What to expect from your marketing agency in 2013
The traditional marketing notion of ‘paid, owned and earned’ media has been blurred over the last few years, as new technology allows for the blending of new types and styles of marketing activity. This trend will continue to grow in 2013, creating new challenges for marketing departments and agencies.
So what is the single most important thing to expect from your marketing agency in 2013? Without a doubt – teamwork. It may sound like something that should be taken for granted (and to a degree, it is), but the level of teamwork and the breadth of skills required for an effective marketing team has increased and intensified.
The time when agencies could work in silos or departments (PR, digital, advertising, media buying etc) has passed, and the convergence of these disciplines means that everybody needs an understanding of related and linked media types – not just their ‘traditional specialities’.
For instance, with the opportunity to constantly refine online advertising placements, a media buying team now needs to understand elements of user experience and ad optimisation, whereas traditionally they would only have considered design and placement.
Similarly, in addition to their previous responsibilities, a PR team is now required to take on a much more proactive, listening-based role through social media channels. The way they engage their audiences has fundamentally changed, and a grasp of digital media is now fundamental to effectively achieving their goals.
There are three ways that agencies and marketing teams can tackle these new challenges: either by broadening the skills of individuals, by improving the process of sitting down around a table and working as a truly integrated team, or most realistically by employing a combination of the above.
What do you see as the greatest challenge to marketing departments and agencies in the coming year?
