Digital Marketing Budgets on the Rise

A Search Engine Land article by Chris Sherman makes a prediction for the marketing landscape in 2010. The article titled, “Report: Digital Marketing Budgets to Increase in 2010,” presents a situation that may arise. However, during a recession is it truly necessary to expand the grasp of marketing, specifically digital marketing? The report was generated by Econsultancy and ExactTarget. The two entities concluded that digital marketing will account for 24% of overall marketing expenses in 2010. They also determined that 28% of marketing firms are transferring and rearranging their current marketing structure; this means that at least a portion of their overall marketing budgets will be isolated from traditional avenues and moved to more digital approaches. The conclusion was based on a survey of roughly 1,000 companies, scattered throughout the globe. Who knows, maybe digital marketing will become a social norm and transform the way we traditionally view marketing. There is no question that at the moment social media networking and the use of technology is dominating, but with all trends, they have potential to slowly fizzle and dissolve. I obviously understand the importance of marketing—marketing to some extent drives business and allows prospective clients to become aware of a product, service, organization, company or possibly even an event or speaking engagement. Without the concept of marketing being integrated into an organizational business, who knows if they could be as successful, because in a sense marketing practitioners create awareness and understanding, which generally leads to action on behalf of the consumer. Regardless of the marketing avenue that a company chooses to harness, they cannot deny the importance of marketing to their ‘best customers’. This ultimately means that the fundamental point of marketing is to locate the customers who have patterned behavior—by understanding their habits, you can create a prescription for reaching them. These are the customers who continually purchase and generally purchase a large amount of products or services at once. By limiting your primary focus to this niche collection of individuals, you will create lasting customer-loyalty that yields a quality reputation to care for your ‘best customers’. All-in-all, customers want to know that you have their backs. By engaging your customers and documenting to them that you value their business, you will transform the role, and in a sense they will have your back in the long run. Strive for the credibility with your customers—you never know the lasting implications and value it may add to your business model. Also, never under estimate your organizations’ reputation. Without an optimistic perception of your business from prospective and current clients, you can be successful, but may never create lasting loyalty. Engage your customers with centricity and hopefully maintain relationships that will go beyond a mere transaction.