The internet has drastically changed the way the business world operates. To this end, companies the world over are discovering a digital transformation is in order to ensure long-term success.
Sadly, many business owners don’t understand how this transformation works. One common yet deadly assumption is that digital transformation is a product that is acquired on a one-time basis.
There are even companies that specialize in selling “digital transformation” as if it were a commodity.
However, nothing could be further from the truth. A digital transformation is an ongoing experience. It’s something you engage in regularly to continually grow your business while keeping costs to a minimum.
Would you like to experience exponential business growth now and in the future?
If so, read on to discover what a digital transformation is and how you can apply it to your marketing department regardless of your industry, business size, or geographic location.
What Are The Differences Between A Traditional Marketing Department vs. a Modern Marketing Department?
There are huge differences between a traditional marketing department and what a modern marketing department should look like. Here are some of the most important ones!
A Holistic Overview
A traditional marketing department’s sole focus is to sell goods and/or services. A modern marketing department, on the other hand, is holistic in nature.
It starts by researching the company’s target audience to find out what prospective customers want and need.
It then looks to create the needed goods and services. Furthermore, modern marketing also incorporates customer service to ensure buyers are happy with their purchase decision.
Use of Modern Technology
Traditional marketing focuses on old-fashioned promotional methods such as billboard advertising, radio and TV advertising, print advertising, and flyers and pamphlets.
Modern marketing doesn’t discount these tried-and-proven marketing methods, but it also uses internet-based advertising such as social media marketing, email marketing, Google Ads, SEO, Content Marketing, and other cutting-edge tools and techniques.
Data Analysis
Traditional marketing sticks with the same old methods and strategies. Modern marketing,
however, continually studies the data to see what type of people are buying goods.
Modern marketing analyzes data carefully to determine the geographic location, gender, age, and annual income level of its customers.
It then incorporates the data it collects in product creation and marketing decisions.
Creating Business Relationships
Traditional marketers focus on selling. They use one-way lines of communication to promote a business and its services.
Modern marketers, contrarily, consider marketing to be a two-way street. They listen to existing and potential clients. They then use this input when making marketing decisions.
Continual Testing
A traditional marketing department typically has a set budget to purchase a set amount of advertising.
Modern marketers, on the other hand, know that it doesn’t necessarily cost a lot of money to reach a target audience.
What’s more, a modern marketing department can use A/B testing and other strategies to determine which forms of advertising are effective and which are not.
Because of this, modern marketing often gets more results on a small budget than traditional marketers working with fairly large sums of money.
How Can Marketing Teams Work In Companies Of Varying Sizes?
Digital transformation isn’t just for large firms with dozens of employees who specialize in various aspects of modern marketing.
Small business owners and even entrepreneurs can create a marketing department structure that will propel the business forward now and in the future.
There is no “one-size-fits-all” method for putting together a modern marketing department. Even so, the following pointers can help you get started on the right track.
Small Businesses
As a small business owner, you most likely can’t afford to hire a large team of marketing experts.
This means you’ll have to pay close attention to potential employees to ensure they have different skills.
But the best strategy for small businesses is to outsource independent contractors. Website design, content creation, online advertisement creation, and email marketing are some of the many jobs you can delegate to companies that specialize in these services.
However, there are some jobs that are best kept in-house:
Customer service
No one knows your company and its products and services better than your own team members.
You need at least one reliable customer service person who can not only answer the phone but also communicate with potential customers on social media platforms and review websites.
The latter task is vital because a single negative review can cost your business up to thirty customers and thousands of dollars a year.
Social media manager
If you have a small team, this job can be delegated to a person who has additional responsibilities.
This is especially true if you outsource certain aspects of social media marketing, so a single person doesn’t have to create and post all the content.
A social media manager in a small business should understand how various social media platforms work.
They should monitor the content that is being put up on these platforms, and engage with customers and potential customers on these sites.
Just as importantly, a social media manager should collect and examine the data from these sites. They should know which posts bring in the most sales or subscribers.
Your social media manager should also stay abreast of current and promising trends that you can leverage to reach more people.
Data analyst
You need someone in your company who understands how data works even if this person doesn’t have the title “data analyst”.
To do the job right, a data analyst will need to understand how to measure data on social media channels, Google, and your website’s hosting service.
Your analyst also needs to understand how to compare online data with sales data to measure results, identify trends, and spot warning signs indicating your firm may need to change its online marketing strategy to improve sales and profits.
Product marketer
You need someone on your team who is good at making sales. This person should be tasked with interacting with potential customers, finding out what they need, and creating custom pitches to appeal to different members of your target audience.
Your product marketer should be able to blend traditional and modern marketing tactics to appeal to buyers both online and offline.
Mid-Size Businesses
As the owner of a mid-size business, you’ll be able to hire more professional marketers than a small business owner.
However, you’ll likely still have to choose which positions should be managed in-house and which should be outsourced to a third party.
In addition to the roles mentioned in the small business category, the following are some roles your firm will most likely need to fill.
Brand Manager
Do you have a logo? What image does your brand project online? Do you have a clearly defined buyer persona?
