You are currently browsing the daily archive for March 5th, 2009.
Don Friedman, CMO of CA, one of the world’s leading software companies on why marketing is critical to survival now…
In good times and bad, it all starts and ends with the customer. Clearly, customer’s requirements have changed dramatically in the last six months as the economy has faltered. Customers are no longer looking for long term strategic projects; but rather they are looking for two things: projects that produce short term ROI (Return on Investment) and vendors that can survive the downturn.
Marketing always needs to support the business, specifically sales, and must focus on driving revenue. From a purely tactical standpoint this means adjusting the marketing messages globally to reflect the new economic realities and emphasizing products that are more easily installed and produce immediate and attractive returns. It also means positioning your company with confidence and as a thought leader, acknowledging the short term realities, and keeping an eye on the future. It means maintaining share of voice so customers know the value you can provide and you are seen as a viable vendor.
But marketing can and should do much more. It is a mistake to narrow the role of the CMO. He/she are in a unique position having to deal with many functions including development and sales. In times of growth, companies focus on revenue and earnings per share. In tough times, survival means focusing on cash flow and the balance sheet. It means further improving internal efficiencies and productivity, and in many cases doing less, not more. Yet “efficiency” and “productivity” are just words. And while widely used, these powerful words are sometimes elusive. Marketing can help by ensuring the customer needs are well communicated throughout the organization and there is close alignment between the company’s strategy and the functional organizations. Perhaps most important, marketing can cross functional silos, and become the grease that improves the alignment and creates a common understanding that yields greater efficiencies.
Think of it this way: imagine each person in the company as a vector. They have strength and direction. Their strength varies according to the person’s roles and capabilities. The direction is determined by what the person is trying to achieve. Optimal effectiveness and productivity is achieved when the vectors are aligned and their strengths are additive. Keeping the vectors aligned in a steady state environment is a challenge, in this environment where there is little historical precedent to steer the ship, alignment becomes even more difficult and critical.
Don’t waste the opportunity that this short time economic crisis provides. Use the uncertainty to reexamine and ensure alignment and focus across the organization while keeping your eyes on the customer. Companies that do this will not only survive but flourish as the economy improves.
