2017 Channel Report - Sights Set High - Marketers Plan to Differentiate with Innovation

The 2017
Yes Lifecycle Marketing
Channel Report
Sights Set High: Marketers Plan to
Differentiate with Innovation in 2017
Executive Summary
As long as customers continue to shop online, cross-channel marketing
will increase in importance. Because consumers value product updates
(especially customized ones), coupons and relevant tips, email marketing
will remain an effective channel through which brands communicate
with customers and drive sales. But as mobile commerce becomes the
norm, marketers will need to implement new strategies to differentiate
themselves not only in customer inboxes, but also online, in order to
remain competitive.
Marketers have their sights set high for 2017, according to a survey
conducted by Yes Lifecycle Marketing of more than 300 brands
online and in-person at the National Retail Federations’ Shop.org
Digital Summit in September and October of 2016. Survey takers,
the majority of whom were retailers, plan to incorporate innovative
tactics like dynamic offers, user-generated content and cross-channel
initiatives to gain a competitive edge. They also plan on investing in
the technologies to power those tactics.
The following report outlines the survey findings in detail and
offers takeaways for marketers to consider in their efforts to drive
engagement and conversions in 2017 and beyond.
pg. 1

Please rank your top three most important marketing goals for
2017 with #1 being the most important:
Priority #1 Priority #2 Priority #3
Increase sales
34.7% | 13.7% | 6.3%
Improve customer
engagement
18.7% | 16.7% | 15.4%
Improve customer acquisition
12.3% | 14.3% | 17.5%
Improve customer retention
11.3% | 15.7% | 9.8%
Build a better understanding
of the customer
8.3% | 11.6% | 12.3%
Improve profitability / margin
7.3% | 6.8% | 8.8%
10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
As with most marketers, “increase sales” should be, and is, the #1
priority. Supporting this goal is always the challenge, and what keeps
marketers up at night.
Responses from those surveyed suggest that, at the very least,
marketers know what they must do in order to get there, even though,
in many cases, they acknowledge they are not there yet.
For example, the majority of survey takers admitted that their
personalization efforts are weak; but they do know what they need to
do to make this a priority in order to better serve their audiences in
2017. While some brands do not yet use web browsing or purchase
history data to customize offers, many are looking to incorporate more
advanced tactics like cross-channel or dynamic offers to improve
relevancy. Brands will look to marketing technology and service
providers to help get them on the right path through an emphasis on
technology innovation and analytic services.
Improve cross-channel
effectiveness
3.7% | 12.6% | 11.2%
Improve internal efficiency
2.0% | 4.8% | 12.6%
Reduce marketing costs
1.0% | 3.8% | 6.0%
None of these
0.7% | 0.0% | 0.0%
pg. 2

Key Findings
• Brands will invest in cross-channel initiatives to improve upon
existing tactics:
Forty percent say they will implement cross-channel attribution
initiatives in 2017, and 38 percent plan to implement test tools for
channel and content.
Your Offer Inside!
• Brands will differentiate themselves with more sophisticated
marketing techniques:
Thirty-eight percent say that while they’re not using usergenerated
content currently, they’d like to do so in the next year.
• Marketers know their personalization efforts are weak and see
value in improvement:
Forty-nine percent say they feel their communication efforts are
one-size-fits-all and 68 percent say they wish they could improve
these efforts in 2017.
• Brands are turning to marketing service providers and
technology for innovation:
According to survey takers, technology innovation is the most
important area when selecting a cross-channel marketing service
provider, followed by analytic services.
Your Offer Inside!
• Marketers consider virtual reality a luxury, not a necessity: Fiftyseven
percent believe that virtual reality does not apply to their
organizations, and 55 percent say the same about augmented
reality.
• Marketers see value in marketing investments:
Only one in ten cite reducing marketing costs as a priority
for 2017.
pg. 3

