How Marketing Leaders Can Stay Optimistic, Yet Realistic In Times Of Uncertainty

 

Rhoan Morgan is a Forbes Agency Council Influencer and Thought Leader. This post originally appeared on Forbes.com.

 

As we head further into 2023, I think we can all agree we’ve been through a lot. We find ourselves working through new challenges. Business needs continue to evolve. Customer sentiment is low. Buyers are risk-averse. Three years after Covid-19 began, we still face an uphill battle.

It’s easy to feel stuck, but taking action can move us into a more positive place. Marketers are good at leaping into action and pushing forward. We have to be—it’s our job to help people out of lethargy and see opportunities. And those opportunities may include using authenticity and empathy to relate to customers, using content both creatively and strategically, and building relationships to literally meet buyers where they are.

In the face of uncertainty, marketing leaders have famously been upbeat. They serve as chief optimists, with the brightest outlook among their C-level peers in challenging times.

The More You Know

To stay optimistic, we need to see the complete picture so we can understand what to do next. Top marketing leaders understand this kind of clarity is best achieved with data.

Data allows us to understand the customer more and serve them better. It tells the story of marketing’s performance and revenue contribution: Revenue attribution has become more important than ever, and marketing leaders must demonstrate how their work aligns with the business.

Ideally, marketing should touch every customer, client or prospect interaction, including loyalty programs, customer service, onboarding, renewals and account management. As we develop the brand, we develop continuity. The audience feels like they know you.

Big consumer brands do this very well. Apple is a great example. That’s what Steve Jobs was about; he was a marketing genius.

Evolving Customer Expectations

We often talk about B2B marketing learning from the B2C space. It’s a natural expectation; we are, in fact, marketing to humans. It’s just in their workplaces, not their personal lives. The B2B buyer’s expectations are firmly planted in what we want as people: empathy, authenticity and identity.

Yet, it’s become difficult for marketers to provide the high level of personalization buyers want, given various worldwide privacy regulations. And we, as marketers, have to honor those requirements.

But here’s the “glass half full” opportunity: If you create meaningful, engaging, useful content and services, people will provide payment—in the form of their information. That enables you to provide even better experiences for those customers.

Amazon and many smart e-commerce companies are doing this: People share everything they search, every keyword they put in. And they get a fantastic experience.

On the flip side, I have an experience with another company where I signed up for their newsletter. Every time I close out of their website, a pop-up asks me if I want to sign up for their newsletter, which makes me feel unknown. It’s the digital equivalent of someone you’ve been introduced to many times asking, “Have we met?”

Optimism In Four Steps

Expectations are not only high for customers, they’re also high for internal stakeholders. Marketing leaders—CMOs in particular—are under a lot of pressure; they have the shortest average tenure of any C-suite executive and the shortest timeline to provide results.

I see four top opportunities to help marketing leaders grow revenue and stay optimistic despite uncertainty:

1. Be real.
It’s ironic that technology, which can be viewed as cold or impersonal, actually provides a humanized way to market. People don’t always realize the data living inside the machines, platforms and tools can provide a personal touch.

For example, if a college student needs to rent a van in August to move into the dormitories, chances are that around May, they’ll need to rent again to move out of them; a rental company can use this data to send the customer timely recommendations about the size of the van, dates and so on. It’s a way buyers can feel known and taken care of, building loyalty to that brand.

A caveat: Anticipatory data is great, but avoid being pushy. Strike a balance between knowing your customer and trying to be their best friend. Authenticity and empathy are your keys to being real.

2. Think like a media company.
Today’s currency is attention: We must create compelling types of content. Be targeted and analytical when you plan content. Evaluate the form it should take, ideal channels and conversion triggers. Consider working with partners and clients to develop content so captivating that your audience would be willing to pay for it.

3. Build relationships—not pipelines.
Rethink your sales outreach and cadence—what can be automated, and where can you add a human touch?

Partner with business development, account executives, customer success and customer service to re-imagine your customer journey and build a lasting relationship that creates loyalty.

Strong relationships focus on the customer’s needs and find hybrid approaches that toggle between digital and in-person (e.g., a chat that leads offline). It’s all about moving people through the journey of getting to know you better.

4. Meet customers where they are.
Getting rid of all the humans in the buying experience would be a huge mistake. If you’re buying a car, you’ll do research and customize it online, but eventually, you’ll take it for a test drive.

B2B customers also do lots of preliminary research: According to McKinsey, more than 30% of B2B customers use digital and self-serve channels for each stage of the buying journey. Yet, although they may be comfortable spending thousands of dollars online, when it comes time to make a multimillion-dollar purchase, humans matter.

Staying Upbeat Despite Challenges

By understanding the customer more and serving them better, we can make the most of today’s challenges and opportunities and help improve their lives. It can feel overwhelming, but I prefer to think of it like that Spider-Man adage: “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Together, we can make the world of commerce a better place.

 

 

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