Structures are shifting. New teams and roles are being created as quickly as they’re disappearing. And as a result, the world of marketing is both as exciting and trepidatious as it’s ever been.

Today, marketing teams are having to quickly pivot and change in order to absorb the impact of new tech. And there is clearly no shortage: over 7000 pieces of MarTech exist at the moment, with the list expanding even as you read this. In addition, Moore’s Law is proving to be prophetic, with computing power continuing to double every two years and the costs to create it being reduced by half in the same amount of time. When you factor in that more marketing professionals are choosing to trade in the Gig Economy than be employed by a single organisation, how do you decide on the best way forward for your internal marketing team?

Digital technology is truly changing the game, and we’re tasked with steering that innovation into revolutionary, profitable new avenues. This guide will help you navigate this brave new marketing world...

How Marketing Teams Used to Be

Not so long ago, marketing teams were divided into various ‘tactics’. These siloed teams would focus on specific tasks under a Head of Marketing or CMO, who would then report to the organisation’s CEO. With strategy set at the top and cascading down to each compartmentalised department, data intelligence was confined to each channel, with minimal expertise and knowledge-sharing between them.

With almost no integration, an organisation’s marketing structure used to look something like this:

Branding Team

• Responsible for the approval of brand collateral before it heads off to market

• Maintaining brand identity cohesion with regards to look-and-feel and corporate stance

PR Team

• Liaising with the press and media, profiling executives, and ensuring brand products and services are top-of-mind

• Mediation between business and shareholders

Events Team

• Comprehensive knowledge of venues, entertainers, and caterers

• Organising customer, employee, and stakeholder events such as conferences and team-building exercises

• Working in partnership with events, PR, and branding agencies

Digital Team

• Focused on everything digital, from getting press releases online to building RSVP portals

• Often the least siloed as other departments require their expertise to get tangible assets online

Advertising Team

• Responsible for traditional above-the-line content such as radio, TV, and print adverts, or any other type of physical collateral

The Impact of AI on Marketing

A person’s capacity for data is finite, and their ability to understand it is informed by assumptions built up over years of industry experience. So in many ways, AI is our antithesis.

Able to process vast amounts of data — both historic and current — from multiple sources, without bias, and in the blink of an eye, AI accurately forecasts the most effective way to deliver content. This includes targeting the correct users, what to set the price at, as well as where to offer services and which customers may end up churning.

The huge influx of new marketing technology and tools can be attributed to AI and the industry’s need to scale in order to reduce costs and accommodate skills shortages. To give you an idea of the growth — there were just 350 platforms in 2013 compared to the nearly 7000 today. And with more information to process and measure, channels and tactics are having to quickly become data driven.

To summarise, every marketing tactic, channel, or media has some piece of optimisable technology attached to it, driving the demand for professionals who are skilled in data analytics, reporting, tracking, and configuration and measurements. Therefore, the ‘new cool’ is embodied by tech-savvy marketers, which was previously the province of the traditional agency creative.

The Rise and Rise of AI

• When asked, 50% of marketing technology providers who responded said native AI capabilities were important or a must-have. (Source: BrightEdge)

• Of over 1600 marketing professionals surveyed, 61% highlighted machine learning and AI as their company’s most important data initiative for 2019. (Source: MeMSQL)

• AI is integrated into more devices than consumers realise. Just 33% believe they use AI, when in truth 77% of them operate an AI service or device. (Source: Pega)

• By 2020, insights-driven businesses will reap the benefits of artificial intelligence to the tune of $1.2 trillion. (Source: Forrester Predictions 2017)

• By 2025, the AI market will exceed $100 billion. (Source: Constellation Research)

The Suppliers & Agencies You Need to Work With

As mentioned, the marketing teams of yore were grouped by function along with the agencies that supplied or supported them. Unfortunately, this meant that marketers were often the glorified Project Managers for their network of suppliers.

Today, there is less need for agencies because the majority of a brand’s marketing efforts are handled internally through the use of fast, more cost-effective technology. So where does that leave traditional agencies?

