Customer Knowledge Is Marketer Power

September 2009
Customer Knowledge Is Marketer
Power Understanding Customer Behavior And Motivations Produces Stronger Multichannel Results
A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of ExactTarget
Customer Knowledge Is Marketer Power
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................... 3
Future Now: Multichannel Marketing Is The Norm ................................................................................ 4
The Communications Universe Is Expanding ....................................................................................... 6
Marketers Are Moving At Warp Speed Without A Map .................................................................. 10
Two Key Factors Lead To Multichannel Success ............................................................................... 13
Customer Knowledge Is The Best Compass .................................................................................. 13
Strong Measurement Can Help Plot A Course To Success .......................................................... 17
Marketers: Plot A Course To Customer Nirvana ................................................................................. 19
Integrated Customer Data Gives Multichannel Marketers An Edge .............................................. 19
Preference Management Helps Build Stronger Relationships ....................................................... 19
Multichannel Execution Aids In Efficiency ....................................................................................... 20
Revamped Organizational Structures Halt Infighting ..................................................................... 22
Appendix A: Methodology .................................................................................................................... 23
Appendix B: Multichannel Use ............................................................................................................. 24
Appendix C: Endnotes ......................................................................................................................... 26
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Executive Summary
During the summer of 2009, ExactTarget commissioned Forrester Consulting to evaluate how marketers approach, execute, and evaluate multichannel activities. Forrester Consulting conducted exclusive research to validate the hypothesis that different forms of communication (email, direct mail, social, mobile, etc.) will not cannibalize each other, but rather should be used in conjunction with one another to deliver the best possible ROI to marketers. To uncover the most successful approaches, Forrester fielded an online survey to 312 marketing decision-makers in the US, UK, France, and Germany and discussed these issues in in-depth interviews with six survey respondents,
Overall, Forrester found marketers immature in their understanding of customers' needs and wants but determined that the companies that had a better sense of how their audience communicated achieved stronger results from their multichannel marketing efforts. In addition, marketers who focus their attention on doing right by their customers by using their customers' preferred communication channels or by executing a multichannel approach instead of trying to preserve channel-specific budgets end up building stronger customer relationships that pay off in the long run.
"If you are trying to reach your audience, you need a multichannel approach because some people are really in sync with one channel while others gravitate to different ones. We're just trying to reach people's lifestyles, and I don't think one medium does that." - Market... [download for more]