Spirus writes:
Many people have doubts about investing in digital campaigns. Although most businesses understand that getting the basics right and having a polished website is important, not everyone will happily invest in email campaigns or social media.
We know it has its place in B2B marketing and in an attempt to convince you, we have gathered some official statistics about the latest trends in digital media:
- Smartphones and tablets proliferate across the UK. The Office of National Statistics (ONS, 2014) states that the access to the Internet through mobile phone more than doubled between 2010 and 2013, from 24% to 53%. (So if you don’t have a mobile website, wave goodbye to more than half your potential customers!)
- According to research by the ONS, in 2013, 73% of people in the UK used the Internet every day. Online search is also used in B2B buyers’ research to help make purchase decisions (Guardian, 2014).
- The consumers' media usage is changing. People are expected to spend more time with digital media in 2014 (laptops, tablets and mobile phones) than TV (Marketing Week, 2014). Research also found that the average UK adult will spend more than 3 hours and 41 minutes per day online.
- According to B2B International (2014), marketing campaigns utilising traditional channels will continue to decline as B2B marketers continue to redirect their funds towards digital channels. By 2017, over 50% of B2B marketing spend will be allocated to these channels.
- Search engine results are crucial for building brand awareness among B2B buyers: 83% of them go online to find their supplier and 51% of them start their online search by going to search engines. Out of those, 77% use Google.
- Internet usage is becoming more widespread and the infrastructure is being improved. In the UK, 83% of households had Internet access in 2013, up from 82% in 2012. Broadband internet connections using fibre optic or cable were used by 42% of households, up from 30% in 2012 (ONS, 2014), which of course means a faster and more reliable operation.
- Due to faster internet and the proliferation of mobile devices, digital marketing expenditure is increasing, “particularly across mobile and social media platforms, with this particular sector of the B2B marketing industry observing year-on-year double-digit growth between 2009 and 2013” (Business Wire, 2014).
The way in which brands communicate with their audience has changed dramatically over the past few years. You can see that digital marketing will ensure that every point of contact or interaction between you and your customer will be covered.
Social media campaigns do not need to cost the earth and should run in conjunction with other marketing activities. Read our post next week to find out more about the examples of digital media campaigns.
If you want to learn about measuring ROI of digital campaigns read our article here or get in touch to hear our ideas for promoting your business through digital channels.
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