3 ways to reimagine driving growth through marketing

Last week, during the Forbes CMO Virtual Series, I had the opportunity to talk to Marty Swant about how marketing can be a key driver of growth. Our conversation encouraged me to share three marketing strategies to help drive business growth. 

1) Embrace your license to reinvent

We have a real opportunity to challenge the status quo. These difficult times have provided a unique opportunity to define what we want the future of marketing and innovation to look like. Too often, marketing seems bolted on to company strategy. The truth is, your marketing strategy is a key component of your business strategy and requires input from across the organization—from the CEO to the CFO to R&D, HR, Sales, etc. Ahead of every product launch and big-bet decision, people should feel empowered to help reimagine business models and create new categories of products and services. At Microsoft, a decade ago we began shifting our business models to be more user-based and consumption based rather than device-based. This move was a cross-company collaboration informed by insights brought forward by many teams , and it’s this work that led us to where we are today as we create new, innovative categories like Xbox Game Pass. When Xbox Game Pass was developed in 2017, no blueprint existed for game streaming. We continue that curiosity and pressure-testing today because it contributes to how we think about growth. Acquiring ZeniMax and game publisher Bethesda is all about helping us tap into a bigger pool of fans through great content and finding new ways to empower the more than three billion gamers worldwide. 

2) Build trust around social responsibility

Marketers have an important opportunity to build trust among customers through clear storytelling that underscores brand purpose and values. Topics including sustainability and social injustice are no longer a sidebar conversation—they’re front and center.

One major learning from this year is that we not only need to put in the work to make change, but we need to stand up and be vocal about that work and our values.

Earlier this year, we announced ambitious goals to become carbon negative. Since that announcement, we've made additional commitments around decreasing waste, becoming water positive, and supporting biodiversity. By communicating these ambitions clearly with our customers, we demonstrate our values and we also attract customers who want our help in achieving their own sustainability goals by moving their data centers to Azure which are, on average, 93% more energy efficient and 98% more carbon efficient. This is good for our business and good for our customers. By sharing the progress we’re making on our own goals, we can attract new people to our products and build trust and awareness which ultimately leads back to growth. 

3) Your insights can contribute to company innovation

We have an opportunity to innovate in every aspect of our work, from ads to product launches to new partnerships. My advice is to ask yourself: What excites you as a marketer? What drives your business? And what are your business ambitions?

For me, one thing I’ve been really excited about this year is creative partnerships (and we’ve had so many!). Just last week, we announced the Microsoft Azure partnership with SpaceX and SES that launches us into the next frontier of cloud computing and helps us make space connectivity and compute more attainable for businesses across industries, from agriculture to telecommunications. The NBA is another great example of working with partners to reimagine what’s possible. Using Together mode in Teams and the power of AI, teams and fans can stay connected and celebrate their community, even though we’re apart.

Right now, marketers must look outside, listen, learn, and then apply those lessons to how we conduct our business.