How to Build a Modern Marketing Team for the Digital Transformation Era - CONGRATS! YOU OWN THE ECOMMERCE EXPERIENCE
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CONGRATS! YOU OWN THE ECOMMERCE EXPERIENCE: How to Build a Modern Marketing Team for the Digital Transformation Era
Something interesting is happening in marketing these Haven’t we talked about this already?
days. Professionals seem to understand exactly how to
set up their teams for success. At the same time, they Maybe that’s no shocker. Customer centricity and shareable, secure and controllable.”
often find themselves running teams that look nothing customer experience (CX) have been on the retail Easy, right?
like the ideal they have in mind. agenda for many years. Nevertheless, Janelle
Estes, chief insights officer at UserTesting, says the Tracy Francis and Fernanda Hoefel, of McKinsey,
What’s going on here? And what needs to change to keep concepts matter more now than ever. add to the chorus in their recent piece on the
up with the speed of digital innovation on the one hand, influence of Gen Z and Gen Z’s reverence for the
and rising customer expectations on the other? “In 2019, how well businesses cultivate memorably truth.
positive emotional connections with customers will
define their success in the market,” she wrote for “Businesses,” they write, “must rethink how they
MarTech Advisor. “This is not exactly a new trend, deliver value to the consumer.”
A Closer Look but it’s reaching critical mass as the ever-advancing
digital age gives customers more choices and In short: We’ve reached the point where thinking
The results of a 2018 marketing study leave little room for redefines their expectations.” and talking about customer centricity is no longer
interpretation. The Future of the Marketing Organisation survey, enough. CX is no longer a differentiator; it’s the
conducted by marketing data intelligence partner MiQ and This urgency is fueled by the rise of Gen Z, the single source of opportunity and success. We need
published by Marketing Week shows a clear gap between what first ever true digital native generation. They know to do something now to get ready for tomorrow.
marketing leaders thought they needed and what they have. exactly what they want and expect from brands. And there is a lot of work to be done. The Marketing
Robert Hetu, research director with the Gartner Week results show alarming numbers. Despite the
First, consider the responses to the question about their biggest retail team summarizes it as follows in a blog post: big talk around customer centricity, companies
priority. Marketers were crystal clear: Teams need to be structured that organize their marketing around the customer
around the customer. “They expect the experience to be conversational experience are in a clear minority.
in style, easily accessible, experiential, curated,
How is marketing structured in your organisation?
How do you think marketing should be structured?
8.7% 2.8%
None of the above Geography-centric
5.8% 3.3%
Geography-centric
Channel-centric 0.8%
None of the above
5.8% 3.6%
Customer-centric Function-centric
12.8%
Product-/Brand-centric
6.4%
Agile
37.3%
Product/brand-centric
7.5% 42.2%
Channel-centric Customer-centric
9.3% 15.8%
Segment-centric Segment-centric
19.4%
Function-centric
Source: Marketing Week 18.8%
Source: Marketing Week Agile 3
Don’t survive, thrive!
Even though the stakes are high and the pressure is on, a Salesforce retail study shows
a very bright future: “We find ourselves in the midst of a retail renaissance, not a retail
apocalypse. Forward-looking brands that rethink the consumer experience—and how to
invest in it—may uncover new tactics to not only survive but thrive.”
A recent marketing leader study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and Marketo
shows the immense potential that is there for the taking.
“In retail specifically ... 93 percent of consumers say they would provide retailers with
Ecommerce-specific detailed information if it means they’d receive meaningful and personalised offers.”
challenges And the study continues: “Customers are now saying, ‘Show me you know me,’ and are
expecting one-to-one conversations rather than one-to-many broadcasts.”
These challenges go for every industry.
Ecommerce enterprises and their marketers, In short, customers want to be understood, known and served.
however, face specific pressure. With
digital, you can no longer rely on having The opportunity to do that is there, right in front of companies, but really only a few are
a convenient store location and the seizing it. A Bain & Company report shows the immense delivery gap between how
knowledge that you’re the only supplier companies perceive their own performance and how customers perceive their performance.
in town of a particular item. Thanks to
the variety of online outlets — all offering “Most companies assume they’re consistently giving customers what they want. Usually,
products and services of a similar quality — they’re kidding themselves. When we surveyed 362 firms, we found that 80 percent
the smallest amount of friction can lead a believed they delivered a ‘superior experience’ to their customers. But when we
potential customer to head to your biggest then asked customers about their own perceptions, we heard a very
competitor or Amazon. The risk of losing different story. They said that only 8 percent of companies
business is bigger than ever. There is clearly were really delivering.”
a lot at stake.
Eighty percent versus 8 percent. Talk about
a perception gap.
