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When was the last time you saw an IT department and marketing team working closely together for a common strategic business goal, beyond tactical projects such as content for a new website or an online newsletter, that is?

Well according to recent analyst research and market experience it seems that the two disciplines may finally be about to set aside their differences and focus on closer collaboration.

Indeed, contrary to many popular misconceptions, the two functions do have a lot in common. For example both resources thrived in the dot.com boom but suffered severe downturns in the subsequent ‘bust’.  Both are working hard to restore tarnished credibility at board level and both are under strong pressure to prove their value to their organisations.

The net result is that marketers have a renewed determination to justify the effectiveness of marketing as a discipline. Meanwhile IT departments and vendors acknowledge the need to be more responsive and flexible in their approach. They are also being forced to find new opportunities as traditional markets, such as finance, operations and HR prove resistant to yet more upgrades on software, that already delivers more functionality than they can possibly use.

Does this mean marketing is about to become the new frontier for IT?

Leading business and technology research company Forrester seems to think so. A recent report, entitled ‘What Marketing wants from technology’ (June 2004) found that a top priority for marketing organisations was the ability to turn data into actions, such as increased sales or improved product development. Support for optimum allocation of marketing budget and the right channelling of customers closely followed this. All of these require the ability to analyse available customer data and make informed decisions. None of them can be successfully addressed without significant input from IT.

Our own experience at Rufus Leonard echoes this.  Our phones are currently ringing with requests for advice on content management systems to develop third generation websites, online brand management tools to bring brand assets under control, communication planning tools to help integrate marketing campaigns, and customer and employee application processes. These are all symptoms of the collective desire of our clients to bring marketing activity more tightly under control, through better management of information.

According to Forrester, budgeting processes are also changing.  The study shows that almost half of organisations surveyed continue to fund IT investment in marketing from the IT budget.  However the other half are now setting aside funds from within marketing budget. Specifically to cover IT projects.  This means that vendors need to be both marketing and IT literate to succeed in this growing market.

On the demand side, many enlightened companies are already bringing together IT and marketing specialists to pick the right vendors and solutions. And because the two groups don’t always speak the same language some are also using specialist advisers to help them find the right solution.  Choice is still limited however when picking marketing technology solutions. The Annual Marketing Technology event at Olympia remains quite small and few major vendors attend, although the list is growing.  Lots of new companies, some of which won’t survive, compete for business, which sadly for the time being is breeding a Wild West mentality. Ultimately the market needs established names to support and streamline the supply chain.  But before this can happen demonstrable ROI will need to be shown. 

So, is the new ‘togetherness’ between IT and marketing just the latest passing fad or is there a more fundamental shift going on in the market?

Personally, I think the growth of technology in marketing departments is likely to be gradual but sustained, concentrating initially on strategic planning and digital/ direct marketing and gradually moving into brand focused advertising, corporate comms and sponsorship.

Marketers and technologists have much to gain by working together, but with such different wavelengths and agendas historically, it will take time for relationships to succeed. Regular meetings between departments, formal budget allocation for marketing related IT development, job swaps, greater cohesion in recruitment and staffing should all help.  This combined with a few clear examples of shared success should lead to greater understanding and joint vision.

Of course, none of this takes away from the need for creative thinking in marketing. However, by working more closely with IT, marketers can expect a shift from around 20% of marketing spend being fully accountable currently, to more like 50%.  With half of marketing under control, the race will be on to make the rest more measurable too.

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