the future of marketing management

The future of Marketing Management.

1. Work with technology

Software, The new technologist allow marketer to micro target consumers, at local and personal levels, whenever they access information, wherever they are, which makes interactive marketing all the more relevant and useful for the consumer, and hopefully more targeted and profitable for the marketer. The marketer could define target market, define their goals and define their channels. To do this, The marketers need a comprehensive marketing suite to improve their effectiveness (Forrester 2008, Enterprise Marketing Platform Paper) by managing all of the complex marketing channels through one software or even several pieces of software that can connect together to do listening, targeting, and monitoring and even vendor management all in one place, even is still has a lot of to do though on the software. The marketer that cannot embrace and fully understand technology will not be successful.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM), CRM tools are getting better, easier to use, and can have a huge impact on productivity. For example the knowledge management functions of CRM, with the tools it is possible to manage all the assets (case studies, testimonial, pricing, etc) where the sale person maintain a record of his/her client communication. In these tools, not just making the content accessible, it’s about putting it in one context, and improving its quality. On the context front,  CRM systems can already capture all e-mail communications with potential clients so salesperson will know if the prospect ever contacted the company before, if they’ve read the company newsletter, and even and what they clicked on. Knowledge management isn’t just about solving a content problem; it’s solving a conversation problem. 

With SalesForce Content, it should be possible to correlate conversion to the assets used in the sales process. it is also possible to qualify clients more efficiently though improved sales process reporting (i.e. average sales cycle, deal size, etc). Finally, the CRM makes it possible to understand the engagement level of salespeople to measure their performance and the value of the system itself.

The Internet, the internet comprises a number of applications or tools such as electronic mails, newsgroup, file transfers, and the World Wide Web as well as a myriad of computing and communication equipment (Kalakota  and Whinston, 1997). in the context of e- commerce, electronic commerce is simply commerce or business conducted over electronic means. The example of e-commerce on the internet is the airline industry; passengers are able to purchase tickets through the website of the airlines. Another example, buyers are able to purchase book through the website at “Amazon.com”. 

Marketing should also control its technological destiny. Marketing cannot rely on the IT department, outsourced agencies, or marketing technology vendors to lead the technical architecture of digital strategies. Each of those players has a part, but marketing must be the director of the play (Scott Brinker, April 08, 2010). He states that It's time to embrace a new class of professionals in the marketing department: marketing technologists, who are software architects and engineers with marketing and business savvy. To assemble and lead this group, there needs to be a new senior leadership role for a marketing CTO or Chief Marketing Technologist.

2. Outsourcing

Outsourcing is very controversial and affects every part of business from manufacturing through to design, software development, financial control, logistics management, customer support and sales. Outsourcing has been praised as cost-effective, efficient, productive and strategic - but also condemned as evil, money-grabbing, destructive, ruthless, exploiting the poor. If handled badly, business process outsourcing can damage corporate image, weaken a brand, unsettle customers, and result in lower quality of products and services. But when handled well, the results can be good enough to save a failing corporation.

Outsourcing is currently being utilized very successfully in numerous business functions, including legal, finance and human resources, in different sized organizations. The recognition that marketing can be successfully outsourced is a notion that is beginning to gain universal acceptance, particularly in companies who have been unable to undertake extensive marketing activities because they felt they "couldn't afford it". The availability of top quality marketing professionals as an outsourced resource is changing that rapidly.

Utilizing full-time/permanent marketing employees is not the only option available to organizations to practice marketing. Outsourcing provides a genuine alternative to developing and executing marketing tasks. It is cost effective and it is efficient. It is the way of the future.

Such a specialized Marketing resource will work together with company management to ensure success and prosperity for the entire organization and their stakeholders.

Outsourcing is, and will always be about engineering more efficient and effective business process, to result in providing end users of products (and shareholders) better value in their purchase decision. Industry leaders within outsourcing will be those companies that have created client loyalty through superior branding and a reliable image, and have the controls and stability to distribute their products to widespread audiences.

3. Green product

Mr. Dave Stangis, Vice President for CSR and Sustainability, Campbell Soup Company, discussed the importance of communicating the genuineness of a company’s green advancements, without misleading the consumer. Each company must decide who its customers are, what they want to know–and then communicate in a way that simplifies the message and conveys authenticity to the customer. The simple rules include: tell the truth, avoid generalities (e.g., ‘environmentally friendly’ is too vague), be specific about what the company is trying to do (e.g., if this product is better than the last, explain why, including the specific benefits of the new product), and finally, focus on the consumer. He added that Building consumer education, so that they learn more about products’ attributes i.e. recyclability. 

According to eMarketer only 40% of communications professionals polled believe that consumers will continue to pay more for green products in the current economy. There is little data yet on whether or not consumer spending on green products has actually decreased, leaving speculation over future consumer trends up in the air. It is likely that green alternatives that can prove a direct benefit to the consumer will continue to do very well (ex. products that save on electricity costs, water usage, etc.), while green products that are more of a luxury may decrease in sales. 

References:

Evolution.(n.d). The future of green. Retrieved from http://onlinebusiness.volusion.com/articles/the-future-of-green

WNSF. (n.d). The Green Consumer: fact, fiction and the future of marketing. Retrieved from  http://www.wnsf.org/archives/the-green-consumer-fact-fiction/

Workinfo.Com (n.d). Outsourcing. Retrieved from  http://www.workinfo.com/free/Downloads/89.htm

Global Change.Com (n.d). The Future of Outsourcing. Retrieved from http://www.globalchange.com/outsourcing.htm.

Scott Brinker. (April 08, 2010). The Future of Marketing in Technology World. Retrieved  from http://www.chiefmartec.com/2010/04/the-future-of-marketing-in-a-technology-world.html.

Roland Smart. (n.d). The Future of Marketing and Knowledge Management. http://www.rolandsmart.com/2009/02/the-future-of-marketing-knowledge-management/
Laura Lippay. (16 Feb). Marketing and Advertising Management Platforms Aren’t Keeping Up. Retrieved from http://www.lauralippay.com/blog/category/technology/

by Marcus Tewksbury. (June 16th, 2010). The Future of Marketing Automation. Retrieved from http://www.loopfuse.com/blog/2010/06/16/the-future-of-marketing-automation/