Digital marketing organizations study with Facebook

Study overview and insights

Facebook and Deloitte created and conducted a robust study in May 2017 to assess the perceived maturity of qualities and characteristics that define digital and prepare organizations for the future of marketing. The study was designed to evaluate Digital DNA–23 research-backed and field-tested traits that define digital organizations enabling them to thrive in today’s world. In addition to the survey, comprehensive interviews were conducted across a representative sample of marketing organizations globally. The goal? To create a set of research-based understandings about where marketing organizations see themselves when it comes to digital maturity and how perspectives differ by industry, geography, company size, and other demographic indicators.

The term "digital" refers to an organization that continuously redefines its offerings, delivery methods, and operations in a marketplace that's rapidly evolving due to the development of new technologies redefining how work gets done. And what exactly is digital maturity? Digital maturity exists on a spectrum from “exploring” digital, where companies leverage traditional technologies to automate existing capabilities, to “being” digital, where business, operating, and customer models are profoundly different from traditional models and are optimized for technology. Perception of sophistication across the 23 traits is measured along this spectrum to gauge overall digital maturity and differences across traits and varying demographics with an end goal of helping clients capture the full value of a marketing transformation.

Three hundred and eighty-three marketing professionals participated in the study, representing a diverse sample of respondents across key demographics of interest: consumer packaged goods, life sciences and health care, technology, retail, financial services, automotive, telecommunications, travel, energy and resources, entertainment, and the public sector. In addition to the survey, five senior marketing leaders representing different industries and regions completed assessments scoring the current and desired maturity of the 23 digital DNA traits, along with indicating the top priority traits for their respective organizations. Interviews with these leaders explored industry shifts and challenges along with substantiation for prioritized traits.

High-level findings:

• Culture is a barrier to “being” digital: Forty-one percent of respondents do not believe that their current organizational culture supports digital adoption
• Organizational structure hasn’t been adapted for digital: Fifty-one percent of respondents do not agree that structure is becoming less defined by formal roles and levels
• Marketing organizations need to become more agile: Forty-six percent of respondents do not agree that their organization can manage unplanned change without it slowing them down

The research team achieved a ~95 percent confidence level for the survey—meaning there is ~95 percent confidence that the study is representative of the entire marketing population. This assumes there are 10 million marketing professionals in the world and is based off of the 383 responses collected.

So what does this all mean for marketing organizations?

Exponential change is shaping a new world of work. Marketing organizations today are “doing”—not “being”—digital. Being digital isn’t just about technology, it’s about weaving the digital thread into business, operating, and customer models. The study insights illuminate areas for leaders to address to organize, operate, and behave like a digital-first marketing organization, thereby rewiring for digital.

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Rewiring your marketing organization for digital

We all know that becoming digital is a crucial component of staying competitive in today’s marketing landscape. But what you may not know is that focusing on cutting edge technology alone is not enough to achieve digital success. Facebook and Deloitte’s robust digital DNA survey has identified 23 traits and characteristics of successful digital organizations. The digital DNA survey provides a holistic view of the current state of the global marketing landscape and groundbreaking insights into characteristics that allow a business to thrive in a digital world.

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Marketing organizations today are “doing”—not “being”—digital

Facebook and Deloitte’s recent study of marketing professionals worldwide has highlighted a significant gap in where marketing organizations believe they need to be in order to succeed in a changing digital landscape and where their existing skillset and leadership lie today. To remain competitive, marketing organizations will need to shift from “doing” digital to “being” digital. They will need to weave this digital thread into business, operating, and customer models.

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