Proof
Points
B2B marketing videos are an opportunity to leverage visual storytelling that connects with your target audience on a far deeper and more subconscious level. Studies show that it keeps their attention and stays in their memory longer. So, it’s no surprise that video ranks high as a marketing tactic today.
While SEO is a long-term strategy, it pays dividends in the form of higher website traffic and lead conversions.
Google is the gorilla, driving 94% of total organic traffic to websites.
75% of people never even scroll past the first page of search engine results.
It is estimated that over 40% of business revenue is captured by organic traffic.
The top 5 search results for a keyword on Google get 70% of the clicks.
Search beats out social media for driving website traffic by more than 300%.
61% of consumers use search engines to help them perform product research before making a purchase.
LinkedIn is the biggest driver among social media platforms with 80% of B2B leads from social vs. only 13% from Twitter and 7% from Facebook.
B2B Marketers see the benefits of keyword usage and claim it more efficiently drives leads when compared to their other marketing initiatives.
Strategic landing pages are used by 68% of B2B businesses to acquire those leads.
53% of content marketers use interactive content in their lead generation efforts.
Leads from search have a 14.6% conversion rate as compared to a 1.7% conversion rate for outbound leads.
61% of marketers say that generating traffic and leads is their top challenge.
Only 18% of marketers say that outbound practices provide the highest quality leads.
It’s okay to be wordy – the average first page result on Google contains 1,890 words.
Furthermore, blog posts longer than 1,500 words receive 22.6% more Facebook likes and receive 68.1% more Tweets.
One in ten blog posts are compounding, which generate 38% of overall traffic. A compounding post is one whose organic search traffic increases over time.
Companies that blog receive 97% more links to their website.
The Stratistry team loves nothing more than digging deep into available data and research to derive actionable insights that can help lead your brand to achieve better business results. Contact us to find out how we can combine the art and science of marketing for your brand.
Source: Visual Capitalist: The Giant List of 100+ Marketing Stats
Latest October retail sales data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, indicated that some key retails areas experienced a decline while online retail rose slightly from the prior month. While two large pharmaceutical companies have just announced promising COVID-19 vaccines, consumers are still bracing for a virus surge for the holiday season which means greater online sales and less foot traffic to brick-and-mortar outlets.
The latest November retail sales data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, indicated that some key retails areas are experiencing a decline despite holiday spending. Consumers are largely staying home amid a virus surge this holiday season, which translates to greater online sales and less foot traffic to brick-and-mortar outlets.
Latest October retail sales data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, indicated that some key retails areas experienced a decline while online retail rose slightly from the prior month. While two large pharmaceutical companies have just announced promising COVID-19 vaccines, consumers are still bracing for a virus surge for the holiday season which means greater online sales and less foot traffic to brick-and-mortar outlets.
Whether you’re a brand manager, a marketing director, or a retail business owner, one of your challenges is probably growing sales, especially today. The good news is that we can see from the latest Advanced Monthly Retail Sales Report (see recap below) that sales are starting to rebound. However, depending on your unique situation, your sales might not be rebounding as quickly as you would like. To turbo-charge growth at scale, the following provides a roadmap including tactics you can employ to improve your retail sales while also strengthening your brand’s experience and exceeding your customer’s expectations.
The key to driving retail sales is to ensure that you are effectively engaging with your customers throughout their journey. Below is a three-step roadmap with key tactics to employ for connecting with your customers at various points during the journey.
Remember that in today’s environment, your customers are expecting your brand experience to match, whether online or offline.
According to a Harvard Business Review paper, creating a personalized experience for the consumer can increase sales 5 to 15%.
However, in order to enjoy this type of jump, you will need to define, align, and measure your customer’s experience along each touchpoint in their purchasing journey. Let’s take a look at the three-step roadmap which shows this in action:
To build awareness online, you can use display and video targeted at a broad audience. For offline brand awareness, you can use media placements in print, out-of-home, radio, and TV. At the start of the journey, personalization is minimal. This allows to you to reach as many potential customers as possible, while still having some flexibility on your target audience, e.g. out-of-home placed in specified geographical locations and digital characteristics like age, gender, location, and affinity.
