Hacking Marketing

18Moving Marketing from Communications to Experiences

Agility is an enabler. It gives us the ability to maneuver in a world of fast-moving digital dynamics. But our purpose for that agility is often to achieve greater innovation. We don't want to simply accelerate our reactions to competitors. We want to take the lead.

Marketing has always had a close relationship with innovation. Innovation in products and services has historically provided the best material for us to promote and differentiate our firm. “New and improved!” But marketing was usually more about creatively communicating our company's innovations, rather than innovating the nature of marketing itself.

The digital world has changed that, with an explosion of new marketing-led touchpoints with prospects and customers. The form that marketing takes, the way that we deliver it, and the overall experience that our audience has with it are all elements by which we can innovate new ways of marketing, not just new messages.

The most significant change that has unlocked opportunities for marketing innovation is this: Marketing has expanded from the design and delivery of communications to the design and delivery of experiences.

What we tell prospects and customers is still important. But how they experience touchpoints with our company has become even more important.

How does your website work when someone visits it? What if he or she visits it on a mobile phone? What helpful services, not just information, do you offer ...