As part of Solutions Review’s Premium Content Series—a collection of contributed columns written by industry experts in maturing software categories—Dave O’Flanagan, the Chief Product Officer at Sitecore, talks about the potential composable platforms can bring to the future of marketing technology.
The days of generic marketing are over. Modern consumers expect personalized experiences and custom content that meets their preferences and needs, and yesterday’s one-size-fits-all marketing platforms are increasingly not up to the task. To meet this challenge, teams have embraced the concept of composable digital experience/martech software. These modular platforms represent an architectural approach that enables businesses to build their e-commerce solutions by combining and integrating best-of-breed components instead of relying on a single monolithic solution, allowing an organization to easily swap in and out individual components without disrupting the entire system.
It’s a concept that is taking root, with Gartner forecasting that “organizations that have adopted an intelligent composable approach will outpace (the) competition by 80% in the speed of new feature implementation.” This article looks deeper into the benefits of this approach when applied to digital experience software.
Enabling Agile Adaptivity
A composable approach to the martech stack enables brands to become more agile and adaptive in their digital strategies. Teams can easily add or replace individual components within the platform to experiment with new technologies, features, or vendors. This allows them to stay ahead of evolving customer expectations, quickly respond to market trends, and optimize their digital experiences.
Another advantage of modular platforms is the ability to experiment with personalization strategies, using A/B testing on campaigns and rapidly iterating to find the most compelling content. This is just one way an integrated stack can streamline workflows for enhanced efficiency. These solutions offer seamless integrations and interoperability, allowing marketers and content creators to work hand-in-hand. Centralized data management and automation also reduce time spent on manual tasks, allowing marketers to focus on strategic initiatives, resulting in improved productivity and faster time-to-market.
Personalization at Scale
The demand for unique, personalized content can be overwhelming for marketing teams. By integrating customer data platforms (CDPs) and personalization engines, teams can gather and analyze customer data to gain insight into individual wants and needs to deliver the right content to the right consumer at the right time. Armed with this knowledge, they can curate highly targeted content, such as product recommendations and tailored offers that resonate with consumers, leading to increased engagement, conversion, and satisfaction.
A modular approach also permits brands to map out and optimize the entire customer journey, from initial touchpoint to post-purchase engagement. When content management systems (CMS) are integrated with marketing automation platforms and analytics, teams can create seamless and consistent experiences for various personas, across multiple channels and devices, depending on the consumer’s preference. A comprehensive approach like this ensures that consumers receive relevant and contextual interactions throughout their journey, building a sense of personal connection and loyalty to a brand.
Future-Proof Investment
From an IT perspective, composable platforms allow businesses to optimize their investment in technology by enabling them to select the most cost-effective and efficient components for their needs. Rather than play for an all-in-one solution with features they don’t need, a modular approach enables the inclusion of specialized components that directly address the specific needs of their digital experience teams, allowing for better resource allocation and cost control.
Additionally, a composable martech stack is easily upgraded. Organizations can keep up with new technological innovations as well as the growing needs of the team. A composable stack enables teams to explore emerging trends and quickly respond to shifts in the market, ensuring that the organization can evolve alongside its customers and keep a competitive advantage.
Assessing Your Needs
Composable market platforms offer numerous benefits. However, as mentioned above, one size does not fit all, and there are instances where a composable market platform might not be needed or appropriate. For example, smaller operations with limited resources and relatively straightforward marketing needs might find a modular platform overly complex.
To determine whether a composable architecture is the right choice for your business, assess your teams’ needs and goals. Once those are understood, determine if a holistic single-vendor digital experience platform can meet those needs or whether they would be better served by a more agile solution built from best-in-breed modules. Either way, it’s crucial to develop a roadmap and align team expectations regarding timing and functionality.
For most companies, a modular approach will enable them to build a customized martech stack that meets their unique needs, fosters innovation, and promotes the development and delivery of personalized experiences to their customers. By leveraging specialized components and integrating them strategically, brands can experiment, quickly adapt and streamline workflows to develop content and interactions that resonate with customers and strengthens their loyalty.
- Are Composable Platforms the Future of Martech? - June 27, 2023