In the last 5 years, almost everything about the world of marketing has changed. The timelines we thought were short have shortened. The budgets we thought were small have shrunk. And the goals we thought were aggressive have become even more demanding.

We have new types of media, new ways to reach people, and new challenges that didn’t exist before.

We’ve entered a new state of “normalcy.”

Fortunately, I’m not one of those people who gets upset when someone moves my cheese, so I find this new world exhilarating. It’s a chance to dump out that crowded drawer of old marketing stuff, sort it out, and keep what’s useful. It’s an opportunity to round up sacred cows and send them out to pasture. And most of all, it allows us to be more connected with the living, breathing organism of the human web and create customer relationships that are stronger, more engaged, more reciprocal, and more lasting than ever before.

Sure, as marketers we still have the challenges of creating smart strategy and creative. Our time and budget constraints have multiplied tenfold. But with our new digital tools and real-time links to our customers’ heads, we can influence conversations about our brands in ways we never dreamed possible.

I think the new normal is good. What do you think?