The skills every true marketer needs to hone in order to excel
Marketing is one of the fastest developing fields in business. With every new innovation, technology or otherwise, it is marketing that feels the burn. Social media is the latest case study and its waves caused an upheaval not seen since the dawn of the television. Elasticity is the one constant professionals can expect and developing the following skills are critical to surviving in these rough waters.
Organization
The constant evolutions in marketing necessitate the highest organization skills possible. In every field, but especially the financial industry, marketers are expected to know more than ever. Moreover, they need to provide these answers to customers near instantaneously. These challenges require an effective organization structure.
The trick is to use your company’s strengths to your advantage. A quickly connected company is the one that usually succeeds at the end of the day. By providing faster responses and timely campaigns, engagement and customer retention rates will grow. MorganStanley SmithBarney understood this concept when they created an internal network which linked senior advisor to customers directly on social media. Marketers organized the transactions and did what they do best: meet customer needs.
Coordination
Ensuring that all parties are on the same page may seem trivial – however, it is often times overlooked. This has grown even more difficult with the number of different ways to engage with customers and the globalization of most industries. Marketing efforts should be easily communicated and approved by a variety of different areas in the organization.
HSBC Bank learned from this the hard way. As an international financial institution, it sought to create a more uniform marketing campaign. So far, so good, right? That is until they failed to coordinate the new message with their overseas partners.
In 2009, HSBC was forced to redo their entire marketing campaign after their slogan failed to properly translate in foreign countries. The domestic “Assume Nothing” promotion quickly became the “Do Nothing” campaign. This clearly failed to motivate potential customers to use their bank and a $10 million re-brand was soon forced. Make sure the new campaign is coordinated by all relevant areas of your business.
Adaptation
Social media disrupted the way marketing was conducted. Marketers were forced to learn quickly on how to leverage its gains for their business – they had to learn how to adapt. Honing this one skill in particular will enable you to not only succeed in the current dynamic, but also to be better prepared for when the next change occurred.
Marketers for the clothing company Eddie Bauer understood this from an early time. Rather than trying to conform social media to their goals, they allowed the platforms to market for them. Representatives gave individual customers who best embodied the brand the reins to their social media accounts and allowed them to post authentic and genuine word of mouth advertising. The results were contagious.
The field of marketing is dynamic. With every technology innovation, it evolves. Keeping these skills in mind will not only help your organization, but also provide you the tools you need to excel.