Which of the following channels will receive an increase in
attention/budget from you/your marketing team in 2017?
Email
Social
Display
SMS
Direct Mail
Push
Telemarketing
Mobile Wallet
Email
18%
17%
15%
8%
7%
37%
54%
What cross-channel initiatives are you looking to
implement in 2017?
68%
Cross-channel attribution 40%
Test tools for channel and content
Data-fed, consistent view of
the customer
35%
Integrated automated offer optimization 33%
Contextual content management 30%
Self-service audience segmenation 28%
Alternative, targeted acquisition 26%
Competitive interaction reporting 17%
38%
Marketers plan to integrate channels to
improve the customer experience and drive
sales in 2017
Marketers want to improve customer engagement and increase sales
in 2017. They will continue to utilize proven marketing channels such
as email and social media to achieve this goal. However, many plan to
implement cross-channel initiatives to break down the siloes between
these channels and offer customers relevant, integrated experiences.
On average, marketers will increase attention or budget of 1.7 channels.
Most respondents (68 percent) report that email marketing will receive
an increase in marketing budget this year. Social media marketing
will also be a priority, with more than half (54 percent) reporting their
organizations’ social media budget will increase. Offline initiatives such
as telemarketing and direct mail rank low on the list.
Brands also see value in integrating digital and offline to gain a
consistent view of the customer and offer an improved experience.
Many will implement cross-channel marketing strategies in the year
ahead to integrate siloed communication programs. Forty percent say
they are looking to implement cross-channel attribution initiatives,
followed by test tools for channels and content at 38 percent and a
data-fed, consistent view of the customer at 35 percent.
Takeaway:
Email remains and will continue to be a tried and true method of
customer communication. With social and display rounding out the
top three channels to receive an increase in attention and/or budget
from marketers, brands are understanding the need to present
relevant customer experiences across these channels in order to
increase engagement with their audience.
Similarly, these top three cross-channel initiatives, as noted in
the graph to the left, support the path to improve the customer
experience, which will ultimately drive sales.
Other 4%
pg. 4

Advanced Tactics
Social media share buttons
Retailers express interest in more advanced
marketing tactics like dynamic offers and
user-generated content
Video
68% 20% 4% 8%
Most brands already incorporate tactics like social media share buttons
(68 percent) and video (56 percent), However, it may be surprising
about one in five (19 percent) say they are not using social media share
buttons but are interested in doing so in 2017, and 26 percent said the
same about video.
Dynamic offers
User generated content
Beacons
56% 26% 6% 12%
23% 46% 8% 23%
38% 38% 8% 16%
While most brands say they are not currently using advanced
marketing tactics such as gamification and dynamic offers, many say
they want to use them to innovate their marketing programs in 2017.
Almost half (46 percent) say that although they’re not using dynamic
offers currently, they are interested in doing so this year. Thirty-eight
percent say the same about user-generated content, and 29 percent
say they are interested in beacons.
Not surprisingly, virtual reality (a computer-generated environment)
and augmented reality (superimposed images that alter a user’s
current view of the world) continue to be considered nice-to-haves
rather than necessities. However, almost three in five (57 percent)
believe that virtual reality does not apply to their organization, and 55
percent say the same about augmented reality.
11% 28% 8% 53%
Virtual reality
8% 21% 14% 57%
Augmented reality
7% 25% 14% 54%
Takeaway:
The resistance towards flashier tactics like VR and AR indicates
that marketers are more pragmatic about their plans to improve
marketing efforts. Alternately, they may want to ensure they achieve
mastery first rather than competence alone with tactics that predate
VR, AR and others. Marketers will instead focus on concrete, yet
forward-thinking tactics that reach customers at the right time and
with the right message.
Currently
using
Not using but
interested in
Have reservations about
implementing
Not
applicable
pg. 5

Which of the following data types do you use for
communication personalization?
Email engagement
Recipient name
Purchase history
Web behavior
Demographic data
Geographic data
Social media engagement
Display ads engagement
I don’t use data 3%
Other
1%
30%
41%
54%
53%
50%
50%
49%
Which of the following content areas are you currently
personalizing based on data insights?
Subject line
Recipient name
Copy
Frequency of campaigns
Images
Featured product
Time of message delivery
Offer
We don’t personalize
12%
31%
29%
29%
27%
35%
34%
70%
54%
54%
48%
While they are optimistic for 2017, many brands still fail to achieve
basic levels of personalization, particularly with email. Many do not use
common sources of consumer data, such as data enhancement, web
behavior, or purchase history, to personalize emails. Half of the survey
respondents (50 percent) do not use web behavior data (such as the
products a shopper has recently browsed) to personalize marketing
content; 47 percent do not use purchase history; and 45 percent do not
personalize with the recipient’s name.
Survey responses also exposed that many brands do not personalize
basic email components like subject line or email body. When asked
what content they personalize, responses show nearly half (46 percent)
still do not personalize subject lines, and 65 percent still do not
personalize email copy.
Takeaway:
There is definitely opportunity for improvement for marketers.
With the right technology, marketers can personalize their
communications. What’s more, customers expect it. They want
communications to be tailored to them based on what they need,
when they need it. Effective personalization will increase response
rates, build loyalty, and help drive market share.
Marketers who have a 360-degree view of their customers by
accessing and analyzing their descriptive, response, and behavioral
data will have a much better understanding of the needs of their
customers. The insights derived from this data can then influence
content to better target their communications.
pg. 6

In which channels do you wish you could
improve personalization?
59%
68%
Despite aspirations, many retailers know
they still miss the mark with personalization
Brands know that personalization is an opportunity for improvement.
More than two thirds (68 percent) say they wish they could improve
email personalization and 59 percent say the same about website
personalization.
38%
44%
Takeaway:
Marketers still struggle with personalization, and they know it. They
also acknowledge that personalization must be improved if they
want to successfully implement more advanced marketing tactics
like dynamic offers or beacons. Many are turning to technology and
marketing service providers for help analyzing customer data and
implementing innovative campaigns to reach customers when and
where it matters most.
17%
18%
2%
Other
SMS
Push/
mobile apps
Display
ad
Social
media
Website
Email
pg. 7

Nearly half of respondents admitted that their personalization efforts
are weak when asked to self-critique.
On a scale of zero to 10 with zero being highly personalized and 10 being one-size-fits-all, 49 percent leaned towards
one-size-fits all. Eleven percent said they believe their efforts are neutral and 40 percent leaned towards highly
personalized.
While they believe they miss the mark on personalization, many marketers feel that their efforts are improving for the
better, with more than two-thirds (68 percent) leaning towards “evolving” on a scale from static to evolving. And on a
scale from uninspired to innovative, 56 percent lean toward “innovative.”
Which of the following do you believe best describes your marketing efforts?
One size
fits all
Neutral
49% 11%
40%
Highly
personalized
Neutral
18% 14% 68%
Static
Evolving
Neutral
27% 17% 56%
Uninspired
Innovative
pg. 8

AVERAGE OF: When selecting a marketing technology and
services provider, please rank from most to least important the
following offerings. (6 being most important – 1 being least)
Tech innovation
Analytic services
Strategic services
Client services
Creative services
Training tools
AVERAGE OF: Please rank from most to least important the
following characteristics of a marketing technology 2.9 solution.
(9 being most – 1 being least)
2.7
2.7
4.0
3.8
3.8
4.2
Brands are looking to technology and
marketing services providers to
implement more advanced tactics and
improve personalization
Many brands are serious about their plans to improve personalization
and implement more advanced tactics in 2017 and many will look to
marketing technology and service providers for help. When asked about
what offerings they look for in a marketing service provider, technology
innovation and analytic services ranked the highest. Marketers recognize
the key attributes needed to evolve their marketing strategies. Marketing
services providers add the most value by developing specialized processes
and technology that cater to the current and emerging needs of marketers.
Marketers also say ease-of-use and integrated analytics matter most
when using technology platforms. This is likely because of marketers’ need
to be able to turn their data into action in order to gain a more consistent
view of their customers.
It’s perhaps not surprising marketers ranked reporting so high because
they need to be able to access and analyze data to derive insights which
influence communication strategies.
Ease of use
Reporting
Integrated analytics
Available features
Stability
Scalability
Platform speed
App responsiveness
Supported channels
3.9
6.0
5.6
5.5
5.1
5.0
4.8
4.5
4.5 3.5
Takeaway:
Brands see value in marketing technology and service providers, and
favor providers that offer integrated reporting and analytics. Most
marketers admit that they struggle with personalized content and
gaining a complete view of their customers. They realize marketing
technology and service providers can help them close this gap.
pg. 9

Conclusion
Brands are on the right track with their 2017 marketing plans. They
know improving the customer experience will require enhancing tried
and true marketing tactics.
But the right mindset is not enough. Smart marketers will look to
marketing technology and service providers that provide the capabilities
necessary to execute highly personalized, cross-channel marketing
tactics. The right partner can seamlessly integrate email, display, SMS,
push, and social channels, to deliver unified customer experiences.
Every consumer’s digital world is saturated with marketing messages,
making it important for brands to invest in the technology and
partnerships necessary to make them stand out.
Lastly, to take full advantage of a marketing technology platform,
marketers must first pinpoint the issues that need to be solved. Too
often, brands invest in costly technology without setting measurable,
achievable goals beforehand.
The future looks bright for marketers that plan to implement pragmatic
changes within their marketing strategies. Those that strategically
break the mold will remain competitive in the year ahead. Brands that
fail to master basic tactics and jump to complex strategies too quickly
will likely see obstacles along the way.
Cross-channel marketing does not have to be complicated. Invest in
the right tools, set achievable goals and build your strategy with the
customer in mind.
pg. 10

Methodology
Yes Lifecycle Marketing surveyed more than 300 marketing
professionals at the National Retail Federation’s Shop.org Digital
Summit in September of 2016 and online in October of 2016. The
breakdown of job titles is as follows:
What is your job title?
Manager 35%
Director
Coordinator/ specialist
Other
Vice President
CMO
10%
6%
5%
23%
22%
2.9
About Yes Lifecycle Marketing
Yes Lifecycle Marketing turns data into action across every customer
interaction, generating superior results. We do this by transforming
brands into true insights-driven businesses by linking insights and
continuous learning, empowering them to make better, smarter, and
faster decisions. To learn more, call 1-877-937-6245 or email
sales@yeslifecyclemarketing.com.
pg. 11

1-877-937-6245 sales@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com