Top 3 Marketing Challenges.

The top marketing challenge for marketers is: “Acquiring a large number of new customers,” which was followed closely by “Increasing retention rates and revenues from current customers,” as “Increasing the quality and quantity of leads for field sales forces” was third.

This study of 400 top-level marketing executives was conducted by The Kern Organization, An Omnicom Agency, was released on their website http://www.thekernorg.com/2011MidYearTrendStudyResults> in traditional white paper PDF format and, simultaneously for the first time, in a video white paper format.

The study revealed that customer acquisition is the top challenge for marketers.  This result is a welcomed trend by marketers and organizations.  This trend is an indication of a return to marketing normalcy.  During the past few years following the recession, marketers have been tasked with retaining customers and increasing revenue from current customers, without being handed a budget to acquire new customers, which was deemed “too expensive” during times of extreme belt tightening.  

The research study also asked marketers about several different current trends in marketing. Ranked in order of highest agreement, they are:

• 90% say better integration of online and offline data collection and analytics is essential.
• 84% indicate that aligning sales and marketing is important.
• 53% are somewhat ready to deal with the new normal of constant change.
• 48% are now using some form of marketing automation.
• 43% allocate 25% of their total marketing spend with external agencies.

Marketing automation’s accelerated adoption was a surprising finding, with 48% reporting that marketing automation is implemented by their agencies or directly by the organizations.  This can be hypothesized as a reaction to the need for accountable data analytics, which marketing automation facilitates.  

All roads lead to data.  As complexity in marketing increases rapidly, a mega-avalanche of data is created through both marketing automation and other online and offline marketing and sales activities. The collection, aggregation, analysis and facilitation of practical usage of data require technological and human resources.  Data analysis plays an integral role in providing the transparency and visibility essential to marketing organizations for accountability to budget and to demonstrate the beneficial results of marketing initiatives.

The Kern Organization’s 2011 Mid-Year Marketing Trends Survey was conducted in July 2011, with 396 top marketing executives (CMOs, VPs, and Directors) responding from various industries.  The annual sales revenue for companies responding confirms a varied sampling, with 44% from companies below $100 million per year and 56% from companies whose annual revenue exceeded $100 million per year. 30% came from organizations whose annual sales revenues exceeded $1 billion, with 9% at $500 million to $1 billion, and 16% at $100 million to $500 million.