1. Big Data

In December 2012, I stated that big data would continue to be a big buzz topic in 2012, and that has certainly been the case. I also mentioned that the biggest problem is figuring out how to use that data, and unfortunately, we haven’t made a great deal of progress in learning how to analyze data to harness its power for marketing purposes. IBM released a list of tips to better use all of that data, but most brand marketers continue to struggle. At the same time, marketing executives demand better data to calculate marketing ROI. I stated that data should be a brand marketing priority in 2013, and I stand by that statement.

2. Behavioral Targeting

In my December 2012 trend analysis for the new year, I explained that behavioral targeting would be a primary focus for brand marketers in 2013. The growth in advertising opportunities that offer behavioral targeting, including Facebook, cements this trend into the marketing landscape in 2013 and beyond. Companies that are sitting on massive amounts of behavioral data are starting to monetize it by making it available to advertisers. For example, eBay opened the doors to its customer data to advertisers in April for retargeting campaigns. You can expect to see the retargeting trend get even hotter in the coming months.

3. Mobile Marketing

There is no denying that mobile marketing is no longer just a marketing trend. It’s a cornerstone of any marketing campaign, and it will remain so as more and more consumers use mobile devices during purchase decisions. So far in 2013, CPG mobile advertising spending has tripled, and eight out of 10 brands will increase their mobile ad spending this year.

4. Social Media Marketing Budgets

In April, the value of a Facebook Like to brands was measured at $174. However, according to the State of the Social Media Marketing Industry 2013 report, many marketers still question the effectiveness of Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media sites. While many brands are increasing their social media marketing budgets in 2013, there is certainly room for additional growth in spending.

5. Multiple Screens

The growth of simultaneous multi-platform and multiple screen media viewing and content consumption leads to more media consumption overall. That’s according to research by NBC and comScore released in April, which found that the multi-screen trend doesn’t cannibalize content consumption or exposure to ads and brand messaging. Instead, multiple screens enhances and increases content consumption and leads to more opportunities for brands to get in front of consumers. The multiple screen trend presents an opportunity for brands to develop integrated multi-platform strategies to extend their reach. This is a trend that is still in its early stages and will continue to grow in importance in the latter half of 2013.

What do you think of the 2013 brand marketing trends? Share your predictions for the second half of the year in the comments below.

Image: Maxime Perron Caissy via stock.xchng

 Reviewing 2013 Brand Marketing Trends Six Months into the Year

For example, a number of years ago I was given the task of explaining executive benefits at a 7:00 AM meeting. Talk about deathly dull topics at a time of day when most people are struggling to wake up. The strategy I hit upon to liven things up enough to keep people awake was to use song lyrics to illustrate my points. I had to work at it – not many songs mention stock options or long term disability insurance – and eventually references ranged from Gershwin to 1960s Motown to Pink Floyd, but I kept the audience interested in what I was saying.

I bring this up because one of the obscure references I like to mention when I discuss the role of communications in investor relations is Sisyphus. Those of you that were blessed with a proper grounding in Greek mythology will recall that Sisyphus was the Greek King who incurred the displeasure of Zeus and was sentenced to roll a huge boulder up a steep hill, only to have the boulder roll back down to the bottom of the hill before he arrived at the summit, forcing Sisyphus to begin all over again. This ceaseless effort very concisely describes the process of communications in investor relations.

When you are communicating with investors, as they used to say in an old Nike ad, “There is no finish line”. The company is constantly moving towards its next reporting date. You are either just reporting results or getting ready to report results. The company and its strategy are continually evolving, requiring you to refresh your message. The composition of your investor base is also routinely changing as the stock is bought and sold, causing you to have to regularly educate an entirely new set of investors. In short, it never stops.

Nor should it. Good investor relations requires continual communication with investors and potential investors. The more you communicate in a transparent manner, the fewer surprises will confront investors and the less volatile your stock will be. When more information that is routinely transmitted to the Street it also means that there is less opportunity for insider trading. In short, as in economics, more is generally better until you arrive at the point of disutility. What constitutes disutility of information is a discussion for another day. For now, I will leave you to roll the rock up the hill.
 

 Investor Relations, Communications and Greek Mythology

Ben W. Heineman Jr. of the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation recently dove into the topic of building a corporate culture of integrity (which supports developing a trusted brand) and asked, “Why and how do the CEO and top business and staff leadership govern the company itself in order to create high performance with a high-integrity culture?”

