Senior marketers in large organisations are setting unrealistic expectations for their company’s ability to execute on digital strategies, according to new research.
The study, by digital experiences company Acquia reveals that, while 83% of heads of digital believe that their strategy is fit for purpose, 65% also see implementing digital across the business as their number one strategic challenge, highlighting the huge gap between digital strategy and execution.
Among the challenges of digital execution include personalisation, managing content and website delivery. In terms of personalisation, one in three of heads of digital believe that customers’ unwillingness to share personal data is hindering progress, and 27% believe their teams lack the skills and knowledge required to personalise effectively.
Where content is concerned, 45% struggle with the varying quality of content across different regions because of the different frameworks they use in each region. And where website delivery is concerned, 71% of CIOs and 50% of CDOs are frustrated by the amount of time it takes to spin up a new site, whether that’s for a new region or new product.
Sylvia Jensen, VP marketing in EMEA for Acquia said: “One of the main reasons large organisations struggle with digital execution isn’t necessarily lack of budget or skills, it’s because they haven’t got the right technology in place. Often large organisations take a piecemeal approach to digital, which means that when the company grows, the different aspects of the digital setup don’t work well together, and that causes huge frustrations for marketers trying to manage a brand — especially on a global level.