Checklist:
Be sure to have a website that is eCommerce-enabled. This includes a mobile app, if applicable
Create a content strategy for social media and as well for your blog. Your blog will help deliver potential customers to you organically from search engines
Lay the groundwork for a Customer Data Platform (CDP) that will help organize your customer data from emails, social media, your website and your CRM. A properly executed CDP can increase sales by 15 to 20%
Choose an email marketing automation system to help send your brand message to potential customers
To help your customer, you need to give them the right information at the right time. Specifically, this means having content that informs your customer in the format that they like. Create content that resonates, such as in-store video displays that demonstrate the versatility of your product or how to use it. Or on your website, you could have illustrations for how to use your product, instilling confidence in your customer that they are making the right purchase.
When the customer is at your store or website, make it easy for them to comparison shop, with your comparable products as well as your competition. Rest assured, your potential customer is already aware of what the alternatives are to your product. With that in mind, you have an opportunity to draw direct comparisons on your website of the benefits of your product compared to your competitors.
Checklist:
In-store, have digital displays that can help educate your customers. Likewise, feature similar video content on your website
Allow potential customers to join your email list to receive the latest updates
Monitor popular content on your website and promote it
Develop a personalized customer experience using data from your CDP to send the right messages to your potential customers, e.g. personalized emails and ads based on their engagement with your brand
A customer data platform (CDP) is an application that unites your customer data interactions into customer profiles for a holistic view of your customer and your brand’s interaction with them.
Once the customer has reached the point of purchase, you need to make the process as seamless as possible. Additionally, this is an opportunity to deepen the relationship with the customer. Apart from your in-store POS being up-to-date and able to accept any type of payment that your customer wants to make, you should allow your customer to further engage with you. For example, allow the customer to be able to have their receipt emailed to them along with other engagement activities, e.g. initiate a return, receive customer service and locate the closest store. For online customers, give them an opportunity to create a profile where their payment information can be stored safely and used again on the next purchase.
Checklist:
Provide order online and curb-side pick-up
Use omni-channel campaigns to engage one-on-one with your customers
Give your associates tablets that allow them to assist the customer without having to return to a traditional POS register
As noted earlier, disruption has caused some retailers to rethink and quickly retool their strategy. The latest data from the Census Bureau’s Advanced Monthly Retail Sales in July gives some insight into how different retailers are performing and gives you the opportunity to compare yourself against your peers. Read on for our retail sales insights for key categories.
Nonstore Retailers
Nonstore retailer sales in July continued to slow down from the April spike. The latest McKinsey survey now shows the approximately 15-45% growth in online shopping across multiple retail categories should continue beyond the crisis.
General Merchandise Stores
Positive growth for this retail sector has stopped monetarily when compared to the previous month, with a -0.2% change in July
While consumers still appear to be cautious on non-essential purchases, the most recent survey data shows this is starting to improve.
Retail Trade
Overall consumer retail spending slowed its growth in July to a 0.8% increase compared to the prior month, and far from its 16.8% record increase in May.
While consumers are still using curb-side pick-up, the McKinsey survey showed that customers who shop in-store are now showing a preference for self-checkout.
Department Stores
As the summer comes to end, department stores and malls are seeing sales that remain flat. Compared to June, department store sales were relatively unchanged at 0.1% growth.
However, according to the McKinsey survey, consumers showed a strong preference for department stores and retail stores who offer the ability the purchase online and pick-up at the store. 65% of consumers who used this option said they intend to continue using it.
Grocery Stores
After the initial spike in March, grocery stores are still benefiting from consumer demand. The latest sales numbers for July, although slowing, showed another positive increase at 0.4%.
