Marketing now the foundation of CX: Salesforce

Marketing is now the main cross-functional unit informing customer experience, according to Salesforce's latest State of Marketing report. 

Having surveyed more than 4,100 marketing leaders worldwide, the study, now in its fifth year, covers a wide range of functions, challenges and tools that marketers are faced with in today's digital economy.

Among several key findings was that with its position in understanding consumer behaviour, sentiment and expectations, marketing is now a key cog in leading customer experience strategy: 52% of marketers said they share metrics with sales teams.

In addition, thanks to customers demanding personalisation when brands engage them, the average number of data sources marketers refer to increased 20% compared to 2017. 

For the first time in the report, marketers' named the same thing as both their top priority and biggest challenge: engaging with customers in real time. To that end, marketers are increasingly excited by the possibilities of artificial intelligence in improving real-time engagement and personalisation. 

The results were also broken down by market, with five Asia-Pacific markets part of it: Australia/New Zealand, Hong Kong, India, Japan and Singapore (click to enlarge).