Marketing has changed dramatically in recent years because of new consumer behaviours, technologies and competitive pressures. Today, the emphasis is on building and nurturing personalized relationships to increase engagement and loyalty. The ongoing issue for companies, however, is that most marketing departments are still planning and executing in a factory model that tends to overproduce marketing that under performs.
Accenture Operations research has uncovered a select group of just-in-time (JIT) marketing masters who are more adept than their peers at reaching a greater share of in-market customers with the right message at the right time. Thanks to this, they are able to be more effective and efficient with their marketing spend – with positive financial results. These companies are not inherently more digital, and are not necessarily spending more on analytics. Rather, they are integrating digital and analytics capabilities into their operations in a more forward-looking way.
Modern marketing has been through many stages in its history, and each stage has improved the connection with the consumer. Today, marketers are using personalisation and granular targeting in an attempt to create strong and engaging relationships with customers to build loyalty. This evolution has required, at each stage, a new set of consumer, technology and competitive dynamics.
Although companies’ strategic intent has evolved, their approach to the creation of marketing has not necessarily kept pace. In fact, the Accenture research finds deep dissatisfaction among Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) with current approaches. Fewer than half of the 500+ CMOs surveyed (41 percent) are “very satisfied” with the value-for-money of their mix of marketing tactics. When surveyed about marketing channels – five traditional and five digital – CMOs reported that only 18 percent of the individuals that marketers reach are the right customers for the product or service on offer. Extrapolating from estimates of global advertising spend, this amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars being misspent each year.
Becoming a just-in-time marketer
What can a traditional marketing organisation do to transform itself into a just-in-time master? Here are a few recommendations.
Hone operations: Sharpen operations and train people to execute quickly; to react smarter and more nimbly; to glean insights and turn them around in days or weeks, not months. Like the shopkeeper of the past, learn to hone and trust your judgment. This is what marketing today is about. In many cases, it can be important to spend less time studying the problem and more time executing, refining, and then adjusting and improving over time. Put talent and decisions closer to the front line, then aggregate the insights and act on them.
Become an effective “listener”: Traditionally, marketers have received feedback through elongated studies – brand tracking studies performed each quarter. Now, marketers need to listen through social media for cues to take immediate action. Organisations need to become more comfortable making use of unstructured data such as social media and making decisions based on a combination of insights and instincts.
Leverage extended teams and As-a-Service providers to gain maturity faster: Companies can more quickly gain maturity in JIT marketing by leveraging experienced marketing services providers. Embedded in these providers’ solutions are capabilities such as digital, customer and marketing analytics; managing outbound communications to customers and prospects across digital channels; and monitoring of social channels.
Financial services provider UBS, for example, has social media monitoring managed by Accenture. Through this service, UBS gets multi-country social media insights analysed and reported on a daily basis. This service has given UBS the capability to monitor and respond in near real time to online activity that could affect its brand and reputation.
Put added attention on individual reactions and leading indicators: Traditional strategy has provided insights at the broad segment level and shared data in aggregated insights. However, innovation and better performance may come from leading indicators or the “tip of the spear.” JIT marketing can provide a way to solve for more individual and specific situations. A JIT approach can give marketers insight into the consumers who could be predictors of what the norm will be in the future.
In conclusion, JIT marketing masters are differentiated from their peers not only by the investments they have made in the recent past, but the investments they plan to make in the coming years. JIT masters are more likely than other survey respondents to have invested over the past three years in improving or expanding their IT infrastructure; improving or expanding their digital channels; and acquiring or training specialised talent.
Moreover, JIT marketers are doubling down on their priorities over the next three years – more likely than their peers to improve or expand their IT infrastructure; acquire or train specialised talent; improve or expand customer research and segmentation; and improve or optimise messaging and content to drive pull.
In an era when only 18 percent of the potential customers that CMOs reach are actually in-market, marketing organisations need to try something else. JIT marketing masters are investing in the capabilities, models and technologies that can transform their operations and give them an edge in the marketplace.
About Accenture
Accenture (NYSE: ACN) is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialised skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions – underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network – Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With approximately 394,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.
