The continuous evolution of both marketing technology and the consumer landscape can be confusing for many brands, especially when trying to stay ahead of the curve. From multimedia marketing and the metaverse to cross-site tracking and user data policies, navigating the ups and downs of engaging, acquiring, and retaining customers isn’t an easy path. Brands need first-party data and industry-wide insights to bring clarity to their business decisions and drive their marketing strategies. What important statistics about data-driven marketing tactics do companies need to know about?

In a recent Nielsen report, survey respondents from companies of all sizes unanimously agreed that first-party data was the most important type of data for driving their organization’s marketing tactics. First-party data is especially beneficial for developing personalization and targeting strategies, as it secures exclusive ownership and user privacy, reduces costs and barriers, and increases accuracy and reliability. Approximately 82% of senior marketers feel strongly about increasing their use of first-party data over the next year.

According to a 2018 Gartner Research survey, every 3 out of 4 marketing leaders base their decisions on data and analytics. Data gives brands better insights into their performance, their audience, and their industry. Without the right data, companies wouldn’t be able to identify and acquire leads, engage and retain consumers, define and refine the buyer’s journey, or drive sales and customer loyalty. Currently, 87% of marketers say data is their company’s most under-utilized asset, with 40% planning to increase their data-driven marketing budget in the near future.

In today’s fast-paced world, having a quality product or service isn’t enough - around 32% of American consumers claim they would stop doing business with a brand they loved after just one bad experience. On the other hand, 61% of people want brand experiences based on their own interests and preferences, with approximately 85% of marketers believing that consumers expect personalization in exchange for their loyalty. Companies need to prioritize data collection to drive personalization strategies and foster long-term user retention.

Search engine optimization is key to getting the right information in front of the right people. About 53% of shoppers always research a product before purchasing so they can make the best possible choice. People look for blog articles, demo videos, and user reviews to compare and contrast, meaning brands need to prioritize quality products and services, quality marketing content, and quality strategies for SEO.

According to the Content Marketing Insititute, about 86% of marketers increase brand awareness using one or more digital marketing channels, with websites ranking second only to social networks. However, despite the importance of social media, SEO actually drives 1,000%+ more traffic, with over 92% of global traffic originating from Google Search, Google Images, and Google Maps alone. Companies should focus on SEO to increase their reach and drive more conversions.

Mobile web traffic has consistently accounted for about half of all global web traffic since 2017, stressing the importance of optimization and responsiveness across all devices. However, according to HubSpot, only 25% of companies see mobile optimization as one of their most important SEO tactics. Companies need to ensure that mobile users can successfully navigate their website without running into accessibility issues, misplaced elements, or slow loading speeds.

The global email marketing market is expected to grow to $17.9 billion by 2027, with over 306 billion emails being sent and received every day. According to Statista, approximately 61% of customers prefer brands to contact them via email over other marketing channels like social media, while 4 out of 5 marketers would rather give up social media than email. Both companies and consumers see email marketing as a worthwhile investment.

About 92% of adults use email, with 99% of email users checking their inbox on a daily basis. Not only do 58% of people read their emails first thing in the morning, but they also constantly check throughout the day, especially while doing other things like watching TV or getting ready for bed. Emails are an integral part of people’s everyday lives, giving brands the perfect opportunity to connect with their customers.

Email personalization can deliver an 8x improvement on clickthrough rates and as much as a 760% increase in revenue. Personalized emails can be based on customer segments, such as location and age group, or individual user data, such as personal interests and product preferences. About 52% of consumers would go elsewhere if they received a generic email, meaning brands need to prioritize using custom subject lines, email content, and calls-to-action.

Pay-per-click advertising puts brands directly in front of users, which can be especially helpful for retargeting strategies. Paid advertising can increase brand awareness by as much as 80% and result in up to 200% ROI. Currently, Google owns approximately 92% of the global search market share, emphasizing the importance of the Google Display Network.

People are exposed to anywhere from 4,000 to 10,000 ads per day, making it harder and harder for advertisers to stand out from the crowd. Still, about 63% of people have clicked on at least one Google ad, with over 50% of ad clicks occurring on mobile devices. Paid advertising also generates twice the number of visitors when compared to SEO, which can be ideal for new businesses or existing companies looking to expand their reach.

While fewer people used adblockers in 2020 (41%) than in 2016 (52%), people are still wary of giving brands access to their online history, making it harder for marketers to create effective advertising and retargeting strategies. Additionally, over 527 million people are using mobile browsers that block ads by default. While paid advertising still plays a key role in digital marketing, brands should also invest in other tactics to diversify their approach.

Social media is the perfect tool for increasing awareness and shaping a brand’s voice and values, whether through photos, videos, interactive posts, or user-generated content. Global social media ad revenue is expected to reach $252 billion by 2026. However, brands need to stay up-to-date on user privacy policies - around 52% of consumers look at how platforms protect their data before deciding whether to interact with their ads and sponsored content.