According to the McKinsey survey, 53% of consumers who are using grocery delivery services plan to continue after the pandemic has passed.
Food Services and Drinking Places
Though not as strong as May and June, restaurants and bars experienced another increase at 5% for July.
Google Trends data still shows that there is demand for dining in a restaurant. In the past 90 days, the data shows that the search phrase “restaurants open for dine in” experienced a 650% increase.
The Stratistry team loves nothing more than digging deep into available data and research to derive actionable insights that can help lead your brand to achieve better business results. Contact us to find out how we can combine the art and science of marketing for your brand.
Sources:
U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report 8/14/2020
Matt Ariker, Jason Heller, Alejandro Diaz, and Jesko Perrey, “How marketers can personalize at scale,” Harvard Business Review, November 23, 2015
Julien Boudet, Brian Gregg, Jason Heller, and Caroline Tufft, “The heartbeat of modern marketing: Data activation and personalization”, McKinsey & Company, March 22, 2017
Tamara Charm, Shruti Bhargava, Resil Das, Anne Grimmelt, Eunice Kim, Kelsey Robinson, Salvador Tormo, “US consumer sentiment during the coronavirus crisis”, McKinsey & Company, survey 8/7/2020
Consumer spending is still strong in June with yo-yoing expected in the coming months due to more anticipated coronavirus lockdowns.
Digital and omnichannel shopping are here to stay.
Consumers are seeking inspiration online for where to shop.
Walmart is the clear leader in grocery as they have embraced the digital transformation and reaped the reward from their effective curbside service.
Consumers are still craving in-person experiences at restaurants.
The latest June retail sales numbers from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, continues the positive trend started in May, but should be considered in the light of spiking COVID-19 cases in many states across the U.S. The Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report includes their first calculations of June’s retail sales.
It seems that our recovery may be stalled by this latest surge in the pandemic. Analysts say that fear caused by the virus caused consumers to pull back their spending at the end of June. However, their prior spending in June led to an increase of 7.5% in total U.S. retail and food services sales over May.
As the folks at Russell Research noted, we took “one step forward, two steps back.” At the beginning of June, their COVID-19 Monitor showed that over 1/2 of Americans thought the trajectory of the pandemic was positive. Just a few weeks later near the end of June, it had shifted to only 38% of Americans believing that the pandemic is getting better. Furthermore, nearly half of Americans who live in the South and West regions of the country, where cases are really surging, now say the pandemic is actually getting worse.
A McKinsey & Company survey in late June took it a step further and found that more than 50% of Americans believe it will take longer than 6+ months for the economy to recover and that the crisis will continue to impact them for another 4+ months. As such, the homebody economy continues with consumers adapting with new habits that are likely here to stay. In fact, 73% of consumers are still not comfortable returning to their regular out-of-home activities. They are waiting for milestones beyond simply lifting restrictions, such as approval from medical authorities, further safety measures to be put in place by retailers, and the development of a vaccine or better treatments. Read on for our retail sales insights for key categories.
Despite a slight dip in total nonstore retailer sales in June, it is clear that the flight to digital is here to stay. In fact, the McKinsey survey actually showed a 15-30% growth in reported online shopping that consumers say will continue after the crisis.
As explained by Steve Dennis, a senior retail contributor to Forbes, the disruptive impact of digital technology has been significantly fueling an epic revolution in the retail industry for the past two decades. Customer journeys are now officially digitally-enabled.
Positive consumer sales growth continued in this sector with a 2.7% increase in spending.
Sales in this sector may reflect the fact that consumers have shifted some of their discretionary spending from experiences like concerts and summer camp to more tangible items in this category, like TVs and gym equipment.
Consumer spending was still strong with a 6.4% increase, after the 16.8% record increase in May.
The McKinsey survey found that consumer intent to purchase is shifting toward value and essentials. In fact, spending on essentials was the only category that reflected a positive intent. Consumers are simply being more careful overall as they evaluate what and where they are spending. Forty percent report being more mindful of where they spend, while 38% are actively looking for ways to save money when shopping.
