In a fast-paced business landscape, marketing procurement is a critical part of developing and aiding businesses to achieve marketing goals efficiently and cost-effectively. 

As technology advances and customer and consumer behaviours change, the marketing procurement process must develop continuously. This article highlights some of the key trends that are currently redesigning marketing procurement strategies for successful businesses. 

Data-driven decisions 

Data analysis has become the foundation of modern marketing procurement. Businesses are leveraging data analytics and market intelligence tools to make informed decisions about their marketing budgets and spending. If
we analyse customer insights, market trends and performance metrics, marketing procurement teams can identify areas for improvement, optimise their marketing campaign investments and increase return on investment. 

By leveraging data analytics and using this to make data-driven decisions, businesses marketing campaigns fit their target markets better and create more personalised campaigns. 

Building strategic supplier relationships 

Building strong, considered relationships with suppliers is paramount. Marketing procurement professionals are actively seeking suppliers who can bring innovation, agility and market expertise to the table. Developing long-term partnerships with suppliers encourages sharing supplier knowledge and capabilities to stay ahead of the competition, drive innovation and provide a more unique, personalised customer experience. 

“When you consider your suppliers, not just your vendors but your partners, it leads to developing a healthy relationship with them. You are helping each other benefit. It is impossible to overstate the importance of excellent relationships and open communication with your suppliers, and it is this communication that will provide a significant edge to ensure you achieve your goals. Suppliers often have their finger on the pulse for the latest technology advancements, process improvements, market innovations and sustainability technology. 

A good supplier also knows the importance of winning hearts and minds with your stakeholders and can be the link pin between you and your stakeholders to ensure a seamless programme of all parties working and achieving together. “
George Smart, MBA. Global Director of Customer Solutions & Strategic Growth 

Flexible marketing procurement 

While everything is moving rapidly businesses need to be adaptable and reactive. This coincides with flexible marketing procurement that allows businesses to quickly respond to market changes, consumer trends and emerging opportunities. Prioritise shorter procurement cycles, adaptable and flexible contracts, and cross-functional collaboration where possible in order to respond to the market. 

Sustainable, ethical sourcing 

Consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental and social impact of the products and services they use and demand that sustainable and ethical practices are required. Some practices are regulated and required by law, and some practices are simply needed to ensure success within the industry due to consumer awareness and demand. A recent report shows that ‘82% of shoppers want brands to embrace sustainable, people-first practices and Gen-Z is leading the charge.’ (Forbes, 2022) Consequently, businesses are embracing sustainable and ethical procurement practices within their marketing supply chains, meaning marketing procurement teams are requesting and searching for suppliers that align with their company and customer values, and which demonstrate responsible practices transparently. This includes sourcing eco-friendly materials, ethically produced products and suppliers that support equality, diversity and inclusion. Subsequently, by sourcing sustainable, ethical practices, businesses can enrich their brand reputation. 

Emerging technology 

Enhanced technology, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, automation and digital platforms are developing marketing procurement processes. AI software can analyse large datasets quickly, programme and implement routine assignments, improve forecasting, and instantaneously monitor performance. Digital platforms provide visibility into the procurement landscape, simplifying supplier management and contract negotiations. Using technology-driven processes, marketing procurement teams can efficiently lower costs, reduce timings and make more strategically supported decisions. 

Marketing procurement is evolving rapidly, driven by businesses incorporating these marketing procurement trends: data-driven decisions, developing premeditated supplier relationships, implementing flexible procedures, using sustainable and ethical practices and staying up to date with AI technology. Providing driven solutions, businesses can drive innovation and marketing success. 

At APS we work closely with our clients, building meaningful relationships, it is paramount our clients feel secure, and in safe hands as well as with a company who is continuously striving for growth. 

Our teams are always researching the business landscape, producing thought provoking articles, horizon scan documents and white papers as well as creating working group meet-ups and roundtables. We deliver insights, share up-to-date analytics, our achievements and aim to remain transparent throughout. Our Innovation team is continuously evolving and developing to ensure we’re aware of any new and emerging technologies or advancements that we can share with our clients to help us remain at the forefront of our field. 

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We have used artificial intelligence (AI) within APS for several years and incorporate technologies into our services for our clients such as, heat mapping, content automation and predicted visual benefits.  We have an Innovation Team who meet weekly to discuss emerging technologies to ensure we remain at the forefront within the industry.  

With the adoption of AI moving quicker than ever before, there is a mix of both positive and negative emotions as well as hesitation for employees. Introducing AI slowly into the workplace, ensuring individuals feel comfortable and skilled, we believe the best and most successful marketing campaigns will be those that bring together and embrace AI and their creative teams. 

