The new law to ban or force the sale of TikTok creates a problem for marketers beyond the loss of a popular advertising channel. The law aims to protect the social media app’s 170 million American users from having their personal data exploited by the Chinese government. That’s a problem, but not the problem.  The problem — and what’s driving marketers crazy — is the absence of a national law protecting Americans from having their data exploited by any entity. Instead, we have a patchwork of local laws that leave most of the population without protection.  On Friday, Nebraska became ..read more

Providing genuinely outstanding customer experiences is the ultimate goal of marketers today. Customers have come to expect seamless, personalized brand interactions across all touchpoints. However, meeting these heightened expectations is no easy feat. Fortunately, marketers now have powerful new tools to help them understand and predict customer behaviors at scale — artificial intelligence (AI) and agile ways of working. This guide provides a roadmap for leveraging AI and agile marketing practices to craft unforgettable customer experiences.  Step 1: Establish your data foundation The ..read more

When Gartner surveyed CMOs in 2023 about the state of their marketing technology stack, most admitted to using only one-third of their martech stack. This percentage has been decreasing in the past few years, even though the purchase of new marketing technology platforms has increased in the same period.  CMOs also admit this is a big problem and seemingly without easy solutions. The survey highlights four main obstacles to boosting marketing technology usage:  The complexity of the current martech landscape. Insufficient customer groundwork to amplify technology’s business value ..read more

Consumers inundated with marketing messages are receptive when the message is about a high-priority item they’ve purchased. U.S. apparel brand True Classic has leveraged this to improve customer satisfaction and increase revenue. The company discovered this when they began sending messages to customers post-purchase with accurate shipping and delivery details. Not only are the messages welcomed by customers as a key part of the customer service experience, but they drive revenue by encouraging repeat purchases. It’s all part of a virtuous cycle that begins with better, more accurate communica ..read more

Predictive analytics is the use of data and modeling to predict the likelihood of future outcomes based on the historical record. Machine learning algorithms can be used to analyze large quantities of data and predict outcomes at speed. Predictive analytics can be used in almost any field, from climate change to sports. In marketing, they are typically used to predict things like customer behavior, propensity to convert, propensity to churn and campaign performance. The data analyzed can include website and app engagement, customer sentiment and social media activity, as well as contextual da ..read more

Adobe released Firefly Image 3, the third generation of its AI-powered image generator, on Tuesday. The company claims this model understands prompts better, can provide greater detail and has “better lighting, positioning, attention to detail [and] advancements to text display.” What it is. Adobe Firefly is a generative AI tool for creating and modifying images, illustrations, and fonts. It is available in Photoshop (beta) and Adobe’s Firefly web app. The company says a video-generation version will be available in the Premier Pro video editing tool later this year.  Dig deeper: Legal r ..read more

Have you sensed that your martech solution or vendor is losing interest? Or do you have concerns that recent updates might indicate a change in strategy that could threaten your own interests? Marketers understand that not all of their relationships are perfect. Team members might talk the talk but not walk the walk. Affiliates may overpromise but underdeliver. Instead of propping you on a warm pillow of comfort, your support folks could be blowing smoke up your — well, you get the picture.  If you find yourself in that frame of mind, here are three things to consider before pulling the ..read more

It’s no stretch to say the marketing data landscape has changed quite a bit over the past two years. For one, the ways companies collect user data have been under the microscope, and policies from Apple and Google are forcing marketing data analytics changes across the board.  Also, customers are more thoughtful than ever about what information they’re willing to share and how it’s being used. Finally, scalability and personalization have become buzzwords, but you can’t accomplish either without strong analytics – and getting that has been an uphi ..read more

Adobe’s Firefly was designed to give enterprise users generative AI image tools they could trust.  “A lot of our very big enterprise customers are very concerned about using generative AI without understanding how it was trained,” Adobe chief strategy officer Scott Belsky told TechCrunch last year. “They don’t see it as viable for commercial use in a similar way to using a stock image and making sure that if you’re going to use it in a campaign you better have the rights for it — and model releases and everything else. There’s that level of scrutiny and concern around the viability for c ..read more

If you’re still taking a one-size-fits-all approach to your marketing campaigns, blasting the same messages across channels to a broad audience, you’re leaving revenue on the table. Today’s B2B buyers expect a personalized experience tailored to their specific needs, industry pain points and stage in the customer journey. Generic campaigns won’t cut it anymore. The key to unlocking more marketing-driven revenue is adopting an audience-based planning approach. Rather than promoting your products or services en masse, this strategy involves segmenting your target accounts and prospects into dis ..read more