Nearly 1/3 of UK page views are now from Mobile and Tablets
Value: [rating=5]
Recommended link: Free comScore Digital Future in Focus Series
March 25th update:
A new update covering Europe plus individual reports on France, Germany with Spain to published shortly. Separate reports are also available on Canada and Brazil via the link above.
Research provided by comScore is one of key worldwide sources useful for marketers to help us find out about the changes in use of digital media by consumers. Unlike some of the other paid data service providers, comScore gives a good range and depth of free information, which is why we feature it in our online statistics top 10 sources search engine where we recommend checking their Press Releases page which has useful data about individual countries. comScore have a solid methodology based on consumer panels in each country and tagging of media owned and destination sites. You…
Brands owners: cut the red tape for commercial success
I recently spent a few days in and around a large global brand, a business that we've started working with and are still learning about. A business with an enviable brand reputation and standing that evokes immediate feelings of quality and luxury, of innovation and progress.
Yet I've noticed that, from a marketing and brand communications perspective, there's unfortunately great news for their competitors since there are significant, self-imposed road-blocks to focussing on marketing priorities and getting things done. The problem in short is that the corporate 'brand police' have more power than the commercial sales and marketing teams.
The learnings are too important to not share since I realise that I've encountered the same issues time and again, it's really not unique. I think these issues will be recognised by those working within brands,…
Marketing planning can be a long process. With the different steps involved, one area can often hold up another. This template is a quick way to get started as we know that companies that have a plan succeed better and faster than those without a plan.
And here’s a thing not many people know! It doesn’t matter whether it’s a marketing plan, business plan, company plan or HR plan. The key is having a plan.
A marketing plan is a little like a route map for a business. It shows where you’re headed and gives you a greater chance of achieving goals as there are built in mechanisms to measure progress.
The template laid out in this post shows you how to create your marketing plan in 7 steps. For full details on what's involved at each stage see my guide to…
A "must use" if you present to colleagues or clients explaining the adoption of digital media
IPSOS Mori has released their 'Tech Tracker Survey for first Q2013' which has some great insights into Internet Usage - 50% of British Adults access social networks, 16% using Twitter and 17% have used Google+.
If you're not based in the UK we recommend the comScore Digital Future series of reports on media usage.
Respondents were asked questions about how, when and where they use social networking sites and the internet generally. Over 1,023 adults from Great Britain, aged 15 year and older (Some statistics shown are weighted to a national representative profile). Findings from the report have been presented across key sections: Internet Usage, Social Networking, Home use, Smartphones and Tablets, Music, Games, TV and Movies and the consumption of online movies.
We…
Defining the business case for a mobile strategy
I'm sure you will know from your analytics how important mobile site visits are becoming to your business. However, those of us who live and breathe mobile see the majority of companies have been slow to build mobile into their businesses. This is shown in a survey of 250 global brands by the Chief Marketing Office Council.
Amongst companies including Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch, JP Morgan Chase and Unilever just 16% surveyed have developed a mobile strategy aimed at building customer engagement. And only 14% are happy with their mobile strategy.
On the plus side, CMOs are acting: 53% have or are dedicating a team to look at mobile and 51% are looking at how to incorporate mobile into their business through internal training and development.
Yet at the moment, the vast majority of brands have yet to optimise their sites…
6 actions you can take to keep your website relaunch project "on track"
Every marketer or business will at some stage create a website, or relaunch their website. Whether it is a small site, or an "all singing all dancing site", in my experience as a marketing manager, they all take up more time and resources than you though they would.
Having worked on a number of websites for a range of companies in various sectors, I have been there and "have the T-shirt". I have also seen peers in similar stressful situations that have the marketing team working all hours to complete the website as they look on at their ever-growing lists of other marketing tasks. To help avoid some of this stress I have distilled this experience into the new Smart Insights website relaunch project planning template. In this timeline, Dave Chaffey and I have set out all the…
Applying the Ebocube B2B Digital Marketing model for international market development
Emerging markets are countries experiencing relatively recent industrial, political and technological change resulting in rapid economic growth. Emerging markets cover more than the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), however; these countries are amongst the buoyant emerging giants.
Large populations generally characterise these markets, as is obvious with China and India. They tend to be dominated by young populations and rising middle classes.
As business revenues plateau in saturated, developed markets, expansion into emerging markets is a popular means for reaching new growth targets. Although these countries are affected by the global recession, many remain in robust growth positions. The endeavour of international business involves uncertainty and risk, however; this can be mitigated by the internet .
Bringing the Next Billion People Online
Developed countries have long defined the Internet, however, at least 500 million new users of the Internet are expected to come from emerging markets from…
Why retailers need a strategy to plan for omnichannel retail
Building an effective retail brand today needs new ways of looking at how to communicate with customers across multiple digital and traditional channels. With the growth in importance of mobile and social media touchpoints, omnichannel has displaced multichannel as the preferred term in 2013 for managing these interactions.
What is omnichannel marketing?
Omni comes from the latin for all or every. Channel refers to the method in which customers interact with an organisation. Literally it is “every-channel”.
Omnichannel is the mix of all physical and digital channels to create an innovative and unified customer experience. Transacting through these channels is a hygiene factor. If all store staff do is scan products and collect payment then they are adding no value at all. As we’re seeing at the major supermarkets they can be replaced with touchscreen terminals connected to chip and pin devices. The experience…
5 time-saving tips to make your social media activities more efficient
Social media can be perceived to be time-consuming given its returns and we can all have limited resources to manage our social media platforms. I hope my 5 tips give you some ideas to make your use of social media more efficient and effective. Please share your approaches in the comments.
1. Define a clear social media strategy
Being active on social media does not require you to activate 20 different accounts across various platforms. If you are just getting started or have not ventured much beyond Facebook and Twitter, venture slowly and give yourself time to develop the best practices on each of your chosen core platforms.
To start, take the time to:
Focus on 3 or 4 relevant platforms where you know your customers or key influencers are engaging.
Create a spreadsheet of all the accounts, complete with the usernames and…
The key developments in digital marketing in February 2013
It’s not every month a new currency is launched. In February Amazon announced a new virtual currency called Amazon Coins (a genius moniker) and an interesting promotion where customers will be given money (virtual). Watch out from May onwards. Some are calling it the Bank of Jeff…
Image credit: Mashable
Strategy and planning
Did you notice the emergence of the term “growth hacking” for describing a “new” marketing approach in 2012 and continuing into the start of 2013? I initially dismissed it as a fad most relevant for SaaS (Software as a Service) / single product startup businesses. But recently, I’ve noticed some new job descriptions in this area which prompted me to take another look. In particular, I noticed that The Guardian is currently advertising for a Head of Growth Hacking…