Another insight from the McKinsey survey is that cleaning and the use of masks and physical barriers are top priorities for consumers in deciding where to shop in-store.
Malls and department stores have benefited from the lifting of lockdown restrictions with a sales increase of 19.8% in June for this category on top of the record 36.9% increase in sales we saw in May.
Yet, digital continues to greatly impact this category. Not only is contactless shopping and BOPIS (buy online pick-up in store) here to stay, but the McKinsey survey found that 60% of consumers used inspiration from digital channels, such as social media and online ads, to decide where to do their shopping.
Consumers who have shifted their grocery shopping online amid concerns regarding their safety are likely to stay that way. Per the McKinsey survey, one participant reported that a local grocery store “doesn’t do drive up or delivery, so we can no longer go there. We now exclusively use curbside grocery pickup and will continue to do so going forward.”
Google Trends data reflects the leadership of Walmart in this area with searches for grocery.walmart.com increasing 1,950% in the last 90 days.
Consumers have also been hit with limited access to some of their favorite brands during the pandemic causing them to try different brands. Now 70% report that they expect to integrate these new brands into their post-COVID-19 life, according to McKinsey.
Sales in this category continued their positive trajectory in June as receipts at bars and restaurants jumped 20% from May to June.
Google Trends data also reflected this pent up demand for dining in at a restaurant. The top five queries were significant at over a 5,000% increase in the last 90 days. These trending queries were all variations of “restaurants open for dine in.”
According to the McKinsey survey, 72% of Americans were at least somewhat concerned about the dangers of dining in at a restaurant or bar in June, which was an increase of 15% over the prior month.
Recent consumer research from Datassential found that 63% of consumers will feel most safe going to a restaurant with outdoor seating after shelter restrictions are lifted.
Yet, cleanliness is of paramount importance. Whether a restaurant was perceived to be clean and sanitary was reported to Datassential as the top consideration for selecting a restaurant to visit after the coronavirus crisis. 76% said that a restaurant’s cleanliness and food safety procedures “will always matter more to me now than it did before.”
Datassential reported that 29% of people plan to eat inside a restaurant less, even after restrictions are lifted. The McKinsey survey also found that 18% of Americans have enjoyed restaurant delivery so much during the pandemic that they intend to use it even more moving forward.
However, the positive growth experienced in May and June has recently stalled, according to OpenTable, the restaurant reservation website which tracks the number of seated diners.
The Stratistry team loves nothing more than digging deep into available data and research to derive actionable insights that can help lead your brand to achieve better business results. Contact us to find out how we can combine the art and science of marketing for your brand.
Sources:
U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report 7/16/2020; McKinsey & Company Covid-19 US Consumer Pulse Survey 6/26/2020; Russell Research Covid-19 Monitor 6/19-6/22/2020; Datassential.com/coronavirus; Google Trends
The latest retail sales numbers from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, show a return to the positive in spite of the continued coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. Their Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report includes their first calculations of May’s retail sales.
The economy has been opening up in many areas, and consumer spending reflects pent up demand with advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales in May showing a 17.7% increase. Despite still having 20.9 million unemployed people, the government stimulus checks and the PPP program seem to have helped push U.S. retail sales back into the positive. But economists caution that these gains in May are still well below pre-pandemic levels.
While shoppers have returned faster than expected, experts are saying that it could take years to fully recover. A McKinsey & Company survey in late May found that of the consumers who are not currently engaging with out-of-home activities, four-fifths are waiting for milestones beyond simply lifting restrictions. They are waiting for approval from medical authorities, further safety measures to be put in place by retailers, and the development of a vaccine. This shift to in-home consumption, dubbed by Nielsen as the new ‘homebody economy,’ is likely to continue for these consumers for many months to come. Read on for our retail sales insights for key categories.
Nonstore Retailers Insight: The increased online shopping spurred by the pandemic is likely here to stay.
