The Future of Marketing

For many marketers, the modern environment is one of the most challenging — and interesting — times to catch consumers’ attention. With audiences turning to digital platforms to follow and purchase from brands, marketers must work extra hard to ensure a seamless experience.

Standing in the way of delivering this are challenges ranging from shorter attention spans to the diversity of consumer touchpoints. This has led to stiffer competition in the marketing world, and marketers that defy conventional approaches are better placed to find success.

This new era requires marketers to be creative, relevant and willing to challenge the status quo. As Ajab Samrai — the Global Chief Creative Officer at BLITZWORKS — knows, the effect of the coronavirus pandemic will only serve to shift the marketing landscape even further. BLITZWORKS, a strategic and creative consultancy with a global footprint, is looking to stay ahead of the curve in this regard, even as more marketing functions and events move to the virtual space.

One of the virtual events that the BLITZWORKS team attended was hosted by Clear M&C Saatchi, where the latter provided some insightful pointers on the industry’s future. To back up its presentation, the Clear team used data from a survey of over 700 Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) across various countries in Europe, Asia and North America.

Working in Silos

While many leaders feel they have clarity on the direction to take, many within their teams lack this perspective, leading to daily chaos borne of lack of understanding. When digital first emerged, it was common to have distinct marketing and digital teams working alongside each other, rather than as a single unit.

According to BLITZWORKS, agencies can eliminate silos by mixing creative leaders with globally experienced strategists. By doing this, the strategy is no longer a boardroom matter but one that presents an exciting customer journey

Short-term Goals

Clear’s survey highlighted that short-term delivery is the focus in the industry, while top-level leaders want to see teams focus more on innovation and data for long-term success. However, when a crisis happens, the default is to load up on short-term goals, reinforcing this mentality among teams and blurring their perspective of the future.

In BLITZWORKS’s view, adopting a business model that delivers a long-term perspective is vital to success. In the agency’s experience, creative platforms that adopt the long view can also deliver in the immediate term.