Survey: Digital marketing spend continues to rise

Boston Digital marketing spending is on the rise despite the economic downturn, according to a recent online digital marketing and interactive advertising survey by Sapient.

During the last six months, 54% of respondents stated that marketing expectations within their organization have increased, and confidence in digital marketing remains strong, with 65% stating that their budget has stayed the same or gone up over this period. Also, 65% stated that in the current economic climate, it is easier to secure organizational “buy in” on new media/social media programs than it was one year ago.

Respondents also voiced strong agreement that new media/social media channels are becoming more critical, with a vast majority (77%) stating that they will take on a greater focus in their overall interactive strategy. 

At the same, however, results indicate that new media and social media marketing programs are failing to meet expectations. When asked which component of their current digital marketing programs is not delivering the desired results right now, the No. 1 response was social networking (21%), followed by mobile advertising (16%). When asked which component of their current digital marketing programs are performing best, only 11% stated social networking, with 33% responding search and 23% e-mail and 14% digital advertising.

“While the marketing world continues to embrace new media channels, a majority of their efforts are spent creating and launching campaigns and not devising an underlying business strategy that ensures the success of the effort,” Gaston Legorburu, executive director and worldwide creative officer, Sapient, a global interactive marketing and technology services firm. “To be impactful, social media -- like successful multichannel marketing -- requires a sound plan of attack at the foundation and then the technology and creative skills to bring the campaign to life, monitor and measure its performance at any given point in time and fine-tune it as needed.”