The arrival of the Corona pandemic has accelerated the use of digital tools and online shopping. And this is one behavior change that may stick in the long term. In fact, the McKinsey survey found that consumers intend to further increase their online shopping, at least when it comes to household essentials and entertainment.
Sandy Stein, a Forbes contributor about all things retail, says, “No matter how one looks at the recent online sales stats, the cards are stacked in favor of further digital adoption and against more trips to physical retail stores.”
General Merchandise Stores Insight: Consumer spending returned in this sector after dipping in April.
Brands like Walmart and Home Depot reaped the benefit of early panic buying from Americans as they began sheltering in place (Walmart Q1 profits rose 4%, while Home Depot Q1 profits rose 7%), and that initial growth has returned after dipping in April.
Retail Trade Insight: Consumer spending is rebounding after record declines during the coronavirus lockdowns.
Consumer spending looks to be on an upward trend, even as the pandemic lingers. After plunging 16.4% in April, May saw a record 16.8% increase.
The McKinsey survey also found that consumer intent to purchase is starting to rebound, especially in food and discretionary categories, such as groceries, household supplies and entertainment at home.
However, the latest installment of Russell Research’s COVID-19 Monitor indicated that Americans are generally not ready to return to specialty retail, and that 85% of Americans are still concerned about the pandemic.
Department Stores Insight: Consumers say they are likely to spend less time at malls, which would negatively impact anchor department stores.
Malls and department stores that have opened are at reduced capacity and open fewer hours, but that didn’t stop a record 36.9% increase in sales in May.
Yet, the McKinsey survey found a desire among consumers to continue to reduce their time spent going to malls as well as attending movies, concerts and the like. Only time will tell if the pandemic will bring about the inevitable demise or even a reinvention of malls.
Grocery Stores Insight: Consumers are comfortable with going generic.
Many consumers have shifted their grocery shopping online amid concerns regarding their safety. The Russell COVID-19 Monitor found that 14% of grocery shoppers say they will be more likely to have groceries delivered in comparison to before the pandemic. Google Trends data further reflected this concern with the number one query in the last 90 days being “is it safe to go to grocery store.”
Consumers have also shifted to new brands during the pandemic and largely plan to stick with them. According to the McKinsey survey, nearly two-thirds of consumers have switched to a store brand and intend to continue with it.
Food Services and Drinking Places Insight: Consumers have been craving in-person experiences at restaurants.
Even as dine-in service begins to open up in states across the U.S., the McKinsey survey showed a strong trend toward continued online purchase for food takeout and delivery. Starbucks is betting on these changed consumer behaviors with their announcement last week about shifting hundreds of North American stores from café to pickup-only and to-go models.
Sales in this category showed a return to the positive in May, and Google Trends data reflected this pent up demand for an in-person experience at restaurants. The top five queries were significant at over a 5,000% increase in the last 90 days. These trending queries were all variations of “when and what restaurants are open for dine in.”
Recent consumer research from Dataessential also found that consumers rank dining out as one of the top three things they look forward to doing as restrictions ease, along with socializing with friends and seeing family.
That foot traffic can’t happen fast enough for some of these struggling retailers. A research report released by IRC last week said that 85% of the roughly 500,000 independent restaurants could close permanently by the end of the year. But more help may be on the way. A bill to provide $120 billion in grants to independent restaurants is under discussion in the House of Representatives.
The Stratistry team loves nothing more than digging deep into available data and research to derive actionable insights that can help lead your brand to achieve better business results. Contact us to find out how we can combine the art and science of marketing for your brand.
Sources:
U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau Advanced Monthly Retail Trade Report 6/16/2020; McKinsey & Company Covid-19 US Consumer Pulse Survey 5/18-5/24/2020; Russell Research Covid-19 Monitor 6/5-6/8/2020
If you weren’t prepared for COVID-19, you’re certainly not the only one. And managing your brand in the midst of this crisis will take a mix of patience and flexibility. If handled appropriately, there is a definite opportunity to rise to the occasion and have a measurable impact. The following provides our thoughts for how your brand needs to pivot to achieve this kind of impact.
