Only a quarter of B2B brands have a formal, integrated digital strategy but those businesses who do are thriving, says new research- When in place, an integrated approach more than triples confidence in the effectiveness of communications ( from 11% to 35%) and boosts confidence in reported ROI to 52%.
- 88% of marketers believe they should lead the digital strategy, but only 23% of respondents from other departments agree
- Marketing, more than any other department, recognises the benefit of an integrated digital strategy, with 94% saying it is “important” and 56% saying it’s “crucial”
- A fifth (20%) of “strategists” say social media is crucial, compared to 18% for informally joined-up and 9% for those without a joined-up approach
The full research can be downloaded at: www.omobono.com/www2015
Omobono, the digital agency for business brands, has revealed the results of its 2015 survey, What Works Where in B2B Digital Marketing, which it has run for the last five years. Entitled The Recipe for Digital Success, this latest research uncovers that notably few companies have an integrated digital strategy and that, surprisingly, even those that do are not turning to marketing to lead that process.
Better ROI than their peers
Businesses with a formal, integrated digital strategy are the most successful and confident, achieving a significantly better ROI than their peers, who have either an informal, joined-up strategy or no joined-up approach at all. These businesses also share other key behaviours: they target customers more frequently; they use a wide array of channels, but have a greater focus on innovative channels such as social media and mobile; and they use more metrics to measure ROI (6.3 metrics vs. 5.7 for informal but joined-up and 5.5 for those without an integrated approach).
These “Strategists” also use vastly different metrics, with a focus on brand awareness and brand perception, rather than traditional sales-related metrics such as conversion rates, sales pipeline and lead generation. This could suggest an ingredient of success in marketing is a focus on more qualitative measures rather than quantitative ones.
Accuracy of this measurement
The research also suggests that the challenge to effectively measure ROI continues. More marketers (71%) measure ROI than any other department, but they are the least confident in the accuracy of this measurement (only 23% are confident in the ROI figure calculated) and only 13% of marketers believe their communications are very effective. This gap could be due to the fact marketers are most aware of the constantly-changing and complex business environment, which makes ROI difficult to measure and means new measurement tools are continually launching.
The benefits of an integrated approach are widely recognised, with ‘delivering a better customer experience’ at the top of the list with 64% of respondents agreeing. Operational efficiencies and a stronger brand message were also benefits.
There is also a clear belief that an integrated approach to digital communications is hampered by the lack of a clear leader. Marketing strongly believe they should take this role (88%), although other departments are less clear about who should. Only 23% of other departments believe Marketing should lead for example.
Francesca Brosan, Chairman, commented on the findings: “Digital has transformed the face of marketing, making communications a part of every department’s remit today. However, savvy strategic marketers are leveraging their knowledge of how the media landscape is rapidly evolving and using it to align their organisations behind a single-minded, cohesive digital push.
“While marketers clearly have the skills to master the emerging media, this research shows that they need to realise that internal communications are as important as external and they must put more effort into communicating their learnings and expertise with their colleagues. This will not only improve collaboration and results but it will – crucially – improve the perception of marketers beyond the marketing department too. These results underline the need for marketing to be better understood internally so that organisations fully appreciate the value and complexity of modern marketing.”
The full research can be downloaded at: www.omobono.com/www2015
Hurrah! @Franbrosan wowing the crowds at #BMA15 but also, regrettably, making everyone a bit peckish. Sorry everyone! pic.twitter.com/10iX5ChRTz
— Omobono (@omobono_digital) May 27, 2015