Professional services industry is fascinating, a financial sable industry sector which has yet to fully embrace digital marketing, leaving a competitive advantage open to those that drive change. I was recently asked to comment on an article written by Charlie Green over at tml Partners discussing how professional services embraces digital marketing talent.
For many professional services firms, digital investment has traditionally been as much about ‘keeping up appearances’ with competitor activity, a channel engaged primarily as a tactical ‘bolt on’ to traditional marketing and BD campaigns.
For many professional services firms, digital investment has traditionally been as much about ‘keeping up appearances’ with competitor activity, a channel engaged primarily as a tactical ‘bolt on’ to traditional marketing and BD campaigns.Five months into 2016 and we are already beginning to see huge growth in the demand for digital marketing skills across this area, this looks like it may be replicating what we have seen within the financial services sector which has continued to boom through 2015 and 2016.
Business services department is starting to pick up wider skills and remove the traditional silos that have plagued professional service often slowing or even blocking significant progress.
With demand now outstripping supply, this relatively new age of digital investment has created a war for talent. Whilst the pressure is on to retain in-house specialists with sector experience, there are compelling reasons for many professional services firms to now look outside the sector in search of digital transformation specialists.
For the progressive firms, the good news is the key growth is being built out of a solid foundation. Rather than simply employing someone to look after social media or email marketing we are seeing strategic roles around digital transformation leading the way. This is key for any firm looking at developing marketing as a business growth platform, allowing stakeholders clear visibility of where they are currently and a defined roadmap for the future. Most importantly digital transformation is not limited to the marketing department, reaching across the whole business transformation is an important step for an integrated business.
As with building out any team it’s important that new hires understand the culture they are going into, cultural fit is as important as the hard and soft skills required to succeed. As Charlie points out “a professional services partnership can sometimes be a frustrating environment”. Without a doubt, the opportunities for success are there for both side as is an element of cultural understanding and a willingness to embrace change.
You can read the full article over at tml Partners website How Professional Services Embraces Digital Marketing Talent with contributions from myself and Jason Bell, Digital Planning Director at the award-winning digital agency ORM
