Email is rated as the highest revenue-generating channel, followed by referrals, according to Quantifying Today's Shopper (Netcore's 2024 North American Consumer Benchmark Report). But while 62% of consumers will spend more this year, 75% agree that brands are over-messaging. In terms of popularity, the channels stack up as follows: Promotional emails — 40% Word of mouth — 28% Digital ads — 18% Social channels — 14% Promotional SMS — 13% WhatsApp...

Google has rolled out a conversational experience in Google Ads powered by its Gemini AI model that can run on everything from mobile devices to servers in data centers. Conversational experience enables advertisers to generate relevant ad content such as creative and keywords from a website URL. The tool -- initially announced in May during the company's Google Marketing Live event -- has now rolled into a beta project and is available to English-language advertisers in the U.S. and U....

It may be a new year, but 2023 shopping habits aren't going anywhere, according to Barbara Connors, vice president of strategy and acceleration at 84.51°, a retail data company under The Kroger Co. Customers are still motivated by price and value, still expecting the shopping experience to seamlessly shift between online and offline channels, and still interested in buying private label goods. While this may mean another challenging year for retail, brands can use last year's behaviors t...

Key stat: To improve the shopping journey, 86% of adults worldwide want AI to help with product research or information, according to October 2023 IBM data. Some 82% want AI to help get service, answers, or solutions. Beyond the chart: Nearly three-quarters of marketers believe AI can help them better understand customer needs, bringing them closer to their desired customer experience (CX), per Sitecore Using AI tools to resolve customer service issues—by offering faster,...

Key stat: 67% of US adults turn off cookies or website tracking to protect their privacy, putting it second only to changing social media privacy settings, according to a May 2023 Pew Research Center survey. Beyond the chart: This data is particularly relevant as cookies are being phased out. The start of 2024 marked the deprecation of third-party cookies for 1% of Google Chrome users, with cookies scheduled to go away completely by the end of the year. As third-party cookies fade, advertis...

JPMorgan Chase & Co. plans to add to its headcount this year as the firm sees opportunities in everything from dealmaking to US wealth management to international retail banking, bucking a trend by Wall Street rivals who have shed thousands of jobs in recent months. After a subdued couple of years, the biggest US bank is seeing 'plenty of growth' and 'all the components are for a strong year' President Daniel Pinto said in an interview with Bloomberg Television's Francine Lacqua on Wedne...

More CMOs are receiving an 'A' from their CEO for overall performance in their role, with 73% at an 'A' or 'B,' according to a new study. In the last two years, CMO 'underperformance' has dropped from 24% to 11%, per the CMO Performance Study from Boathouse, which aims to help CMOs continue to build success, as well as expand how academics think about the role of trust in the CEO/CMO relationship. The study provides insights from 150 CEOs of top U.S. public and private companies across 17 in...

Brands have many channels to choose from. But there is one that stands out in this age of generative AI. Print. Direct mail. Junk mail. Marketers say direct mail helps them: Improve their company's brand and image — 84% Drive leads for their business — 85% Generate brand awareness for their business — 87% Moreover, marketers believe direct mail can help them: Increase brand awareness — 65% Generate leads and sales — 57% Drive traffic to a we...

AI-driven automation is leading to cost savings for most marketing users, judging by The Enterprise Perspective on Customer Engagement & AI, a study from MessageGears done in partnership with Ascend2. The respondents answered like this: Yes, significant cost savings — 32% Yes, moderate cost savings — 40% No significant cost savings — 21% Increased costs — 3% Don't use — 4% Meanwhile, the companies polled feel AI will contribute to their...

Brand marketers today have many ways to connect with consumers and audiences, but email marketing is still one of the most efficient ways to target, engage, and drive conversions. Though the channel has endured, consumers' expectations are changing. For starters, it's no longer enough to call an email 'personalized' just because it includes the recipient's first name. Consumers want content that's catered to them and knows their patterns and history. Consumers are often frustrated by email pro...