As digital and physical worlds continue to converge, businesses need to update their marketing strategies to keep pace with the changing times. To stay ahead in this new era, companies must adopt a more comprehensive approach to understanding their customers and providing them with exceptional experiences in the phygital age. This means shifting from a traditional CMO to a next-generation CXMO – a global, ROI-driven, and holistic profile of marketers who can help companies tap into new revenue streams, boost customer loyalty, and outpace the competition. It's time for businesses to adapt to the CXMO era or risk being left behind.
Shift happens - and in today's world, it's happening faster than ever. To stay ahead, businesses must shift from CMO to CXMO to unlock new revenue streams in the phygital age.
Because copyright matters. How to cite this article: American Institute of Business Experience Design (2023). The rise of CXMO: Why companies need a Chief Experience Marketing Officer for ROI-driven strategies. Retrieved [date you accessed the article], from [copy and paste the URL of the article page].
As the business world evolves, the significance of customer experience has become increasingly apparent, particularly in today's phygital age. To stay competitive, companies must prioritize experience marketing and integrate it into every aspect of their global corporate strategy, regardless of whether it involves physical or digital platforms. This is where the Chief Experience Marketing Officer (CXMO) comes in.
In this article, we will explore the rise of CXMO, the reasons why companies need this new marketing profile, and what CXMO is. We will also examine the skills that CXMOs need to acquire and how their expertise can help drive ROI-driven experience marketing strategies. The following topics will be covered:
From CMO to Chief Experience Marketing Officer (CXMO): the evolution of marketing leadership
Businesses today must evolve their marketing leadership from a conventional CMO to the next-gen CXMO, a more global, ROI-driven, and holistic profile of marketers. CXMOs are critical to driving ROI through experience marketing strategies that prioritize the human element across physical and digital channels at all levels.
"A Chief Experience Marketing Officer (CXMO) is a new comprehensive and ROI-driven marketing profile that businesses need to integrate into every aspect of their marketing strategy to stay competitive. The CXMO era demands a more comprehensive approach to understanding customers, with a focus on experiential data analytics and a holistic approach to creating experiences that cater to their needs and preferences." – © American Institute of Business Experience Design, 2023.
The difference between a CMO and a CXMO is that the latter is more ROI-driven, more focused on customer experience, and more holistic in their approach to marketing. CXMOs prioritize creating engaging, ROI-driven customer and brand experiences across physical and digital channels, while CMOs tend to focus on traditional marketing techniques that may not be as effective in today's market.
Research shows that companies that keep CMOs instead of embracing the CXMO profile face several challenges.
First, they miss out on the opportunity to maximize customer insights with experiential data analytics, a crucial element of any successful experience marketing strategy.
Second, they may not be able to analyze macro, meso, and micro factors that can help them win in today's market, leading to a biased view of the market.
Third, they risk falling behind the competition and losing online-offline consumer engagement by not embracing a "disruptive experience mindset."
Finally, they may fail to foster a culture of continuous learning and growth by not shifting from traditional professional development programs to experiential training programs.
In summary, the urgent need for businesses to evolve their marketing leadership from a conventional CMO to the next-gen CXMO is clear. Companies that embrace this new marketing profile will be better positioned to drive ROI through experience marketing strategies that prioritize the human element across physical and digital channels, maximize customer insights, and foster a culture of continuous learning and growth.
The CXMO's guide to implementing effective experience marketing: a step-by-step approach
For CXMOs seeking to drive ROI through experience marketing, the appropriate steps must be taken. The implementation of a successful experience marketing strategy necessitates prioritization of the human element across physical and digital channels at all levels.
To craft engaging and ROI-driven customer and brand experiences, marketers and businesses of all sizes and across various industries must focus on essential elements that constitute the experience marketing strategic framework.
Presented below is a critical checklist of aspects that should be considered for a successful implementation of an ROI-driven experience marketing strategy.
1) Maximizing customer insights with experiential data analytics: a holistic approach to experience marketing.
The role of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) is evolving as businesses seek to better understand their customers' behavior and preferences. Enter the Chief Experience Marketing Officer (CXMO) era where c-suite marketers should acquire and develop expertise in experiential data analytics and take a holistic approach to understanding their customers.
Gone are the days of relying solely on quantitative data, such as sales figures and customer satisfaction ratings, and qualitative data gathered through surveys and focus groups. These methods have limitations when it comes to capturing the full context of the customer experience. Instead, CXMOs leverage experiential data analytics to pinpoint both tangible and intangible requirements. By combining big data with immersive ethnographic data, businesses can capture contextualization and hidden meaning that they would not be able to with traditional market research techniques alone. This allows companies to gain a deeper understanding of their audience's hidden meanings, preferences, behaviors, and expectations.
In short, CXMOs can help businesses stay ahead of the curve by providing insights that are not easily obtainable through conventional analysis.
