Every entrepreneur who starts and grows their own business understands that getting their name out there is key for future success.

And as social media continues to play an integral part in any online marketing strategy, talk is turning to the other recent disruptive technology – the cloud.

One of the most popular products for SMEs looking to push this to the next level is the Adobe Cloud Marketing suite. By understanding customers’ behaviours, sometimes even before they do, small business-owners can get the jump on their competitors in often crowded marketplaces.

Cloud technology has the advantage of collecting swathes of data to help business-owners understand both existing and potential customers. Tools such as Adobe Analytics are useful for taking customer data and using it to make predictive and not just reactive marketing decisions.

Another aspect of marketing involves proactively interacting with clients. Recent research suggests that 85% of retailers still do not react to any mentions across the main social media platforms. But while many of the traditional brands are slow to adopt social as a top marketing tool, start-ups are often all too aware of the need to get their brand out into the public conscience.

Adobe Social is an example of a product that allows businesses to create targeted and relevant social media posts and campaigns that reach the right people – not just the most.

But for all the disruptive technology and ideas in marketing, traditional routes still have their place. Some of the uber-trendy tech geniuses may tell you a direct marketing should be consigned to history, but the statistics will tell you it’s often the most financially fruitful way to increase market share.

For these projects companies often turn to Adobe Campaign, which combines the clout of direct marketing with the data-collecting capabilities of cloud technology.

In some ways the move to the cloud will revolutionise marketing but in other ways the principles will remain very much the same. Either way, businesses of all sizes are looking forward to a future where they don’t have to build up million pound budgets to compete in the global market.