With Dmexco 2019 just around the corner, there is an air of expectation of what will be the most hotly debated topics and news. The sprawling Koelnmesse location, the Gothic Dom and the copious amounts of bratwurst and beer won’t be changing this year, but if Cannes is anything to go by, data-driven technological innovation will be high on the agenda.
Machine learning, AI and neuroscience may be industry buzzwords but, in fact, they are becoming key to creating better, more effective marketing campaigns.
New thinking and changing customer behaviour is forcing the industry to undergo a complete overhaul in the approach to targeting existing and new customers. The impact of long-term machine learning on the ability to analyse data, recognise and classify images, measure, and protect is becoming increasingly important.
The use of neuroscience is driving customer acquisition and retention, and AI is enabling ad creation, targeting and buying like never before.
Primarily, there has been a switch in the way marketers work with their sales colleagues to build revenue from an existing pool of clients. These changes have turned the marketing funnel on its head, using machine learning at every step from the initial ad placement through to making a purchase.
The shift in a customer-first approach requires marketers to develop their approach based on the needs of the customer, however, and this has led to a data-driven marketing approach to reach a much wider audience of buyers. This has been fuelled in part by the fact that, according to recent Marketing Practice research at least, many marketers simply do not know how many marketing qualified leads close deals.
One area of opportunity which is the somewhat unsung hero of enterprises is partnerships. High-maturity partnership programmes contribute to 28% of overall company revenues, a study from Impact and Forrester Consulting recently found.
As a brand, there is an opportunity to work with partners to leverage one another’s audiences thanks to technology. Brands can create a cohesive partnership strategy that comprises of social influencers, traditional affiliates, brand partnerships, and social and digital marketing.
The most effective partnership programmes need to have the same objectives on sales and growth but ROI needs to be considered in distinct pools based on reaching the right audience and levels of engagement.
Machine learning and its ability to track audience measurement is now closely tied to the partnership economy. The multichannel consumer journey means partners have the ability to accurately measure incremental revenue.
As brands are increasingly faced with the challenge of ensuring that their marketing activity receives the attention it warrants, and monetises each impression and engagement, machine learning becomes increasingly important.
This should also be layered with neuroscience, to provide insights that will command the attention of often distracted consumers, and analytics for a deeper understanding, and human expertise.
Brands can then understand triggers that create positive associations between what the consumer needs and what the brand offers in order to run a successful campaign.
What is clearer than ever is that data-driven technology innovation is continuously feeding into every aspect of marketing. It makes it essential for brands to start to truly capitalise on its benefits. In doing so, this kind of innovation is guaranteed to be in there for the long haul.
Florian Gramshammer is managing director EMEA at Impact
