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The glamorous, Madison Avenue days of whiskey and women as inspiration are long gone. Marketing and Advertising have evolved from a creative, art-form presented in Mad Men to an analytic, data-driven, science in a digital world.
Unlike the ’60s, there are so many more channels in which data gets piled into. To succeed in 2020 and beyond, marketing teams require creative minds to have quantitative skills. Keeping track of the latest trends and always anticipating change is key.
For this reason, we have compiled a list of 20 marketing facts and statistics you need to know to navigate the marketing world in 2020.
The World Belongs to the Internet
1) The Internet Was the Fastest Growing U.S. Ad Medium in 2015, Showing an 18.2% Growth Spurt
In case you haven’t heard, the world is run by the internet. Ad Age recently published its annual Marketing Fact Pack, which served to remind us that the internet’s influence is only increasing. Its continued accessibility throughout the globe has changed the way we live and will continue to do so in unpredictable ways. Your finding and reading this post proves my point.
As the Digital Age Progresses, the Consumer’s Attention Span Shrinks
As much good as the internet has done by uniting the world and providing any kind of information our hearts desire, it has also reduced our attention span.
2) Consumer’s Average Attention Span Is 8 Seconds – 1 Second Less than a Goldfish — Dropping 4 Seconds Since 2000
Yes. According to a study by Microsoft, a goldfish has an attention span longer than you and I. This makes perfect sense considering how many millions of outside stimuli our minds have to sift through every day. In order to make sense of our digitalized lifestyle our minds skim information, instead of processing it thoroughly.
4) Depending on the product, up to 83% of Consumers Visit a Company’s or Service Provider’s Website Before Making a Purchase
According to an article by M&R Marketing Group, if someone does not enjoy their experience of your website, you will not establish brand reliability with them.
3) On a Positive Note, the Same Study Also States Our Ability to Multitask Has Increased Substantially
All of this is our brain’s way of adapting to the digital age. Now congratulate yourself for paying attention this far in the post!
Your Website Has to Impress from the Get-Go
This decrease in attention span only makes it much harder now to reach consumers, so it is crucial that your website be 100% user friendly.
5) It Takes About 50 Milliseconds (That’s 0.05 Seconds) for Users to Form an Opinion About Your Website
An article by Conversion XL compiled an array of studies on user behavior. Their findings reveal the importance of hooking users from when they first enter. The more people enjoy their time on your website, the longer they stick around, and thus, the more likely they will buy what you’re selling.
6) 94% of User’s First Impressions Is Linked to Website Design, Specifically Visual Appeal, and Easy Navigation
Of course, good looks can only get you so far. Quality content is still very important. But even if you are a magnificent marketeer, no one will take you seriously if you show up to a job interview in crocs and a trucker hat. In other words, even the best content is discarded if presented poorly. In 2016, this implies optimizing it for mobile use as well.
7) Today, 1.2 Billion People Are Accessing the Web from Mobile Devices
According to Mobify, if people are online, they are most likely on their phones. A shift towards mobile and away from desktop has started and will progress into 2016.
Go Mobile or Go Home
Forget mobile-friendly, now brands need to transition their strategies to mobile-optimized. This means consumers now expect the same experience on their mobile as on a desktop, instead of a reduced one compared to a desktop.
8) 63% of women and 73% of Men Ages 18-34 Say They Don’t Go an Hour Without Checking Their Phones
Lookout conducted a study on today’s “Mobile Mindset”, or the way we interact with phones. Their findings confirmed what we feared… Smartphones, especially for younger people, have essentially become a body part. We are addicted.
9) Smartphones Are Expected to Reach 90% Market Penetration in the US and the UK by 2016
Nowadays, we do just about anything on our phones. You name it, there’s an app for that. An article published by Marketing Land further asserts mobile domination. It states that the mobile market will continue to increase and so will the use of these devices to make purchases. Soon, we will make mobile shopping the norm. Why? Because we can.
10) Mobile Commerce Is Increasing 300 Times Faster than E-Commerce and Is Expected to Show Growth of 42% Between 2013 and 2016
Consumers are buying what they want when they want. People can look for better prices, product reviews, and coupons all while they are physically on-the-go and sometimes 3G is faster than home WIFI. All of this is resulting in a substantial boost in mobile purchasing.
