Marketing Scientists Wanted

Marketing has always been part art and part science, but according to studies highlighted this week in an Advertising Age article, marketing is increasingly tipping to the science side of the scale. According to the article’s authors, “today marketing is 70% math, 30% creative.” Furthermore, the article states, “In today’s multichannel world, it’s virtually impossible to run an effective campaign or build a strong brand across diverse customer touch points without serious analytical efforts.”

Analysis has always been an important part of marketing, but the proliferation of media options, more brand touch points, and the increasing control of consumers in the marketing equation have necessitated in-depth data gathering, review, and evaluation to improve future marketing efforts. In addition, most major companies now scrutinize every major expense to maximize effectiveness, and for many companies, marketing is one of the largest discretionary expenses.

The science of marketing isn’t only dealing with data that resides in the past and present. It is also using predictive modeling to forecast future initiatives (see article at MIT Advertising Lab). Marketing campaigns are becoming much too expensive and strategically important to rely on hunches, intuition or focus groups alone. Predictive modeling can help optimize multiple channel efforts and help fine tune results for the most return on investment.

It is apparent from the efforts of most Fortune 500 companies, that data (and what you do with it) is becoming one of the key ways to create competitive advantage. As the Advertising Age article points out, companies need “analytically literate” people inside and outside the company to implement the science of marketing. The article also points out that due to the rapidly increasing need for this type of marketing “scientist,” the supply is limited.

It is also important to remember that although the science of marketing is increasing in importance for most large companies, the art of marketing remains a critical component to integrate and deliver brand distinction and deliver a consistent, relevant message to customers and potential customers. Without the art of marketing, you can still measure the results, but the results will likely fall short of objectives. Successful companies will be those who can deliver and manage the critical balance of both art and science.