Marketers have been urged to remain focused on their target audience amid a wave of innovation and change.
According to David Wheldon, Chief Marketing Officer at RBS Group and President of the World Federation of Advertisers, the focus on technology, automation and personalisation will grow in 2017.
However, he insisted that despite this, marketing “will remain fundamentally a people business. There’s no algorithm for creativity,” he argued.
“There is no rule book on how to do it better than anyone else. But there are lots of great people who know how to make connections with people. That is what this sector has always been about and will always be about.”
Mr Wheldon went on to stress the importance of focusing a trust throughout 2017.
Indeed, he said brands were built on the trust created through being consistent, reliable and responsible, so customers could believe they can rely on a brand’s promise being consistently delivered.
As a result, Mr Wheldon believes they should spend this year actively trying to “re-earn trust through truth.”
He went on to state that organisations must “focus on the fundamentals and combine the art and science of marketing to deliver for your customers” if they are to get ahead in 2017.
This, he added, means they must be capable of being creative and “combining magic and logic to connect brands to their users.”
David Wheldon predicts the year ahead for marketing CampaignLive.
