International Data Corporation, a research and advisory firm, recently released its IDC (News - Alert) Futurescape report that makes predictions about the state of global customer service. The report includes a list of ten predictions that Kathleen Schaub, the vice president of IDC's CMO Advisory Service, said targets the trends that will cause the most market disruption and those that will show CMOs the way to improved leadership.
“CMOs must overcome the gravitational pull from the past, now,” Schaub said. “The tools of disruption, such as cloud-based marketing technology, predictive analytics, content marketing, and social media, are marching towards mainstream. IDC is confident that these ten decision imperatives pinpoint the nerve center of the marketing disruption. They represent opportunities for CMOs who are willing to step up to the next stage of leadership. Right focus will ensure that all the hard work will result in true transformation, and not just turmoil.”
It is perhaps unfortunate that the primary prediction IDC makes is that 25 percent of all CMOs will be replaced every year through 2018. This gives established officers cause to enhance their leadership capabilities and make note of the other predictions within the top-10 list.
Going year by year, the first other prediction says that, by 2015, only one in every five companies will restructure their business models to reach line of business (LOB) buyers to outperform companies which only sell to IT. By 2016, IDC says, only 50 percent of large marketing agencies which focus on advanced technologies will create their own in-house agencies.
By 2017, the company predicts, 25 percent of companies will create their own centers of excellence to remedy skill gaps within their walls, 15 percent of business-to-business companies will personalize their customers' experiences with more than 20 data points per person, and 70 percent of customer apps for those B2B enterprises will fail because they were unable to add value to customers' lives.
There are also a few more predictions for the year 2018. By that year, only one in every three companies will add “compelling content” to their customers' shopping experiences, 25 percent of CMOs and CIOs will share plans for how they market new technologies, and 20 percent of CMOs at B2B firms will expand their budgets by attributing the results of their marketing campaigns to revenue performance.
For CMOs and CIOs, there is a lot of information gathered within that list which shows the possible ups and downs of the next three years. For marketing officers especially, the list provides valuable information that can help them keep their jobs and stay ahead of incoming competition.