For industry leaders in companies, this is a time of great opportunities and challenges.
With social isolation required during the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital transactions have become predominant. The trend is that they will become even more widespread in the coming years, even with greater flexibility in health measures. For the executive responsible for a company's marketing activities, known as the Chief Marketing Officer or, simply, CMO, this is a time of great opportunities and challenges.
According to a survey conducted by Gartner among procurement professionals at B2B companies in the United States, 59% of purchases in 2023 will be made online. Direct purchases from vendors, which currently represent 28%, are expected to drop to 24% in two years. In Brazil, the scenario is similar: according to a survey by asset management firm Canuma Capital, published in the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo, in 2021 online operations in the country surpassed all shopping center sales.
B2B companies are also focused on online purchases, not bahamas whatsapp data wanting to interact with sales representatives. In turn, B2C companies are increasingly buying through social media platforms. And for this to be successful, the company needs to be fully online, in sync with the offline world. IT departments are working hard to make companies’ technological infrastructure compatible with the new business philosophy, in which customer choice prevails when it comes to “preferred time, desired solution and location of operation”.
This phenomenon is leading to significant changes for chief marketing officers (CMOs). While many have shifted to digital, it has become clear that a hybrid approach and a more independent view of online channel options for marketing efforts is essential. According to the Gartner Leadership Vision 2022 study, responsibilities that used to be solely the CMO’s have become the responsibility of the company as a whole, with CEOs shifting their focus from 2021-2022 to digital expansion. Customer experience (CX) and e-commerce are now seen as strategic priorities for corporations for the next two years.
The CMO's responsibilities have also been expanded. According to Gartner's 2021 CMO Spend Survey, 80% of the marketing professionals interviewed said they are responsible for or have influence in defining their companies' digital transformation strategy. Therefore, the CMO has everything it needs to become a key player in leading the digital actions that companies seek to expand their businesses in this time of crisis and post-crisis.
The CMO's responsibilities include analyzing data and insights to anticipate customer needs, interacting with channels to gain engagement, and connecting partners, agencies, leaders, and employees to deliver value to customers and the company.
CMOs must also demonstrate the relationship between marketing investments, activities performed and the return for the company's business, which is much more than simply measuring results. In larger companies, where many functions in different areas overlap, there must be agreement between the company's goals and marketing actions, and the main indicators by which these actions respond, such as digital performance.
The name given to these professionals has also changed. Instead of being the Chief Marketing Office, the person responsible for marketing is now the Chief Connecting Officer, responsible for integrating digital activities across the company as a whole. While other departments may be directly or indirectly responsible for certain marketing activities, only the CCO is responsible for the interaction between the customer, brand, and products and services that add value to the business.