Heineman suggests that building brand integrity is a core part of any CEO’s job and begins with a consistency and commitment by the CEO and leadership team to develop a company of high integrity. He calls for systems and processes to monitor integrity and ethical practices beyond what formal government regulations require. He also advises companies to offer integrity education and training to employees and to offer ways for employees to report on and give feedback related to compliance and ethical practices that are anonymous and without retribution. In fact, Ben suggests that companies develop a pay-for-performance-with-integrity bonus compensation program.

Heineman warns that the CEO must lead the charge to run a company with integrity, but the finance, human resources, legal, marketing, and other business leaders must commit to working together to, “Integrate these principles into business activities as both partners of those leaders and guardians of the company. We should never underestimate that our success in this core task depends mightily on having the right CEO with the right values, energy, and commitment truly to lead the company.”

For brand marketers, building brand trust is a top priority, but getting the CEO and leadership team to lead the charge in building a culture of business integrity that promotes brand trust can be challenging. Heineman makes a great case for creating this culture from the top down. How many CEOs will listen?

What do you think? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts on building a corporate culture of integrity that starts with the CEO and leads to increased brand trust among internal and external stakeholders.

Image: Barun Patro

 Brand Trust and Integrity Starts with the CEO

According to the survey of 180 senior executives and corporate directors from public and private companies in all major industries in Canada and the United States, senior business leaders do not understand the importance of social media to their companies. The report authors explain that there is “a disconnect between companies’ understanding of social media and the actions they are taking to apply it to their businesses.

Some of the most unsettling statistics found in the “What Do Corporate Directors and Senior Managers Know about Social Media?” include:

• 90% of respondents report that they understand the effects social media can have on their companies but only 32% monitor social media to identify risks to their companies and only 14% use social media metrics to measure company performance.
• Only 8% of directors and 24% of senior managers receive social media reports.
• 50% of companies do not collect social media information and metrics.
• 65% of respondents use social media for personal purposes.
• The majority of respondents do not have formal social media policies at their companies.
• The majority of respondents have never had a social media expert consult with their companies.

Lead author of the study, Professor David F. Larcker of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, explains that senior business leaders’ lack of understanding of the importance of social media to their companies poses a high level of risk. The study authors recommend that companies identify key performance metrics and risk indicators and monitor those metrics and threats using a listening system. Futhermore, the study authors recommend that companies develop formal social media policies and guidelines for all employees in order to minimize risks.

The challenge for brand marketers has always been trying to convince senior executives that social media should be a priority for both increasing brand awareness and sales as well as protecting the brand and company. The report found that more than two out of three business leaders use social media for personal reasons (primarily LinkedIn), so it’s clear that the majority understand social media and are not averse to it. However, the importance of social media in their personal lives doesn’t transition to the importance of social media for their companies.

Twenty years ago, those business leaders would have done anything to have such open access to consumers, competitors, and their conversations and actions. They have it today, but for some reason, it’s not a priority, and it’s given few budget dollars. It’s time for the disconnect to end, don’t you think?

Image: Sigurd Decroos

 Research Reveals Senior Business Leaders Do Not Understand Social Media

Database Trends and Applications put together the DBTA 100 list of the companies that matter most in data in 2013, and it highlights many of the companies that are learning how to harness the power of big data and make that data not just accessible but also usable for businesses and marketers.

The DBTA 100 is made up of companies that provide services or products related to data management. Joyce Wells of Database Trends and Applications explains that it has been the rapid growth of data and the need for solutions to handle that data that has led the way for information technology companies like the DBTA 100 to stand out from the rest. She writes:

Data integration is becoming more important than ever along with business intelligence solutions that can handle both structured and unstructured data,” writes Wells. “What value would any of this information hold without solutions to cleanse and deduplicate it, and the ability to keep it secure from outside hackers and internal privileged users?

The DBTA 100 includes both large and small companies offering innovative data-related technology products and services. You’ll find newer companies on the list in addition to well-known company and brand names like Amazon.com, Dell, Inc., EMC Corp., Google Inc., HP, IBM, LexisNexis, Microsoft Corp, Oracle Corp., Rackspace, SAP AP, and Teradata Corp.

Follow the link above to view the full list and read more about how Database Trends and Applications put together the list.

Are your go-to data companies for marketing-related data included on the DBTA 100 list? Which companies are missing that you think should be on the list? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.

Image: Gerard79 at www.digital-delight.ch

 100 Companies that Matter Most in Data 2013