Excelling as a modern tech marketer requires a blend of traditional marketing expertise, a deep understanding of ever-evolving market trends, and an innate understanding and passion for technology.
The fast-paced tech landscape demands an agile mindsets, high levels of adaptability, openness to change, the ability to apply innovative strategies, and a commitment to steadfastly prioritise delivering value to internal stakeholders and customers.
In comparison to other industries, the technology sector stands out for its unprecedented dynamism, continually leading the way in pioneering innovation and creative approaches to addressing business and societal challenges.
The five most valuable brands in the world are all technology brands, as are six of the ten most valuable companies. As a result, tech marketers are responsible for some of the largest marketing budgets in the world, reaching and engaging billions of customers.
The tech industry is inherently transformative by nature, with disruption as a central theme in its evolution. As a result, the role of tech marketing differs fundamentally from marketing functions in other sectors. And while marketing skills can indeed be transferable across various industries, the intricacies of the tech sector demand a distinct set of skills and competencies.
Based on personal experience as a marketing leader for a global tech company, these are the six essential skills for modern tech marketers:
Adaptability
Tech marketers must possess a profound understanding of the current challenges and opportunities in the markets they serve.
Maintaining a strong commitment to learning and nurturing one’s curiosity is crucial in the fast-evolving tech industry. Staying current with the latest trends, tools, and strategies requires a proactive approach, and continuous self-development efforts.
To foster continuous learning and adaptability, it’s essential that marketers thoroughly grasp their organisation’s solutions and value proposition. Becoming immersed in industry literature, attending webinars and conferences, and connecting with fellow tech professionals are crucial for staying up-to-date.
Engaging in networking and collaborating with industry peers can also lead to the exchange of innovative ideas, sharing practical knowledge, and valuable mentorship opportunities.
Tech literacy
The growing digitisation of everyday life has made it increasingly important for marketers to fully understand and leverage digital marketing skills. Competencies such as search engine optimisation, search engine marketing, social media advertising and content marketing are essential to modern marketing success.
The ability to adeptly analyse and interpret data is vital since many modern marketing decision – such as resource allocation and audience engagement – are heavily reliant on data.
Proficiency in analytics tools and the ability to leverage emerging technologies such as AI are essential to improving campaign performance and achieving superior outcomes and results from marketing activities.
Customer-centricity
Now, more than ever, customers in both Business-to-Customer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B) settings demand tailored messaging that aligns with their industry-specific needs.
Tech marketers must therefore champion the cause of customer-centricity by fully embracing personalised marketing and exceptional customer experiences.
This requires customised messages, a deep understanding of the user experience, and extensive knowledge of suitable channels for customer engagement.
The key for marketers is to enhance their content creation and storytelling skills. By crafting exceptional content and compelling, customer-centric stories can form a strong foundation for a broad range of marketing activities, and help build strong connections between tech companies and their customers.
Ethical conduct
High ethical standards are critical to how marketers engage with their customers. Business ethics act as a moral compass, steering marketers towards responsible decision-making in our ever-more socially, environmentally, and governance-aware world.
Consider, for example, the significance of privacy laws like GDPR in Europe and POPIA in South Africa; these regulations are vital for protecting sensitive customer data, ensuring legal compliance, as well as fostering and nurturing customer trust.
Cultural awareness
A strong sense of cultural awareness is crucial for marketers operating in a diverse global marketplace. The ability to deftly navigate multiple cultural norms can help marketers engage effectively with a diverse set of audiences, and is an essential element to successful cross-border or cross-cultural campaigns.
For tech marketers operating on the African continent, cultural awareness is especially important. Africa is home to more than 3 000 ethnic groups speaking more than 2 100 different languages. High levels of cultural sensitivity and awareness can help marketers build stronger connections with customers.
Interpersonal skills
Due to the nature of the tech industry, tech marketers are often called upon to challenge the status quo and implement novel approaches and strategies that disrupt the norm.
Here, a wide range of soft skills are essential, including effective communication, the art of persuasion, a willingness to venture into uncharted territories, and a knack for taking calculated risks while remaining within the bounds of business rules.
The ability to experiment and take calculated risks can also foster innovation and drive greater adaptability and is a cornerstone of the modern tech marketer’s toolkit. And since marketing often involves collaboration with various internal departments and external service providers and partners, effective communication skills are vital to building relationships, resolving conflict, and conveying ideas clearly.
While marketing is a dynamic practice that is constantly changing and adapting to internal and external factors, these six skills will greatly contribute to modern tech marketers’ ability to consistently and successfully engage with customers.
Dumisani Moyo is marketing director at SAP Africa. SAP’s strategy is to help every business run as an intelligent, sustainable enterprise. As a market leader in enterprise application software, we help companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: SAP customers generate 87% of total global commerce. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. For more information, visit www.sap.com.
