When Bill Gates said, “If your business is not on the Internet, then your business will be out of business,” Markitome’s Founder and Managing Director, Mr Vivek Rangabashyam, knew the truth behind this maxim, as he lived it all the time throughout his professional career. He began it as a 3D modelling and texture Intern at Fortunapix in 2011. Soon after, he acquired a job in the same firm and worked on big-budgeted Hollywood movies. In 2012, he shifted to Google and helped people to get their businesses online in Kenya, Malaysia, Uganda, and many other countries. And while working at Google in 2013, the limitations in the field inspired him to launch Markitome–a data-driven firm that helps businesses reach prospective consumers using targeted online mediums.

Vivek shares, “In all our marketing campaigns, we maintain a stern eye on our customer’s value proposition, key brand messaging, data on target customer demographics, and other high-level elements, thus ensuring a very customized and unique experience for all the leads converted.”

Inquisitive Minds’ Digital Know-How

Vivek further says that, at Markitome, they have segregated their products into four different categories: comprehensive digital marketing, specific and targeted digital marketing, consultation services and UI development. They have further created four markets for themselves–micro and SMB market for the startup pack and digital marketing, professional pack and digital marketing for medium-sized organizations, enterprise model for enterprises, and RevOps for vendors. “We have been catering to these markets since the inception of the pandemic, and it has helped many businesses have a personalized experience,” says Vivek.

Markitome focuses on CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) and is more data-driven to achieve its goals. Several things make Markitome unique. Besides Vivek’s over a decade of experience in data-driven processes and CRO-focused solutions in the industry, and in addition to Markitome Academy–a place where inquisitive minds can develop their digital marketing knowledge, Markitome provides a wide range of digital marketing services, including affiliate and reseller marketing.

Winning Over the Obstacles

True to the leadership rule, Vivek, too, has surmounted many challenges to take Markitome to the highest level of success it stands on today. According to Vivek, as an ever-evolving field, digital marketing presents its own set of challenges. However, they’ve risen above these challenges to become one of the best companies in the industry.

The challenges they faced were,

*The Pandemic:

The world has witnessed many changes since the pandemic. Social isolation, business declines, capital loss, remote working, and restricted travel are some unfortunate events that have occurred during this time. These events have had a significant impact on society and businesses alike.

“In the wake of the pandemic, we were forced to take drastic measures. From being recognized as one of the best digital marketing companies in India by MADcon, to being brought to our knees by the pandemic, it has been a long and difficult journey back to growing our business and becoming one of the best in India,” remembers Vivek.

It was a challenge for them, a well-established company, to lose all their business and start again. They had to deal with the challenge of hiring the right people, as well as logistic challenges and focusing on sales. They also had to get back the clients they had lost because of the pandemic.

*Andhra Pradesh-Telangana Split:

After launching Markitome in 2013, the agency faced several challenges. For instance, the state of Andhra Pradesh was split into Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in the following year, causing the company to lose its local clients. This experience made Vivek realize the need to expand if they wanted to survive in the industry.

How did they overcome these challenges?

By starting from scratch: This did not deter their confidence in the company that they had created, the people that they hired, or their conviction that they had the right processes in place, “We knew that we would come through,” states Vivek.

They had to go through the grind of restarting the company and getting it right. They had to focus on creating the right value proposition and precise communication with their clients. They had to work on improving the sales funnel, increasing the conversion rate, and bringing back the clients that they had lost during the pandemic.

They had to focus on creating a great workplace where people could grow, be creative, be productive, have fun, and be happy. Vivek says, “We also knew the pandemic would not last forever.”

Expanding into different countries through cloud marketing: Markitome was in a tough spot, so Vivek and the team had to look for new ways to find success. One such measure was to expand into other countries by offering products and services to clients who may have different preferences and cultural norms than their current customers. Because they had to make do with their existing resources, they considered how they could grow the company. Vivek mentions, “We decided to expand into other countries—a crucial move for any business.” Vivek believes that expanding allows you to reach a wider audience of potential customers and cater to new cultures. Although your customers in different countries may have different preferences from those of your current customer base, they still may purchase your product if you take the time to learn about their culture and tailor your marketing strategy accordingly.