A brand specialist will ensure your message remains consistent across all your online and offline platforms. They also supervise customer service agents and manage your online reputation.
Website Designer
If most of your services are provided offline, you may be able to outsource your website management.
On the other hand, companies that sell services via the internet will want to have a savvy website designer on the team.
An in-house website designer can help you conduct A/B testing to determine which website format will generate the most sales.
Your designer can also boost SEO by ensuring the site loads quickly and can be viewed easily on any device.
Content Creator
An in-house content creator who is familiar with your specific business needs can help you engage your buyer persona with winning content across a wide range of platforms.
When hiring someone for this position, look for an individual who can create varied content, including website text, blog posts, white papers, ebooks, social media posts, and text for YouTube videos.
If you are unable to find someone who has multifaceted content creation skills, look for an individual who can create the type of content you rely on the most and outsource other forms of content creation.
Your content creator can then specialize in his or her field while supervising other writers and ensuring their content will meet the needs of your target audience.
Enterprises and Corporations
A large corporation that has the financial resources to hire hundreds of team members will want to create various marketing-related departments to handle specialized marketing tasks.
Just like the other types of businesses, you’ll want a data analyst, content creation team, customer service, and product marketing team.
Search Engine Optimization
Content creation and search engine optimization go hand in hand. You’ll need good content writers who are familiar with how Google works and what type of content will get high marks on the world’s largest search engine.
Even so, it’s wise to have team members who can specialize in SEO. SEO strategists can help your content creation team select the right keywords for any type of content.
Furthermore, your SEO team can:
- Research your competition to find good content creation ideas.
- Comb through your blog to find old posts that perform well and could be rehashed.
- Test various keywords to see which ones appeal the most to certain groups of people.
Audiovisual Team
An audiovisual team will help you with all videos and photos your company needs. A video production specialist can help you create video content for YouTube.
Additionally, an in-house photographer can help you capture unique pictures to highlight your business on Yelp and other, similar sites. They can also provide a steady stream of images to use for blog posts, eBooks, and even video content.
Social Media Marketing Team
Content creators aren’t a substitute for a dedicated social media marketing campaign. You need social media marketing experts who can help you select the best channels to focus on, tell your content creators what type of content to write, and then monitor the results.
Your social media marketing team will also be tasked with answering questions on social media, addressing customers who contact you via a social media channel, and staying abreast of social media trends and developments.
If you opt to work with social media influencers, your social media manager will likely take charge of selecting the influencers and creating a winning partnership that benefits both parties.
Website Design and Maintenance
Website design and maintenance. An in-house website team can not only design your websites but also ensure they run smoothly at all times.
Furthermore, team members can regularly test new page options and design styles on your site to determine which design generates the most sales.
Acquisition Department
Customer acquisition specialists help you get to know your audience. They reach out to potential customers to learn what they want and need.
They do careful research to analyze your competition in order to help you improve your goods, services, and sales pitch.
Your acquisition specialists will work with other departments to offer insight into what customers want and how to appeal to them.
CIO
In addition to various marketing departments, you’ll need a CIO (Chief Information Officer) to supervise your employees, coordinate projects between two or more departments, and make important decisions regarding the overall direction of your marketing team.
Your CIO, along with marketing department heads, will read the data, listen to data-drive recommendations from your analysts, and then decide the overall direction of your marketing efforts.
They also work with your finance department to allot money and resources to various marketing departments.
How to Create an Effective Marketing Team?
Now that you have an idea of what your marketing department structure should look like, it’s time to start assembling your team.
We’ve covered the skills and expertise you’ll need at various stages of business development.
Now it’s time to look at how to pick the right team. Here are some skills and attributes that are sure to be an asset to your company!
Soft Skills
Expertise in a particular field is important, as is experience. However, you can’t afford to ignore vital soft skills that enable your marketing team members to remain successful long-term.
Important traits you’ll want to look out for include good communication skills, initiative, self-discipline, and the ability to adapt quickly to respond to changing circumstances.
Relevant Experience
Make sure your employees have relevant experience. If your goal is to reach local customers, it may be best to hire someone from the local area who knows your buyer persona and its needs.
If your industry is specialized, hire people who have experience working in your field. This is particularly important if your marketing team needs to be aware of legal regulations and stipulations that would affect marketing strategies and tactics.
Watch Your Budget
Don’t go over your budget. A good marketing team will generate revenue and profits, but you have to keep all aspects of your business budget in check.
If you can’t afford to hire experienced professionals in-house, outsource your efforts. Outsourcing your marketing enables you to partner with experienced professionals at only a fraction of what it would cost to hire a full-time employee.
Creating the modern marketing department structure to suit your exact needs isn’t just a one-time job. You’ll need to continually assess team performance to ensure your marketing department is helping your company reach its full potential.
Furthermore, it helps to get an outside perspective on your marketing situation. That’s why we created a webinar on how to create a rockstar content team!
Sign up to discover industry-specific insight on how to build a marketing team that will help you reach your business goals faster and easier than would have otherwise been possible.