It’s safe to say that you, your brand and/or your company likely feel under fire. Consumers are nervous, and may be quick to harshly judge any entity that they feel is trying to profit off this pandemic. Because it’s important to ensure that your message carries the right tone, we offer a few observations for your consideration as you plan your ongoing messaging and content strategy during this time:
Be transparent. Customers are looking for authentic leadership from the brands and companies that they care about.
Be empathetic. They want reassurance that you care about them and are taking the right steps to address this crisis, from implementing new cleaning procedures to waiving change and cancellation fees to updating your products or services. And don’t forget your employees. They are not only the front line of your brand, but customers will want to know that you care about their safety and well-being too. We’re all in this together, and brands need to react accordingly.
Avoid the hard sell. Now is the time to provide them with more value. Consider how their needs have shifted and how your message could reflect that. Is there a deeper brand story that you can share now that they actually have more time to engage with it? Or can you entertain them during this stressful time with a quiz, game or contest?
Unless you simply have no other choice (or your brand happens to be Purell), now is not the time to go dark with your communications or marketing spend – we’ll share more about this in our blog post next week. In the meantime, however, we can say that it does make sense to re-evaluate your paid advertising plans and media selection. Your channel mix and ad spend likely need to shift to accommodate the evolving consumer behaviors caused by this pandemic.
For example, a March 2020 GWI survey showed that 39% of US consumers say they are reading the news more frequently, while 29% say they are checking social media more frequently. And 28% say they are shopping more online in light of the virus. The folks at Russell Research are also keeping an eye on these changing media consumption habits. They recently shared the following relevant results from their ongoing COVID-19 Monitor:
Russell Research in a March 2020 survey showed that Digital and TV have increased attention while podcast attention declined.
As we all shelter in place, it appears that our massive decline in commuting is negatively impacting podcast listening, while TV and web attention have increased. As the situation continues to evolve, you should also be monitoring for any change in consumer behavior on the ads you are running. And keep in mind that you may need to pause the ads, shift your budget or even revise the creative based on the response you see.
Invention is often born from necessity. Restaurants have arguably been one of the hardest hit business segments due to the Coronavirus. As they navigate the need to shift to a fully takeout and delivery model, they have also found new ways to shift their product and service offerings to better meet the needs of their customers (and to ultimately stay afloat):
Pre-packed quarantine staples – Restaurants are offering a variety of items from coveted fresh produce to in-demand non-perishables like toilet paper
Freezer foods – From bread dough to soups to individual servings of signature dishes, restaurants are filling the gap that consumers have found in empty grocery store aisles
Take-and-bake family style – Consumers are looking for easy ways to feed their families, and restaurants are answering with a variety of take-and-bake family style dishes
This kind of innovation should be carried to other business categories as well. Brands should be asking how their customers can use their current products or services in a new way. For example, a food manufacturer could share kid-friendly recipes that can be made at home as a family. Or a brand in another category might think of a way that their product or service can serve as a stress reducer or at least a distraction.
Brands like Orange Theory have shifted quickly over the past couple of weeks to bring operations fully digital. They determined that the best way to bring their in-gym interval training to their customers was by developing at-home workouts that utilize commonly found household items and are delivered through their app. Social media sentiment for this brand shift on their part has been wildly enthusiastic. As with these examples, being ready and willing to make these kinds of changes can create connection and community with your customers and brand advocates.
We know that much change is likely to come from the current disruption to our everyday lives. Experts are projecting that new norms and adaptive behaviors will be long-term and far-reaching. But taking the right steps to build your brand and community now will not only help you succeed in the short run – they may just set you up for continued success as well.
Check out Part II of this blog series to learn the importance of marketing in a downturn economy.
