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This is the second article in a series on marketing technology by Marketing-IT expert, Gilbert Sabat. Read the first article: Marketing and IT, unlikely partners in the delivery of extraordinary brand marketing.

By Gilbert Sabat, Founder & CEO of MM4L Canada Inc.

The first article I wrote on marketing technology focused on how an organization can go about enabling extraordinary brands by integrating its marketing and IT functions. This article will focus on the first step in that journey: How to clearly define & prioritize objectives for IT & marketing.

Defining strategies and objectives in a function is a challenge, let alone doing so for two very different functions. This article will examine a methodology to achieve that as well as the obstacles to avoid.
 

Below are the 7 steps to define & prioritize common IT and marketing objectives:

1. Marketing & IT leaders will select technology-savvy marketers and business minded IT specialists to create a cross-disciplined marketing technology team.
2. The team is then provided with clearly defined individual brand positioning and growth objectives, e.g.



3. For each brand, the team will need to define the channels in which brand loyalists are interacting in order of priority, e.g.:



4. The team then needs to identify the programs and activities that will deliver the growth objectives by brand by channel, e.g.:
   1. Brands A + B + C: Mobile and desktop websites.
   2. Brand A: Mobile and desktop contests to engage consumers.
   3. Brand A + B: Email to inform consumers.
   4. Brand B: Posts on Facebook to obtain insights and create awareness.
   5. Etc.
5. The programs and activities in step 4 are then prioritized based on the growth objectives identified in step 2.
6. The technology architecture that supports the programs and activities in step 4 are then outlined by channel, e.g.:
   1. Content Management System for all brand mobile & desktop websites.
   2. Contest engine integrated to websites.
   3. Consumer relationship management solution for consumer segmentation and emails.
   4. Social media monitoring tool for overseeing activities
   5. Etc.
7. Assign the team cross-functional revenue generating and cost reducing objectives and key performance indicators, e.g.:

Below is a list of things to look out for:

1. Work with facts when you can. One of the advantages of technology is that there are a lot of concrete numbers that will support your decisions.
2. Technology is just a tool to helps you automate processes. Make sure that the processes behind programs and activities that you chose to enable brand revenue objectives are optimized.
3. Make sure that the Marketing Technology team supports and has methods of measuring the key performance indicators identified in step 7.
4. Make sure that you align the application selection process to favor those applications whose foundation is aligned with IT’s architecture. For example, if IT is running Microsoft applications with .Net and SQL databases, it is preferable, but not mandatory to select systems with the same underlying technologies to benefit from synergies.
5. Prioritize the implementation of the technology architecture according to the program and activity prioritization identified in step 5.

In today’s reality we are all challenged to deliver MM4L (much more for less). To achieve that goal, it is critical to articulate Marketing Technology’s revenue and cost reducing objectives and provide a simple yet effective way to measure performance.

Gilbert Sabat
Gilbert is a marketing technologist with over 15 years’ experience in small to Fortune 500 companies. Throughout his career, he has helped companies deliver double-digit growth through efficient use of leading edge, yet practical and integrated marketing technology. You can connect with him via LinkedIn or call him at 514-262-4780.