Real-time Data: Returning Marketing to the Mad Men Glory Days
November 06, 2016
Tom Mitchell
30+ Year Marketing Veteran, Healthcare Marketing Expert
Marketing as a profession hit a low point about 25 years ago. Mesmerizing, elegant marketing programs had become a thing of the past. Gone were the glory days of the Mad Men advertising and marketing programs. Corporate America had settled into a habitual marketing view of using the same tried and true tactics over and over again to support B2B or B2C strategies that were at times antiquated.
Then, along came this shiny and new medium called the Internet. The fun in marketing returned. Since then, marketing techniques, tools and creativity have changed at blazing speeds with message delivery aimed at and customized for every demographic imaginable. Smartphones and mobile have brought about even more innovation – and impacted the “cool” factor even more.
Of all the advances, one of the greatest has been the amount of real-time data marketers have at their fingertips. At times, it can be overwhelming, but what an advantage it provides to the savvy marketing professional if captured, processed, managed and, ultimately (and actually), used.
Accurate and centralized real-time data yields a number of benefits, especially in this world of instant gratification:
- Increased customer engagement
- Improved customer experiences
- Increased conversion rates
Consider this -- according to recent research from Evergage, 61% of people expect a real-time response in under a minute. That’s lightning quick and requires quick analysis and feedback.
With instantaneous feedback, campaigns for both consumers and B2B targets can be adjusted immediately – just as soon as one is launched, messages adjusted on the fly, positive customer feedback shared with the world in a split second and content quickly changed based on A/B testing scenarios. Today's marketing world starts and stops with data, but it's the integration of all resources, tools, creativity and the human mind that drive marketing results.