Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

It will come as no surprise to industry watchers that most marketers intend to increase spending on search engine marketing technology in 2012. But these marketers have something new to grapple with this year – the inclusion of social data into the search process. More marketers are also looking for tools and technology to help them manage search on an international basis.

Ever since marketers started paying for advertising, they’ve wanted to know if it’s working. Marketers who write the checks for digital campaigns want accountability from the media space providers, too. Defining and measuring ROI has been difficult until now but vendors are rolling out new tools designed to make a difference.

Consumer goods companies continue to pour money into trade promotion to boost sales. The typical company spends between 11% and 30% on the effort. These budgets are divided between trade marketing and consumer marketing. In 2012, the latest research suggests that consumer goods companies will increase their digital consumer promotions significantly. Many of these promotionsRead the Rest…

From the beginning, marketers have used the Internet for direct response advertising. But will this format deliver returns on branding campaigns? Many marketers plan to shift some of their online budgets to branding this year but they’d like to see improved metrics to measure their ROI on this effort.

Nonprofit organizations can be forgiven if they don’t make marketing a top priority. Many of these entities are focused on delivering goods and services to their constituents and profit isn’t part of the game plan. But in a challenging economic climate, nonprofits might find themselves competing for donations and clients. Developing and executing a good marketing strategy could lead to improved operations for these enterprises.

Consumers are now carrying around smartphones, tablets and laptops. Marketers may be wondering about the best way to optimize their ads on mobile devices to reach their target audiences. New research shows that consumers are turning to these devices for different purposes and as a result, marketers may need to adjust their ad strategy.