listening and responding to customer complaints
• Engaging with passionate customer segments seeking product advice

Admittedly, social outreach is a fuzzy idea, but the difference with social outreach is the purposefully human connection.  This is hand-to-hand marketing, getting out there and interacting with your customers on a personal, individual level.

In terms of customer segments, I see social outreach as focusing on your existing customers.  Social outreach allows you to:

• Maintain relevance and top of mind
• Deal with customer problems while they are still relatively small problems
• Obtain referrals because your customers know you and like you
• Build “earned media” by leveraging your customers to drive “Word of Mouth”

Let’s revisit the questions mentioned

Now that we’ve covered of Digital Marketing supports Traditional Marketing, let’s revisit the common questions mention earlier:

1. Do we need a Facebook page? Maybe you need a presence on Facebook (is that where your audience is?)
2. Does social media mean we should spend less on our website? Your website is as important as ever but it can’t be the only place for your content (use content bread crumbs the sites your customers visit)
3. What if someone says something we don’t like, can we delete it? You can’t delete what someone says about you (you don’t have control over your customers)
4. Shouldn’t we build a iPhone app? Mobile is an important part of your strategy (but consider the content and the customers interaction with it on a mobile phone)

Drive Ideas Out. Draw Audiences In.

To recap, how does Digital Marketing interact Traditional Marketing?  It helps drive ideas out and draw audiences in. Digital Marketing doesn’t supplant traditional methods, although it may change them a bit. Marketers have new tools in their toolbox to get their message out.  Rather than just relying on broadcast messaging there are new mediums available to find and connect with customers and prospects.

A recent tweet from Laura Fitton said it best:

I happily credit Nate Elliot and Forrester research for planting the seed in my head with Nate’s research The Interactive Brand Ecosystem.

Continue reading »]]> So what is Marketing Technology?

I certainly talk about a lot it but frankly I’m hard pressed to define it. Let’s look at some of the groundwork that’s been laid.

Mr. Chief Marketing Technologist – Scott Brinker

Scott Brinker does yeomen work writing about the role of a marketing technologist.  As reported Scott says a Marketing Technologist is:

“… someone who has a hybrid between business and technology, a strong background in engineering and IT, is an early adopter of technology, but someone who also understands the pragmatic realities of scaling technology. But most importantly, someone who brings those skills and combines them with a deep love and passion for the marketing mix. This is a technologist that reports to the CMO, not the CIO.”

Marketing Technology Consultant – Douglass Karr

Douglas Karr’s Marketing Technology Blog provides insight into the role on posts daily on the topics below.  The list below provides insight to what Marketing Technology consists of.

Practitioner – John Refford

I myself have wrote on the roles and responsibilities of a Marketing Technologist focusing on:

• Strategist - you will frequently be asked to analyze situations, evaluate options, and recommend strategy & tactics
• Change Agent - you may find yourself playing the role of a change agent where you have the opportunity to introduce new marketing technology and techniques
• Consultant - you may be asked advise ebusiness teams on how to integrate new “Web 2.0″ digital techniques to the traditional websites
• Project Manager - given your unique position between IT & Marketing, you may be asked to manage several projects

The Social Crowd

In working to craft a definition I reached out to a few LinkedIn groups (here and here) and asked how practitioners define “Marketing Technology”.

Here are the definitions offered:

• Nigel Cliffe: The action of combining technology with business processes to promote the selling of products or services.
• Nazli Yuzak: A series of technologies that enables marketers to execute higher quality integrated marketing campaigns while optimizing resources and maximizing ROI.
• Eric Schmidt: At the corner of IT and Marketing you find the Marketing Technologist. A marketer has a message, an IT developer has a system, the MT uses a specific system for a specific message.
• @BrianMakas: Bi-lingual marketer/techie that often offers solutions well before need for tech even identified.

Here’s my draft definition of Marketing Technology:

Applied information technology sciences to the benefit sales and marketing efforts associated with advancing organizational goals. Contrasted with traditional marketing consisting of print, display, tv advertising and public relations analog techniques.

I’m intrigued that the category continues to be defined by the people as much as by the content.  Because of this fluidity, I’m really intrigued to see if we can settle on a common definition.

How do you define Marketing Technology?