Jay Kulkarni, Founder and CEO at Theorem talks about the various ways in which B2B marketing teams can stay abreast of changing digital marketing and content marketing dynamics with a few proven tips and best practices:
Welcome to this MarTech Series chat Jay, tell us more about Theorem and how its solutions have evolved over the years? What inspired Theorem?
Theorem’s origins are based in media operations that include marketing cloud, programmatic, creative and data, but our solutions have evolved over time to be end-to-end flexible marketing service-oriented to meet the demands of the ever-evolving market. As a company we strive to continually optimize today, build for tomorrow and pioneer the future of flexible marketing services. These two ideologies are the underpinning of our company’s culture and business growth.
Digital marketing and digital advertising trends have been evolving rapidly the past year, can you talk about the top trends you’ve been observing and based on it, a few best practices you’d share with marketers?
As an end-to-end marketing solutions provider, we have seen the impacts of the past 18 months across the marketing industry. The trends are constantly evolving, but there are a handful that stand out in this new endemic world that are critical for marketing teams to latch onto and fully optimize. Among these are the evolution of consumer needs and their call for more transparent marketing practices. It is crucial that marketing teams are working towards a first party, data-driven future that puts their consumers in the driver seat when it comes to their digital property. In addition, customer engagement and loyalty have evolved over the past year in ways we have never seen before.
The methodologies for success in customer acquisition, engagement and retention have pivoted heavily towards omnichannel and micro-moment marketing. This means marketing teams need to diversify their marketing strategies to include a multitude of mediums, channels and platforms while ensuring that their messaging is personalized and relevant to their consumers. The name of the game is tailored content when and where consumers need it most.
In what ways do you feel digital marketing practices for the B2B and tech market will transform in the near-future: what are some of the martech innovations (like AR) or other features that will drive this?
Endemic consumers want more control and more interactivity within their shopping experiences. We all know that shopping habits have shifted over the past decade or so to an environment where consumers proactively research products and services long before they consider purchasing. It is critical now that teams integrate new methods of interactivity including AR, VR, 3D modeling and other up-and-coming interactive marketing techniques to engage and appeal to their consumers. It is clear that the future of marketing is tethered to interactivity and personalization by way of consumer driven content. The key is identifying how and when to leverage these strategies to appeal to your ideal markets in relevant ways.
Content marketing is a tricky game in today’s overly crowded online marketplace, in what ways do you feel marketers can drive better interest, awareness and growth with innovative content marketing tactics?
In addition to the above statements on interactivity, it is critical for marketing and content teams to fully understand their consumer base. The shift to first party data collection and utilization strategies will allow consumers to share information that is more relevant when it comes to their preferences, which should help content marketing teams create interactive content that appeals to each type of consumer with a deeper sense of relevance. The key to all content marketing, both now and in the future, is letting the consumer drive the messaging and topics. The best way to appeal to audiences is by allowing them to tell you what, when and where they want information and then providing the content in a simple, digestible way.
A few thoughts on the importance of interactivity in content marketing and what content marketing in the future is set to shape up to be?
Interactivity is getting more pervasive and intimate as a direct result of the advances in user interface design, including touch, aural and smart device location software. As content consumption transitions to real time, understanding and leveraging the wants and needs of consumers is critical. Consumers are perpetually connected via their personal devices in every environment which means marketing teams must holistically understand consumer moods and behaviors if they want to engage consumers in the right setting at the right time. The ability to package and deliver content will be driven by technologies based on user preferences and where that user is at that particular moment in time.
Some last thoughts and marketing-martech takeaways before we wrap up?
Marketing is constantly evolving, but the innovations and evolutions we have seen over the past 18 months are occurring at a rapid pace, unlike anything we have ever seen before. It is critical for marketing teams across the board to stay ahead of trends and pivot their strategies accordingly. Those that are looking to the future and heeding the call of consumers for more personalization and transparency will see success. The rules of the game have changed and the power is in the hands of the consumer. Understanding this and creating a strategy that plays into this is the pathway forward and the best way to optimize today while building for tomorrow.
About Theorem
Founded in 2002, Theorem creates, delivers and optimizes digital marketing campaigns for some of the world’s most successful brands. By offering scaled technology, media, operations, marketing, CRM, and creative solutions under one roof, Theorem can provide flexible, full-service marketing solutions to their clients. Theorem’s consultancy teams and operational expertise helps brands simplify, streamline and automate complex digital tasks. This value exchange saves clients time, reduces their costs, and increases their revenue.
Jay Kulkarni is the Founder and CEO at Theorem
