I came across a discussion of a Forrester Research/Oracle report on the qualities marketing executives are currently seeking in their new hires.

Of some curiosity, ranked very low were capabilities in email marketing, mobile marketing and social media. I thought these were supposed to be premium skill sets in these digital times.

The most prized qualification, however, was capability in brand management, named by one-third of survey respondents. Following next was strategic planning and then data analysis.

But as I wrote a couple of days ago (I’m Sick), what do these commercial marketers know anyway? They still struggle to recognize the value of existing customers and in-depth knowledge about them.

More interesting about this article, written by Elyse Dupre at Direct Marketing News, was the discussion of the ‘modern marketer’. Andrea Ward, a VP of marketing at Oracle, offered this definition:

“A modern marketer is someone who knows how to use technology to learn about their customers, apply those learnings to create personalized conversations and content, and execute programs that measure their effectiveness in doing so.

“A modern marketer is someone who’s really looking to change the way a company has a relationship with its customers.”

Now, I could live with that definition … and maybe apply it to fundraising:

“A modern fundraiser is someone who knows how to use technology to learn about their donors, apply those learnings to create donor-valued conversations and experiences, and execute programs that measure their effectiveness in doing so.

“A modern fundraiser is someone who’s really looking to expand and deepen their nonprofit’s relationships with its donors.”

Does that definition work for you? How would you define the ‘modern fundraiser’?

The article posed another interesting issue.

Ward says the study found just 11% of respondents qualify as modern marketers.  41% of respondents say they’re in the developing stage of their marketing maturity progression; 33% consider themselves in the experienced phase; and 15% say that they are in the novice phase.

Ward said that marketers needed to grow in three key areas — attribution, storytelling, and digital experience creation — to achieve ‘modern marketer’ status.

“The core to all of this, though, is the customer data element and knowing your customer,” Ward says. “If that foundation doesn’t exist, it’s going to be really hard to achieve those other pillars.”

Amen!

Where on the path to ‘modern marketer’ are you — novice, developing (let’s call it adolescence), or mature?

Tom