Companies are Finally Investing in Solutions Marketing!
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Rich Vancil, Group Vice President at International Data Corporation, delivered a webinar in December on IDC’s predictions for CMOs in 2014. As one would expect from IDC, the presentation was engaging, thought-provoking and different from many other presentations I’ve seen that have made CMO predictions for this year.
Topics of Particular Interest to Solutions Marketers
The IDC report, "Worldwide Chief Marketing Officer 2014 Top 10 Predictions: The Emergence of the Chief 'Something or Other'" (doc #245057, December 2013) contains a number of predictions that are relevant to professional Solutions Marketers. Here are some key ones:
Investing in Solutions Marketers– The Most Important Staffing Investment of All
What really caught my attention in the IDC CMO predictions report, however, was that companies will be spending more on their Solutions Marketing staff than any other marketing function, including web content and management, social media, marketing automation and direct marketing. It looks like Solutions Marketers can finally chant “We’re Number One!” -- at least when it comes to where the jobs opportunities will be in 2014.
Here is the PPT slide that shows the leading position of Solutions Marketing as a priority for marketing staffing:
More and more companies are finally understanding what we’ve been saying for a long time -- solutions marketing requires individuals with skills and experience that are different from those of product or services marketers, and they’re part and parcel to a successful solutions strategy.
A Critical and Growing Marketing Practice
IDC first highlighted the fact that Solutions Marketing is a critical marketing role for their customers in its 2011 CMO survey. Now we see that this need for more Solutions Marketing professionals has appeared in their latest study. It’s another strong data point that solutions marketing isn’t just a fad, or a clever term for “same old-same old” marketing activities. It seems that more and more companies understand the importance of creating and selling real customer solutions, and they need to hire or develop staff who can effectively market them. If you’re a solutions marketer today, it looks like your time has come!
If you’d like to have a conversation about how to find, develop and retain solutions marketers, contact me at shurleysolutionsinsights.com.
Author: Steve Hurley, Managing Director at Solutions Insights
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