In Monday's opening keynote address, Ian Beavis, VP, marketing, Kia Motors, shared tips on how to move a company squarely into the digital space.

Since joining Kia in 1995, Ian Beavis, vice president of marketing, has transformed the marketing efforts of the company. Back then, media budgets were spent primarily on TV. As a low-cost brand with a core value being to keep costs down, Kia needed to add digital media to the mix. But according to Beavis, although everyone wanted to do this, they didn't know how.

Fast forward to today, when Beavis has a seat squarely at the table, digital media is a major piece of the marketing pie (and in fact, Beavis claims he sometimes has to pull his boss back from too much digital), and Kia is set to sell 300,000 cars this year.

So how did Beavis and Kia get to this point?

Beavis admits there is no magic bullet. But there are some worthwhile lessons he has learned and shared with the iMedia audience.

First off, how do you get buy-in?

"You have to earn the right to sit at the table," said Beavis. Digital folks often get caught up in minutia and lose sight of the bigger issues. "You need to be strategic in focus, be prepared to have the conversation, get outside your narrow space."

One way to do this is to be a student of the business. Know how your business works.

Also, speak the same language-- preferably English. Avoid acronyms and jargon.

And get out of the office. Walk around. Meet other people, learn their issues. They'll get to know you as well, and you'll get a name for yourself. That helps you get in the conversation.

Another important step to take is to build a support network. Find other constituents to work with you. Engage other parts of the company, and help them understand how digital media can transform their part of the business.

A key factor when engaging with others in the company is to have a discussion, not a lecture. Be helpful to the other person, and use every opportunity to help them understand digital.

And remember: Digital isn't the answer to everything. Think "golf bag" -- a different club is required for every situation, and digital is just part of the solution

Finally, be satisfied with small steps. When you do a turnaround, take a lot of baby steps and you'll go a long way.

Beavis also addressed how to work with agencies and other partners to help move the process forward.

First, he said, digital folks need to acknowledge other media's role, and take a holistic view.

They need to think about business solutions.

And quit pitching technology du jour. "I don't need to be the first to do anything," said Beavis. "I'm happy to let others go through the trials and adapt the learnings."

Also, forge alliances in less conventional ways. Don't focus just on the media end-- work with creative as well.

Think about digital beyond ROI. "Digital is the only space where you can go from the top of the funnel to the bottom of funnel," Beavis said.

Be sure and look inside the company and understand its culture and appetite for risk.

And of utmost importance, bring the strategy team and creative people, and traditional and non-traditional reps together from the beginning. "You need to embrace integration as the only way to move forward," said Beavis. "Bring the specialists to the table early, and hold everyone accountable for the team's success."

And with that, "You can be in the C-level suite," concluded Beavis.

Dawn Anfuso is senior editor, iMedia Connection. Read full bio.

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