Stats Snapshot: IBM’s State of Marketing 2011

By Carla Rover • May 4, 2011 •

IBM’s study of online and direct marketers from major brands listed “turning data-into-action” as their number one organizational imperative.

“The market has matured,” stated Colin Shearer, IBM’s predictive analytics strategist in advance of the study’s release. “Businesses are now aware of the clear potential analytics holds for them, exemplified in numerous high-ROI cases.This technology has gone from use in innovative projects driven by line-of-business visionaries to being a competitive must-have.”

Other findings include:

57 percent report the adoption of inbound marketing methods (personalized targeting/messaging) in their web channels.

92 percent of marketers appreciate the value and importance of web data, yet half or less apply that data to customer analysis and marketing campaigns. Less than a third of those who do use web data believe that their efforts are very effective.

Social media remains the reigning champion among emerging marketing channels, leading the way with 53 percent current usage. “marketers’ enthusiasm is burning less brightly than last year,” the report states. “This suggests that we have passed the peak of inflated expectations and are focused on finding the value that social channels can yield.”