Integrating AI into the workplace has an abundant of benefits for all industries and sectors, private and public. We’ve highlighted a few of the key advantages here:  

Improved workflow of teams and departments 
AI can investigate workflows and systems to suggest improvements based on historical data, helping businesses streamline processes and identify bottlenecks. This can benefit businesses by improved resource allocation, cost savings and faster project completion. A blend of AI and skilled teams will give the optimum workplace.

Automation and efficiency 
AI can automate repetitive and mundane tasks, freeing up employees’ time to focus on more complex and strategic activities. This increases efficiency, leads to higher productivity and improves operational effectiveness.

Improved customer service and experience 
AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can handle customer queries and provide personalised support 24/7. Natural language processing capabilities enable these AI systems to understand and respond to customer needs, improving the overall customer experience.

Personalisation experience 
AI algorithms can analyse customer data and preferences to deliver more personalised experiences. This level of customisation helps businesses deliver targeted marketing campaigns, product suggestions and content that aligns with individual customer interests.

Innovation and creativity 
AI can assist in research and development by analysing vast amounts of data, identifying patterns and generating new ideas. It can provide valuable insights to researchers, helping them make breakthroughs in various fields

Improved cybersecurity 
AI can strengthen cybersecurity measures by detecting configurations of suspicious behaviour and recognising possible breaches. 

Ensuring staff feel prepared and comfortable with new technologies will give the best result when integrating new AI into the workplace. Provide detailed workshops and learning sessions and look to create innovation teams who actively discuss and search for new products to encourage excitement and positivity towards the subject. While AI creates many benefits, ethical considerations, data privacy and transparency must be considered throughout to ensure responsible use of technologies.

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What is predictive visual intelligence?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been used to help brands market effectively within the competitive advertising industry for several years. The average person is exposed to as many as 10,000 ads daily, where it takes as little as 0.4 seconds for the human brain to register an ad and generate a reaction. 

Predictive visual analytics is an AI tool which helps brands, creatives and marketing teams optimise the effectiveness of their visual content across multi-channel marketing, with AI-powered actionable insight. Predictive visual intelligence creates heat maps onto content, ensuring the key message is at the forefront of any campaign. Data for analysis and action includes eye-mapping gazes and customer thought journeys. 

Predictive data modelling relies on years of previous established results to predict new patterns or behaviours when trialling new content. It effectively reproduces what it already knows from current and previous data, aligns this knowledge with the new content, and is then able to forecast predictive behaviours. 

Together, these bring us predictive visual intelligence, creating exclusive insights into the first few seconds of a human visual attention span, just before individual preferences takeover. It can be used across a multichannel of marketing, including video, website, email and static posts, as well as within shopper retail. The software has gained significant importance within the marketing industry, ensuring that key messages are optimised and personal bias to specific creative output is removed. 

What can it do? 

Predictive visual intelligence enables highly personalised, targeted multi-channel marketing campaigns that can be scientifically proven to resonate with the audience. Its ability to analyse and evaluate patterns and trends in visual data makes it easy for brands to gain deeper insights into customer preferences, behaviours and sentiments, providing a comprehensive understanding of their target audiences. A personalised approach enhances customer engagement with brands and increases the effectiveness of marketing efforts. 

In retail environments, predictive visual intelligence helps optimise customers’ in-store experiences, giving brands competitor insights on how their products perform visually and supplying a deeper understanding of product placement within a retail store design. 

The main benefit that predictive visual intelligence gives the marketing industry is its ability to support the research and planning stages and subsequent creative ideation development. The tool helps us reduce the time spent recreating designs, making the process more cost effective. It also delivers confidence to marketing decision-makers because its findings are reliably supported with a science-based approach to statistics. AI validates design variations with statistics allowing brands to opt for designs with higher projected engagement. This enables brands to optimise their marketing assets, ensuring that key marketing messages are always being delivered. 

How do we use it to support our clients at APS? 

Let’s imagine for a moment that we have created three variations of a poster, and we want to know which one is most effective at catching the eye of the casual passer-by. The technology is able to confirm that the key message is being delivered effectively by producing heat maps and tracking gazes and then providing us with statistics comparing the effectiveness of each of our three options. We can then use this data to support marketing decisions for our clients. 

The image shows a heat map being used within retail, to confirm that the new KitchenAid Stand Mixer in the colour of year, Hibiscus, is positioned in the best location to draw customers in within the shop fit out. 

“The use of AI based technology at the forefront of our creative offering ensures our customers receive data-driven insights and achieve the best possible ROI on campaigns and projects.”
Pete Gentle Creative Solutions Director The APS Group 

In conclusion… 

Predictive visual intelligence offers numerous benefits to marketing strategies, enabling businesses to make data-driven decisions easily to optimise their marketing efforts. It allows brands to gain deeper customer insights, create personalised marketing campaigns, improve customer experiences, optimise content creation and advertising, gain a competitive advantage and increase ROI and conversion rates. Using this technology, brands can confidently and effortlessly make data-driven decisions and achieve more impactful marketing outcomes. 

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