{"id":10043,"date":"2023-02-28T13:35:01","date_gmt":"2023-02-28T21:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/?p=10043"},"modified":"2025-08-14T11:17:52","modified_gmt":"2025-08-14T03:17:52","slug":"what-is-real-time-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/what-is-real-time-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does &#8216;Real-Time Marketing&#8217; Really Mean?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>If you\u2019re like most marketers, you\u2019ve been hearing the term \u201creal-time\u201d a lot lately. And you\u2019ve probably been wondering, what is real-time marketing? Are we delivering content in seconds? Milliseconds? Even faster?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It can sound like marketers need to live in the world of the Oscar contender <em>Everything Everywhere All at Once<\/em>. Not necessarily. What matters is that you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/news\/stories\/genie-product-innovations\/?d=cta-body-promo-817\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reach your customers<\/a> when they need to be reached, with the right experience. Real-time marketing is not so much having all the answers all the time, but giving customers what they need, when they need it.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s look at the concept of real-time marketing and show some ways <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/resources\/customer-stories\/loreal-data-unique-beauty-experiences\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">leading brands use it<\/a> to win customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"layout-five wp-block-salesforce-blog-offer\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__wrapper\">\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__content\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"wp-block-offer__title\">Don\u2019t follow the pack \u2014 be a leader<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-offer__description\">Read the 2024 Gartner\u00ae Magic Quadrant\u2122 for Customer Data Platforms. Learn why Gartner named Salesforce a Leader, placing highest in ability to execute and furthest in completeness in vision.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"wp-block-button__link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/form\/pdf\/gartner-cdp-magic-quadrant\/\">Open the report<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<!-- Standard Illustration -->\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__illustration\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-illustration-layout-five.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n\t\t<!-- Small Accent Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__accent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-accent-layout-five.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Left Side Illustration -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Cloud Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__cloud\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-cloud-layout-five.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-you-ll-learn\">What you&#8217;ll learn<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#whatis\">What is real-time marketing and how does it use real-time data?<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#marketers\">What do marketers mean when they say \u201creal-time\u201d?<\/a>&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#CDP\">What can you do with a CDP using real-time data?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"whatis\">What is real-time marketing and how does it use real-time data?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A search for \u201creal-time marketing\u201d reveals a grab bag of definitions. They range from the vague (\u201csystematically responding to your customers\u201d) to the prescriptive (\u201cfocusing on \u2026 customer feedback\u201d). It seems as though nobody knows what time it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s start with the difference between real-time data and real-time marketing. Real-time data is processed and available for use right after it\u2019s captured. That\u2019s milliseconds. For example, the GPS on your phone captures your location and recommends a driving route in real time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But while it\u2019s important to capture and process data quickly, it\u2019s not always necessary to act on it right away. This is especially true in marketing, when the customer drives the journey. Real-time does not have to mean right now. It\u2019s delivering the information when the end user needs it. That could be seconds or even hours later.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Travel and hospitality is a very time-sensitive business. If a customer\u2019s digital profile isn\u2019t accurate at the moment, it can trigger unfortunate events. When this happens, a passenger misses their flight or doesn\u2019t get the right seat \u2014 and airs their grievances on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When a customer changes their seat or flight on the airline\u2019s app or website, they expect it to show up in their experience right away. When they later go to a kiosk or a service counter, or call customer care, they expect \u2014 quite reasonably \u2014 that the service agent is up to date. The customer also likely assumes the airline won\u2019t send them irrelevant emails or offers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This example shows us the difference between real-time data and real-time marketing. Real-time systems should update customers\u2019 profiles right away. On the other hand, real-time <em>marketing<\/em> should happen at whatever speed is the right one for the customer \u2014 whether that\u2019s today, in five minutes, or next week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are implications for the marketers\u2019 back-end data processing systems and resource requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When the customer is on the website or app, they expect their actions to be processed in milliseconds (under a second). But there&#8217;s no reason the contact centre can&#8217;t be updated in seconds and the email system within minutes, right?