While the plethora of intuitive tools are seemingly endless, it’s impossible for one marketing team to have all the answers. This is where an agency or a gig economy professional can step in to offer support in the areas that machines fail. Their skills are often used for creative or technological support, with the latter being MarTech management and extrapolation of data insights and analytics to support an organisation’s strategy.

In addition, should an A-player in your organisation be out-of-action, an agency can quickly supply someone with the necessary experience to fill the position in the short term.

With so much changing, traditional roles have had to adapt:

Account Managers

It’s no longer about keeping clients entertained. Today, an Account Manager needs to have a deep understanding of how technology fits into a client’s marketing needs, as well as how every aspect of the strategy informs it.

Strategists

While sharp research and persona targeting are as important as ever, a modern Strategist has to ensure that their strategy can be carried across all channels in a MarTech stack.

Back End Developer

A role that demands an understanding of the marketing strategy and tools at play, and how best to incorporate them into an effective, results-driven MarTech stack for the business.

The Internal Marketing Team of Today

In the quest for a more rounded, holistic approach to marketing, this is how a modern team is shaping up in the digital era:

Data Scientists / Business Analysts

With a deep understanding of data and AI, a data scientist will connect your MarTech infrastructure for closed-loop reporting. These analytics feed the AI with the necessary insights to hone your marketing strategies.

Content Producers

Necessitated by the sheer quantity of content needed, Content Producers are increasingly brought in-house. From copy and video to interactive and experiential, having an internal creative team allows a business to jump on opportunities as and when they arise.

T-Shaped Marketers

With a broad, deep understanding of how all the marketing pieces fit and work together, a T-Shaped Marketer focuses on the goals and objectives of a marketing strategy to ensure all aspects are complementing and elevating one another.

MarTech Experts

Digital marketing is in a constant state of flux, so it’s important to have an expert that keeps up with current trends while having an eye to the future. A MarTech Expert will have extensive knowledge of the various MarTech tools in your setup, and be able to maximise the potential of each. With marketing technology ever-expanding, it’s vital for an internal marketing team to include a specialist who can manage and optimise a company’s stack, as well as implement any new tools.

Marketing Director / Head of Marketing / CMO

From idea through to evaluation, development, and implementation, a Marketing Director is tasked with steering strategy, employees, and service providers in the right direction. This includes growing and nurturing the team and ensuring each and every step in the marketing strategy is effective.

Digital Marketing Manager

More hands-on than a Marketing Director, a Digital Marketing Manager ensures a brand or business remains top-of-mind through the promotion of brand-related collateral. The ability to maintain good working relationships with agencies is considered vital, as is a working understanding of the latest tools on the market as they can be integrated for efficiency and success.

Developers

Previously, you’d only find this role in the IT department. But due to the sheer amount of marketing and customer experience work requiring the skills of both front-end and back-end developers, these specialists are now occupying full-time roles in marketing teams.

How Technology is Honing the Teaming Process

More and more — and due in no small part to the rise of hyper-fast connectivity — companies are using the Gig Economy to augment core marketing teams with agile, elastic global units on a project-by-project basis.

Agencies need to become technology experts, able to work on both small, on-demand projects and long-term support retainers with clients. In addition, agencies need to have a firm grasp on analytics. A marketing strategist should be tech savvy enough to analyse and make recommendations based off of the data a client’s MarTech stack provides.

When it comes to recruitment, gone are the days of long interview processes. Thanks to AI and algorithm technology, finding a permanent employee is no longer a shot in the dark, but an informed decision based on accurate, measured insights.

How Synx Can Help You

We combine a deep understanding of technology with insight about your business to drive powerful solutions that deliver results. Here’s what we can do for you:

• Identify the tech you need to build the perfect MarTech stack for your business

• Our team of specialists will roll out your marketing stack and train your staff to use it

• We’ll provide support with implementation, management, analytics, and strategy

• Our content team will provide high quality assets, backed by strategy

• We offer MarTech and CRM setup and optimisation of current platforms

• We’ll integrate your MarTech with other systems in your business, and assist in the design and build of MarTech-powered websites

Make your marketing work for you with measurable results and actionable insights by contacting us today.