Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

According to a new 2012 Marketing Trends survey from StrongMail, 92% of business leaders polled plan to increase or maintain marketing spend in 2012. Email marketing (60%) and social media (55%) were cited as the top two areas for increased marketing spend. The top email marketing initiatives for 2012 are increasing subscriber engagement (48%), improving segmentation and targeting (44%) and growing opt-in email lists (32%).

As 2011 comes to an end with the pace of auto sales accelerating, industry analysts expect the trend will continue in 2012. An estimated 13.6 million new cars and trucks will be sold in 2012, as many consumers still have pent-up demand for new cars. Improved selection and loosening credit conditions will also help entice buyers.

A new survey from PwC forecasts the top health care trends for 2012. Among the key issues, we’ll see value move from theory to reality, investments ramp up in informatics, and healthcare increasing its social media presence. Consumers are also becoming more comfortable with data sharing if it helps to improve the coordination of their care.

Amid an uncertain economy, restaurants are challenged on many levels. One such challenge is commodity costs, which continue to present a major problem going into 2012. However, operators’ confidence continues to be strong in the long-term as same-store sales expectations are positive across all sectors. Seven emerging trends are expected to help shape restaurant strategies in 2012, according to the foodservice research firm Technomic.

Fast-casual chains lead the restaurant industry when it comes to offering online ordering tools, according to a new study by Cornell University. Nearly half, or 48.5%, of the fast-casual chains surveyed by Cornell researchers offered online ordering, compared with 23% of chains across all segments, according to the study on online, mobile and text orderingRead the Rest…

By 2012, Gen Y consumers will account for approximately 40% of the car-buying population and represent a new breed of confident consumers who are independent, tech-savvy, engaged and demanding, according to a new survey by Deloitte.  Conducted in collaboration with The Eli Broad Graduate School of Management at Michigan State University, the survey indicates thatRead the Rest…