Stephen Hamill, Director of Adobe Marketing Cloud for SEA – LinkedIn @stephenhamill
An interview with Stephen Hamill from Adobe SEA on his views on the digital marketing landscape in the region, top 3 trends and challenges, Adobe Marketing Cloud and Adobe Digital Marketing Symposium Singapore:
1) What are your views on the digital marketing landscape in SEA?
Traditionally SEA has looked to the US, EU and even ANZ to prove digital concepts and innovation. The stresses that globalisation, cloud and multi-channel are putting on SEA businesses are demanding that local companies close the time-gap between their US counterparts and themselves. SEA companies can no longer wait and be a follower, they need to take action as changes occur.
This puts local companies in a slightly uncomfortable position where they need to have the tools to innovate quickly, test for success fail fast or adapt quickly. On-line is no longer seen as just the company’s website; it is often shifting to be viewed as their primary business and as such the profile of on-line is increasing dramatically at the highest levels of the organization. I am regularly surprised when speaking to C-level clients, as they are so digitally savvy and their focus is shifting more and more to perceiving digital as a primary business driver. Only a handful of years back my conversations with middle to senior leadership would be around the frustrations of helping their senior executives understand the value of digital and the inherent challenges in the multi-channel world. This is no longer the case: the CEO of a large financial institution recently finished a meeting with me with the statement, “it’s a no-brainer”.
2) In your opinion, what are the top 3 trends emerging in digital marketing?
- CMOs are more prominent and increasingly driving business growth
- Struggle to deal with the complexity of multiple digital marketing challenges all at once
- Traditional businesses (finance and media) that have been slow to fully commit are now making the move
3) From your experience with talking with customers, what are their top 3 challenges in the digital marketing space?
- Connecting data with content- providing a personalized experience that gives clients the experience that delights them and encourages a deeper relationship. Organisations need to be able to react in real-time and deliver in the last millisecond.
- Connecting the various components necessary for successful digital marketing in a meaningful way without becoming a system integrator – The Nirvana of digital marketing platforms is not just a vision, it’s a reality but making the parts work together is the biggest challenge. At the moment many organisations are finding their systems working in silos and what is needed is an integration of all those systems to allow for fast and effective delivery.
- Creating any meaningful digital strategy – 5 year strategy plans are out. Imagine a 5 year digital strategy created 5 years ago; it wouldn’t have tablet devices and probably wouldn’t consider social as a business tool. Building an infrastructure that will last, will be flexible enough to withstand whatever comes next and empowers innovation is a challenge most clients struggle to solve.
4) Why Adobe Marketing Cloud?
Digital marketing is faster paced than any other business discipline and as such the need to stay ahead and informed is paramount. Milliseconds can make the difference between digital success and digital failure and the need for businesses to be on top and equipped with the tools necessary to survive is not negotiable. Delivery of the latest technology and features, integration with other marketing components right now is only possible through the cloud. Adobe is pioneering this space and the others are chasing us to try to keep up.
5) What you are looking forward to at Adobe Digital Marketing Symposium Singapore on July 18?
Despite the fact that we are the global leader as recognised by the analysts in Digital experience, the majority of our SEA marketing colleagues are still discovering the extent of Adobe’s experience and capability in this space. I am looking forward sharing our proposition: end-to-end creation to monetisation and helping them re-think and innovate their multi-platform marketing strategies.
Join Stephen Hamill at Adobe Digital Marketing Symposium Singapore on July 18 for more on the latest trends, tips and best practices for digital marketing. Register now as seats are limited.
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