How to boost our confidence

The latest Bellwether report shows marketers are taking a more “cautious approach to marketing expenditure”, with a decrease in marketing budgets for the second consecutive quarter. As another sign of faltering confidence in the industry, it’s important for marketers to take stock of their campaigns and ensure their budget is spent wisely and their campaigns are nurtured.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of using only traditional marketing methods due to a strict company policy, or hopping onto the latest social media bandwagon, but each marketing strategy should have one constant focus: the customer.

More than ever, consumers have a choice when it comes to how they interact with brands from the products and services they favour most, to the personal information they choose to share. Marketers must honour their customers’ unique preferences, by focusing marketing efforts through a channel they know their customers prefer and respond well to; leaving marketers confident in knowing that they aren’t wasting financial resources on sending emails or posting status updates that will largely go unread.

In addition to focusing your strategy on individual consumer behaviour, it’s important to look at the bigger picture. Some marketers continue to store customer data in separate, siloed locations when the could use the data obtained through each marketing channel to create one, complete picture. This way, they can be more strategic and more able to streamline campaigns; saving both time and money.

Nigel Arthur
Managing director, ExactTarget UK