5
Who owns CX? Bridging the gap
In order to thrive in the digital age and seize So far, we’ve seen that customers nowadays
its opportunities, it is important to have a clear
owner of the customer experience. The problem are being very clear on what they expect
is, as the Salesforce study we mentioned earlier from brands. We’ve also seen how these
notes, “there is little consensus on who owns the expectations will only rise with the next
customer experience.” generation(s) at our doorstep.
The Economist and Marketo survey responses also And if marketing looks like the right owner for
show that there is an ongoing discussion about CX these personalized customer experiences, but
ownership. But those answers also shows a clear they are not ready for the task, as Marketing
path forward: Week shows, what are we going to do? What
do marketing teams need to get future-proofed
“Eighty-six percent of chief marketing officers fast? What links are currently missing to close
and senior marketing executives ... believe that, the delivery gap?
by 2020, they will own the entire, end-to-end
customer experience.” There is little disagreement here among
experts: It’s all about integrated data and the
right technology.
As UserTesting’s Estes said earlier: CX is all about
cultivating positive emotional connections. The In this chapter, we’ll explore these two elements
Economist and Marketo kick that statement up a and we’d like to add one other ingredient to
notch: “Like the best movies, a lasting, memorable- the mix: having marketing in closer contact with
for-the-right-reasons experience isn’t just about the customer support — or going so far as to make
final scene. It’s about the whole journey, making marketing responsible for customer support.
the experience unforgettable and delivering a
lasting impression. Marketing is best placed to
deliver this – no other function comes close.”
7
Fockema is very clear on what the future should look like: unified commerce. Gartner describes
unified retail commerce as providing a customer-centric experience, based on how customers
approach shopping, with no limitations by channel.
It is all about creating a buying journey based on what the customer wants, not what works for the
enterprise.
Technology for Unified Commerce
CENTRAL & DECOUPLED FAST & FLEXIBLE CONSUMING SERVICES FIT FOR PURPOSE
Integrated data Single Channel Omni Channel
With customers expecting one-on-one But for many companies today, data is still a
experiences, the days of getting away with major issue — not only because of privacy
developing personas based on assumptions and GDPR. There is an immense amount of
are over forever. Personalization is great, data available, but, as Sean Downey, vice
but you have to get it right. Targeting an ad president of media platforms at Google says
incorrectly for example, or chatbots that don’t in a recent blog post: “With an abundance Multi Channel Unified Channel
recognize a customer’s need quickly are of data, the challenge now is making more
frustrating and could cause lasting business sense of the data you have to drive meaningful
harm. improvements for your business.”
The only way to get it right is by leveraging Making sense of data is difficult when it’s
data. Data is the single source of truth not safely stored in one place. When we “In this model all touchpoints are connected to one database,” Fockema continues. “No matter if a
when it comes to customer information and talked to Steven Fockema, head of sales customer completes a transaction online, calls customer support or places an order in a brick-and-
interaction. Cutting-edge companies are Western Europe at ecommerce platform mortar shop, the buying and brand experience will always be on point. It is already implemented by
turning to artificial intelligence and machine provider Commercetools he warned about the digital innovators such as Lego and Danone. It’s only a matter of time for other brands to follow this
learning to transform how they interact with challenges presented by siloed data. example.”
customers, strengthening those relationships,
distinguishing themselves from competitors “The problem with data nowadays is that Varia Makagonova, senior brand manager at AI-driven journey orchestration platform Relay42,
and increasing revenue. it’s still highly scattered. Many companies agrees.
use various, different legacy systems. Each
Gartner analyst John-David Lovelock predicts customer touchpoint leads to their own data “The key is to remove data silos and implement joint, cross-channel, customer-journey-centric KPIs,”
that AI-derived business value will more basket,” he says. “Even within teams, such as Makagonova tells us.
than triple to $3.9 trillion by 2022 — with marketing, systems are hardly ever connected
improvements to the customer experience key which makes proper data analysis tricky.”
to this growth.
9
Technology First
In order to collect, connect and analyze data technology on board,” he says. “However, I hardly
to get to actionable insights and deliver the ever talk to them anymore when I am in a sales
ultimate experience, it’s all about the technologies
companies use and how they are interconnected.
cycle. Marketing explains the goals and needs,
and then it’s the tech guys who buy, design and The Missing Link
In the previous section on data we noticed that implement the (often cloud based) technology Whatever you call it — customer service, customer
many brands still store data in individual tools and landscape that supports these goals. I talk to CTO’s success, support or customer care — there is no other
databases. a lot, heads of engineering and lead architects.” function for an ecommerce retailer that is more directly
customer facing. No other team deals with questions, requests and complaints as much as the
And while that might be true today, it also might be Rethinking your technology infrastructure and support team.
