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In today’s ever-changing world, survival of the fittest reigns like never before. It percolates all the way down to markets, competitors, and businesses, demanding its presence be felt before it renders obsolete what was thriving just mere months ago. 

As the threat of COVID-19 recedes, the majority of us have come out on the other side as resilient, risk-adaptable human beings. The pandemic brought with it inevitable change in our worldviews, lifestyles, and our shopping habits. From where we eat to how we engage with others has fundamentally altered. 

Due to volatile changes, old chain-based business models are being discarded as customers expect to be delivered 360-degree personal experiences by brands. Without a doubt, optimizing your MarTech stack will go a long way in achieving these goals for your business.

What is Marketing Technology (MarTech)?

MarTech is a set of software solutions and tools marketers use to better understand their customers. Over the past few years, this industry has grown dramatically and nears 8000 solutions today. This implies a substantial level of digital transformation had been underway even before COVID-19 hit. And once it did, marketing budgets shrank to a trickle, making way for the grand entrance of innovative MarTech solutions. 

Technology is a godsend for Chief Marketing Officers (CMO’s) as they can strategically attain answers regarding customer needs, demand forecasting, targeting and segmenting, campaign effectiveness, customer support, etc. at the snap of a finger.

Areas Where Technology Comes Into Play

Technological innovations like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are at the forefront of marketing today. They help soften the blow of disruptions that the pandemic has brought in its wake. Some areas where technology plays an important role are: 

• Customer needs: Within a few days of the lockdown, suddenly consumer needs were limited to only the essentials, and shopping in itself became a more conscious process. While brands were compelled to relook what they were offering, they also had to figure out means to become less risk-averse. This called for robust technology solutions to leverage social analytics and data to match the consumer’s needs.
• Customer experience: Budget shrinks must never be an excuse for mediocre consumer experiences. As per a McKinsey report, only 37% of organizations believe that advanced analytics create value. As well as being largely problematic, this is also a wasted opportunity. Companies must tap into the pool of tech innovations today, like cloud-based solutions, chatbots, and voice biometrics to augment and smoothen their customer’s experience.
• Marketing performance: Harvard Business Review outlines 7 marketing technologies that every company must use to grow leads and revenue. Tech interventions like conversion optimization, performance dashboards, and campaign management tools will surely aid CMO’s to go all out with their marketing efforts.

MarTech’s Role as a Strategic Business Process

With a colossal 5233% growth over the past ten years, it goes without saying that the MarTech industry is a sure shot game changer in business. 

Data in the form of digital content has flooded the online space, seeping its way through to webinars and panel discussions. The lack of physical engagement further demands this data be concise and to the point to drive a clear message across various platforms. 

Treasure Data is a customer data platform that helps bolster consumer engagement by collating customer profiles and mapping out their purchase journeys. Using multiple tools, a marketer can tap into various purchase points of their audience, allowing for personalized experiences. 

In the face of dwindling ad spends, marketing can be tied to specific business conversions to make data-driven decisions. This is made possible with performance-based marketing. Customer relationship management (CRM’s) and other MarTech tools are necessary for customer acquisition, retention, and growth. But when paired with solid performance partnerships, the consumer insights acquired will allow a business to adopt a smarter and more effective marketing approach. 

Where is MarTech Headed in the Coming Years?

It does not stop here because MarTech is yet to fully uncover its potential with artificial intelligence. The MarTech landscape will undergo an enormous transformation as AI will configure more detailed personas of customers, which will, in turn, lead to well-thought-out and precise decision-making capabilities for marketers. 

As a result of AI, more refined tools can be developed and put into use, providing deeper insights and dynamic interpretation of data on a larger scale. 

Today, the MarTech space is all about which business ultimately leverages the true potential of marketing tools and survives the competition in the over-brimming data race. Only once you align your brand with the mantra “change is inevitable”, will you emerge victorious. COVID-19 has definitely brought to light the supremacy of digital experiences that will rule the economic engine moving forward. With the addition of MarTech tools in this race, you can rest assured knowing your brand will remain the fittest.