As of 2021, there are over 2 billion users on YouTube, 1.8 billion daily active users (DAUs) on Facebook, and over 500 million DAUs on Instagram, in addition to 774 million users on LinkedIn, 459 million users on Pinterest, and over 300 million users on Twitter and Snapchat. TikTok is expected to reach 1.5 billion users by the end of 2022, with an average of 650,000 new users per day. Other popular social platforms include WhatsApp, WeChat, Douyin, and Weibo, many of which are especially important for brands who operate in Asia.

Social listening is the practice of monitoring online spaces for conversations about your brand and your industry. It helps marketers identify opportunities and threats and measure their brand sentiment. Social listening can also help improve a brand’s reputation - over 80% of Tweets about customer service are negative, but answering complaints on social media can increase customer advocacy by as much as 25%. With social listening, brands can stay on top of the conversation.

About 82% of marketers actively use content marketing, with 88% of the most successful ones prioritizing audience information over sales messages. Content marketing can include anything from blog articles, social posts, and e-books to infographics, podcasts, and videos. 51% of businesses who create content publish something new every day, while 72% of North America’s most successful marketers consistently measure the ROI of their content marketing efforts.

Companies use blog articles to demonstrate their products and services, showcase their expertise, and create a brand voice. Marketers who prioritize blogging are 13x more likely to have a positive ROI, with ​​57% of them gaining customers through articles. Blogs are especially important for B2B companies, as those who have them get 67% more leads than those who don’t. Despite their proven effectiveness, only 48% of companies with content marketing strategies have a blog.

Video is the second most-used type of content for increasing brand engagement. 96% of consumers have watched at least one video about a product or service, while viewers are twice as likely to purchase something that they saw on YouTube. Marketing videos like presentations, tutorials, explainers, and testimonials help brands demonstrate their products and values in an easily digestible format that can be shared across multiple plaforms. Currently, about 86% of marketers use video as a marketing tool, compared to just 41% in 2016.

Text messaging is becoming an increasingly popular way to reach and connect with consumers. Currently, 84% of customers already receive text messages from brands about their products, sales, and offers, with 64% wanting businesses to text them more often. SMS marketing also has impressive open and engagement rates - over 65% of Americans check their phones every 9 minutes, with an average SMS response time of just 90 seconds.

Statista estimates that there will be over 4.3 billion smartphone users by 2023, who are projected to spend up to 227 minutes on mobile apps per day. The most popular types of apps are social and communication apps like Facebook and TikTok, followed by gaming and entertainment apps like Among Us and Disney+. Marketers can engage with their audiences through in-app advertising, including banners, pop-ups, videos, and native ads. Global mobile advertising spend is projected to surpass $240 billion by the end of 2022.

Audio marketing is also on the rise, whether through podcast and streaming service ads or on social audio platforms like Clubhouse, Twitter Spaces, and Spotify Greenroom. Almost half of streaming audio listeners claim that audio advertisements aren’t as disruptive as other types of ads, with 91% of people listening to them in their entirety. Companies can take advantage by running audio ads, starting live audio conversations, or even creating their own podcast.

Chatbots use artificial intelligence and natural language processing (NLP) to assist brands with their conversational marketing efforts and capture user data through platforms like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and WeChat. Consumers can book appointments, find deals, and make purchases without waiting to talk to a real person. Global consumer spend via chatbot is expected to reach $142 billion by 2024, compared to just $2.8 billion in 2019.

Companies use virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to create immersive brand experiences like product demonstrations, virtual try-ons, and three-dimensional environments. One of the biggest emerging technologies of today, especially in the global marketing space, is the metaverse, where companies create virtual worlds for consumers to explore. The global VR and AR market is estimated to reach $300 billion USD by 2024.

Gamification is the practice of using game mechanics like points, rewards, and leaderboards in a non-gaming context. Game mechanics have become especially popular in education, fitness, finance, and marketing, as they drive engagement, retention, and data collection efforts at the same time. Consumers are more than willing to provide their personal information to play games and win prizes in return. The global gamification market is expected to reach $30.7 billion by 2025.

Capture and monetize consumer insights for your data-driven marketing strategies

Companies need both industry-wide insights and user first-party data to develop effective tactics for development and growth. Data should be at the forefront of every brand’s business decisions and marketing strategies, as it helps reduce risks, improve relevancy, and drive awareness, engagement, and sales. Whether you’re looking to build a one-off shopper promotion or a long-term loyalty program, data is critical for making the right choices at the right time for the best possible results.

With 3 tier logic’s PLATFORM³, brands can create marketing campaigns like loyalty programs, sweepstakes, SMS promotions, and more to increase brand engagement and capture consumer first-party data. Modules like Dynamic Messaging, Rewards & Gamification, and Data Capture & Analytics provide marketers with the tools they need to inform their decisions for continuous business development and growth. To learn more, book a demo with our team today.