Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

Marketers in one of the fastest-growing consumer product categories will be funding ad campaigns and promotions at a blistering pace as they fight for market share this year. Some market watchers predict that Apple and Google are dominating the smart phone market. But competitors aren’t likely to yield so quickly as many operators understand that winning market share now could generate healthy revenue streams for decades to come.

Now that more marketers are turning to digital ad campaigns, there’s pressure to stand out from the crowd. One way advertisers are doing this is through the use of more technology. In a recent Wall Street Journal article, Susan Vranica summarized some of the developments that ad agencies expect to see with respect to creative campaigning in 2012.

Technology enterprises are feeling bullish about next year and plan to increase their marketing budgets. For the most part, digital media will benefit from the increased spending. But these enterprises are signaling their intent to return to event marketing next year as well.

Smartphones and other Internet-connected mobile devices are opening whole new worlds to consumers. But these devices don’t always function as smoothly as advertised. The complex technology and array of offered services can be confusing for consumers which means telephone companies might soon be upping their service game to give themselves a competitive edge.

The typical purchasing agent in a business setting likely has little extra time to consume content about the latest technology. But as more content has become available in a variety of new formats, decision makers and influencers are noticing. A successful technology company marketing in this environment must make collateral available in several new formats to ensure that its products are getting the necessary visibility that will lead to a sale.

Earlier this year, IDC analysts predicted that technology companies would increase marketing expenditures and shift a significant amount of the effort to digital channels. Changing economic conditions have caused leading tech marketers to pull back on marketing. But the increased spending in the digital component seems to be on track.