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Managing response rate requirements can lower costs and complexity, as long as they don\u2019t impact the customer experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"layout-one wp-block-salesforce-blog-offer\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__wrapper\">\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__content\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"wp-block-offer__title\">It&#8217;s time to redefine the CDP<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-offer__description\">Dig into use cases that show how to power personalised and connected experiences across your marketing.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"wp-block-button__link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/resources\/articles\/cdp-data-activation-guide\/\">Take the next step<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__contour\"><\/div>\n\t\n\t\t\t<!-- Standard Illustration -->\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__illustration\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-illustration-layout-one.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n\t\t<!-- Small Accent Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__accent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-accent-layout-one.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Left Side Illustration -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Cloud Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__cloud\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-cloud-layout-one.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"marketers\">What do marketers mean when they say \u201creal-time\u201d?&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>On most occasions, when marketers say real-time, what you really mean is <em>right-time<\/em>. What is real-time marketing, really? It\u2019s delivering the right data at the right time, to the right systems, to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/plus\/series\/Salesforce_on_Salesforce\/episode\/episode-s1e2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">better connect with customers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Right-time is doing what is needed to make each moment count for the customer<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Real-time is collecting and processing data with no delay<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The only reason to make this distinction is there can be major technical and organisational costs to imposing real-time requirements on the marketing team. Some teams have resources to handle it and some don\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s more important to make strategic investments into the systems that need to be real time \u2014 for example, your personalisation platform and customer data platform (CDP) \u2014 and understand what\u2019s required elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How can you set your real-time data priorities? It helps to remember that marketing has two basic modes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Respond<\/strong>: You&#8217;re reacting to customers when they&#8217;re already engaged. They\u2019re on your website, in your app, poking around on a kiosk in your store.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inspire<\/strong>: You&#8217;re trying to get the attention of customers and prospects when they may not be thinking about you. You send emails with offers, show ads on Facebook and Instagram, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In most cases, it&#8217;s the &#8216;Respond&#8217; mode that needs you to address customer concerns quickly. On the other hand, most &#8216;Inspire&#8217; activities are pre-planned and benefit from complete and curated data that does not need the hyper-warp-speed investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But in some cases, real-time responses can even be counterproductive. Take an abandoned cart email. Not many of us would react calmly to a reminder email \u2014 or, even worse, a text message \u2014 a mere few milliseconds after we decided to leave. That\u2019s what we mean when we talk about real-time marketing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"layout-astro-2 wp-block-salesforce-blog-related-trail\">\n\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"related-trail__illustration related-trail__cloud\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/related-trail-cloud-layout-astro-2.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__illustration related-trail__contour\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"related-trail__illustration related-trail__background\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/related-trail-background-layout-astro-2.