[August 25, 2014] |
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Consumer Goods Companies Need to Do More to Harness Digital Technology for Marketing or Risk Falling Behind
BANGALORE, India & EAST BRUNSWICK, New Jersey --(Business Wire)--
A new study by Forbes Insights and Wipro (News - Alert) Limited confirms that if
companies are not taking advantage of digital technologies to improve
marketing efforts, they are falling behind their competitors. According
to the study, 65% of executives say their companies need to do more to
harness digital technology to improve marketing effectiveness. In
addition, 61% say their companies need to do more in terms of harnessing
marketing data to improve effectiveness in complementary areas such as
product development and logistics.
These are among the major findings of 'The race is on: Keeping pace
with the Consumer Goods leaders in digital marketing and technology,'
a new study from Forbes Insights, commissioned by Wipro Limited
(NYSE:WIT), a leading Information Technology, Consulting and Business
Process Services company. The study surveyed 125 C-level executives from
large, global consumer goods companies, in the United States, Europe and
Asia Pacific, from sectors such as consumer electronics,
over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, food, beverages, home & personal care
and apparel & footwear.
"This study shows that many companies still have a long way to go to
realize the full potential of digital marketing," says Bruce Rogers,
Chief Insights Officer and head of the CMO Practice for Forbes Media. "A
trailblazing group of transformative companies is leading the way and
achieving closer alignment between marketing and other departments.
Others need to forge ahead or risk falling behind."
Hiral Chandrana, VP & Global Business Head, Consumer Goods, Wipro
Limited said, "Executives today face a bewildering array of digital
marketing technologies. It not only requires integrated website, mobile
and social media strategies, alongside well-conceived and executed data
privacy and security strategies, but also concepts such as omni-channel
and analytics which add to the complexity. But at the same time, the
collective capabilities of these technologies to grow and optimize sales
and marketing are too important to be ignored."
He added, "The rapid shift to digital is providing businesses, across
consumer industries, with more opportunities than ever before, to
connect and engage with their customers. How well businesses are able to
implement digital technology has a direct impact on business results and
will keep them ahead of their competitors."
Additional findings from the report include:
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Forty-two percent of executives believe their current approach to
digital marketing is too fragmented-rising to 47% among companies with
greater than $17 billion in sales. The larger the organization, the
more products and divisions, the greater the likelihood there will be
fragmentation.
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Silos contribute to the challenge: Digital marketing is
often organized as a separate function (37%), while e-commerce
often operates as a separate business unit (39%).
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Half of executives, 50%, report that in one or more instances,
their digital marketing has failed to integrate with essential
back-end processes.
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Nonetheless, 20% of companies describe themselves as transformative.
These are the leaders, companies that have already embraced a broad
array of digital strategies: social, mobile, web and analytic tools
and technologies transforming not only sales and marketing but also
the overall business
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To improve digital marketing effectiveness, companies are seeking
closer alignment between marketing and IT.
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Companies are looking to expand their use of external
resources/providers for digital marketing
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Forty-three percent of executives believe their IT departments are
so busy they are unable to help with digital marketing technology
needs.
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Fifty-nine percent indicate that their companies are amenable to
adopting a greater degree of technology outsourcing-specifically,
a model where a third-party, full-service technology provider is
able to assist with a greater degree of both front-end marketing
and back-end operational processes.
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Fifty-eight percent say they are open to working with consultants
who can help manage both front- and back-end digital marketing
processes.
The report titled "The race is on: Keeping pace with the leaders in
digital marketing and technology," can be downloaded here: www.wipro.com/consumer-goods-transformation/
About Wipro Ltd. (News - Alert) Wipro Ltd. (NYSE:WIT) is a leading
Information Technology, Consulting and Business Process Services company
that delivers solutions to enable its clients do business better. Wipro
delivers winning business outcomes through its deep industry experience
and a 360 degree view of "Business through Technology" - helping clients
create successful and adaptive businesses. A company recognized globally
for its comprehensive portfolio of services, a practitioner's approach
to delivering innovation, and an organization wide commitment to
sustainability, Wipro has a workforce of over 140,000, serving clients
in 175+ cities across 6 continents. For more information, please visit www.wipro.com
About Forbes Insights: Forbes Insights
is the strategic research and thought leadership practice of Forbes
Media, publisher of Forbes magazine and Forbes.com, whose
combined media properties reach nearly 50 million business decision
makers worldwide on a monthly basis. Taking advantage of a proprietary
database of senior-level executives in the Forbes community, Forbes
Insights conducts research on a host of topics of interest to C-level
executives, senior marketing professionals, small business owners and
those who aspire to positions of leadership, as well as providing deep
insights into issues and trends surrounding wealth creation and wealth
management.
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