The CMO title barely existed 15 years ago but it is already undergoing a significant transformation. There are some major shifts in landscape in which they operate: changes in Technology, Consumer Behavior and the Media Landscape. In a recent research report entitled Future Tense: the Global CMO published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, I hope to recap some of the most salient points of this paper as I see them.
Marketing is moving from a pure brand image play to something much more interesting. “Now the ability to communicate the marketing message to consumers through interactive media is critical.” To me this means …. marketing must be able to create and package great ideas for consumption of the right audience …. think the spread of great ideas (credit Seth Godin – Idea Virus). If you have a story worth repeating, bloggers, podcasters, etc will repeat your story all over the world thereby building buzz and your brand at the same time. This is becoming an art in itself.
While print advertising is still plays a role, high level executives are using search, forums, blogs and even Twitter (see C Level Executives who use Twitter). So your information has to be out there in all formats which means you must be more integrated.
Jon Iwata, SVP of Marketing and Communications for IBM said, “If you think backward from the audience you’re trying to reach and the channels and methods you’ve used to try to reach them, it all argues for taking a much more integrated approach to the work of marketing and communications.”
Add to this what I consider the secret sauce which is tracking and nurturing leads. A whopping 64% of survey respondents say that the global marketing head has served for less than three years. While this revolving door of marketing is alarming …. the way to “break free of this relevancy crisis is to absolutely be accountable for the one and only metric that counts to a business and that’s growth [in sales].” (see Rethinking Metrics Again) This can only be accomplished with a strong lead management or lead nurturing process to graduate leads to sales and track ROI.
Taken together I think there is a prescription for the evolving CMO. Strong online acumen with all forms of new media and accountability through lead nurturing that proves the value of every dollar spend contributed to growth in sales!
There are exciting times for both corporate marketers and marketing consultancies. I love adding new tools to our tool box, especially when they allow us to talk with and hear from customers.
However, we must be both cautious and smart. We must understand the difference between ROI and Value. And we must take this opportunity to increase Inbound Marketing and communications while decreasing Outbound Marketing and communications.
To do these things correctly, we need to segment to the smallest possible communities and teach ourselves how to listen at least as much as we talk.
Great post, Paul. Thank you!
Jon Iwata has it right regarding the need for an integrated approach. Sadly, most marketing investments (from my 15 years exp) are mildly related or one-off, thereby reducing their effectiveness. Program management is a desperately needed skill.
“marketing must be able to create and package great ideas for consumption of the right audience”
Paul, if this is the CMO of the future, then marketing is doomed. Marketing needs to reclaim a role of business management, otherwise it will retain its role as the “make it pretty” department.
Communications managers need a better understanding of digital media. CMOs need a better understanding of how business works.
Your definition of marketing helps explain why chief marketers often aren’t given a seat at the executive level.
I agree with Peter. This is a sad state of affairs – the “new CMO” is christened every Dec/Jan, and then the next year nothing changes.
The latest CMO Council survey is illustrative:
“the comprehensive international audit of some 650 senior marketers earlier this year revealed that making communications more personal and relevant, as well as more targeted and timely, was among the top strategies”
I had to check the calendar to make sure it wasn’t 1998.
They should all quit and let some new blood in.
“While print advertising is still plays a role, high level executives are using search, forums, blogs and even Twitter – So your information has to be out there in all formats which means you must be more integrated.”
Integration is key. The problem I see most often is that the right conversations are happening among the wrong people. Too often those that control the traditional budgets aren’t those that best understand how to apply those dollars in the social world. Having CMOs that can recognize this and pull from the right resources will better align brands to take advantage of the social Web in the future.
The value of the social Web is its ability to get a brand involved in the right discussions online. The power of those conversations isn’t found in the aggregate, which is typically where traditional ROI measures are found. But, rather, the value of the social Web is in the direct dialogue a brand can have with the individual. These aren’t mass mediums with traditional ROI. We need to make sure the right sensibilities are articulating this shift and are driving the strategies in the social environment.
Peter & Brad,
I agree with your premises but I don’t think Paul dismisses the leadership and management components. He writes: “break free of this relevancy crisis is to absolutely be accountable for the one and only metric that counts to a business and that’s growth [in sales].” (see Rethinking Metrics Again) This can only be accomplished with a strong lead management or lead nurturing process to graduate leads to sales and track ROI.” As a C-level executive, that is the primary responsibility, whether CEO or CMO. Profits and revenues are their fiduciary responsibility.
@ Peter
Great point and well said
But the vision wasnt just that in isolation it was also about adding the relevancy factor via creating and tracking demand with techniques like Lead Nurturing
pd
Paul, the quote “. . . absolutely be accountable for the one and only metric that counts to a business and that’s growth [in sales]” is, especially in the professional services arena, a potentially huge sinkhole. Part of the reason for such high turnover among marketing professionals in this sector is that accountability for marketing and selling success hasn’t been effectively shared throughout the professional services firm. Too many marketers and business developers are expected to be accountable, while too many others aren’t.
The CMO of the future will of course have to have deep expertise with all the forward-looking channels you’ve mentioned in your blog post (as well as the ability to track ROI!). But for professional services senior marketers, the “secret sauce” will have a lot to do with ensuring that accountability is truly shared — by everyone — for the firm’s successful marketing and business development gains. This means a whole new shared accountability framework, where there are explicit expectations for every single person’s contribution to marketing and business development success.