“Ultimately, the projects that succeed are those that invest the time insome sort of discovery phase”

While I now help companies increase their revenues using data, marketing technologies and direct marketing, I started my career in magazine subscriptions; it was only later that I got more involved with data and marketing technology. I would class myself as a direct marketer who understands technology, rather than a technologist who understands direct marketing. This distinction is necessary because I think it is often where the technology and marketing departments get in a tangle. Neither one speaks the other’s language.

Over the years, I’ve seen one repeated point of failure when these two teams collaborate on a project: a lack of communication or understanding of what the other department does, or the value they bring.

I’ve heard of IT teams buying marketing technologies that haven’t been specified by the marketing team and then wondering why the tool isn’t used properly. I’ve also experienced marketing teams buying technology with no input from