GUIDE TO GO
TECH JARGON
DECODING Must-know marketing terms for the modern company BY ROBERT GLAZER
Technology is transforming marketing at warp speed. It is now possible to precisely target customers, craft personalized messages, track purchase journeys, and calculate marketing’s ROI—all while interacting with your market on social media. Master the new marketing movement, and your business will be ahead of the curve when it comes to connecting with customers.
AFFILIATE MARKETING: In this channel, you get your brand in front of new customers by signing up individuals or companies to market your products for commissions that are paid only after a desired action is achieved. While affiliate marketing has been around for more than 10 years ,it is evolving from its roots in discount to more brandrelevant partners and promotions. We have seen that affiliate marketing, done well, can provide 8 to 10 percent of online sales on a performance basis.
ATTRIBUTION MODELING: Traditionally, the last ad viewed or clicked received credit for any sale made. In the data era, however, attribution modeling can measure the entire team of ads and channels that contribute to a conversion over time. Now companies can see the full picture of what’s happening in each channel and determine each one’s contribution.
BRAND MONITORING: A way of keeping track of your brand’s image, this process pays attention to all possible channels on the web and in the media to understand how your brand
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is being perceived (for example, on forums or complaint sites), as well as to guarantee that there are no trademark infringements (for example, another company adopting a logo that is very similar to yours). BrandVerity is one example of a company that can help you implement brand monitoring.
DIGITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT: Given the proliferation of marketing channels, it’s a challenge to coordinate all of your brand’s digital assets, such as images, stock photos, videos, PDFs, and more. Digital asset management (DAM) assigns metadata and indexes important records to help you organize and repurpose those assets. Companies such as WebDAM specialize in providing this service.
MOBILEGEDDON: This term was given to Google’s recent search engine algorithm update, which now factors in mobile-friendliness when ranking websites. If you want to attract organic traffic, ranking high in Google searches is imperative. Check out Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to see if your site measures up.
OMNICHANNEL: This approach to marketing provides a seamless experience across channels and devices. If a customer puts an item in his shopping cart on your desktop site, that item should also be there when the customer accesses your mobile site. If the customer doesn’t buy, e-mail and display remarketing should remind him of the product. B2B as well as B2C customer expectations for a consistent brand message are high. If your brand has disjointed messaging or creative on different channels, its integrity will be compromised.
PERSONALIZATION: Blast e-mails are no longer relevant. Instead, target each customer with products tailored to him or her based on characterizations or preferences gleaned from what he or she has purchased or searched for in the past. New personalization software makes this easier and cheaper than ever before.
Robert Glazer, founder and managing director of Acceleration Partners, is a customer acquisition specialist who grows revenue and profits for fast-growing consumer products and services companies. His clients include adidas, eBay, Gymboree, The Honest Company, Shutterfly, Target, Tiny Prints, and Warby Parker.
