via The Economist Intelligence Unit
For brands looking for engagement help, new report highlights 2015 marketing trends
The Economist Intelligence Unit recently released “The Rise of the Marketer: Driving Engagement, Experience and Revenue,” a new report that hones in on 2015 marketing trends for companies hoping to make some changes and adapt to the latest developments.
The report surveyed 478 CMOs and other marketing executives, while conducting in-depth interviews with the following: Virgin America CMO Luanne Calvert, HSBC CMO Chris Clark, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt CMO John Dragoon, Kimberly-Clark Global Head of Marketing Technology & Innovation Mayur Gupta, Zipcar CMO Brian Harrington, Wells Fargo CMO Jamie Moldafsky, and MasterCard CMO Raja Rajamannar.
So, what do 2015 marketing trends have to do with digital publishing? More than some might think!
First and foremost, the fact that this ambitious report – which carries with it a sense of urgency for marketing professionals – comes from a publisher’s business solutions arm tells us a lot.
The vast majority of the companies surveyed, whether they know it or not, are gradually becoming publishers by way of their content marketing efforts, from their blogs to their video studios, their email campaigns to their native ads.
And, more to the point, successful publishers at their core must be successful companies, capable of pivoting from one strategy to the next in the continual struggle to survive and thrive, as Mequoda Members know better than anybody.
The Economist Intelligence Unit has put forth a set of takeaways that can help both sides.
In an interesting dynamic, businesses and publishers simultaneously benefit each other while in some cases competing for the same audiences.
Publishers aim to capture attention and convert that attention into subscriptions; ad sales from retailers, agencies, and corporations; and other sources of revenue.
Companies aim to capture attention and convert it into customers, who, if they keep coming back for the product, are essentially subscribers themselves.
All of that attention overlaps, so, in a sense, we’re all in this together trying to come up with the right formula. In another sense, publishers and traditional businesses are on a collision course, and the ones who come out on top will be the ones who prepared best for shifts in the industry.
6 2015 Marketing Trends
1. Marketing Less a Cost Than a Source of Revenue
No longer are marketing efforts an obligatory afterthought in a budget line item – they’re a true investment, and crucial to your company’s future.
2. The Domination of Digital
“Technology investment plans by marketers illustrate both the dominance and fragmentation of digital channels,” the report states in discussing 2015 marketing trends.
“Three of the four most widely cited investments are aimed at reaching customers through different channels: via social networks, on mobile devices and on the old standby of e-mail. The fourth, analytics, is needed to knit together data from multiple channels into a coherent and actionable portrait of the consumer.”
3. Marketing Will Define the Customer Experience
Translation for publishers: Audience development and a focus on niche is more important than ever. Marketers must make sure to keep audiences happy, loyal, and engaged.
4. Engagement Is Everything
There’s that word again: engagement. Here’s what The Economist Intelligence Unit has to say about it, all of which will ring a bell for Mequoda Members and other publishers:
“More than six out of ten (63%) marketers polled say that engagement is manifested in customer renewals, retention and repeat purchases. Adding in the 15% who see engagement in terms of impact on revenue, a full 78% of marketers see it as occurring in the middle or later stages of the classic funnel. A minority (22%) view engagement in terms of love for a brand – still important, but part of marketing’s legacy skill set.”
5. Marketers Will Need Data and Big-Picture Skills
Companies are looking for generalists who can bring a little bit of everything to the table: operations experience but new digital ideas, plus tech and creative chops.
6. Mobile! Mobile! Mobile!
“Just over half of marketers expect the Internet of Things – where ubiquitous, embedded devices with unique IP addresses constantly convey real-time data – to revolutionise marketing by 2020,” according to The Economist Intelligence Unit’s report.
“Almost the same proportion cites the power of real-time personalised mobile communications as the trend with the biggest impact.”
What are you looking forward to in terms of 2015 marketing trends? Are you one step ahead? Let us know in the comments!
To read more about “The Rise of the Marketer: Driving Engagement, Experience and Revenue,” visit The Economist Intelligence Unit.
