The Magic of Marketing Technology: How Telia Creates an Exceptional Online Shopping Experience

Over 50 percent of internet users worldwide now shop online at least once a week. In Lithuania, the number of people who shop this way more than 10 times a quarter has doubled over the past five years. At our hiring partner company Telia, the MarTech team is responsible for connecting with existing and potential customers through digital channels. Gražvydas Judickas, Head of MarTech, offers insights into his dynamic and motivating role as well as the innovative solutions developed for customers and the market. Dive deeper into how Telia ensures a seamless customer experience at every touchpoint in an exclusive interview with Gražvydas.

Q: Gražvydas, could you describe your role at Telia? What is the nature of your work and what does your team do?

A: My team and I are responsible for developing tools that enable the automated delivery of personalized messages to each customer, ensuring timely and relevant communication through their preferred channels, such as text messages, emails, or calls. We also strive to technically ensure consistency in customer messaging across all channels and to avoid overwhelming them with excessive communication. We collaborate with teams across the organization to gather requirements and strategically plan the technological solutions required for their successful implementation. Then we develop these solutions and hand them over to our colleagues in the business units.

Q: How did you start your career, and how did you arrive at your current position? 

A: I began programming as a teenager, though it remained purely a hobby for me. I pivoted to IT after facing tedious and repetitive tasks in my previous job, which led me to develop a bot that could do that work for me. Later, I received an invitation to join the department responsible for developing IT systems.

Q: How and why did you transition into the field of marketing technology?

A: My shift towards marketing technology was rather unplanned! While working as a data warehouse product manager at another company, I was tasked with overseeing a marketing technology project due to its heavy reliance on data. This hands-on experience convinced me that the best outcomes — for both companies and their customers — can be achieved by automating and continuously optimizing the customer experience.

Q: Gražvydas, tell us more about the MarTech field. What is it, what do marketing technology specialists do, and what opportunities are available to them?

A: MarTech is a very broad term that encompasses all "marketing technologies" — tools designed to automate and digitize marketing processes. It is estimated that about 11,000 tools are in this category, with new ones being introduced every year! Within our organization, this mainly involves managing automated, personalized communications with customers. Venturing into MarTech offers several paths. One path is developing these tools, integrating them with data sources and communication channels. Another path is crafting customer journeys and emails, and constantly refining them for optimal performance. The choice a specialist makes usually depends on their programming skills and interests.

Q: What is the core mission in your current role? What objectives are you and your team trying to achieve, and why are these goals important to the organization?

A: Our objective is to empower the customer experience and communication teams to independently craft diverse customer journeys. To achieve this, we develop and integrate a suite of tools: we collect data in one place, which allows for more accurate customer segmentation, and we create integrations with new channels. For example, we explore opportunities for customer engagement through the new Telia app. Customers prefer the digital simplicity of these channels, so we need to ensure a seamless experience throughout. Take, for instance, the scenario where a customer receives an email and clicks on a link. They should seamlessly transition to completing their intended action, whether it's purchasing a specific product or renewing a contract. 

Q: Could you share more details about the technologies you use? Is artificial intelligence (AI) a part of your daily operations?

A: One of the tools we use is Salesforce Marketing Cloud, and its developers have recently made significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI). As a result, we now have access to sophisticated analytical features within our toolkit. For example, we know the best time to send an email to each customer based on data indicating when those emails are most likely to be opened. The system can automatically assess the effectiveness of the copy sent and choose the most suitable content. Currently, we are in the exploratory phase with these features, not yet actively implementing them — but maybe 2024 will mark a turning point for the use of AI in MarTech.

Q: What are the key projects you're focused on? What aspects of your job do you find most interesting?

A: The most captivating aspect of my role is the opportunity to engage in many different projects at Telia. We strive to cater to the needs of both individual and business customers, as well as those of Ežys. As a result, we're involved in almost every project that requires communication of any kind. This encompasses everything from sales promotions to notifications about temporary retail shop closures or invitations to explore self-service options.

Q: Which departments does your team work with most frequently? What projects connect you with other teams?

A: It’s crucial to highlight that our achievements are the result of a team effort. MarTech is the last link of the chain where we deliver personalized information to selected customers, but a lot of preparation happens beforehand. We receive the requirements from the commerce or CRM teams, all the necessary information for customer segmentation from the data warehouse, the email or text message content along with visuals from the marketing department, and the best offers from the data science team. That’s why we maintain a close relationship with other departments and teams, which is another aspect of our work that makes the MarTech field so interesting and provides a lot of opportunities for learning.

Q: Why would you recommend a role for marketing technology specialists at Telia?

A: Telia is a very large, established leader in the dynamic ICT & telecommunications market. This means we constantly face complex, intriguing challenges to solve. The solutions we implement have an impact on many of the company's clients, making it rewarding to witness the results of our work. Of course, Telia's scale and processes require a lot of organizational effort. It’s crucial to coordinate efficiently and swiftly respond to the needs of many stakeholders while following standardized processes. This presents another challenge that encourages improvement and growth.

Career opportunities  for MarTech and digital marketing  specialists

Do you know or want to learn how to personalize and automate real-time customer communication using data and business analytics models? Do you aspire to create the best customer experiences through technology and your expertise? Join the Telia MarTech team, and let's tackle the most fascinating challenges together!