Research from GetResponse also shows a limited use of marketing automation attributed to budget constraints
Marketing organizations still have room for growth in their email targeting and marketing automation initiatives, according to new research from GetResponse and Smart Insights. The study showed that half of the survey respondents are not using any email targeting tactics or tools whatsoever, and less than a third (29%) use basic segmentation for targeting.
The findings also show that 38% either don’t use marketing automation currently (17%) or are using automation technology at the most basic level (21%). “By comparing the techniques of others, businesses will be able to identify areas in need of improvement,” said Simon Grabowski, Founder and CEO of GetResponse, in a statement.
While the use of email targeting is subpar, the study highlighted that respondents plan to invest in their email initiatives. More than half (58%) plan to increase their email marketing budget. However, securing budget for marketing automation is the biggest challenge for 36% of respondents, followed closely by increasing the quality of customer data (35%) and gaining better knowledge to setup different types of automation (35%).
The Email Marketing & Marketing Automation Excellence 2017 report benchmarked more than 2,500 marketers from B2B (58%) and B2C (42%) companies on their marketing initiatives.
Other key findings include:
- More than half of marketers use integrated “beyond the email click” tracking from their email marketing service to track website marketing outcomes such as mid-funnel metrics, such as leads (31%), or lower funnel metrics, such as sales (21%).
- Only 17% of respondents say they can measure the ROI of each content asset shared through email.
- More than one-third (35%) state that they have a long-term, strategic approach to content planning, creation and distribution.
