ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines the key concepts and marketing actions that can make organisations more effective, more impactful, more sustainable, and more strategic within a ‘marketing first’ digital business model. This perspective is an important conceptual starting point, as it recognises marketing as an integral business function and a key mechanism that drives a business towards a fully digital approach. Figure 1.1 shows the more traditional viewpoint of marketing texts that separate business functions – including digital engagement – into discrete parts of an organisation. This perspective is taken in contrast to Figure 1.2, which presents the strategic and integrated marketing perspective taken throughout this book. The Buyer Persona Spring reflects the strategic perspective necessary for successful digital marketing – and for successful digital business overall. The representation of the organisation in the Buyer Persona Spring acknowledges the influence of external factors, including competitors, and connects with the buyer persona itself through an iterative, self-reflective cycle of campaigns in combination with the use of specific digital marketing tools and techniques.