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n\t<div class=\"related-trail__wrapper\">\n\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__content\">\n\t\t\t\n<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 345.8 82.8\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"related-trail__logo\"><path fill=\"#1d3767\" d=\"M96.6 33h9v22.6h4.8V33h8.8v-4.3H96.6zm49.8 5.3c0-5.7-3.6-9.6-10.8-9.6H127v27h4.8v-7.9h3l2.3-.1 5.7 8h5.6l-7-9.2c3.4-1.6 5-4.5 5-8.2m-11.1 5.3h-3.6V33h3.6c4.4 0 6 2.3 6 5.3s-1.6 5.3-6 5.3m30.8-15.2-12.6 27.2h5l2.3-5.3h11.6l2.4 5.3h5l-12.6-27.1zm-3.6 18 4.1-9.2 4.1 9.3zm25.2-17.7h4.8v27h-4.8zm20.7 0h-4.8v27h17.6v-4.4h-12.8zm38.4 12.1h-13.2V28.7H229v27h4.7V45h13.2v10.6h4.7V28.7h-4.7zm15.9 14.8h17.5v-4.4h-12.7v-6.4H279v-4.2h-11.5v-7.5h12.7v-4.4h-17.5zm36.9-27.2L287 55.6h5l2.3-5.3H306l2.4 5.3h5l-12.6-27.1zm-3.6 18 4.1-9.2 4.1 9.3zm35.4-17.7h-10.2v27h10.2c8.2 0 14.4-5.9 14.4-13.6s-6-13.4-14.4-13.4m0 22.6H326V33h5.4a9.1 9.1 0 1 1 0 18.1z\" \/><path fill=\"#1d315f\" d=\"M43 82.8h.1a74 74 0 0 0 38.5-12.3 3 3 0 0 0 1.3-2.4v-6A66.2 66.2 0 0 0 42.5.2a3 3 0 0 0-2.3 0A66.2 66.2 0 0 0 0 62.2V68a3 3 0 0 0 1.2 2.4 74 74 0 0 0 40.2 12.4z\" \/><path fill=\"#8ed1f4\" d=\"M13.8 51.8a.3.3 0 0 0 0-.1L33 23.6a3.1 3.1 0 0 1 .8-.8 3 3 0 0 1 4 .8l9.5 13.8 3.5-5a3 3 0 0 1 4.9 0L69 51.6a.3.3 0 0 1 .1.3h7C70.7 17.7 43.7 7.2 41.4 6.2c0 0-11.2 4-21.2 16A59.6 59.6 0 0 0 6.8 51.8zm21.7-21.3\" \/><path fill=\"#aa76b3\" d=\"m62 51.9-8.7-12.6-4.2 6.1 4.8 6.4z\" \/><path fill=\"#722a87\" d=\"m49 45.4-4.4 6.4H54z\" \/><path fill=\"#8ed1f4\" d=\"m37 32.6-1.5-2.1z\" \/><path fill=\"#aa76b3\" d=\"m28 41.4 7.6 10.4h1.8l6.4-9.2-6.8-10-1.5-2.1z\" \/><path fill=\"#722a87\" d=\"m28 41.4-7 10.4h14.6z\" \/><path fill=\"#069a49\" d=\"M43.8 72.5a1.8 1.8 0 0 0-1-2.4L40.1 69a8 8 0 0 1-1-.5 7.8 7.8 0 0 1-2.4-10.7H6a44 44 0 0 0-.2 4.4v4.4A70 70 0 0 0 26 75a70 70 0 0 0 15.2 2l2.4-4.3zm33-14.8H44.3l-2.5 3a1.7 1.7 0 0 0-.2.5 1.8 1.8 0 0 0 1 2.3l2.7 1.2.7.4a7.8 7.8 0 0 1 3 10.6l-.5.9 4.8-.8a71 71 0 0 0 8.4-2.2l1.3-.4a71 71 0 0 0 14-6.7v-8.8z\" \/><path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"m46 65-.7-.3-2.7-1.2a1.8 1.8 0 0 1-1-2.4 1.7 1.7 0 0 1 .2-.4l2.5-3h-7.6A7.8 7.8 0 0 0 39 68.4a8 8 0 0 0 1 .5l2.7 1.2a1.8 1.8 0 0 1 1 2.4l-.1.2-2.5 4.3a52.5 52.5 0 0 0 7.2-.4l.5-.9A7.8 7.8 0 0 0 46 65.1z\" \/><path fill=\"#157139\" d=\"M56.9 67.3h8.8l-4.4-5zM23 71h9l-4.5-5.1zm-4.1-10.4-4.5 5h8.9z\" \/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"wp-block-related-trail__title\">The right time for real-time<\/h2>\n\t\t\t<p>Interested in a customer data platform, but not sure where to start? Learn more on Trailhead, which features free lessons from Salesforce.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/trailhead.salesforce.com\/content\/learn\/modules\/customer-360-audiences-basics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Get started now<\/a><\/div>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__mock\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__points\">+300 points<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__eyebrow\">Trail<\/div>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"related-trail__trail-title h3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/trailhead.salesforce.com\/content\/learn\/modules\/customer-360-audiences-basics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Customer Data Platform Basics<\/a><\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"related-trail__trail-description\"><\/p>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__actions\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__action\">\n<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 10 10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path fill=\"#747474\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"m4.93.69.88 2.88c.04.12.16.18.27.18h2.89c.29 0 .4.38.17.56L6.79 6.04c-.1.07-.13.2-.1.32l1.12 2.96c.08.27-.2.5-.44.33L4.85 7.77c-.1-.08-.23-.08-.34 0L1.97 9.65a.29.29 0 0 1-.45-.33L2.6 6.36a.3.3 0 0 0-.1-.32L.17 4.3c-.23-.18-.1-.56.17-.56h2.89c.13 0 .23-.04.27-.18l.9-2.9c.08-.27.46-.25.54.02Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" \/><\/svg>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"related-trail__action\">\n<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 9 5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path fill=\"#747474\" d=\"M4.16 4.5.26 0h7.8z\" \/><\/svg>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"related-trail__illustration related-trail__foreground\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/related-trail-foreground-layout-astro-2.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"related-trail__illustration related-trail__parks\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/related-trail-parks-layout-astro-2.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"CDP\">What can you do with a CDP using real-time data?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When you\u2019re making decisions based on real-time data, you\u2019re able to respond to customers in ways that make sense to them. Upgrading your customer data platform to one built on real-time data can help make sure that you have the answers your customers want \u2014 when they want them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Doing this can not only make for happier customers, but improve your bottom line in a cost-efficient manner, too. After all, what is real-time marketing but a timely way to meet customer needs?