When Don Peppers and Martha Rogers published their revolutionary book in 1994, The One to One Future, they probably believed that this vision would be realized by now, almost 25 years later.
But....when you go to a hotel as a gold or platinum loyalty member, do you actually get the same pillow type as you had ordered last time? Does the water in the room match your personal preference? It usually does not.
This is not a technology problem (the technology exists to tag, track, and control every type of data). It's not a knowledge problem (we know what 1:1 marketing should look like...and many CRM and Marketing Automation systems do part of this). It's also not a people problem. We have many trained people who master both the technology, the processes, and the customer needs.
The problem lies in combining these three dimensions. When people, processes, and technology have to connect, the exponential complexity of the many variables becomes very hard to turn into usable solutions.
The good news is that companies like Invisible Technologies are taking on the enormous challenge of solving this problem. They are building "synthetic solutions" combining technology, people, and continuous learning into integrated solutions.