Cloud marketing allowed them to expand their business into new countries without needing a physical presence. Expanding their business into other countries posed a challenge, but they overcame this obstacle with research and knowledge of international markets and resources. Vivek conveys, “We took a novel approach to serve our clients’ needs in different cultures by providing a wide range of digital marketing services.”

Adopting Omni Channel Marketing: As per Vivek, to stay ahead of the competition, you need to be where your customers are. That’s why they started their Omni channel marketing strategy. Omni channel marketing is the best way to reach your customers, increase your brand awareness, and improve your conversion rate. An Omni channel strategy has several benefits: convenience, to reach their clients with their existing resources; better customer service; improved brand recognition; and increased sales. Many businesses have found great success using an Omni channel marketing approach; “It’s how we’ve grown so much over the past few years! We started by selecting the right channels that served the services we wanted to market to our clients. It’s essential to have a mix of online and offline marketing to reach your desired audience, and it has been quite fruitful to us in the long run,” informs Vivek.

Focusing on CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) and growing our business and clientele through customized client solutions: Through data analysis, experimentation, and user testing, they’ve provided better services to their clients. “We now partner with them to understand their goals and challenges to come up with the most effective strategies,” reveals Vivek. Using detailed analysis, they’re able to develop customized sales pitches and content to help them achieve their clients’ goals, “While helping us grow our business, it’s a win-win. We also believe in working with our team members so that together we can increase our client’s and our profitability,” says Vivek.

Sharpest Brains’ Creating Future Tech

Vivek shares his opinion on how technology is transforming the industry and what could be expected in the future. He says technology is advancing rapidly, offering innovations and revolutionary projects yearly. He cites, “Some of the sharpest minds are out there creating the next piece of future technology that will completely change how we live our lives. It can feel like scientific progress is steady, although we have lived through a period of immense technological improvement in the last half-century.”

Artificial Intelligence (AI):

Vivek informs, “You may not realize how much of your life is already affected by artificial intelligence. If you shop online, listen to music, use a dating app, or just Google anything, AI has played some part in your experience. No matter what you do, you are surrounded by technology from the time you wake up to the time you go to sleep.

Whether you like it or not, artificial intelligence is here to stay; we wouldn’t have achieved many of the technological breakthroughs that we see today, from virtual reality to chatbots to facial recognition to robotics to automation to self-driving cars and even drones for that matter.

In the future, I believe that human capabilities like creativity, empathy and critical thinking will become more valuable than ever as machines become more intelligent and capable.”

A few other special mentions of technology that are going to change the face of the world are gene technology, human-computer interfaces like smartwatches, VR (Virtual Reality), voice technology, and 3D printing.

With campaign performance, monitoring platforms managers can now track content effectiveness and capture metrics such as Customer Acquisition Cost and Customer Lifetime Value—to help them optimize their ad spending.

Mobile-first solutions for generations such as Millennials and Gen Z are accustomed to buying things online. Online shopping is second nature to them, and it’s a trend that won’t be going away anytime soon.

As new marketing technology trends emerge, businesses are forced to rethink established strategies and develop new ones. Businesses that take advantage of new platforms and other advantages can more precisely target their audience, build a stronger bond with prospects, and allocate their advertising budgets more efficiently.

A Principled Advise

Vivek’s advice to aspirants willing to venture into the field of digital marketing is smartly profound. He feels that in a digital marketing agency, it is also important to have a strong foundation within your organization. If your foundation is strong, it becomes easier to retain clients even when your firm is growing.

Apart from that, it is essential to have your clients’ trust. They are like butter to bread. And if they don’t trust you, how can they be expected to stick around?

“That’s why at Markitome, we build strong foundations with our clients. We’ve worked hard to create the most professional and effective online presence possible, and we don’t stop until every client is happy with the work we do for them,” he assures.

Expanding the Digital Ecosystem

Envisioning scaling brand Markitome’s operations and offerings in the future, Vivek shares, “We aim to grow our current core team because, with a more highly trained, experienced, and motivated workforce, we can provide the best quality service to our clients.”

Markitome is also concentrating on building an ecosystem around its digital marketing services. In addition to an in-house digital marketing agency, the company plans to launch a training program and resell access to its services. The training program assists independent businesses with digital marketing initiatives while reselling will help Markitome grow more quickly. “We expect to have 300 clients by the end of the fiscal year 2023-24,” concludes Vivek.