Imagine a restaurant that wants to improve its customer experience. They might use experiential data analytics to gain insights into their customers' preferences. For example, they could analyze customer feedback to identify the most popular dishes and drinks. They could also observe customers' behaviors and interactions with staff to better understand what motivates them to return. Additionally, they might survey customers to learn about their dietary restrictions, preferred seating arrangements, and other preferences. By combining these different data sources, the restaurant can create an exceptional dining experience that caters to its customers' unique needs and desires. This can lead to increased customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth recommendations, ultimately driving growth for the business.
Therefore, the acquisition of experiential data analytics skills has become a vital factor in achieving business growth and success, and the introduction of a CXMO profile can serve as a game-changer for businesses seeking to gain a competitive edge.
The CXMO profile can provide businesses with the necessary tools to gain valuable insights to design personalized and tailored experiences that resonate with their audience. This approach leads to increased engagement and conversions, resulting in greater ROI for marketing strategies. Businesses should consider adopting a CXMO profile to leverage the power of experiential data analytics and stay ahead of the curve in a crowded marketplace.
2) Unveiling the big picture: how analyzing macro, meso, and micro factors can help companies win in today's market
To create experiences that cater to the needs and preferences of customers, CXMOs need to analyze various factors. This will result in enhanced customer loyalty and retention. Conversely, CMOs who only focus on a specific market segment may miss considering the direct and indirect patterns of consumption within their cultural setting. This leads to a biased view of the market.
For example, a CMO of a luxury car brand may concentrate solely on the luxury car market segment and overlook the potential to capture the mainstream car market segment in a non-luxury region. Such a narrow perspective can result in missed opportunities and reduced ROI.
Therefore, shifting to a CXMO profile is essential. They have a micro understanding of customer behavior, such as individual preferences and buying patterns, meso understanding of industry trends, such as competition and channel dynamics, and macro understanding of the broader market and ecosystem, such as economic, political, and social trends. With this knowledge, CXMOs can implement marketing strategies that drive ROI and create experiences that resonate with customers across all segments.
3) Embracing a "disruptive experience mindset": the key to staying ahead of the competition and driving online-offline consumer engagement
In contrast to traditional CMO profiles that focus on disruptive innovation solely in terms of technology, products, or platforms, CXMO profiles have a more comprehensive approach to truly stand out in the market. Embracing a holistic disruption mindset, for instance, can offer a hybrid innovation process that concentrates on both the features and symbolic aspects of consumption, with well-being as both a driving force and an outcome.
One example of a company successfully implementing a disruptive experience mindset is Ultraviolet, a highly innovative restaurant in Shanghai. Ultraviolet offers a unique and unseen dining experience that goes beyond the traditional restaurant concept. The restaurant seats only 10 guests at a time in a single room, where they are treated to an immersive, multi-sensory experience that combines food, music, lighting, and technology to create a dining experience like no other. By offering a truly unique and personalized experience, the restaurant has differentiated itself from its competitors, attracting a loyal customer base and generating positive word-of-mouth marketing. This approach has translated into significant ROI for Ultraviolet, consistently ranking among the top restaurants in the world and commanding premium prices for its dining experiences.
By focusing on experiences that genuinely disrupt the market and the consumer's lifestyle, a company can establish itself as a true pioneer in the industry, building a strong brand identity and creating a loyal customer base. By constantly innovating and experimenting with new experiences, executives can set their companies apart from competitors who might be offering similar products or services. However, developing a disruptive experience mindset can be challenging, necessitating ongoing skill acquisition among C-suite marketing executives.
4) Take action: spark innovation with field-oriented, transgressive, and transferable ideas
When we compare the traditional CMO profile with the CXMO profile, we can see a significant difference in their approach to creativity. While creativity in the traditional CMO profile is mostly consensual, the CXMO profile is more creative because they challenge established conventions even if their creativity divides consumers. This approach helps to make the brand experience emerge by using a combination of three techniques:
Field-oriented technique: This technique is based on insights collected to design experiences. By understanding what the consumers are looking for, the CXMO profile can design experiences that meet their needs and exceed their expectations. For example, a car company can design a test drive experience that allows customers to drive on different terrains and get a feel for the car's handling.
Transgressive technique: This technique involves doing the opposite of what the brand is supposed to offer. By challenging established conventions, the CXMO profile can create experiences that are unique and memorable. For example, a fast-food chain can introduce a vegetarian or vegan menu option, challenging the established convention that fast food is only for meat-eaters. This approach can attract a new customer base and create a unique and memorable experience for its customers, leading to increased brand loyalty and advocacy.
Transferable technique: This technique involves copying and pasting inspiration from one field to another. By taking inspiration from other industries, the CXMO profile can create experiences that are fresh and innovative. For example, a restaurant can take inspiration from the gaming industry and create interactive menus that allow customers to customize their meals.