Content Marketing – for the Individual, Not the Masses
11) Content Marketing Only Accounts for 1-9% of a Company’s’ Total Marketing Budget
According to AdAge, not enough brands are emphasizing content marketing. This is a problem. As the following statistics will show you, content marketing has become essential to reach and retain brand followers.
12) 78% of CMOs Think Custom Content Is the Future of Marketing
According to Upland, a majority of Chief Marketing Officers agree consumers now look for more personalized stimuli. This means focusing on quality rather than quantity. Content marketing does just that.
13) 51% of Companies Report That Leads from Content Marketing Are of Higher Quality
Aberdeen Group released a report highlighting the importance of content marketing in attracting users that are more likely to stick around. This type of marketing allows people to better grasp the personality of your brand, so they can decide more carefully if they relate to it. One way to do this is by creating a blog.
14) Brands That Create 15 Blog Posts per Month Average 1,200 New Leads per Month
Hubspot‘s annual marketing study reports the benefits of good content. Blogs give brands a human element, which is what consumers want. In 2016, being genuine is cool. A market saturated by information requires brands to focus on what captures people’s attention. To achieve this, another trending option is video marketing.
15) 52% of marketing professionals worldwide named video as the type of content with the best ROI
Hubspot released an infographic highlighting the effectiveness of video marketing. Brands are able to tell a story with more impact and thus, optimize results.
16) By 2020, Online Video Will Make up Nearly 70% of Consumer Internet Traffic
Cisco released a forecast report last year that predicted a substantial increase in video marketing for the next couple of years. Social media platforms are catching on to this wave.
17) “Most of Facebook Will Soon Be Video. Twitter Is Launching Twitter Video, Periscope, and Vine. Snapchat, Instagram, Tumblr, Etc. Have All Prioritized Video”
Founder of EpicSignal, Brendan Gahan, predicts an already evident increase in videos on social media channels. These platforms are aware that if they cease to be relevant, users will quickly move on to the next big thing. In an effort to be ahead of the game, brands are constantly trying to improve this experience with innovation, like virtual reality and 360 videos.
To mark the release of its 360 video feature availability for mobile devices, Mark Zuckerberg posted on Facebook, “Check out this 360 video of surfing in Tahiti shot by our friends at GoPro. I love these new 360 videos on Facebook — they feel so much more immersive”. Facebook is the second major tech company to launch 360-degree video support after YouTube introduced it in March.
We will probably be seeing more of this technology into the year. The trick is keeping your eyes open for social trends, ensuring your content is relevant and strategically timing its release.
Use Social Media to Pick Your People
Budgets are doubling for social media strategies and with good reason.
18) Social Media Sites and Blogs Reach 8 out of 10 of All U.S. Internet Users
According to a compilation of statistics released by Salesforce, social media can provide brands an extensive reach of users. However, you can’t just throw content at every one of them. Depending on who you want to reach, defining in which platform to distribute your brand is crucial.
Social Media platforms are much more evolved now. Different platforms are more popular with specific audiences. It’s important to remain relevant to those you want to reach, which means targeting the right segments. How can you use this to your advantage? Two words: Audience Targeting.
19) The Share of Internet Users with College Educations Using LinkedIn Reached 50%
For example, according to the Pew Research Center, depending on what you’re selling, you can reach college-educated women through LinkedIn or Pinterest. With LinkedIn, meeting HR needs is right at your fingertips with hundreds of relevant prospects just a click away.
For large and small business owners alike, networking is central to success. In a community looking to enrich their professional knowledge, blogging relevant content about your industry will reach millions of potential consumers or business partners.
20) 42% of Online Women Use Pinterest, Compared with 13% of Online Men
For Pinterest, think visual. By presenting content in a neatly packaged design, for example, an infograph, not only will it reach its intended audience, but it will attract more just for its appealing design. Marketers need to figure out where their audience is and tailor their strategies accordingly.
Don Does Know a Thing or Two
So, what’s it gonna be? Remain stagnant or roll with the punches?
This may not be a fact backed by analytical data, but if you want to succeed, adaptation is not an option – it is a fundamental MUST. I will leave you with a quote by Don Draper that more eloquently embodies what I mean, “Change is neither good nor bad. It simply is”. Perhaps we can learn a thing or two from Mr. Draper, after all.