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, a customer might make a purchase on an e-commerce website that puts them into a high-value segment. The segment change can trigger \u2014 right away \u2014 that person\u2019s entry into a journey tailored to high-value customers. You can then target them with the right ad the next time they\u2019re scrolling through Instagram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Recently, we announced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/uk\/news\/stories\/salesforce-genie-customer-data-cloud-now-powered-by-tableau-processes-more-than-100-billion-customer-records-on-average-daily-making-it-easy-for-every-company-to-become-a-customer-company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Data Cloud<\/a>, our CDP that uses real-time data to make real-time marketing easier for companies. Making the most of real-time data can help you improve customer journeys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Anyone considering a CDP to support real-time data management should ask how well it will support their \u201cright-time\u201d requirements. Just having parts of the customer journey happen in real time may not be enough. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>First-party data<\/strong>: Many enterprises already have a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/blog\/first-party-data-economic-downturn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">trove of first-party data<\/a>, and it should be easy to make use of it in real time with your CDP.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Data actions<\/strong>: Marketers have different ways to communicate with customers, and these different methods (or channels) need to receive rapid signals from the real-time CDP.<br><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Partnerships<\/strong>: Reliable and easy-to-use integrations with key partners also helps eliminate friction in the data transfer process, where third parties are needed (such as for data enrichment, media activation, and auditing). For example, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/news\/stories\/salesforce-genie-marketing-cloud-innovations-dreamforce22\/?amp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">we recently announced<\/a> integrations with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/news\/stories\/salesforce-cdp-snowflake-partnership\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Snowflake<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/news\/stories\/salesforce-aws-announcement-2022-dreamforce\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Amazon SageMaker<\/a>, Microsoft Azure, and others on the <a href=\"https:\/\/appexchange.salesforce.com\/appxContentListingDetail?listingId=a0N3u00000R8GgCEAV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">AppExchange<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Any lingering confusion about what is and isn&#8217;t real-time fades in importance when we pose a better question: What does the customer really need from us right now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"layout-four wp-block-salesforce-blog-offer\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__wrapper\">\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__content\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"wp-block-offer__title\">How Data Cloud saves you time and money<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-offer__description\">Learn how you can make your marketing more efficient by using AI to optimise campaign performance and spend.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"wp-block-button__link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/form\/marketing\/customer-data-platform-demo\/\">Watch the free demo<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-offer__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<!-- Standard Illustration -->\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__illustration\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-illustration-layout-four.png\" alt=\"\">\n\n\t\t<!-- Small Accent Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__accent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-accent-layout-four.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Left Side Illustration -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Cloud Illustration -->\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-offer__graphics wp-block-offer__cloud\" src=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/salesforce-blog\/dist\/images\/offer-block\/offer-cloud-layout-four.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Marketers know it\u2019s important to reach customers in \u201creal time.\u201d It\u2019s time to define what that really means.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":466,"featured_media":10042,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sf_justforyou_enable_alt":true,"optimizely_content_id":"686cbd0b5d0ef17be39e8b22AP","post_meta_title":"","ai_synopsis":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"sf_topic":[453,5,28,4,45,540,211,18,15,521,472,8,401,508,516,557],"sf_content_type":[],"coauthors":[64],"class_list":["post-10043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","sf_topic-salesblazer","sf_topic-marketing","sf_topic-customer-experience","sf_topic-marketing-cloud","sf_topic-digital-marketing","sf_topic-data","sf_topic-data-culture","sf_topic-digital-transformation","sf_topic-sales","sf_topic-sales-strategy","sf_topic-c-suite","sf_topic-customer-relationships","sf_topic-ai","sf_topic-sales-representative","sf_topic-customer-data-platform","sf_topic-sales-leader"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.2 (Yoast SEO v27.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Is Real-Time Marketing and How Does It Work? | Salesforce<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You might be answering the question, &quot;What is real-time marketing?&quot; incorrectly. 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