How do marketers embrace the technological revolution?

The Topline

Technologies such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality and blockchain are beginning to disrupt how we engage with brands in every industry. Marketers must embrace a new paradigm for consumer engagement — to keep their brands ahead.


The Tidbit

For marketers, surviving the tech revolution takes more than creativity — it takes education, adaptability and constant curiosity.

The Challenge

Today’s marketers must stay at technology’s leading edge, while reaching consumers on new planes and continuing to tell the stories that matter. So how do we do all this when everything around us is changing?

My Take

• Marketers should think like Leonardo da Vinci, combining art with science and technology. Today’s marketers aren’t just marketing specialists. They need to understand technology and data and how to apply them creatively.
• Marketers must stay on top of the latest technologies, not just in their industries, but everywhere. It’s the only way a brand can stay relevant and up-to-date on all possible tech implications. Blockchain, for example, first made waves as the infrastructure for cryptocurrency, but the technology’s intrinsic trust has broader benefits, including instilling transparency in supply chains and giving consumers deep insights into the journeys of their purchases.
• Every connected device is a marketing device — soon, consumers will be able to talk to their fridges. Marketers must use these new mediums to connect with consumers in a highly contextualized fashion but without being intrusive. Consider multisensory branding — for example, sonic branding through an AI-driven smart speaker, where consumers opt in to a useful digital skill.

Long Story Short

Now more than ever, disruptive technologies are connecting and uniting us when we need it the most. For marketers, embracing this revolution is the only way our brands will survive and thrive.