changing. breaking down silos to get set for future business
success is a necessity, but brands still are not always According to McKinsey: “Customer care, which typically includes the call center as well as online
“Overall, we are seeing companies from all moving as fast as they should. and self-service channels, has an integral role to play. As the natural owner of a large part of the
industries investing in solutions that centralize the customer journey, customer care can provide invaluable insight by helping to define journeys,
ownership of the end-to-end customer experience, This might have to do with the scarcity of A-player identify pain points, and spur collaboration across functions.”
and it is usually marketing that is driving that developers and engineers. But it definitely has to
decision,” Makagonova says. do with the organizational and mindset change that Or, as Laura Lake, author of the book “Consumer Behavior for Dummies,” puts it in a contribution for
is required in order to pull it off. Change is often The Balance: “Good marketing tells our customers why they should choose us. Customer service
Commercetools’ Fockema notices a similar perceived as scary and managing this change is shows them why they should keep coming back.”
development. what makes or breaks the transformation of an
enterprise. If marketing soon owns the end-to-end experience, and it’s true that customer care has shoppers
“It is marketing driving the process of getting new coming back, there must be a closer collaboration between, or even integration, with customer care.
Marketing can, for example, take customer care needs and goals into account, when working with
engineers to purchase and implement the right tools. Together with the care team, marketing has to
strategically decide on what kind of support delivers that friction-free experience.
■ Do you want to offer more traditional, manual support via phone, email and social media?
■ Do you want to work with AI and chatbots?
■ Do you want to explore the opportunities of peer-to-peer support in communities?
■ Or are some or all of these strategies in combination the best answer?
Spoiler alert: There is no real right or wrong here. A traditional hotline can be as good or as bad as
a chatbot. The only relevant question is: Does this tool support our vision and the experience we’re
aiming to deliver?
Apart from organizing support and designing these interactions more strategically, adding customer
support to the marketing team has another benefit. It will strengthen consistent external messaging.
And consistency is and always will be the key to loyalty to your brand.
11
The Marketing Team of Some Things Never Change
the Future With all this talking about what’s not in place and what should change,
you could almost overlook the things that will remain unchanged:
In the previous chapter we explored the delivery gap and the Marketing is still marketing. The traditional (visual) brand experts such
factors that need work in order to get ready for CX success. as designers, storytellers and other domain experts are, and always
We talked about data, technology and the role of customer will be, crucial in the process.
care.
“Brand sets customer expectations for experience. Customer
Now, back to the marketing team owning CX in the near experience is how well you deliver on those expectations,” CX experts
future. What do these missing links tell us? What should these MCorp wrote in an blog post. “
new marketing teams look like? What areas of expertise
should they get on board to provide customers with the And, they continued: “Without a strong brand to support you, your
kind of friction-free experience they love and that will grow customer experience aspirations will remain just that – aspirations.”
business revenue?
You might want to add a designated customer care advocate to your
Oh, and by the way, what does all this mean for the chief marketing brand team to ensure that your carefully crafted brand is
marketing officer? consistently communicated. That way, you not only get new customers,
you also turn them into fans and retain them.
The Dream Team
In order for businesses to keep up with rising customer Engineers — Combining the Forces
expectations and to stay in the game, the modern marketing In this ebook we’ve seen that a technology-first approach is the
team should be a diverse team, leveraging the power of absolute key to CX success. The right technology allows you to
technology and data. capture and analyze data on the one hand and deliver the desired
experience to the customer on the other. This technology ideally is
Chris Ross, research director at Gartner for Marketers, put it interconnected, so that the data that is collected is available to all
this way: “By nurturing diverse skill sets, tapping new talent and so the experience is on point, regardless of the touchpoint. Think
sources and prioritizing collaboration, marketing leaders fuel unified commerce model.
their brands’ adaptability and business results.”
Executing on the vision successfully requires complex, technological
What are these diverse skill sets exactly? And how do knowledge. It’s engineers that have that knowledge. Engineers are like
marketing leaders manage their teams and keep adaptability bridges. They understand both commercial needs and technology — a
at the top of their list? Let’s look at the different roles to find rare skill set. They can work with marketing to understand their needs
the answers to these questions. And let’s start with some and translate them into the infrastructure that they require to achieve
good news. their goals.
13
In marketing, you tend to work with creatives like content
Based on this knowledge of both worlds, engineers can creators, graphic designers and campaign managers. This
also advise the business on purchasing the right (marketing) creativity is fantastic. It brings the adaptability you need to
tools and applications. What marketing automation system, constantly bring new ideas to the table that surprise and retain
what design tool or what CRM tool meets the requirements customers.
best? And as soon as a decision has been made, engineers
can make sure they are set up exactly the way you need But creativity alone is not going to launch that interactive,
them to work for your business. personalized landing page. If you don’t get someone on the team
that can build it for you — and can build it for you fast — you’ll be
Engineers also understand user experience (UX) and user forced to hire a budget-consuming contractor, or build the not so
interface (UI) design. They can make sure that the customer great, second best option. In the worst, but not unlikely case, that
experience meets shoppers’ preferences. They understand may lead to your customer going for their second best option:
the data and the mind of the customer and are able to your competition.
reverse engineer this into the right code and functionality.