In conclusion, the CXMO profile is more creative than the conventional CMO profile. This approach is ROI-driven as it helps to create experiences that are unique and memorable, leading to increased brand loyalty and advocacy. By challenging established conventions and using a combination of creativity techniques, the CXMO profile can design experiences that meet the consumers' needs and exceed their expectations.
5) Make a shift from traditional professional development programs to experiential training programs to foster a culture of continuous learning and growth
In order to succeed in the rapidly-evolving landscape of experience marketing, companies must adopt a new organizational business model. This shift requires a comprehensive rethinking of employee training, particularly among C-suite marketing executives who may lack the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively implement experience marketing strategies that drive revenue growth.
To foster a culture of continuous learning and growth, companies should move away from traditional professional development programs and embrace experiential training programs instead. The most effective way to learn about experience marketing implementation is by immersing oneself in the brand experience itself.
For instance, our AIBXD flagship executive program is specifically designed as a unique learning experience for CMOs, CXOs, creative designers, and other C-level executives to become the next generation of CXMOs. Every touchpoint of the program is carefully crafted to create a powerful emotional connection with our brand and help our learners understand our disruptive vision of what an outstanding executive learning experience should be. By participating in this program, participants have the opportunity to truly experience and live the brand, which is then analyzed and explained to provide inspiration for their businesses and companies. At the heart of this approach is the recognition that experience marketing is not just a theoretical concept, but a tangible reality that must be fully embraced in order to drive tangible results. Companies that are able to effectively implement this approach will be well-positioned to thrive in the ever-changing landscape of modern marketing.
In addition to the benefits of continuous learning and growth, experiential training programs can also yield significant returns on investment (ROI). By providing C-suite marketing executives with hands-on experience in implementing experience marketing strategies, companies can increase their revenue growth and profitability. This is because experience marketing is a highly effective way to create strong emotional connections with customers and build long-term loyalty.
By investing in experiential training programs that enable C-suite executives to fully understand and implement experience marketing strategies, companies can position themselves for long-term success and sustained growth.
Ultimately, the ROI of such programs is clear: they enable companies to create more effective and impactful marketing campaigns that drive revenue growth and enhance the bottom line.
Why wait? Become a Next-Gen CXMO and drive your company's growth with experience marketing - Tips for CMOs
As a CMO, you know that the marketing landscape is constantly evolving. What worked yesterday may not work today. That's why it's crucial to stay ahead of the curve and embrace the latest trends. Experience marketing is one of those trends that is reshaping the marketing world, and it's time for you to master this strategy.
Experience marketing is the future of marketing, and it's time to elevate your outdated marketing knowledge. By becoming a Next-Gen CXMO, you'll be joining the ranks of change-makers who are driving growth and implementing human-centered business models that deliver engaging experiences that customers want. You'll be able to stand out from the competition, connect with audiences across physical and digital platforms, and create a sustainable competitive advantage while making a positive impact on society and the environment.
To succeed in experience marketing, you need to master the strategy and implementation of this approach. You need to understand how it covers all aspects and functions of a business, including HR, R&D, design, finance, management, and more. By doing so, you'll be able to create a comprehensive corporate experience marketing strategy that will help you achieve your goals.
So, don't wait any longer. Join the next generation of C-suite executive marketers, CXMOs, and change-makers. Acquire the knowledge and skills you need to succeed in experience marketing. Sign up for free for our AIBXD Strawberry Experience Blog today and get all the juicy insights you need to stay ahead of the curve.
Whenever you're ready to get started, we invite you to explore our range of exclusive, certified course programs. Our programs are designed by top-tier experts from industry and academia to equip you with all the necessary tools and strategies to implement successful and cost-effective experience strategies that drive ROI and business growth. Join our elite global community of business experience experts and start your journey towards transforming your business today.
AIBXD offers comprehensive course programs on business experience design, strategy, and management that cater to all levels and profiles. Our portfolio includes our flagship executive education programs for CMO, CXO, creative designers, and all C-level executives. We also offer diploma programs for entrepreneurs and project/product managers, as well as online course certificates. If you are unsure which program would be the best fit for you, try our fun and easy-to-use AIBXD Course Recommender™. By answering just five quick questions, you can get a personalized course recommendation immediately.
If you're tired of wasting money, resources, and energy on traditional marketing techniques, we can help. Our AIBXD consulting and market research services can assist businesses in starting the experience and phygital transformation. Feel free to check them out and see how we can help you optimize your marketing strategy.
Cite this article as: American Institute of Business Experience Design (2023). The rise of CXMO: Why companies need a Chief Experience Marketing Officer for ROI-driven strategies. Retrieved [date you accessed the article], from [copy and paste the URL of the article page].