We’re now living in a state of “digital disruption.” This means technology has transformed work and business as we know it. Consumer behavior and expectations have changed, and organisations must evolve to meet the changing needs of their customers.

The key issue I often come up against is that 'business transformation' is still perceived as a technology driven initiative, when it's actually a people and process mindset thing, sure the tech can act as an enabler of of efficiency, and sometimes even have huge impact on improving the bottom line, in particular where it streamlines outdated cost and manual processes.

So when I see the following headline;

WHAT IS MARKETING TRANSFORMATION?

Marketing transformation means different things to different stakeholders. Simply put, it’s the pursuit of scale, efficiency, and innovation using data and technology to spur profits and growth. Marketing transformation is typically focused on using software to automate and enable streamlined processes.

I wonder if the world is really transforming from outdated thinking to a more consumer centric approach?

If you operate in B2B your world has already changed, over 68% of the traditional buying process has altered - FOREVER. 

However if you took a leaf out of the B2C marketing bucket you might be able to better understand that when they're trying to gain micro transactions from a 'macro' audience you have to think differently.

In the old days you would have done numeorus things to 'warm up' the pipeline, which today are simply outdated and certainly not efficient. 

Marketing transformation has more to do with a better understanding around how your potential customers are wanting to access information about your product and company in a way that doesn't include risking your cold spammy phone calls and e-mails, it's certainly not just about 'software' that will probably change very little, just like that last 'software' initiative your company embarked upon.

Today's socially savvy prospects and customers are checking out your 'social proof', not your website.

With your buyer looking for a solution to their problem, you need to supply them with relevant content. The content needs to be informational and helpful rather than sales driven. Decision makers greatly prefer to get information from articles versus advertisers, with 80% saying as much in a survey from the Content Marketing Institute.

In addition to a changing customer, brands have to also deal with a more competitive landscape. It’s likely that all of your competitors are implementing new digital initiatives and trying to take advantage of technology. It’s not a matter of if you’ll transform, it’s when—and that when is now.