Martech Trends for the 2020s – Part 1
In the knowledge worker world, every new calendar year usually starts with articles on learnings from past year (we did a 2021 Reflections Series on Outside In all through December 2021) and/or predictions for the coming year (we did a whole series last year – starting with this one - 2020 in review and 10 predictions for 2021:)
In a similar vein, let’s start 2022 with a piece on Martech Trends for this year (and beyond). Why Martech out of the blue? Well, I have written on the topic earlier in (September) 2021 – Elements of a Functional Martech Stack here at:
But, this latest inspiration to study more came from a regular reader who had shared a Martech Stack Architecture that he is visualizing for his (retail) organization in the year(s) to come. And he’d asked me to help comment on any missing elements below
I did not really find any big holes, but asked him to possibly explore Additional Elements below if he is planning for next-generation use cases already:
CMS (Content Mgmt. System – Components, Templates)
Product Data Mgmt. (Product Database/Creator Systems – which will save into DAM – which is a collector system)
CRM System/Customer Analytics Hub (which gives Insights to the Recommendation Engine & Campaign Manager)
Building on this interesting conversation, Outside In delves deeper into the Trends Emerging in the Martech Space – which may not only be useful for him, but even for the rest of you. But before we look to the crystal ball to gaze into the future, a quick look into where Marketers stand today…
What are Marketers’ Doing Today?
As technology drives customer expectations to new heights, marketers are not only messengers, but engagement managers who foster meaningful customer relationships well beyond the first purchase. The expectations and behaviors of consumers and businesses are shifting with unprecedented speed and magnitude. Marketers are mandated to overhaul their organizational models and use technology to increasingly provide differentiated, digital-first customer engagement. Innovation is marketing leaders’ number one priority
As customers navigate an era of “new normal”, personalized, empathetic engagement has become really important. Delivering messages and offers that resonate with an individual’s unique needs and expectations requires deep insights. Marketers are shifting how they source and manage customer data and ramping up use of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) that help them make the most of it.
Marketers have reported a 186% increase in AI (use cases) adoption since 2018. The Top AI Use Cases in Marketing are:
Personalized Experiences in Individual Channels
Improved Customer Segmentation and Lookalike Modelling
Surface Insights from Data
Drive Next Best Actions
Automated Customer Interactions
These are the Top 5 Priorities for Marketers:
1. Innovation, across Channels
Website
Social Publishing/Advertising Platforms
E-Mail
Mobile App & Regular Messaging
Customer Communities
Video/OTT Platforms
2. Real-time Customer Engagement (via Unified Customer Data Sources)
Transactional Data
Declared Interests/Preferences
Known Digital Identities
Offline Identities
Anonymized Digital Identities
Second Party Data
Inferred Interests/Preferences
Non-Transactional Data
Third-Party Data
3. Privacy Regulations’ Compliance
Balance Personalization with Customer-comfort Levels
Protect and Respect Customer Privacy, going beyond Industry Standards/Regulations
4. Adopting (Regular) Technology & Tools
5. Modernizing Technology & Tools (to create cohesive Customer Journeys across Channels & Devices)
AI
Social Marketing (Listening, Publishing)
Marketing Analytics and Measurements
Video Marketing
Customer Data Platform (CDP)
Marketing Automation
Voice Technology
In order to pursue and realize the priorities noted above, these are the soft and technical skills (the art and science) that marketers are expected to cultivate as a team:
Communication
Creativity
Data Analysis
Collaboration
Digital Proficiency
Agility
Data Science
Software/Solution Design
Emotional Intelligence
Now, let’s move onto the key topic of our article – the next decade of Marketing Technology…
Transformational Impact in Martech
Marketers are expecting that the next 10 years will bring transformational impact in Marketing Technology via these variables:
Increased Digital Population
5G Mobile Networks
Virtual Reality
Augmented Reality
Smart Homes
Voice Technology
Wearables
Smart Cars
Blockchain
Data/Privacy Regulations
The 5 Trends for 2020s Martech
There are five major trends with marketing technology poised to shape marketing strategy and operations at agencies and brands over the next 10 years. Instead of predicting the course of individual technologies — such as 5G or virtual reality interfaces — noted below are second-order effects on marketing strategy and operations derived from them. The 5 trends are:
1. “No Code” Citizen Creators
With No Code Tools, anyone can be a “citizen developer”
No code tools enable decentralized self-service capabilities to marketing teams — avoiding the bottlenecks of a centralized bureau
2. Platforms, Networks and Marketplaces
Successful platforms, networks, and marketplaces — and the ecosystems of participants that flourish around them — will be some of the most valuable assets a company can own
By establishing centrally-managed platforms, networks, and marketplaces, organizations can enable greater decentralized adaptations, innovations, and dynamic optimization of resources
3. The Great App Explosion
To get a sense of the scale of The Great App Explosion already underway, consider that 2 years ago there were already over 100 million software project repositories in GitHub. By 2030, there will be an estimated 45 million developers in the world. If we count apps built by “no code” tools — it’s easy to appreciate how billions of apps can be created. By 2030, there will be billions and billions of apps in the world. This is The Great App Explosion
Marketers will need to adopt the technical and consultative depth of Software Companies
4. From Big Data to Big Ops
The effectiveness by which companies orchestrate all of their data – with the massive span of their digital operations— will be a major axis of competitive advantage
Big ops environments will face a meta version of ‘distributed operations’ challenge as they strive for eventually consistent operations across all internal decisions and customer-facing experiences. Centralized software platforms, as well as blockchain and ledger databases, will help orchestrate this complexity
5. Harmonizing Humans and Machines
Greater automation and AI assistance will give marketers more time and new tools to focus on customers, creativity & innovation
Improvements in AI will automate more decisions — and recommend options for high stakes and/or high complexity decisions best left under human control
Each of these five trends in marketing technology and operations on their own will have a significant impact on the practice and profession of marketing. But combined, they will transform the industry.
The common axis of that transformation will be the astounding power that individual marketers will have at their fingertips to create, experiment, analyze, and innovate like never before
In Conclusion
The 2020s have had a tumultuous start. Yet for all the challenges of this year, it has taught everyone that people and organizations — even large organizations — can adapt quickly when they must. Many companies implemented new ways of engaging with their customers through digital channels and new ways of operating internally with a remote workforce in a matter of weeks. It can feel overwhelming to marketing professionals who must keep up. Yet it is also exhilarating. With imagination, resilience, and a sense of adventure, marketers who are willing to lean into these changes will pioneer the future of marketing and lead a decade of incredible innovation. We must adapt quickly to harness these changes. But now, more than ever, we know we can – Reflections from WPP Report – Martech 2030
We will look at each of these Trends in greater detail next week… I can’t wait to get it out myself…
References and Sources
1) Salesforce State of Marketing Report
2) WPP Report – Martech 2030