The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has released a ground-breaking report on how CMOs are change drivers in martech and which technologies will impact their businesses in next five years. Following the trend on how marketers envision customer experience (CX) in their martech adoption, the report titled, “The path to 2020: Marketers seize the customer experience” explores how CMOs are aligning their direct action to magnify brand equity through personalized CX. One of the most startling outcomes of the report is the belligerence with which tech innovations are pushing the boundaries of CX, aiming at the small screen and no-screen experience by 2020. The latest report by EIU on CX is sponsored by Marketo.

Marketers lead the pack of professionals when it comes to adopting latest technologies and innovations.  A majority of the marketers cherry-pick technologies to automate their business processes, cutting through siloed workflow to smoothen internal collaboration. While marketing automation remains the pivot of all tech-integrations possible today, marketers are spending more time, money and effort to understand how innovations can help them understand CX and its personalization better.

499 Senior Marketing Executives Interviewed; 86% Say “We Will Own the End-to-End CX by 2020”

Most CMOs acknowledge that their primary task is to deeply understand customer buying behavior and intent, and the context that drives their brand engagement. While it is hard to define CX for each customer, CMOs agree that “a single, best version of customer truth” can bridge the gap in providing best personalization. Innovations in CX technology will drive this single, universal definition of customer truth based on data analytics mined from various layers of engagement – offline, online, web, social, mobile and in-store apps.

Marketers interviewed during the survey agree that the level of personalization in CX at multiple touch points along the customer journey is an essential factor in future marketing strategies.

Future Innovations Focusing on Personalization for Mobile and Networks; IoT, Wearable and AI also Share the Limelight

The relationship between brand and customer is evolving based on how marketers analyze data. Courtesy mobile and social media, marketers have a powerful combination of technology to figure out customer behavior in different environments.

According to the report, 59% respondents believe mobile and networks will have the biggest influence on their department, while 39% see IoT as the leading technology for CX.

“Although it helps, it’s not just experiencing with particular platforms that count most. It’s almost like you need a different kind of thinker because the skills are changing,” says Kristin Lemkau, CMO of JPMorgan Chase.

Analytics and Creativity: The Two Key Forces Every CMO Needs to Juice

Personalization helps marketers acquire, engage, retain and leverage customers with higher proficiency. Technology excellence allows marketers to segment their audiences according to their LTV, enabling the brand to grow, win and sustain in the long run.

“If I can’t combine analytical and creative smarts, it’s virtually impossible to be an effective CMO,” says Jonathan Martin, Pure Storage.

Focus Areas in CX: Need for Speed, Intimacy, Relevancy and Consistency

CMOs are increasingly leveraging technology to provide a fulfilling CX across mobile, social and app ecosystems. The cumulative effect of content, analytics, and advertising helps sustain the CX in most cases. However, marketers are yet to “hit” the golden ratio in CX that delivers entertainment, social relevancy, personalization, and speed. Use of machine learning, AI and geo-targeting are likely contenders in driving enriching CX in coming months. Predictive analytics in social branding can be used to create moment-by-moment CX in any campaign.

Fragmented Audiences, Unlimited Data Shelves: CMO Must Embrace Account-Based Marketing to Reach Pinnacle of CX

Irony exists in technology too!  While it is possible that customers are accessing the same content and brand messages that marketers want them to, it is quite a complex process to mash up technical and social aspects into one CX frame. Account-based marketing (ABM) for unique CX environment will play a very important role in simplifying the process. A unified CX platform for marketing, advertising, and sales based on ABM integrated to marketing automation and CRM is what CMOs need to set their eyes on.