Advocate

SocialEmailWebsiteAppsDigital

Try

SocialEmailWebsiteAppsDigital

Discover

SocialWebsiteEmailDigitalEvents

Learn

SocialEmailWebsiteDigitalApps

Buy

WebsiteEmailSocialDigitalApps

Use

SocialEmailWebsiteEventsApps

Marketing is a (buyer) journey, not a destinationMarketers experimenting with various budget allocations across the buyer cycle

Marketing budgets are extending across the entire buyer journey making marketing is less about the funnel and more about the journey. Further more, the research found that content is not only king but leading the budget allocation charge.

Awareness to Engagement

Social is taking a big channel role across the buying cycle. Social and online channels areemerging as multi-tasker mediums across all stages of the buyer cycle.

Betting on every horse in the race?

What’s even more interesting is that marketers are planning to spend even more in the next 2 years, again, evenly across the buying stages.

Marketing is evolving, not just adding a digital channel

The research indicated strong switching and acquistion momentum towards digital capabilities, but traditional still has a part.

Marketers are testing the waters by experimenting across channels, tactics and buyer stages. In a sense, initially putting bets on every horse at the start of the race but leveraging agile approaches to reallocate their resources to the leading "horses” mid-race and increasing their chance to win the day.

WebsiteEmail

AppsSocial

57%

53%

responded their marketing budgets are expected to increase over the next 2-3 years

Traditional

Top budgeted items:Content 13%Advertising 12%Digital Online 11%Events 11%Digital Website 11%

Current program budget allocation

50%increase in spending across all of the buying stages, Discover, Learn, Try, Buy, Use, Advocate.

On average

Budgets aligned pretty evenly across cycle

Spending across buying stages

Digital Advertising

52%48%

said the main reason to experiment is the imperative to generate higher revenue.

"We need to maximize close ratios. We need to spend less in identifying deals and more in supporting the close.”

Only 20% say they experiment because of better data and technology."Yes, because we have better data on the buyer’s journey now.”

Marketing focused soley on awareness and/or the purchase funnel is obsolete.

Marketing budgets are up, due to either strategic funds or strong organic increases, butso are expectations.

Today’s CMO is focused on investing across the entire customer journey from discover, learn, try, buy, use & advocacy.

CMOs are planning to increase their spending across every stage of the buyer journey over the next two years by an average of 50%.

Generating content for use across the buyer journey is currently king, grabbing the top program budget spot. Traditional and digital media spend is almost in parity.

Marketers are experimenting a lot across buyer stages and tactics. We need new thinking. We need to challenge our mental models of what marketing needs to be in our connected and increasingly measured world. Fortunately the consumer’s journey is our guide.

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TraditionalAdvertising

TraditionalAdvertising

Research Snapshot

DISCOVER 20%

LEARN 16%

TRY 16%

BUY 21%

USE 13 %

ADVOCATE 14%

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