Tech tock: Timing and customer experience are what count in a hi-tech world

The most impactful takeaway from the AdForum Worldwide Summit which took place in New York in April is how technology in marketing and advertising is changing everything — for the good. It’s no longer just about producing content and being digitally savvy; agencies have, or should have, been doing that for years.

Now it’s about understanding precisely what technology can do to improve the brand experience, the relationship of the consumer with the brand, the way in which a company is taking that brand to market and the development of e-commerce.

Today’s consumers have access to brands with a point, a click and payment, and rarely need to leave their keyboards. In dealing with large e-commerce operations, it’s clear that besides one or two items that require to be tried on, there is little need to visit a brick-and-mortar store.

What this translates to from a marketing perspective is how brands are going to distinguish themselves through technology, create an exceptional customer experience (CX) and make certain they are selected from a huge pool of choices.

This has made the role of an agency today far more complicated than it ever has been. Agencies have to be able to do so much more for the marketer. The “big idea” is no longer the pinnacle of a campaign; now there are many more layers of both tech and creativity that agencies have to understand for a campaign to be effective.

One big question now is: how are consumers relating to brands and the information they’re receiving about the brand? And where are they getting that information from? Consumers aren’t conscious that television and out-of-home advertising is above the line, and that streaming is considered digital. It doesn’t matter to them — what’s important is that they are receiving the information in a way that meets their needs.

The diverse choice technology is able to create is exceptional, but the complexity it brings for agencies is huge. Twenty years ago we had TV, outdoor advertising and radio and brand trackers. Today the number of messages a consumer is getting every day about a brand is virtually uncountable, but at the same time consumers can be, and are being, tracked.

The psychology of this will be interesting for generations to come, but the real challenge for agencies and marketers now is that chief marketing officers (CMOs) have so much more to do than merely winning the next marketing campaign. They’re expected to understand the entire business, continue to grow its success and work closely with the chief technology officer to ensure ongoing learning and understanding of new marketing technology.

Do they have all this knowledge? And if they don’t, will they determine the two or three areas they will focus on that brings real value for their brands’ success?

Reports indicate the average CMO is now staying in a position for three to five years, and there’s a limit to what can be achieved in that time.

This is probably a key takeaway for me from AdForum. It made me even more conscious of the need for agencies to take the lead and provide information and direction to help clients to grow their business in a global economy under pressure.

We keep hearing that the future is changing faster than ever. Besides being another stressor, what does that mean? Essentially, it means that as technology changes, it’s difficult to even solidify a formula for best practice.

As CX alone can put some brands way ahead of others, who will win? In terms of business, the CMOs and agencies that have an in-depth knowledge of what technology can do and  take the risk of enabling their brand to be better served to the consumer are on track to win.

In a tech-driven world, however, there’s no predictable formula. Back in the day, if “everybody was doing it”, we knew it worked. Now, fortune favours the brave: the CMO who can combine the best technology, advised by a knowledgeable agency, and keep CX top of mind will cross the finish line with aplomb.

Johanna McDowell is the Scopen partner and CEO of the Independent Agency Search & Selection Company (IAS).