If art is beauty, is science the beast?
Many corporations think so, judging from the way they silo their marketing and technology teams. Rarely do CMOs and CDOs bring the brains of both teams to bear on the company’s marketing.
In an era when 38% of marketing professionals admit to under-utilizing data for content strategy, companies that don’t marry art and science struggle to snag smarter audiences with shorter attention spans.
And there’s no lack of data to be dissected. Dun and Bradstreet reports that more than half of businesses have increased their data-focused personnel. Regrettably, the same report suggests that fewer than a third of marketers have found a way to utilize and connect that robust data.
To bridge this divide, beauty (art) and the beast (science) need to come together for the fairy-tale ending every corporation deserves.
Turning Marketing and Tech Into Partners
At one end of the spectrum sits the CMO’s department; at the other, the CDO’s. Between them exists a realm of possibilities that can be unlocked with a “two bookends” marketing approach.
The first bookend is the new, big idea that marketing generates. The second bookend is desired outcomes. Between these bookends lies the real story. But unlike most book series, the story must be built backward to create a coherent narrative.
Each step from last to first bookend covers the essential elements of any marketing campaign: defining the preferred user action or outcome, understanding how to engage the target audience, constructing buyer personas, and brainstorming the big idea.
Throughout the process, both art and science are at play. Marketers offer user empathy, creative strategy, and content and design expertise. Data specialists monitor metrics and examine prior performance data to recommend creative elements and media channels. One team without the other simply can’t tell a story like the two can together.
