Report: Leading companies must address strategy, capabilities, organization design, culture
Boston -- A report released Wednesday by Boston Consulting Group said that, while 96% of companies are using Facebook and 83% are using Twitter, few have an overall marketing strategy that incorporates digital and includes clear metrics for success.
The report, Marketing Capabilities for the Digital Age, presents the findings of a BCG survey of marketing executives at 31 major corporations globally and presents an overview of the digital landscape.
The survey revealed that marketing executives are wrestling with a range of issues, including how to reach customers most effectively at each step of the purchasing process, create the right organization design, build a test-and-learn culture, and find talent with the needed digital expertise.
Reported as a top pain point by 29% of survey respondents, this talent gap is a key issue.
Key highlights from the survey include:
- 77% of companies are struggling to stay on top of where to reach customers — a necessary foundation for effective digital marketing.
- In addition, few companies are clear on what they hope to achieve with social media and what consumers want from these new platforms.
- Besides having an effective strategy that integrates traditional and digital media, companies need to rethink and restructure their marketing organizations to fully capitalize on today’s opportunities.
- By setting specific business objectives, testing different digital platforms, and using the right metrics to measure their relative impact, companies can begin to see what approaches work best with their target customers and industry.
