The Ambidextrous Marketer

Recently, I’ve had a bit of extra time to do some research on the digital marketing trends and the emerging eco-system comprised of companies, technologies, trends, skills and talents needed for success and driving results. Most of us who are in the Digital Marketing and CRM space, know that it’s constantly changing and evolving.

I read a white paper from E-Consultancy titled: “Quarterly Digital Intelligence Briefing: 2014 Digital Trends.” The paper covered a core need of marketing leaders having both left and right brained skills in order to achieve success with their Digital Marketing and CRM Programs. The white paper references: “businesses increasingly need people who can create brilliant customer experiences through a fusion of technology, creativity and commercial acumen.” E-Consultancy CEO, Ashley Friedlein, describes these marketers as “those who are analytical and data driven, yet understand brands, storytelling experiential marketing” (pg. 21, Quarterly Digital Intelligence Briefing: 2014 Digital Trends). Click here to see more details on this report: https://econsultancy.com/reports/quarterly-digital-intelligence-briefing-2014-digital-trends)

For the modern marketer, this skill set is comprised of the right brained thinking which fosters: creativity, innovation, ability to see big picture as well as the left-brained thinking that is grounded in mathematics, analysis and data. Brand building falls under the right-brained thinking which is grounded in feeling, emotion, passion and experiences. Emotion drives the customer to engage and purchase from the company. I recently received the March ’15 issue of Fast Company which features the most innovative companies in the world. Warby Parker is this year’s # 1 most innovative company. Majority of these companies have created brands that instill the emotion and more deeply connect with the customer. Read More Here: https://www.fastcompany.com/section/most-innovative-companies-2015

Scott Brinker, the creator of https://chiefmartec.com/, a blog that features articles on leadership, design, technology. In his article titled: “A Magical Junction of Design, Technology and Leadership”, he said:

“Technology has blossomed beyond the walls of the IT department — albeit not always with their blessing. And design, in the broadest sense of the word, is being recognized as the atomic force that binds all of these particles of customer experience touchpoints into something more than mere marketing communications and software functionality.” Read more here:(https://chiefmartec.com/2015/02/magical-junction-design-technology-leadership/

Being an Ambidextrous Marketer is the ability to use different lines of thinking to design engaging customer experiences, using technology platforms for ongoing management, analysis and optimization of the marketing strategy. Building successful marketing organizations in the years ahead will be based on attracting leaders who can think both ways as well as employ individuals who are masters at their individual skills or arts be it Data Science, Technology, Branding, or Customer Experience.

See this and other articles on CRM, Digital Marketing and Personalization on: https://www.marketingpersonalization.com/.

I wish all of my fellow Marketers great success in 2015.

Renee Adams.