As I spoke with Michael Becker, co-founder of mCordis and The Connected Marketer Institute, it reminded me of our first podcast interview over five years ago. Then we talked about mobile marketing and powerful new wireless devices that would forever change human communications.
He said “‘…mobile is the foundation of all communications going forward”–whatever the mobile device, for personal use or commerce. He [spoke] of the ‘untethered engagement’ as the central focus of one-on-one relationship marketing with mobile phone consumers.”
Now Michael speaks about multiple “connected devices” in our lives—smartphones, tablets, watches. Passive Internet devices, like Amazon’s Echo, made human-like with its name “Alexa,” listens as we interact with her. We say “play some music,” “ship items on my grocery list,” “what time are the Giants playing?” Alexa responds, satisfying our every want, saving us time, becoming our machine companion.
By 2020, homes will probably have ten or more connected devices, like Alexa, complemented by hundreds of interactive TV’s, fridges, connected cars, and passive IoT gizmos silently collecting data about us and our surroundings. There’s disagreement among the researchers about the number of IoT’s. But most studies agree we’ll have tens of billions on the Planet, gulping big data for corporations, governments, education and, most important, marketers.
The Connected Marketer Institute
Recently, mCordis, a mobile, marketing, advisory and educational services provider, launched The Connected Marketer Institute. Targeted at both marketers and marketing technology (martech) vendors, CMI seeks to re-define the focus of marketing in a mobile connected world, stressing digital connectivity, education, service,
When I asked Becker about omnichannel marketing in the interview, he claimed that mobile SMS, email and other forms of traditional “marketing” don’t exist. “There’s only marketing”—connecting, engaging and being of service to customers. “Everything else is a tool or strategy.” Mobile is at the center of everything. Marketers must look at the practice of marketing with a new lens that better serves customers at scale understands them better, and resolves friction (answering customer questions in the right ways).
Marketers need to create value FOR not FROM people.”
Other Podcast Interview Topics
- Marketers as technologists creating value and being of service for people
- Collecting and analyzing data in appropriate ways, on individuals’ terms, while maintaining transparency
- Physical products have digital components
- Four human dimensions: physical, digital, emotional, and sensorial
- How to figure out where brands fit in a customer’s mind
- Monitoring data and connectivity to create events in real time (synchronization)
- All content drives consumer behavior; everything produced by marketers and advertisers is content—both digital and non-digital
- Content marketing as more than blogs, keywords, SEO and calls-to-action
- Media channels vs. the practice of marketing
- From Cicero to Henry Ford to distribution to the information age
- GAFA (Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon): The age of computing power
- What happened in 2010?
- The age of the customer. What’s similar about Taco Bell, Target, and Sephora?
- Seth Godin’s informed consent won’t work in the impending Big Data era
- Why brands will find it easier to obtain data directly from individuals
- Marketers as Lego builders
- Mobility may create greater identity than DNA
- Will artificial intelligence eliminate your job?
The Connected Marketer Summit & Awards Ceremony
In January 2017, mCordis hosts the first-ever Connected Marketer Summit in Silicon Valley. The Summit will feature leading brand marketers and MarTech providers sharing perspectives and insights on how they are making connected marketing a reality.
The Summit will also feature workshops and training sessions for marketers wanting to get closer to tactical execution of connected marketing practices. For further information, see this page.
MobileBeyond listeners receive a 50% discount on the event using code MobileBeyond50 (no compensation to MobileBeyond for this).
Marketing Edge Education Fund
Marketing EDGE is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to Educate, Develop, Grow, and Employ college students in the field of marketing. Learn more about helping out.
About Michael Becker
Michael Becker is a Co-founder & Managing Partner for mCordis and The Connected Marketer Institute. The firm:
- Advises brand marketers how to embrace mobile and connected marketing,
- Assists AdTech & MarTech vendors on servicing brands through education, and
- Prepares individual marketing professionals to provide service to individuals
Michael is a strategic advisor to Assurant Solutions, Predii, Phoji, FunMobility, and Privowny. He is on the Board and President of the Personal Data Ecosystem Consortium and a Trustee for Marketing EDGE.
He is the co-author of Mobile Marketing for Dummies and number of other books and articles. Michael is also a professor of mobile and connected marketing at National University, the Association of National Advertisers, The Path To Purchase Institute and the Direct Marketing Association.
Formerly with the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) as a board member and Managing Director, Michael is also co-founder of iLoop Mobile, a leading messaging solutions provider.
In 2014 Marketing EDGE awarded him the Edward Mayer Education Leadership Award for his commitment to marketing education.
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