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The Distributed Marketing Frontier:
Realizing the Dream of Truly "Glocal"
Marketing
JUNE 2010Today's highly mobile and engaged economy rewards businesses that deliverrelevant, timely, personalized customer interactions. Ultimately, an engagingcustomer experience wins business, and managing this experience acrosslocalized entities can be a difficult task. For large distributed marketingfunctions that support localized marketing efforts, managing brandconsistency, communication, and customer engagement is an ongoingchallenge. Distributed marketing functions are common amonginsurance, pharmaceuticals, automotive, financial services and"For large franchise industries. However, distributed marketing applies to anyorganization that requires a centralized marketing entity anddistributed localized marketers to work together in the pursuit of top-line growthand bottom-line efficiencies.marketing
functions that
support localized CorporateEntymarketing efforts,
managing brand
consistency,
communication, Internal Local Enes External Local Enes
and customer (Field O?ces, Divisions, (Branches, Agents,Business Units, etc.) Franchises, Agencies, etc.)engagement is an
ongoing Most organizations have embraced a hierarchical model where a central entity(corporate marketing) oversees the preservation of the brand image, brandchallenge." communication policies and strategic decisions about the brand. This centralentity often supports both internal and external localized marketing efforts toengage target audiences with relevant marketing messages.
Localized entities can be classified into two categories:
. Internal Local Entities: Field Marketing, Field Sales, Brands, Regions,Point-of-Sale Stores. External Local Entities: Franchise Holders, Marketing Agencies, ChannelPartners
Both internal and external entities have the same requirements; access tobrand assets, guidelines for leveraging the brand, and tools to engage localizedaudiences with relevant, timely, personalized messages.
But, managing communication and brand compliance in this environment canbe extremely challenging. For one thing, there are conflicting goals betweencorporate or headquarters marketing and local entities, such as agents,branches, or field offices. Corporate marketing is tasked with developing aconsistent brand across marketing channels, regions and local audiences. Localmarketers are tasked with engaging local audiences with relevant messagesand reaching sales targets. Local marketers need autonomy and flexibility to
2 JUNE 2010customize the brand and marketing message. As a result, local marketers oftenview corporate or headquarters marketing as a compliance mechanism that"doesn't understand local needs" and "adds little value to meeting revenuetargets."
Figure 1 shows how these conflicting objectives lead to alignment challengesbetween corporate and local entities. The growing complexity of thesechallenges drain productivity for distributed marketing functions and prevent"Technology the organization from delivering a consistent brand experience acrossmarketing channels; but, as Albert Einstein once said, "In the middle of everyshould be difficulty lies opportunity."
helping local Figure 1: Framing the Challenge and the Opportunity
Corporate Marke ngand corporate .Control brand consistency ChallengesOpportunity.Preserve brand andcustomer experience Longer campaign cycle mes Improve produc vity & me to marketmarketers create .Accountable fororganiza onal performance Inconsistent communica ons Reduce redundant costs and improve the.Control agency costs between corporate marke ng e?ciency and e?ec veness ofa direct dialogue .Aggregate media spend and local marke ng e?orts marke ng campaigns.Manage cross-channelcampaigns Inability to control the use of Deliver a consistent customerwith customers brand assets experiencet Inability to measure then Corporate and local marke ng cancombined e?orts fromevia the local monitor and measure all marke ngcorporate marke ng and localmCon?ic ng Objec ves e?orts and op mize future campaignsn marketersgiloperational Redundant technology Reduce licensing costs for mul pleALocal Marke ng pla"orms fail to address the solu ons, eliminate mul ple interfaces,.Customize marke ng combined needs of corporate centralize assets, centralize theentities." messages for local audience and local marketers distribu on... [download for more]
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