Multichannel Integration: Three Steps Using Marketing Technology

It’s all well and good to talk about multichannel integration, but how are you going to get there? One framework suggests that before multichannel integration can be attained, marketers need a technology infrastructure that supports marketing strategy, development, delivery and measurement. Technology and market research firm Forrester Research outlines this technological approach to integrated marketing, named the Marketing Technology Backbone, in its most recent Forrester Big Idea report. The three steps to developing this infrastructure are as follows:

1. Create a centralized marketing hub. If your catalog doesn’t have a chief marketing officer or a cross-channel customer database, consider adding them before implementing support technology for multichannel integration and analysis. Marketing management silos — Web, catalog and retail — need to be united under a single unified vision before effective analysis and implementation can take place, Forrester officials write.

2. Define a five- to- 10-year plan. As it cuts across organizational and functional boundaries, a multichannel integration strategy takes time to develop. A lengthy transition time is not uncommon, Forrester notes. And if substantial technological improvement is needed, be sure that both the CMO and chief information officer develop the plan in partnership with one another.

3. Implement in one-year stages. Individual initiatives within your five- to 10-year plan should be completed within 12 months. Whether you’re improving customer or prospect data quality or automating the execution of cross-channel campaigns, ensure that each initiative addresses both the technology and business processes to achieve each goal within the allotted time.

For more on the latest Forrester Big Idea, “The Marketing Technology Backbone,” visit http://www.omniture.com/go/676