Global Marketing Trends in the Digital Age

What will it take to succeed in the future of marketing? Seven emerging trends can help the C-suite navigate uncharted territory in a more effective, and ultimately more human, way.

Today’s business leaders know that digital technologies hold the potential to transform nearly every aspect of our world. Businesses are exploring advanced analytics, AI, cloud computing, and the internet of things – and many are seeing early gains. As companies are learning, however, these technologies aren’t a substitute for the bonds we share as humans. With Deloitte’s first-ever Global Marketing Trends report, we set out to answer an increasingly pressing question: How can organisations bring authenticity to the digital age and cultivate human connections?

Through interviews with subject matter experts across the globe, Deloitte identified seven themes on which businesses can focus over the next 18 to 24 months to build a more human-centric enterprise. Notably, the research was not intended solely for marketers. At a time when C-suite collaboration is more critical than ever, the report is designed to provide insights not just to the CMO, who owns the customer relationship, but to all C-suite executives – from the CEO, who presents a unifying vision, to the CIO, who enables data analytics, to the CFO, who weighs financial priorities, to the chief human resources officer, who identifies a talent strategy.

The report explores the following 2020 global marketing trends:

Authentically leading with purpose. Though the concept of brand purpose is not new, it’s more important than ever in directing strategic choices across the organisation. It articulates why an organisation exists, what problems it wants to solve, and what it wants to be to each human it touches through its work. Not every company views purpose as an all-encompassing ideal; some consider it a mere gimmick to capture market share. Deloitte’s research, however, reveals that companies that lead with purpose and build around it can achieve continued loyalty, consistency, and relevance in the lives of consumers. Indeed, purpose is helping businesses create deeper connections with customers, better serve communities, attract and retain talent, and achieve greater results in the process.

Elevating the human experience. Applied thoughtfully, digital technologies can better connect organisations to their customers, partners, and employees. When tech-enabled interactions lack a human touch, however, it can make people feel isolated, underrepresented, and unfulfilled. In fact, the rapid pace of technological change has led some organisations to make short-sighted decisions to solve narrowly defined problems rather than think through more sustainable, human-centric solutions. That has resulted in what we call “experience debt” – an accumulation of unmet needs for human connection. To pay this down, organisations can focus on aligning customers, the workforce, and partners to a common purpose and leveraging technology in ways that enrich, rather than dampen, the human spirit.

Leveraging fusion – the new business blend. Traditional boundaries between organisations and industries are disappearing. Consequently, brands are moving from being isolated entities to being members of far-reaching ecosystems that can address customer needs more holistically. With such fusion becoming the norm, even leading companies are seeking ways to establish themselves in these much broader ecosystems – or risk being disrupted by new competition. Organisations can expand to new business areas by looking beyond industry boundaries to address customer needs, identify opportunities for growth and partnerships, and create new value for customers. Businesses that solve unmet needs through smart, open ecosystems can displace competitors that are unwilling or unable to do the same.

Amplifying consumer participation to unlock new value. Technology has created new opportunities for consumers, citizens, and communities to engage directly in shaping, influencing, building, and co-creating brands. Many marketers have recognised that to keep up with competition, they need to evolve and create dynamic, two-way engagement across all stages of the consumer journey and the product life cycle. Yet identifying how, and in which areas, to integrate customer participation can be overwhelming. By using the models and approaches best suited to an organisation’s brand and marketing strategy – whether it’s customisation, community building, or crowdsourcing, for example – businesses can turn willing customers into brand ambassadors, influencers, advocates, collaborators, and even innovators.

Safeguarding trust in business. Customers, regulators, and the media expect brands to be open, honest, and consistent across all aspects of the business – from products and promotions to workforce culture and partner relationships. In an era of connected technology and big data analytics, this may require companies to create a structure that protects customer data and privacy, detects threats to data protections and security, and promotes the ethical use of AI. Organisations can build a higher level of trust with stakeholders by proactively and transparently demonstrating good behaviour and, in the process, create more relevant and less invasive customer experiences.

Diffusing agility across the organisation. Companies are looking to more adaptive models to keep up in today’s dynamic social, economic, and cultural environment. Keeping pace with change necessitates nimble decision-making across the enterprise – particularly in marketing, where increasingly discriminating buyers are adopting and disposing of brands more frequently and casually. Leading brands are restructuring their marketing functions, leveraging the power of real-time data and digital platforms, and using those insights to design more personalised human experiences in an agile manner. Agility is both a framework and mindset, which often requires an organisational shift, new internal capabilities, and cross-functional collaboration.

Technology has created new opportunities for consumers, citizens, and communities to engage directly in shaping, influencing, building, and cocreating brands. Many marketers have recognised that to keep up with competition, they need to evolve and create dynamic, two-way engagement across all stages of the consumer journey and the product life cycle.

Valuing the organisation’s most important asset: talent. An organisation’s people – arguably its greatest strength – now include a diverse mix of individuals, including brand ambassadors, gig workers, social influencers, and partners. These people reside both inside and outside the walls of the organisation. It is important for business leaders to recognise that their workforces often comprise individuals with different backgrounds, perspectives, experiences, and goals, and to acknowledge and value each one. Having understood how best to engage customers, many marketers are embracing the challenge of creating deeper, more meaningful employee engagement, but all C-suite executives can make efforts here. Leaders who nurture their people will enable them to evolve and develop new skills and relationships, while engendering loyalty toward the brand and the employer. ***

The breakneck pace of technological change is not slowing – creating tremendous opportunity but also the potential for missteps for today’s organisations. Companies that embrace these seven emerging themes and place the human squarely at the centre of their organisations can make choices that have a positive impact on both the constituents they serve and their own business results.