B2B Marketing

As organisations continue to widen their international footprint, marketing leaders are also being tasked with managing across complex matrix structures that have the added dimension of cross border marketing and virtual team management thrown in for good measure.

There seems surprisingly very little written on the subject considering this model seems quite prevalent in the modern day. The complexity arises with how one manages conflict and priorities where local marketing teams quite rightly feel alignment to their local operations yet also understand that the wider organisation is trying to achieve success globally. Marketers should understand their internal as well as external customers and organisational awareness, resourcefulness, negotiation skills and the ability to inspire and lead teams (sometimes virtually) are necessary skills to have in any successful marketers tool bag.

The challenges can at first seem overwhelming and are increased as the number of international markets increase but recognition of the hurdles as well as some ideas on how to best to overcome will ensure your projects are successful:

Divided Loyalty Syndrome
The local country marketing manager typically has a direct reporting line to the local country manager as well as a dotted line to central marketing. The central marketing executive will have to negotiate resources, resolve trade-offs and manage through influence and persuasion, without necessarily having the traditional line authority. The key to success is not just with the local marketing manager but with the local country manager to whom the marketing manager reports. He/she may feel a reduction in their power and/or a defocus in what he/she feels should be prioritised.

The key here is direct engagement with the local country manager and firstly to actively listen to local issues and challenges and what they feel is needed to support their business goals. That has to be first step to engagement and before you even entertain any marketing projects in local market. It is imperative that you win the trust and respect of the local country manager, who might be quite cynical of all things from central and the value they provide at local level. Don't be surprised at this response, whether it is explicitly stated or implicitly felt. It is a symptom of experiences past and your opportunity is how you are going to approach things differently and deliver a more aligned approach. After all, if your suggestions are not aligned at the local level you are better off investing elsewhere. It's only when you have deep understanding of points of parity and points of difference from one market to the next and the priorities of each market, that you can craft programs that have global reach and local touch.

For the local marketing manager also, it would be beneficial for them to have clarity around rules of engagement and how they balance local priorities against global initiatives, so a three way dialogue is imperative at the outset to obviate any confusion.

Not invented here syndrome
So many times I heard and felt the early day cynicism faced by local teams of the limited value of programs that have originated from the centre. Once again, this is more a symptom of a lack of understanding by the central marketer to the local level needs and therefore the previous suggestions apply.

But the onus is on the central marketing executive to influence and negotiate by looking for the win/win and creating inclusion in decision making earlier in the process, rather than at the tail end of decisions. This approach will be much appreciated and will also ensure your programs are inherently crafted to cater for local concerns.

Yet there is another significant tactic available to the central marketer's armoury that can be leveraged to excellent benefit for all. Sometimes the best campaigns/programs can be found at the local level and those assets can be reused on a global scale, with some minor adjustments. This not only reduces costs by negating reinvention but also brings the activities of local markets to the fore and encourages greater team participating whilst also supporting those markets that are less mature in their markets. Never underestimate the power of the organisational knowledge that already resides and look for processes and systems that will support the promotion and use of the best of what is already available. As a marketer working at the centre it is your opportunity to learn and use what others have created and use the ‘invented there' rather than the ‘invented here' paradigm to organisational benefit.

Remote management
As marketers driving the physically remote legs of the international marketing matrix you will undoubtedly have some additional challenges of managing ‘virtual' teams. These operate across barriers of distance, culture, time zones and technology. Be sensitive to other teams' time zones and mix and match stipulated meeting times accordingly so you are seen as treating all equally. Ensure you are sensitive to language barriers and assist those you feel are not actively participating due to language by establishing one to ones. Also ensure that local country managers are kept fully abreast of development at all stages in project cycles and also ensure you show sensitivity to timelines when for example, at the end of the quarter, sales teams and local operations are busy closing out their sales to meet or exceeds their stipulated quotas. If you are sensitive to your remote teams they will be more responsive to your needs and you will develop healthy virtual relationships.

Flexibility towards Complexity
I recall launching some global yet locally relevant thought leadership activities for a global technology vendor and my ideal was that press releases would be synchronised across the globe. However that was impractical and impossible due to conflicting campaigns and releases being run in separate markets. As the global marketer this initially came as a blow and I had to move my position. However the interesting point was that the assets were used and used to good effect by markets in different ways. It was exciting to see the diversity and variances in use. Some markets favored an all out attack to the media. Others wanted to launch to their channel community first whilst others favored a drip feed approach over an extended timeline. The key take home from this experience is to realise that it might not be appropriate to rubber stamp defined processes across all markets. The key was that the assets were used effectively.

In concluding this article I thought it would be appropriate to highlight some generic points worthy of consideration when matrix marketing across countries:

1. Understand your markets before trying to be understood.
2. Look for high impact, high visibility programs early on that are aligned to business objectives.
3. Build consensus around these projects by talking to the key local market decision makers.
4. Develop programs that will be of benefit at local level and consult through the process to achieve the best approach.
5. Solicit and take ideas from the field - so that the wider team are part of the process and can contribute their expertise.
6. Promote success and communicate to all in a manner which is appropriate at local level.
7. Implement the right communication infrastructure/s to ensure all are kept informed yet you do not over burden.
8. Don't always be prescriptive but be adaptive in your approach and you will achieve more positive outcomes.
9. Consult and take stock, what worked? What didn't? What could be improved? Refine future activities.

Happy Matrix Marketing :-)