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This week’s episode – 006: Ted Rubin, CMO, Photofy… Retail Relevancy and the Changing Digital Landscape
Are you using technology to advise you and create valuable, relevant customer experiences? Are you using mar-tech as part of a bigger, data-driven, personalized marketing strategy? Ted reminds us to use data, judgment, intuition, and your gut feeling in tandem with marketing technology.
In this week’s episode, Ted discusses remaining relevant in retail, and discusses the transition from offline to online… and how brands can navigate all of the change by delivering genuine, personal commerce experiences.
Show details and highlights
► (2:07) Retail Relevancy (Ted’s new book) and how shopping behavior is changing
► (4:58) The convergence of personalization and simplicity
► (7:48) Think like a customer: provide contextual and relevant marketing
► (9:45) Using data wisely
► (11:27) Creating personalized commerce experiences with technology
► (13:31) Ted’s Whole Foods enlightenment experience
► (17:05) Ted on the future of marketing: an over-reliance on technology
How to remain relevant in retail
Return on Relationship
Whether in our personal lives, when we shop, or during our jobs, we all look for a return… what will we get back? Return on relationship is the value that’s accrued by a person or brand that’s due to nurturing a relationship. While ROI is measured in dollars and cents, #RonR is the value — perceived and real — as a result of connection, loyalty, recommendations, or sharing. Authentic engagement needs to happen because a company cares about customers.
Customer experience is the future. What is the CX like when people interact with our marketing? Start listening to customers, and provide contextual marketing.
Ted on the future of marketing
One of the things that worries Ted about the future is the careless “programming” of marketing — brands that almost mindlessly mechanize aspects of their digital marketing, regardless of what kind of experience they’re creating. This is a world of commoditization. A multitude of vendors can sell the same thing. People will buy from companies that make them feel something. Focus on relationships. A network gives you reach; but a community gives you power. How can you build a community where consumers are truly a part of something?
Lindsay’s key takeaways
- Use technology to help be better, faster, and scale. It’s not intended to replace us and it certainly shouldn’t. Only humans can deliver the empathy and relationships.
- Marketing tactics sometimes get a bad rap — retargeting, email personalization, spam, digital advertising, and more. When the customer feels valued, these tactics work. When used incorrectly, they can be destructive.
- You own (part of) the CX. Poor experiences can happen anywhere throughout the buyer journey . How can you improve the touch points you can control?
Resources and links discussed
- Check our Ted’s couple of blogs, TedRubin.com and ReturnOnRelationship.com
- Connect on Twitter, @TedRubin
- Email Ted