Marketers need to stay marketers, not technologists

Not sure this is correct. Here’s why. The premise is wrong. Just like copywriters were first only writing print magazines, then had to write for all mediums, so marketers just had to understand one technology, now they need to understand many.

It’s just a changing skillset. And the key is understanding the theory of technology first, so you can apply it quickly.

Given most kids and marketing grads will be grounded in some firmer understanding of tech theory via code knowledge, I’m expecting this to become more common. And marketers who can’t quickly understand tech at a high, conceptual level will quickly be left behind.

After all, you’re pretty useless strategically if you can’t think about how to use all the tools in your arsenal. Any strategy a marketer worth their salt writes without an understanding of the tech that can/could power it is just contributing sheets of paper to a dusty pile.

Have to disagree on some points. As a creative, it is incumbent upon me to understand the technology I’m relying upon or delivering through. This doesn’t mean I must be a slave to the machine, however if I’m going to ask the technology to bend to my will, I need to understand what it is I’m trying to bend and where its flexible points are. For this I would rely on a ‘technologist’ because I’m not very techy myself – but the efficacy of my response to brief would drop if this technologist was silo-ed from me. A division of labour is the last thing I would be hoping for, in fact the right technologist might actually be able to make a contribution outside of their core competency as they grow accustomed to my side of the business.

I do believe in the supremacy of the human touch – creativity and insight – but I’m not fooling myself that machines will not be able to do a lot of backroom stuff better, if not now then soon. I don’t believe that google has just automated ‘creativity’;

http://www.theguardian.com/art.....-dream-art

but it does get me thinking, so to speak.

If marketers focus on driving tangible business results everything else, including ‘technology’, sorts itself out.

Sorry. Really have to disagree with this. Communicators built the printing press, the “wireless”, the billboards, the Tv and the Internet. Marketers always have to understand the technology their customers are living in. You can not be a student of society and NOT pursue an understanding of technology. We live in a digital world. This feels like it was written by a marketer who has given up.

I say learn how to solve problems for the world your customers are living in.

When planning strategy, the challenge is to know enough of whats available & on the horizon without going too deep on the details. You need to be a jack of all trades, not a specialist. This is not new thinking, rather that there are just many more tools available to us now (including tech) and the skill is knowing when to use them and when to park them.

Totally agree, what we see happening is that ‘marketers’ are chasing shiny lights and tactics. I worked in marketing advisory for business owners, and also help businesses audit the practice of their marketing departments. I’ve seen a terrific decline in the skill of strategy – understanding customer, market, competitor and self – because of the confusion caused by technology. Many marketers these days get so wrapped up in the minutia of tactics and channels – they’ve forgotten how to actually think strategically.

I totally disagree with comments from some above that a marketer must understand the technology. Not if they want to stay being a strategic marketer they don’t. Do you think Richard Branson needs to know how the engine works on his planes to run an airline, or that Kerry Packer or Rupert Murdoch need to know how to strip down a newspaper printing machine to run a news organisation – no they categorically do not. And if the marketer of today does think they need to know how the engine works then they’ve lost the battle of the big picture – and big picture and strategy is the only place a strategic marketer should be operating in. Follow the process, get the strategy right, and then engage experts in each chosen marketing tactic to make sure your strategy is successful. Well done, great insight. Hunter Leonard – Founder and CEO of Blue Frog Marketing, Author of Marketing has no off switch.

Well said Ant! Whilst there is a stack of tools and tech available, there seems to be a shift where some may simply distract marketers. The industry has so many bright shiny new things. In the right instance some may well be valuable in capturing the consumers attention or do consumers see them seen as simply invasive and creepy? Whilst the adtech industry salivates and marvels at its rapid progress, how far removed and disconnected is it from consumers everyday behavior and actual interaction with technology? Perhaps this is why the industry now feels an unending need to disrupt consumers and celebrate its ability to do so. Are consumers seeing adtech efforts as pestering? Perhaps its time for marketers to get back to understanding the consumer and brands and creating great campaigns that consumers enjoy rather than dismiss.

Dudes, it is incumbent on us to ask questions, understand and exploit technology. The critical aspect is that the tail doesnt wag the dog aka the bright yound nerds who think usability = customer insights should never be driving the bus. We drive, we ask to understand the ‘tecnichal’ priorities like fuel, water and what can go wrong. We keep the journey heading in the right direction, they help us figure out smarter ways of getting there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXBqzpExvrk