MARKETING SILOS

MARKETINGSILOSA REPORT BY#marketingsilos

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2 3Depressingly,Still not practicing what we preach.only 21% includeHotwire conducted a survey amongst 300 senior Marketers and PRs were asked about whichmarketing decision makers, focusing on how channels they used and whether they usedthey view the modern marketing landscape and them together. It’s no surprise we’re looking forthe big issues they are grappling with today:bang for our buck and so prefer mass media to1-1 communication - online advertising and PR• Integrating activities within the departmentare the most popular channels (52% and 47%• Ensuring alignment of marketing with the respectively).businessDepressingly, only 21% include SEO in their• Tracking the ever-growing number of trends budget and just 27% mention social media asand influencers in the marketpart of their budget. It's 2015 but we’re stillacting like it’s 1995.This white paper covers the first of the threeareas and includes recommendations forDespite the variety of channels used, marketersmarketers on improving internal integration and generally admit (45.7%) that campaigns tend tocreating multi-channel campaigns.work in isolation, with different channels beingused to implement different campaigns.Multi-channel campaigns still not a realityAs an industry we’re failing to practice what weMarketers are using a variety of channels in theirpreach and instead reaching for our comfortmix, but there is more to be done when it comesblankets – preferring to do what we’ve alwaysto integrating campaigns across channels.done rather than take a risk and think big.One campaign, many channels. It’s what we readabout all the time and get lectured about atevents. But, are we actually doing it?SEO in theirbudget and just27% mentionsocial mediaas part of theirbudget – despiteit being 2015we’re still actinglike it’s 1995.21%OF MARKETING DECISIONMAKERS INCLUDE SEO INTHEIR BUDGET27%OF MARKETINGDECISION MAKERSINCLUDE SOCIAL MEDIA

4 5Only15%1 0 1 1 01 0 0 0 10 1 0 1 01 0 1 0 10 1 1 1 0of marketersview data as aproblem. Are wereally as good aswe think we are?DATA NO OBJECTBig data is not the reason for disconnected campaigns.Marketers are more comfortable with data thanyou'd expect. Negative perceptions around ourability to understand data are classic disconnectbetween thought leadership and reality. We readand write reams about how no one understandshow to use data, but the reality is it doesn’tactually worry us – just 15% of marketers viewdata as a problem.There is room for improvement in access andmanagement of data, but to marketers this issmall change compared to other issues.Are we as good as we think we are? Probablynot: if we’re struggling to connect up ourcampaigns we won’t be getting truly valuableinsights from our data.

6 7300SENIORMARKETINGDECISIONMAKERSSURVEYEDDOES EACH OF THECHANNELS YOU SPENDMONEY ON HAVE ITS OWNRELEVANT CAMPAIGN?DON'TKNOW23%NO42%YES35%WHAT ARE THE ISSUES YOU USUALLY FACE WHEN INTEGRATINGCAMPAIGNS?The campaign is not suited as multi-channel (30%)There is a lack of resources (29%)There is disconnect between teams implementing the campaigns (23%)There is uncertainty of the appropriate channels to use (21%)Timing / planning issues (20%)Too much disconnected data (15%)None - I'm not sure (18%)0%10%20%30%WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING CHANNELS IS YOUR SPEND SPLITACROSS?Online advertising (52%)PR (47%)DO YOU THINK CAMPAIGNSARE WORKING ON MULTIPLECHANNELS?DO YOU THINK YOU COULDIMPROVE YOUR CAMPAIGNRESULTS?Events (40%)Offline advertising (32%)Social channels (27%)SEO (21%)No48%Yes52%CRM (20%)0% 20% 40% 60%34.7% 35.3% 10.3% 19.7%Yes,definitelyNo, notreallyNo, notat allDon'tknow

8 9INDUSTRIES HAVE THEIR PREFERENCES – AND STICK TO THEMThe channels marketers prefer vary by industry, with someindustries showing clear biases towards key channels.It willcome as nosurprise tomost thatthere areclear biasestowards“preferred”channelsOnce we know something works and have thedata to prove it, it's human nature to apply thesame approach to your next activity, especiallyif you’re targeting a similar audience. This isreinforced by the nature of the industry you workin – we expect certain channels to be used forconsumer campaigns and a different set to beused for B2B.So, it will come as no surprise to most that thereare clear biases towards “preferred” channelsin some industries, particularly EnvironmentalServices, Utilities, Construction and Property. Allthese industries are heavily focused around asmall number of favoured channels, opting fordepth over breadth.Other sectors prefer running campaigns acrossa wider variety of channels. Two consumerfocused industries, Research and Cultural &Sports, are the most likely to plump for multichannelcampaigns. It’s worth noting here thatthis isn’t just about the breadth, but also the wayresourcing is allocated – there’s a much moreeven divide rather than a heavy focus on onechannel, with token resources pumped into theothers.If we consider specific channels, Finance,Engineering, Entertainment, Telecoms andResearch are the industries most likely to investin PR; whereas the least likely to use PR areUtilities and Marketing Consultancies (only 33%and 20% respectively include it in their budgets).What’s abundantly clear is that most industrieshave their favourites in the channels they use– based on historical trends and marketers’own experience. The challenge – particularlyfor B2B marketers – is how they explore thepossibilities offered by new channels. There’san understandable fear of the unknown andof allocating limited resources to untestedplatforms.Given these biases, it’s no surprise marketersremain concerned that there’s a silo mentalitywithin their departments. These, oftenunconscious, biases towards specific channels,paired with lower budgets may be preventingcompanies from delivering the optimalmarketing campaign.PR INCLUDED IN MARKETING BUDGET, BY SECTORTelecoms 90%Entertainment 71%Engineering 69%Gov./Public Services 67%Finance 64%Construction 56%Hospitality 55%Media/Publishing 53%Travel/Tourism 50%Transport/Distribution 46%Technology 46%Voluntary Sector 45%Retail45%Industry/Manufacturing45%Property35%Marketing20%0%20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

10 11ONLINE VISIBILTY:SEO/ONLINE ADVERTISING INCLUDED IN MARKETING BUDGET, BY SECTORGRASPED BUT NOTMASTERED100%OnlineAdvert.A massive 79% of thesenior marketing decisionmakers don't include SEOin their budget. This comesdespite the fact that onlineadvertising, much of whichis displayed through searchengines, features in overhalf of marketing budgets(52%).Marketing decision makersclearly understand theimportance of onlinevisibility, however not theway of achieving it.79%OF THOSE SURVEYEDDON'T INCLUDE SEO INTHEIR BUDGET, DESPITETHE FACT THAT ONLINEADVERTISING WAS THEMOST POPULARCHANNEL80%60%40%20%0%TechnologyPropertyTravel/TourismEntertainmentTelecomsIndustry/ManufacturingMedia/PublishingGovernment/Public ServicesEngineeringRetailConstructionSEOFinanceMarketingHospitalityVoluntary SectorTransport/DistributionSEO/ONLINE ADVERTISING INCLUDED IN MARKETING BUDGET, BY AGE GROUPSearch70%60%OnlineAdvert.TMSEOIs online visibility important?Search nowACCORDINGTO GOOGLETHERE ARE OVERONE TRILLIONSEARCHES A YEARON THEIR SEARCHENGINE50%40%30%ONE IN SIXPEOPLE ONTHE PLANETUSEGOOGLE20%10%0%SOURCES:SEARCHMETRICS, GOOGLE18-2425-34 35-44 45-54 55+

12 13WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR THEMARKETING DEPARTMENT IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS?Using new platforms41%Development of new skills39%Integrating channels36%Understanding audience and foreseeing trends32%Scaling internationally17%0% 20% 40%WHAT DO YOU THINK IS PREVENTING YOU FROM KNOWING YOURAUDIENCE BETTER?Knowing who their influencers are39%Identifying appropriate channels34%Retaining clients/knowing when to sell26%Integration/analysis of data21%None - nothing is preventing me from this20%0% 20% 40%

14 MARKETING’S CHALLENGESARE YOU MISSING OUT ON153CERTAIN CHANNELS?Companies have their tendencies to be more orWe face challenges every day – here’s five that are stressing outless multi-channel, but within these, some may bethe industry in 2015.avoiding some channels which could be applicable aspart of their mix and support the rest of activities veryusefully.ARE YOU CREATINGCAMPAIGNS WITHYOUR OWN SILOSIN MIND?1SEO-shunners are found in Finance (only 16% claimto invest in it), Technology (17%), the Voluntary Sector(9%) and, probably logically, Construction (8%). Hereis where Marketing Consultancies have their clearfavourite in terms of spend (60% allocate budget toSEO).Only a third of companies thinktheir campaigns work acrosschannels. Moreover, over athird (35%) develop a specificcampaign for each of thechannels they invest in.While this shows a clear focuson the channel, it can alsopoint to the existence of silosin the department: once acampaign has been created, itis more difficult to adjust to fitother channels if everyone hasstarted to use their budget anddeveloped parallel campaigns.2WHY AREN’T YOURCAMPAIGNS MULTI-CHANNEL?The most common challengecompanies say they face whenintegrating campaigns is thatcampaigns are not designed formultichannel (30%). Nearly thesame percentage (29%) believea lack of resources is to blameand, closely after (23%), theyclaim the difficulty to integratecampaigns is also due to thedisconnect between teamsimplementing them.54HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OFYOUR CAMPAIGNS NOWDespite 48% saying they don’t have any way toimprove the results of their campaigns, those whodo have various solutions. When asked how theythink they could improve their campaign results, 21%mentioned targeting aspects, 18% improvements inthe use of channels, and relatively less (17%) alludedto resources.ARE YOU READY FOR THE FUTURE?When asked about the challenges in the next 5 years,companies are most concerned with using new platforms(41%) followed by development of skills (39% mention this asa near future challenge) and channel integration (36%).The youngest generation of marketing decision makers are,however, thinking about campaign integration as an area thatneeds to be addressed and we agree – things are only goingto get worse and now’s the time to tackle them.

16 17ONE: Plan multi-channelCompanies should start by identifying a campaign that will resonate with the targetaudience. Once this is done – then identify and understand which channels are the rightway to deliver a campaign. If you can only think of one channel – think again, no one in themodern media landscape just consumes information from a single source.RECOMMENDATIONSSo what can we do aboutit? Here’s five points toget you started.TWO: Plan togetherEncourage teams to work together at the planning stage, so internal silos never get achance to appear. This means selecting an agency or agencies who understand how andwhen to use each channel to achieve your objectives, and be able to include any of them inyour campaigns. It also means challenging them – ask why they’ve focused on X and not Yor why they’ve not included Z.THREE: Tell a storyYour story is what makes or breaks a campaign – the channels are just how you sell it. Ifyou’re not interested in what your team or agency has to say, no one else will be. An easyway to check this – can you summarise the story in a tweet? If not, start again – if you can’tdo it, how can you expect anyone else to?FOUR: Allocate budget by needs, not by channelsDon't disregard a specific channel based on past results / individual results – ask yourselfwhat will work for this specific campaign. Past data can guide you, but it shouldn’t be theultimate decision maker. Although you will still set budget by channels, ensure you haveselected the channels based on your needs first. All teams should understand how they canbenefit from the activities on other channels or disciplines, and leverage them.FIVE:Track aggregate resultsWhen tracking results, add up the channels (cost, results) so you have a full picture of theactivity, and even at a basic level, understand the combined effect of your marketing.Ensure your agencies understand this need and can provide you with the overview of howtheir channel(s) have impacted your results.

18 19CONCLUSIONMarketers hoping for a quiet life are going to be disappointed. The future is onlygoing to get messier – new channels will demand our attention and new tech willclaim to help us make the most of them.This means we need to get savvy about understanding what really works for us –what are these tools and channels useful for and how do they integrate into ourexisting efforts.It’s time to end silos within marketing departments once and for all. Theyonly hinder us, making campaign planning and tracking more complex, andfragmenting our key messages.ABOUT THE SURVEYThe independent study, commissioned by Hotwire PR, was carried out by OnePollin May 2015 amongst 300 marketing decision makers.

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