I recently read a very interesting article from McKinsey: The seven habits of highly effective digital enterprises. One of the most interesting areas successful companies are focusing on is customer centricity.  It comes more and more into play as higher customer demands are pressuring traditional value chains. Marketers in several leading companies are using this momentum to show proof of their abilities to turn customer data into actionable insights. When they succeed, it enables the development of strategic resources across the organization.

More channels, more data, more analysis
From my dialogue with leading Danish and international companies I experience that marketing departments have for some time been embracing digitalization. In several industries consumer and customer engagement is moving towards digital vehicles such as e-mail, mobile applications, social platforms – in combination with traditional ones such as TV, sponsorships and outdoor. More and more we see digital and traditional channels in powerful combinations.

With more channels, more content and more digital interaction, marketing today possess a much richer data foundation than in the past. This goes hand in hand with the employment of more analyst savvy people, and in combination, it has generated a much greater interest from other parts of the business.

Example: Digital relevance empowered by analytical models and data mining
Lately I spoke to the head of market intelligence at a global brand, who have commenced their analytical journey in marketing by enforcing much more analytical competency. The driver behind it is the fact that consumer and customer engagement has moved to the digital arena, and that the demand for relevance is ever greater.

This means that intelligent decision-making is crucial. Having developed a common data foundation across the globe, the company has now started to embed customer insight into decision-making. They are now sending out more personalized offers with their loyalty e-mails, and behind the scene, they use advanced analytics (propensity models and data mining based on RFM).

This is just one example on how companies are changing and adjusting to the new demands. In order to stay competitive in today’s dynamic markets one have to rely on strategic resources, initiatives on the digital front and the introduction of analytical marketers.