Communication Technology Applications: Agile Marketing at Its Finest

Agility has been one of the hottest business concepts for some time. Its popularity is largely due to the tangible benefits it brings to business processes. Streamlining workflows and development through sustained, iterative communications is the hallmark that has proven transformative for industries across the board.

Marketing is no different. Firms can apply emerging communication technology applications to harness the best aspects of agile marketing, both internally and externally.

Finding Agility Within

Agile marketing entails rapid response to change, iteration of small-scale sprints and unique solutions to unique problems. Its main goal is to form a cohesive team across multiple departments working together in a dynamic and streamlined fashion. That's surprisingly difficult to accomplish without some high-level collaboration.

It's almost a Catch-22. On one hand, you need to keep iterating and rolling with the punches, which necessitates a fast-paced, dynamic environment. On the other hand, you need to stay focused and closely connected to all involved parties, which requires a healthy flow of constant communication. The two environments don't usually mesh well.

This is where communication technology applications come into play. Imagine you're on a phone call with Jim in product development, reviewing new features in the latest release. Jim brings up a good point about bundling these new features, but he's a bit fuzzy on the financial details. He says you need to contact sales for that information. Rather than hang up and schedule a meeting with Jim and sales to hash out the finer points of the new release, you can use the agility of your cloud-based business phone system to get things done right then and there.

Without hanging up on Jim, you seamlessly transition the call to a video chat with all three departments involved. Jim shows the products and features he's talking about, sales chimes in with bundle opportunities for clients, and you leave with the ammunition to kick your marketing campaign into high gear. The process is quick, efficient, and agile.

This kind of process can even earn you new business — for example, see how global advertising agencies use the agility of real-time communication and collaboration tools to land new clients.

Client Collaboration

Have you ever noticed how customer service is sometimes the best way to engage with clients and foster loyalty? Research shows that simply listening to your clients will lead to longer and more fruitful relationships, according to Business.com.

While that may sound more like advice from a couples therapist, it still rings true. However, in a dynamic, agile marketing environment, keeping an ear to the ground can be tough. Yet again, emerging communications technology applications save the day.

Listening to clients, gathering feedback, and turning it all into insightful marketing is all about timely collaboration. If you're in another meeting with Jim and one of your oldest clients calls about some recent pressure points, you may miss the call because you have your phone on silent to be courteous to Jim.

You'll have to wait until after the meeting to catch up, right? Actually, your communications platform automatically emails you a transcript of the voicemail, which pops up on your laptop screen during your meeting. The client brings up valid points, and since you're already discussing future development, you're able to discuss those insights right then and there. This kind of timely collaboration fosters innovation across the entire organization.

Agile marketing thrives when your entire business can communicate and collaborate efficiently, inside and out. Taking advantage of cloud-based business phone features, your team members will be able to collaborate wherever they are, whenever they need to — and in more ways than ever before.

Contact Vonage Business to learn more about cloud-based collaboration inside and outside your company.