The future of Martech: navigating AI-powered platforms at enterprise scale

As a marketing technology consultant at Capgemini, my role focuses primarily on B2B consulting, covering marketing technology from an end-to-end perspective. This encompasses everything from initial business analysis to product management, and even some hands-on implementation work, which forms a crucial foundation for development efforts. We specialise in key systems such as Customer Data Platforms (CDP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, and Product Information Management (PIM) systems, alongside broader marketing automation strategies like email marketing automation. Our clientele consists mostly of global leading companies, often top five players, spread across diverse industries including automotive, sports, finance, life sciences, chemicals, and healthcare. This varied experience provides a well-rounded perspective and the ability to adapt to different sectors effectively.

At Capgemini, we apply a comprehensive offering that is then meticulously fine-tuned to each client’s specific needs. This approach differs significantly from B2C Martech due to variations in budget, planning stages, and the tools utilised. For B2B, we typically provide suites from major providers like Adobe or Salesforce, which combine CRM and other services into a unified cloud solution. Within this context, the product management role operates on a larger scale, involving the development of roadmaps and features within broader “chunks,” aligning with various client accounts. The core objective is to understand their goals, current status, and development gaps to build out epics and prioritise efforts based on urgency and severity. We conduct research, surveys, and analyse user analytics, feeding these reports directly into our roadmap development.

Yes, we definitely leverage our existing experience. For instance, we have numerous accounts across multiple industries, and I would say that what clients ask for is usually not vastly different. For example, in healthcare, it is straightforward that you are dealing with patients, hospitals, and other relevant institutions; the organisational structure is often already set up by society. Therefore, when we engage, it is more about understanding their current status and challenges, their requirements, their goals, and most importantly, their pain points. Part of this involves identifying the problem space and the solution space, typically through workshops.

Based on these insights, we also consider their capabilities, expectations, budget, and any legal concerns before suggesting a suitable solution suite. Sometimes, large companies approach us for consultation from scratch, even if you might expect them to have numerous things already established; they might simply state, “We want a marketing system”. In such cases, we begin with thorough analysis. Then, depending on what they already have in place, we suggest different suites to fit their needs, considering their preferences and existing systems, as Adobe and Salesforce CRM offer collaboration options. From there, we recommend the best combination.

Nowadays, with the significant interest around AI, global accounts are evolving accordingly, seeking to integrate more AI, for instance, with chatbots or by automating their systems. In healthcare, AI might be used to support nurses or doctors for analysis, basic services, or operational tasks, enabling them to save on manpower. And what is interesting the global AI market is projected to reach 40 billion by 2025, with leading industries being retail, finance, healthcare, and SaaS.

The top players in this space are mainly Salesforce and Adobe, alongside HubSpot, IBM, and Watson. Both Salesforce and Adobe have rolled out significant AI features.

Adobe has developed Firefly, a generative AI tool for content creation, along with other tools. While a Customer Data Platform (CDP) is not strictly AI, it leans in that direction because it acts as a central decision-making system that connects all analytics and PIM systems together to make decisions and offer optimal solutions to clients. This capability supports hyper-personalisation, aiming for advanced levels of targeting. It also helps with upselling and improving the overall customer experience; similar to Amazon suggesting bundles or other related products, a CDP provides foundational support for these incentives. Naturally, it handles segmentation and decision-making based on configured data, inputs, and logic, using AI to support individualisation or personalisation.

For Salesforce, their offerings are also very exciting, featuring a chatbot powered by generative AI, which is a significant focus for them. GenAI is used to improve customer journeys; for example, it can assist sales representatives by generating content. They also have an AI scoring system to identify high-potential leads within the sales funnel. Tools like Einstein and AgentForce are essentially AI-powered assistants. A sales representative can simply type a prompt, and the system can generate customised or more tailored email journeys or cadences, sending them out automatically based on different segments and contexts.

The distinction between B2C and B2B lies in B2C’s need to be more nimble, finding a niche to stand out and focusing on efficiency to compete with larger players. In contrast, big accounts are already well-established. Comparing a large ball to a smaller ball, the momentum differs; the larger ball moves more slowly, but it is steady and possesses more power when it makes a move. Big companies can also change quickly. The difference is that B2C typically experiments frequently and optimises small parts constantly, whereas big companies generally follow a long roadmap, working in chunks step by step. Although they all use different suites and AI tools, their goals or targets might vary slightly. Generally, however, they are all striving to keep pace with global developments. For example, in retail, the focus might be on sending targeted offers, while in tech, it could be on onboarding, which is often AI-automated, or using AI for customer support. Almost any tech website now features a chatbot that directs calls or guides users through the support process.

Ensuring enterprise teams effectively adopt and utilise these new, AI-enhanced Martech platforms, especially given their initial lack of prior setup, involves significant client collaboration. We align with the client on exactly what needs to change. If they already have a team, education and adoption initiatives are crucial. Even when we are building solutions for them, we need to do a lot of convincing and use Proof of Concept (POC) to showcase how implementation will occur, what needs to be understood, and what team adjustments will be required. We align on all of this together, followed by an adaptation phase where we provide support. Since clients are aware of what is coming, they can plan ahead, identify new hiring needs, or assess existing team gaps. Based on the materials and tools we provide, they understand what needs to be learned, marking a key milestone in the process.

For marketers, creativity remains key, but in a new way. Previously, the focus was on strategy behind the marketing journey and content creation. Now, with AI assistance, marketers must understand the broader framework, encompassing not just content but also ideation, personalisation, and their interweaving. This represents a shift towards more strategic, high-level thinking, where marketers need to consider the entire framework of messaging and campaigns, not just content appearance. Personalisation is also paramount, with growing interest in understanding emotions and how they integrate with AI tools and prompts to create a complete experience. Marketing roles are becoming more blended due to AI, requiring a broader perspective and higher-level thinking. Knowledge of areas like CDP, data, and compliance is increasingly important, necessitating an interconnected understanding for effective marketing. Being able to prompt AI for insights and understanding how different functional areas connect is now a significant part of the job.

There might be a growing gap in leadership from a societal perspective. Younger people tend to work more autonomously, and there is a trend towards smaller teams, not only in marketing but also in areas like development and UI/UX. Marketers can now use AI to generate videos or content independently, reducing the need for full design or UX teams to create everything manually. The number of people working on the same task could easily be halved, as AI drives automation and boosts efficiency, meaning companies simply do not need as many employees as before. This is a trend seen not only at Capgemini but across other industries and major accounts.

When it comes to hyper-personalisation, consent is a crucial area. If a person has consented, for example, by registering their email or providing information at a shop, we then use the data they provide. Our Customer Data Platform (CDP) can then find connections and insights from this consented data. Dealing with regulations like GDPR was a massive topic for us, and we invested significant effort into the consent aspect to ensure proper setup.

In the US, people probably value convenience more, leading to a general willingness to give consent. However, in places like California and other states with stricter regulations, there are different compliance rules, similar to GDPR, making it a significant topic. We really need to determine how to operate within those frameworks and ensure proper setup because it is essential. Many individuals are comfortable with this, with some clicking “accept” immediately to shop without interruptions. Others might give limited consent, depending on their comfort level. Generally, there are three types of users: those who are very concerned about privacy, those with moderate concern, and those who are largely unconcerned.

Regardless of whether AI is involved or not, continuous training is always necessary. The industry evolves so rapidly that people need to invest effort to stay up to date.