Real-world data shows the most crucial sources of traffic for e-commerce websites

E-commerce/online retail is a booming sector. But because the latest marketing techniques change so rapidly, it can be tricky to keep up with the latest trends whilst also keeping your feet on the ground. Datareportal's 2023 global overview shows that search engines and social networks are the 2 biggest sources for self-reported online brand research. But how are users navigating to e-commerce websites?

B2C top traffic sources

Hubspot's 2022 user survey, compiled by 400+ users, primarily of B2C audiences, demonstrates a mixed bag in terms of traffic attribution. The biggest question mark is a sizable chunk of 22% direct traffic, which could include: 'Dark' social (untrackable social shares) Bookmarked traffic Direct links from pdfs, shared documents, or other non-trackable sources But interestingly, after direct, we see…

With this much search and social media activity every minute, content shock is increasing as a challenge for marketers in 2021. Take a step back and ask, what happens online in 60 seconds?

When planning your marketing strategy, it can help to look at the bigger picture of what's going online these days. In this post, we ask what happens online in 60 seconds to help visualize the impact of the internet and digital technology on your customers' lives. The number of Google searches, Facebook posts, and WhatsApp messages sent in a mere 60 seconds is truly phenomenal! What's more, digital media presents a huge opportunity for marketers, but that you need quality content to compete using digital marketing.

Managing Content shock in 2021

All that content and constant bombardment with messages presents an equally huge challenge…

The latest results from the CMO Survey, a special COVID-19 edition, give a fascinating insight into our fellow marketers' business strategy and planning to drive growth this year.

Digital Marketing Strategy during COVID-19

84% of marketers confirm they have ‘improvised to generate new marketing strategies during the pandemic’ according to the CMO Special Covid-19 report in June 2020. So what did they do? And what can we learn about managing business growth right now? “The measure of intelligence is the ability to change” - Albert Einstein So, by Einstein’s prognosis, 2020 has been a very intelligent year for marketers. While for some of us, the changes have been less grand, others have witnessed a complete transformation in less than half a year. Naturally, there are fluctuations by industry, so for more detailed data about your industry, check out this special …

How to use Snapchat marketing in 2020 as part of your social media strategy

Snapchat has seen some increase in users following a redesign that led to many users abandoning the app. Towards the end of 2019, Snapchat reported that its daily active users had increased to 210 million. [si_guide_block id="132178" title="Download our Individual Member Resource – Smarter Snapchat marketing guide" description="This guide has been written to give you a detailed introduction to Snapchat as a whole before breaking down how your business can develop a strategy for building your brand's profile. "/] Snapchat began in 2011 as a disappearing photo-sharing platform. The app saw significant growth when it first launched but is now struggling to compete with its rival, Instagram Stories. Snapchat made its mark for showing a more authentic and unpolished side of social media. According to SproutSocial, that original feeling is what keeps some of its…

Increasing competition across all industries means that customer experience is more important than ever if you want to stand out for the right reasons

Customer experience (CX) is more important than ever. With competition increasing, the digital world making it easier to make purchases and consumers less likely to be swayed by brand loyalty, CX can make all the difference between a conversion and a lost customer. This is why businesses need to look at and improve the customer experience they offer in line with current consumer expectations. Failing to do so could leave you well behind your competitors, even if your product is more advanced. To better help you understand what CX in 2020 looks like, we’ve gathered some recent statistics from customer experience research. These stats should help you benchmark your performance, better understand current consumer expectations, bear in mind where CX is going in the future and stay one step…

The must-know content marketing statistics to benchmark your plans against this year

Content marketing is still very much at the heart of digital marketing, with content continuing to be a vital tactic for bringing in traffic and encouraging conversions. However, content marketing has moved past blogs and now encompasses so much more. The industry is also more competitive than ever, with content being produced on masse, making it harder to ensure yours stands out. [si_blog_banner_cta] In order to be successful at content marketing, you need to ensure that you’re taking into account more technical aspects – such as SEO – but also that you’re effectively battling for consumers’ attention. It is this battle that has led content to change at a rapid pace, with competition leading to increased levels of innovation. This is why you need to stay on top of the latest trends and advances in the content marketing arena. With this in mind,…

There are many factors that can affect your strategy and new research is always churning up findings that you can make use of

We’ve written a lot on why you need a social media strategy and have given plenty of insights into how to create one, so you should be well versed on the benefits of a good social plan. However, there are many factors that can affect your strategy and new research is always churning up findings that you can make use of – as well as methods that you should stop using in order to see the best results. Just as with any marketing strategy, your plan for social media should be fluid, taking into account any new research, technology or platforms that come about. Sticking with a strategy that was put in place months ago and doesn’t reflect updated best practice can mean you don’t see the results or ROI…

Video is continuing to grow in popularity and importance, which means it's vital to stay on top of the latest advances and statistics in order to create a strong digital video marketing strategy

Video is a highly effective form of content and its popularity has gone hand-in-hand with the rise of social media. Despite the fact that so many of us consume online videos on a daily basis, many marketers still aren’t using video as part of their digital marketing strategy or aren’t seeing the best results. In order to inform your marketing strategy and help you get the best possible ROI from campaigns, we’ve compiled some video marketing statistics that could help you get to grips with video.

92% of marketers say it’s an important part of their marketing strategy

In 2020, 92%…

Take a look at what we believe are the key social media marketing trends for 2020 that marketers need to be aware of in order to ensure their marketing strategy is up-to-date and as effective as possible.

Social media has now become synonymous with digital marketing, going hand-in-hand with most – if not all – digital campaigns. However, social media is far from static and what worked a few months ago may not get you the same good results now. Habits change, platforms evolve, and new platforms come into existence. All of this influences how people use and react to social media marketing, as well as how marketers are able to reach their audience.

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It is more important than ever before for marketers to understand and stay ahead of the curve when it comes to social media. Doing so ensures you have the right tools at your disposal, an up-to-date strategy,…

The best digital marketing research across marketing channels - including SEO, PPC, CRO, social, mobile, martech, email, e-commerce, and UX - to help inform your 2019 marketing strategy

Because the state of digital marketing is always evolving, it is important to keep up-to-date with the latest research in your industry or marketing channel in order to stay ahead of your competition. However, it can be difficult to find the digital marketing research you need to help inform your digital strategy. We first curated these stats in 2017, but during 2018 and 2019, we've been committed to updating this article using the best digital marketing research data sources, which the team at Smart Insights have found helpful and informative throughout the year. Hopefully, this will help you too! [si_blog_banner_cta]

SEO statistics 2019

Total site visits produced by organic search…