Advertisers could be missing out on small fortunes by failing to embrace the integration of campaigns across channels and devices.
That’s according to a new survey of over 300 digital marketers across the US and UK. Conducted by Marin Software, the study found that just 27% of professionals describe the connection of marketing activity between channels such as paid search, content, SEO and display as “totally integrated”.
Marin Software argues that segregating campaigns across channels and devices is a throwback to a bygone era, and that modern-day marketing requires these to be running in tandem with each other.
The “old model”
The survey found issues with integration flooding across to the most basic of levels, as a mere 24% of marketers were found to have integrated their digital campaigns with offline activity, such as TV and billboard advertising.
While coherent and consistent messaging across campaigns may solve part of the issue, notes from the study also highlighted a need for a greater transparency of data across disciplines, with 50% of the group citing this as a key challenge.
Matt Ackley, chief marketing officer and senior vice president of product at Marin Software, believes marketers that can make good use of data to power their campaigns are more likely to gain greater ROI.
“Advertisers that are not integrating their campaigns across channels and devices are leaving money on the table,” he commented.
“The old model of each discipline operating within its own silo is counter to how people shop and consume media.”
Marin Software also discovered that the last 12 months have been a huge learning curve for marketers across the US and UK. Of the digital marketing managers surveyed, 75% said their jobs had become more complicated over 2014, with attribution representing a key challenge.