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| [December 03, 2012] |
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Retailers Investing More in Digital Marketing for Holidays, BDO USA Survey Finds
CHICAGO --(Business Wire)--
After being little more than a blip on the radar in 2007, social media
is now essential to marketing in the retail industry. According to a
recent BDO
USA, LLP survey, 86 percent of retail CMOs have included social
media in their marketing strategies, continuing a dramatic rise from
just four percent of retailers who did so in 2007. In a nod to its
growing importance, retail CMOs say social media accounts for 10 percent
of their holiday advertising and marketing budgets this year.
With Google (News - Alert) reporting that four out of five consumers plan to use their
mobile devices to shop this year, it's clear that mobile marketing is
becoming increasingly important. Half of the CMOs surveyed say they have
included mobile in their marketing strategy, up 39 percent from 2011,
but still showing that many retailers are playing catch up with the
platform's exponential growth.
"Over the past five years, we've seen an enormous change in the way
retailers are marketing to consumers during the holidays," says Stephen
Wyss, partner in the Retail
and Consumer Products practice at BDO
USA, LLP. "The growth in social and mobile marketing gives retailers
more opportunities to acquire and engage customers, and we expect the
returns from the holiday push in these platforms to be significant."
These findings are from the most recent edition of the BDO Retail
Compass (News - Alert) Survey of CMOs, which examined the
opinions of 100 chief marketing officers at leading retailers located
throughout the country. The retailers in the study are among the largest
in th country, including 20 retailers in the top 100 based on annual
sales revenue. The telephone survey was conducted in September and
October of 2012.
Additional findings of the 2012 BDO Retail Compass Survey of CMOs
include:
Digital channels see a bigger share of marketing dollars. While a
majority of CMOs (67 percent) say their holiday marketing and
advertising budgets are flat this year, there are notable shifts in the
way budgets are being divided. Print advertising is the top expenditure
for 42 percent of CMOs, but this year 31 percent say they will spend the
most marketing dollars online, including social media sites. This marks
a 35 percent increase in the number of CMOs giving the most resources to
online marketing and advertising over last year. Broadcast advertising
remains the top expenditure for 22 percent of CMOs, down slightly from
2011.
Big data presents a big challenge and opportunity. Retailers were
early adopters with big data, but the amount of customer data they now
have access to through in-store purchases, email, social media, and
e-commerce and mobile sales has skyrocketed. Nearly all (93 percent) of
CMOs surveyed say they find it a challenge to integrate and manage the
data, and 40 percent specify that it is "very challenging." Still, the
opportunity to use that data to provide better service and generate
revenue is clear. By looking at what products are purchased together,
and when and where they were purchased, retailers can glean insights on
optimal product assortment and timing of merchandise introduction.
Two-thirds of retailers (66 percent) say they will increase their use of
customer data for targeting efforts in the next year.
Retailers focus on Facebook (News - Alert), many exploring Pinterest. Among the
retailers who are incorporating social media into their marketing
efforts, 99 percent say they are focusing on Facebook. In addition to
engaging with consumers and sharing promotions on Facebook, more
retailers, including Brookstone and Fab.com, are now able to use the
platform for e-commerce. Retailers are also looking to capitalize on the
popularity of Pinterest, which is currently the third busiest site after
Facebook and Twitter (News - Alert), according to comScore. One in five retailers say
they are marketing on Pinterest this holiday season. Twitter also
remains a popular site for 51 percent of retailers.
CMOs pursue a variety of mobile tactics to reach shoppers. When
asked which kinds of mobile promotions they are most focused on,
retailers are divided. Flash sales and daily deals are the top priority
for 30 percent of CMOs, while 23 percent are most focused on text
messages and 20 percent on mobile coupons. Because mobile is still a new
platform for marketers, they are exploring many avenues to reach and
engage shoppers. This holiday season, retailers have been slowly rolling
out new forms of mobile engagement, including in-store GPS and apps that
provide product reviews. According to the survey, the development of
mobile apps is the primary tactic for 14 percent of CMOs, and another 14
percent cite QR codes.
The BDO Retail Compass Survey of CMOs is a national
telephone survey conducted by Market Measurement, Inc., an independent
market research consulting firm, whose executive interviewers spoke
directly to chief marketing officers using a telephone survey conducted
within a scientifically-developed, pure random sample of the nation's
retailers.
Material discussed in this release is meant to provide general
information and should not be acted on without professional advice
tailored to your firm's individual needs.
About BDO
BDO is the brand name for BDO USA, LLP, a U.S. professional services
firm providing assurance, tax, financial advisory and consulting
services to a wide range of publicly traded and privately held
companies. For more than 100 years, BDO has provided quality service
through the active involvement of experienced and committed
professionals. The firm serves clients through 45 offices and more than
400 independent alliance firm locations nationwide. As an independent
Member Firm of BDO International Limited, BDO serves multi-national
clients through a global network of 1,204 offices in 138 countries.
BDO USA, LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership, is the U.S.
member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee,
and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member
firms. BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO
Member Firms. For more information please visit:�www.bdo.com.
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