Engagement is main goal for marketers: Adobe study

Both marketers and their clients most value engagement tactics in their marketing priorities, according to the “Digital Trends for 2013” study by Adobe and Econsultancy.

“Engagement equates to a strong brand tie, leading to a higher lifetime value, product loyalty and customer advocacy. But there is no standard definition or metric for engagement, nor do most organizations fully understand the migration from engagement to revenue,” the study stated.

Content marketing and conversion rate optimization were tied for the top digital marketing priorities for 2013, followed closely by social media engagement, according to the study.

Content marketing is on the ascendancy, as corroborated by multiple reports in 2013 and 2014, with 39 percent of the marketers from around the world saying it’s a top priority in 2013, compared to 29 percent saying so in 2012.

Conversion rate optimization also garnered 39 percent of the respondents’ favor in 2013, compared to 34 percent in 2012.

“More companies have come to realize that even small uplifts in conversion rates brought about by improvements in processes and technology can translate into significant financial gains,” according to the study. Social media engagement continues to be a key priority, with 38 percent of those surveyed saying so in 2013, compared to 39 percent in 2012.

Meanwhile, marketers also reckon that content marketing is also the most important marketing priority for its advertising clients, with 38 percent of the respondents saying so in 2013, compared to 21 percent in 2012. Content marketing was followed by mobile optimization  also with 38 percent of the respondents saying so in 2013, compared to 37 percent in 2012.

Social media engagement is far less important a priority for marketers’ clients, diminishing from 54 percent in 2012 to 37 percent in 2013.  Other priorities are taking precedence, including content marketing and a new category for 2013, targeting and personalization.

World Newsmedia Network has published Global Digital Media Trendbook each year since 2006. The 2014 trendbook contains 500 data sets and 230 pages of analysis about digital media usage and revenue patterns, including this data set. To download the GDMT free executive summary, go to www.wnmn.org