Driving digital marketing success in a fast-changing world

Consumer behavior is an ever-evolving aspect of digital marketing that requires continuous adaptation and innovation to succeed. While the opportunities for growth and innovation in advertising are abundant, marketers must stay ahead of the curve to keep up with the increasingly complex consumer journey and rising expectations for relevant ads.

Here are some strategies digital marketers can use to stay ahead of the game:

1. Start with a business objective that is designed to drive and measure business results, such as revenue, profit, or market share. Having a clear goal in mind can help align digital marketing efforts and set the stage for success.

2. Once the business objective is established, ensure that marketing metrics align closely with those objectives, such as total revenue return on ad spend, profitability per dollar invested, and number of quality customers acquired. This step ensures that digital marketing efforts are contributing to the overall business goals.

3. Encourage the leadership team, including the CMO and CFO, to align on marketing metrics before the start of each new year. This helps to ensure that everyone is on the same page and working towards the same objectives.

4. Work with marketing and finance teams to showcase how modern digital marketing is an investment that directly contributes to the company's business goals, such as profit, revenue, or lifetime value growth. By demonstrating the value of digital marketing efforts, teams can secure more resources to drive growth.
   

5. When activating against marketing metrics, make sure that the paid campaign bidding strategy aligns most closely with the objective. Optimizing toward value is a powerful way to drive incremental results for advertisers.

6. Encourage the creation of a set of joint KPIs between marketing and finance teams to track on a regular basis. This helps to ensure that everyone is working towards the same objectives and can track progress over time.

7. Finally, build a single shared source of truth to help track progress against these KPIs and demonstrate the impact of digital marketing on company performance. This step can be critical in securing more resources and support for digital marketing efforts.

In today's digital age, automation is becoming an increasingly important aspect of digital marketing. To prepare for an even more automated future, marketers should help their C-Suite understand the value of digital transformation. Digital marketing leaders have the following three traits in common:

1. Scaling capabilities: Leaders build capabilities in key areas such as high-quality data, a skilled workforce, and cloud adoption. These capabilities can help to ensure that the organization is ready to embrace automation.

2. Leading with agility: According to Google and BCG, 74% of digital marketing leaders establish agile funding so digital programs can scale if they contribute to strategic goals. This agility can help organizations to quickly adapt to changes in the marketplace and stay ahead of the curve.

3. Always-on mindset: Leaders steer with an adaptive, always-on mindset to improve and scale pilots as the landscape changes and ROI is proven. This mindset is critical in ensuring that the organization is always looking for ways to improve and stay ahead of the competition.

In conclusion, mastering digital marketing requires a strategic blend of clear business objectives, well-aligned marketing metrics, and strong leadership. By focusing on these core elements, marketers can effectively navigate the complexities of consumer behavior and leverage opportunities for growth and innovation.

As automation and digital transformation continue to shape the landscape, it is essential for digital marketing leaders to build robust capabilities, maintain agility, and adopt an always-on mindset. These practices not only enhance marketing effectiveness but also drive significant business outcomes. By continuously evolving and adapting, marketers can stay ahead of the curve, ensuring sustained success in the dynamic world of digital marketing.