The presence of social media in a purchase path proves to drive higher value orders, in terms of revenue per order, than natural and paid search combined, according to [download page] a study released in February 2012 by ClearSaleing. Examining more than 56 billion impressions, 2.7 billion clicks, and $13 billion in revenue through an array of channels from January 1, 2010 to August 31, 2011, the study found that a conversion occurring after social media exposure delivered more than $280 per order, compared to less than $100 per order for natural search, and more than double the average order size across all digital channels, of $135.37. Read More »

57% of Americans who watch TV say they always notice advertising on the medium, while a further 40% say they sometimes notice ads, according to survey results released in February 2012 by BrandSpark International in partnership with Better Homes and Gardens. Magazines are next, with 30% of readers always noticing ads in this medium, and an additional 56% noticing them sometimes.
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Cable news networks rank as the top source of political campaign information among Americans, with 36% saying they regularly get their political campaign news from this source, ahead of local TV news (32%), network news (26%), the internet (25%), and the local paper (20%), according to [pdf] a survey released in February 2012 by the Pew Research Center. Read More »

Although roughly 3 in 4 SMBs use email marketing tactics such as organic list growth and web-based sign-up forms to generate leads, just 41% include a sign-up form on their Facebook fan pages, according to a survey released in February 2012 by GetResponse. And while a majority optimize their newsletters with clear, recognizable, branded from field names and addresses, less than half include social sharing icons in their newsletters.
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Although men and women report equal awareness of QR codes (77%), men who are aware of them are 75% more likely than women to have used one (28% vs. 16%) to access product information, according to survey results released in February 2012 by BrandSpark International, in association with Better Homes and Gardens. Looking at age groups, 18-34-year-olds (85%) display the highest awareness of QR codes, with 30% of those having used one. 35-49-year-olds are next, with 80% having heard of QR codes, and 23% of those respondents having used one.
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22% of mobile owners used their device during the Super Bowl to watch a TV ad again, while 17% searched for more information about a product they saw advertised, according to a February 2012 survey from InMobi. Users performed a number of other activities directly related to the game or commercials, including downloading a Super Bowl application (27%), discussing the game (23%), and discussing commercials (16%). Read More »

Viewers enjoy online videos they discover from a recommendation more than ones they discover through browsing, according to a white paper released in February 2012 by Unruly Media. Examining 4 social video campaigns from leading brands in 2011, the study found that 65% of viewers who watched a recommended video enjoyed it, representing a 14% increase from 57% who enjoyed a video found through browsing. Additionally, those who arrived at a video through a recommendation were 41% less likely to say they did not enjoy the video than those who found the video through browsing (7% vs. 12%). Read More »

Facebook ad budgets grew 109% month-over-month in Q4 2011, according to February 2012 data from Kenshoo, which analyzed 100 billion ads delivered on Facebook worldwide by its customers through Kenshoo Social. And while the company notes that some of the growth can be attributed to seasonality, the increase in global Facebook ad budgets compared well to search channels like Google, Bing, and Yahoo which, in aggregate, saw paid search ad budget growth of 27% globally on a quarter-over-quarter basis.
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The CPG channel was the leader in online video ad spending in 2011, according to [pdf] statistics from online ad server YuMe released in February 2012, which found that the channel accounted for 24% of spending in 2011 overall and 25% of spending in Q4 2011. Health/Pharma was the number two category in terms of ad spend in 2011, at 16%, although it challenged CPG for top billing in Q4 (23%). Other leading categories were telecom (13% in 2011, including 12% in Q4), financial services (7% in Q4 and 2011 overall), entertainment (6% in 2011, but just 3% in Q4), and retail (5% in 2011, and 6% in Q4). Read More »

75% of US organizations say that competition with social media for recipients’ time and attention is either “very challenging” or “somewhat challenging” to their future success in email, according to [download page] a report released in February 2012 by Econsultancy in partnership with the Email Experience Council of the Direct Marketing Association. Other challenges to email’s success include young people abandoning email as their primary channel (69%), getting the deserved budget and attention (65%), and integrating email with other marketing channels (61%).
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