In late 2013, Adobe released a study titled “Digital Distress: What Keeps Marketers Up at Night?” The lead statistic confirmed what those of us in the marketing profession feel daily: 76% of marketers think marketing has changed more in the past two years than the past fifty.

This overwhelming shift picked up momentum roughly fifteen years ago with the founding of Google in 1998. Wireless went mainstream in 2003. Facebook was launched in 2004, and the iPhone hit the streets in 2007, followed by the iPad in 2010. The collaboration of devices, software and connectivity drove unprecedented interaction between buyers and brands, changing marketing forever.

The compressed pace of change has marketers scrambling to keep up. In the Adobe study, only 40% of marketers think their company’s marketing is effective, and only one in three think their companies are proficient at digital marketing. For those hoping this rapid shift will slow down so they can catch up, forget about it. Technology drives exponential evolution.

What marketers can do to keep pace is realigning our organizations to act more confidently. Granted, this may seem a bit like changing a tire while driving down the road. But shifting just some of an organization’s energy to digital transformation can make a big difference. So what does that process look like? We see three themes as essential:

1. Collaborate. It is impossible for any individual to keep up with the evolution of digital marketing. Forming cross-disciplinary teams that come together as equals to share and develop a point-of-view on emerging digital marketing technologies, and the implications for customers and users, provides confidence and informs better decisions. To make this happen, egos and fear need to be checked at the door. We need to figure this out.
2. Iterate. Closing the gap in digital strategies doesn’t happen overnight. It’s also impossible to predict with complete accuracy the long-term impact of emerging technologies. To sort out fads from trends, building testing and measurement into the strategic planning process is essential. This allows for innovation and evolution, avoiding the progress-stalling trap of choosing certainty over clarity.
3. Focus. Resource demands leave little time to think about evolving efforts in most organizations. Far too often, companies take on too many initiatives and never finish. Changing the process of managing projects to focus on iterative cycles of quarterly action can help. Applying a firm commitment to finish activities before adding new projects to the cue will help even more. But perhaps most of all, questioning anything that doesn’t add value and being careful not to waste resources streamlines focus. Identify the essential and eliminate the rest.

There is hope for those wanting to get on top of the changing game we call digital marketing. Approaching it with a firm commitment to collaborate, iterate and focus is the first step toward getting there.