Every day, since the internet started to gain ground in the business environment, the relationship between marketing and IT departments, inside every company, has gone from being a good idea to almost a necessity. Nowadays, the union between both departments is more important than ever and in some cases, they can be seen to be so intertwined that it may look as they’re almost completely merged in some companies.
First comes the vision, then the execution
When it’s time to redesign a website, develop a new social media strategy, or develop any form of digital marketing strategy, the best way to handle it properly is with a joint collaboration of these two departments.
During the planning stages, of this or any strategy, the marketing staff is front and center, leading every step of the creation process, basically because they are the ones that possess the vision and the foresight of what is going to be developed. Then, after the planning and designing stages are finished, comes the time to create the digital elements of the developed strategy, and implement or execute them; that’s the time when the knowledge and savvy of the IT’s come into play.
Looking at this scenario is hard to imagine; why these two departments are not conceived to work as a cohesive unit in every digital or even standard marketing agency around the world.
One thing is for sure: Having a clear vision to map the objectives and means of a strategy is key to achieve the desired results, but, it is also important to keep in mind that any form of vision is not going to be very successful if it´s not executed properly. So implementing the right tool (whether it’s a website, blog, social media account, program, or app) for the job is as fundamental to success as every other step of the way.
Starting with the right foot
One of the best ways to create a solid marketing strategy is by incorporating the input of every department involved since the genesis of the project all the way up to its culmination. This involvement in the process allows the IT specialists to provide advice and counseling in the technical side of any strategy, increasing the chance that the team comes out achieving a marketing tool that’s not only attractive and focuses on increasing the business opportunities of the company, but also a highly efficient solution that keeps customers’ satisfaction levels high.
With customer’s satisfaction being one of the ultimate goals of any marketing team, any little thing that can increase it is useful to the end result; the creation of more and better business chances.
Another important aspect to have in mind is the fact that the knowledge of IT staff is not reduced to just the technological side. They can provide a different perspective to that of a marketer; one that can help when seeking solutions to problems that may seem unsolvable or hard to tackle at first.
So from a business point of view, it’s good to consider that creating a marketing strategy from scratch is not an easy task, let alone one that must be converted into a solution for the digital environment. Every step and detail is given a good amount of analysis and consideration and that´s just talking about the conceptual stages.
Then when it’s time to translate those ideas, concepts, and all around vision into a digital solutions, it becomes a whole new process with its own set of challenges and particularities. So it’s clear that treating both as separated entities creates an evident delay in the implementation, and execution of deadlines. So, what better solution to this time problem, than to join the two units and allow them to create a harmonious and collaborative effort, which will translate into increased effectiveness and productivity.
At the end, the sum of the positives, such as different perspectives, useful technical advice (beginning in the planning stages), and the open channels of communication between the two units, just to mention a few, far outweigh any reasoning that keeps them apart; especially when this world continues to evolve towards an even greater increase in prevalence of the internet and digital solutions into our everyday lives.
