James T Fletcher, Founder and CEO of JTF Marketing, Speaks to The Silicon Review: ‘We Will Find a Way’

“Our team stays on the cutting edge of training, with three of us qualified as Adobe Certified Master Marketo Engage Architects, of which there are less than 150 globally.”

JTF Marketing, a full-service modern marketing agency, helps companies, both big and small, through all marketing automation processes. While best known for its work with Marketo, JTF has successfully delivered solutions across the entire digital and marketing automation space.

The company was founded in 2015 and is based in London. It has an additional office location in Madrid.

Interview Excerpt: James T Fletcher

Q. Let’s talk about JTF Marketing and how it came to the fore. So, what’s your story?

I started JTF Marketing six years ago when I was in my late 20s. I first got involved in Marketing Automation in 2009, when I was working for a tech start-up based in Buckinghamshire that needed to scale growth without the vast cost of a large sales and marketing team.

I had this vision that building something “automated” couldn’t be that difficult and that we had to be behind the times compared to other software companies—little did I know we were cutting edge.

I always knew I wanted to be my own boss, but I never quite knew what it’d be. After being surrounded by entrepreneurs in many start-ups, I loved the idea of building something with a great team. After a few failed side projects and even a luxury ecommerce website, I found myself returning to the idea of consulting because it was natural to me.

Since starting JTF Marketing, the business has gone from strength to strength, opening London and Madrid offices. That said, we have won industry awards along the way and also have the privilege of working with clients across Europe and the US including, Rakuten Viber, Allianz, McGraw Hill, BNP Paribas, and Capita.

Today, my goal is to keep supporting my team of marketing automation experts. I want to help them develop their knowledge and build their careers, exposing them to lots of problems that need creative solutions!

Q. Given that JTF Marketing is Europe’s leading marketing automation consulting company, how uniquely do you serve your clients?

I believe it is our attitude that makes us different. We love a challenge and get excited by solving problems. Our motto as a business is ‘We will find a way.’ In the past, we have developed bespoke software to help solve problems for our clients. We don’t believe in ‘the not possible’, we always do our very best to find a way to utilise as much of the existing technologies as possible.

Q. How have you helped businesses to increase revenue with marketing automation? Share an overview.

Allianz Commercial, a trading division of Allianz Insurance Plc, is a market-leading insurance provider that builds important relationships with insurance brokers. Operating in a competitive market, it’s crucial that Allianz’s broker communications stand out from their peers.

After undertaking an in-depth audit, we knew the data would be the foundation enabling Allianz to evolve along its Marketo maturity journey. Rather than providing a quick fix, we wanted them to achieve long-term results. Using Marketo as a data management tool may not be a typical use-case; however, using a combination of data audit insights from our proprietary data management software Aromerge, we made significant data hygiene improvements. Aromerge, developed for this project, audits the data providing visibility and highlights areas of concern that directly affect campaign results.

Results included refining the database from 41k to 27.6k valuable records, increasing email deliverability by 50 percent to achieve 97 percent success, enabling tailored communications that lead to over 300 hot leads for a single campaign, and team training saving around 20 minutes per marketing email sent out.

“What difference an effective integration can make! JTF Marketing has helped us to gain visible efficiency and achieve collaboration within our sales and marketing departments. We are now saving around 20 minutes with each marketing email that we send, not to mention the significant improvement of our delivery and open rates. From the very beginning, the JTF Marketing team was thoroughly supportive, making the new Marketing Automation system easy to use. With training and best practice provided for all members—any challenge that arose, they found a way to solve it! This ensured the successful implementation of the platform and helped us really get the most out of Marketo.” — Caroline Price, Marketing Manager, Allianz

Q. JTF Marketing is the marketing automation consultancy that delivers value. Would you like you elaborate on this a bit?

Marketo, the marketing automation platform we specialise in, is a powerful but complex system. Often marketers are thrown in at the deep end and expected to get campaigns out the door without the right system configuration or training. We are here to help marketing directors get the most from the system and their team by supporting them in these areas. We want to elevate the capabilities within a business so that they feel empowered with the right set-up, tools, and training to effectively run the platform themselves without us needing to hold their hands.

Q. You must be decisive and persistent to succeed in this competitive industry. That said, how do you plan to combat your competition?

We are aware of our competition, of course, but we try to focus on what we do best. Our team stays on the cutting edge of training, with three of us qualified as Adobe Certified Master Marketo Engage Architects, of which there are less than 150 globally. We continue to support Marketo Engage users in the industry by sharing our advice and tips in our blogs and guides. We will also continue to do whatever it takes to help our clients solve their challenges in improving ROI with marketing automation.

Q. What new endeavors is your company currently undertaking?

Our services have typically always been custom, as more companies turn to Adobe Marketo Engage, we’re looking to standardise our best practices, bespoke software, and training packages to help those companies get up and running in as quick a time as possible. Again keeping in mind that—most companies don’t want to be dependent on agencies.

In addition to that, we’re looking at what other solutions using our expertise can we create that tackle some of the common challenges like reporting/marketing impact and other areas which are still reasonably untouched in the world of marketing automation.

For more information, please visit:

www.jtfmarketing.co

The Resilient Leader at the Helm of JTF Marketing

James T Fletcher, founder, serves as the CEO of JTF Marketing. He has grown an award-winning agency with notable clients across Europe and the US, including Rakuten Viber, Allianz, McGraw Hill, BNP Paribas, and Capita. With offices in Madrid and London, James leads his expert team of marketing automation specialists to assist companies with strategy, implementation, and training.

James is a real visionary who is passionate about digital marketing and has stories to share his expertise in marketing and his journey of developing a successful marketing agency.

“JTF has gone from strength to strength, opening London and Madrid offices. That said, we have won industry awards along the way and also have the privilege of working with clients across Europe and the US including, Rakuten Viber, Allianz, McGraw Hill, BNP Paribas, and Capita.”