In other words: You need people who understand how Data Experts - Read the Signs
to translate the brand strategy you designed into the The other crucial factor in great experiences is data. Your
technological tooling and development steps needed to customers talk to you through data. Their digital body language
turn the vision into reality. and footprints are a guide to their likes and dislikes. Each
interaction provides something of a focus group, telling you what
On top of this, engineers can be the go-between bridging you are doing right and where your site and experience need to
marketing and development. If a new campaign plan is improve.
ready, they can sit down with both parties to get it built.
Do you have the data scientists and experts who can read the
signs that your customers are sending you and understand
which signs are significant and which might need more study and
Developers — Get it Built consideration in order to become useful?
In ecommerce, obviously, your digital site is a crucial point
of contact. Online shoppers don’t stroll into a physical store. On a Side Note
They get to know you through the digital experiences you Something to think about: In terms of acquiring the right talent,
provide them. Those experiences need to be top-notch and what does “getting on board” mean for your company? Do you
easily and quickly transformed, changing with consumers need to permanently hire these experts? Do you want to work
and market conditions. with contractors and join the flexible and mobile gig economy?
Or do you want to work with a specialized agency? There is no
right or wrong, but it is something to consider carefully. You’ll be
spending budget either way, so you might as well get the return
you desire.
15
Conclusions and Key Takeaways
In this ebook we explored what it takes for marketing to become more customer-centric to be able to
own the end-to-end customer experience.
These are ten things to take away as you set out to transform your organization;
1) CX is the make or break factor in business success, more so now than ever.
2) Marketing will own CX end-to-end in the near future.
3) Marketing teams are often not ready to be responsible for the entire customer experience.
They need more technology and data expertise to truly make a difference.
The Role of the CMO 4) To deliver a top-notch experience, regardless of the touchpoint, data is everything.
What implications does this all have for the CMO? With CX at the heart of business strategy,
5) To collect the right data, you need a technology-first approach.
and marketing owning the end-to-end experience, the role of the CMO will become even
more crucial than it is today. Not only does the position within the higher management of
6) The marketing team of the future has engineering, data and development expertise on board.
companies change, there are also different roles to manage.
7) Marketing and customer care must work together closely; turning buyers into returning
Let’s start with the new strategic position. With the customer’s interest at the heart of your
shoppers or even fans.
team and your company’s success, as a CMO you need to constantly take the position of
your customers and argue on behalf of them. Companies like Hubspot and Amazon found
8) The CMO’s role will change. He or she will play an even more strategic business role, being
playful tactics for their management meetings. They use empty chairs and even teddy bears
the voice of the customer both as a member of the management team and as the leader of the
in the meeting room to remind everyone present that the most important person is the
marketing team.
person who isn’t there: the customer.
Marketing team leaders need to represent those outside the room. To test new ideas, they
9) The CMO’s role will change. He or she will play an even more strategic business role, being
constantly need to be the customer’s advocate, keeping the marketing team members aware
the voice of the customer both as a member of the management team and as the leader of the
that creativity and innovation is great, as long as it serves or even exceeds the customer’s
marketing team.
expectations.
10) On the team, the CMO will have to find a way to
In their role as a team leader, CMOs are faced with two main new challenges: Their team
understand and manage both creatives and
members will be highly specialized, to the point that the CMO needs to trust that his or
tech experts.
her team members know what they are doing, even if the CMO doesn’t understand the
intricacies of all the work they do.
And finally, not only will you have skills and expertises on board that you may not be fully
familiar with, you’ll also be managing different types of people than you’re used to managing.
Dealing with creatives is a completely different ball game, compared to working with
engineers and developers. You’ll need to find a way to understand them, manage them and
bring them closer together.
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About Signifyd
Signifyd enables merchants to grow with confidence by providing an end-to-end
commerce protection platform. Powered by the Signifyd Commerce Network of more
than 10,000 merchants selling to more than 250 million consumers worldwide, its
advanced machine learning engine is able to protect merchants from fraud, consumer
abuse and revenue loss caused by barriers and friction in the buying experience.
Signifyd counts among its customers a number of companies on the Fortune 1000
and Internet Retailer Top 500 lists. Signifyd is headquartered in San Jose, CA., with
locations in Denver, New York, Barcelona, Belfast and London.
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