Five trends stood out in a review of over 30 articles, whitepapers, and case studies, including data privacy and compliance, personalization, technology, and mobile growth. HitPath tools for suppression, fraud, segmentation, and mobile tracking help you build each into your 2013 campaigns.
Why does performance marketing matter this year?
When budgets shrink, performance marketing becomes an attractive choice for brands and marketers because of its results-oriented pay model, and Forrester Research projects the industry will grow to 4.5 billion by 2016.
That growth raises a fair question: what is the real value of online performance marketing? New technologies and access to Big Data are opening fresh opportunities. They also bring the challenge of understanding a more tech-savvy, informed, and multi-channel user.
To identify the trends driving the channel this year, we researched over 30 articles, whitepapers, and case studies. Five trends were consistent across all of that research. Each one can be built into your 2013 campaigns using best practices and HitPath.
How should marketers handle data privacy, security, and compliance?
Make suppression compliance standard operating procedure with HitPath Suppression Management, and use Fraud Protection with its FraudLogix integration for real-time fraud monitoring, screening, and reporting.
Increased investment in performance marketing brings increased scrutiny, so following regulations is critical. Consumers have made a clear statement about data privacy, and legislation on data protection and information security has become increasingly vigilant. Marketers need to show that they understand consumer needs and respect privacy.
The Suppression Management tools in HitPath help manage all of your suppression data-handling needs. Compliance reports and suppression download histories make suppression compliance nearly autonomous.
Strict standards should also be in place for any security, privacy, or fraud concern. When there are fraudulent leads, advertisers should work directly with networks to identify them, so the network can investigate and discontinue business with the source.
- Fraud monitoring: the Fraud Protection tools provide real-time monitoring.
- Fraud screening: it helps detect possible fraudulent activity by affiliates early.
- Fraud reporting: it breaks down sales with their associated fraud score.
- FraudLogix: HitPath's deep integration lets you identify and react quickly to indicators of fraud across all of your traffic.
When applied, the Suppression Management and Fraud Protection tools in HitPath are the gold standard in compliance and security.
How do you deliver personalization?
Use segments, A-B testing, geo and device targeting, and multiple landing pages for the same campaign so each audience sees a more relevant offer.
Consumers are demanding more personalized and relevant content. Over half of the major trends this year relate to providing thoughtful, relevant content and connecting with consumers on their terms. More brands are turning to performance marketing to tailor campaigns to a specific audience.
- Segments: divide a potential audience into subsets of consumers with common needs. This makes targeting and finding the most relevant content much easier.
- A-B testing: see which subject lines, landing pages, or other elements perform best, and get to know your audience along the way.
- Geo-targeting: specify a country or state for your audience.
- Device targeting: build an audience by iPhone, iPad, or Android users.
- Multiple landing pages: drive audiences to the offer page customized for them within the same campaign.
The days of sending an offer to a mass audience are gone. Segmenting by location or by needs targets the most receptive audience and ensures they receive a more relevant message.
Why is technology the foundation for success?
Your analytics are only as good as the technology and techniques behind them, and a broad, flexible platform like HitPath supports the segmentation, targeting, and user activity tracking that lead to better quality leads.
Using advancing technology is imperative and quite possibly the most important trend on the list. Reliable tracking, accurate data, and a dedicated hardware solution are obvious necessities. Just as important is a mix of data mining, audience segmentation, targeting, tracking user activity, and other scalable analytical actions, which require a flexible but broad toolset.
Together, the technology and the analysis it produces are vital for identifying and optimizing high-value target audiences. That lets marketers work smarter and reach or re-engage consumers in a way that yields a better quality lead.
High quality leads are essential. They foster long-standing partnerships with advertisers, happier clients, and eventually loyal customers.
How do you capture mobile growth?
Use Events and Android App Tracking to measure app activity and re-engage inactive users, and add cookie-less tracking, full user-agent review, and device or geo targeting.
Mobile performance marketing is the single largest projected contributor to anticipated growth this year. In 2012, more consumers bought a smartphone than a PC. With new tablets like the iPad Mini, the number of tablet users is expected to reach 70 million this year.
Two keys cannot be overlooked.
- Act now. The surge of smartphone and tablet users is set to continue, and consumers keep demanding apps. Mobile price comparison sites, user review sites, location-based discounts and promotions, and the app market (apps for in-store shopping, UPC scanning, and shopping lists) are mobile opportunities worth including in 2013 campaigns.
- Know your customer. Mobile commerce is also growing at a phenomenal rate, and more consumers are buying from their smartphones. Retail is projected to see the most growth in mobile commerce, accounting for $25 billion over the next 3 to 4 years. Identify and reach these mobile consumers.
Several HitPath features can give you an advantage with this audience:
- Events: track activity and usage for a mobile app or a cross-section of mobile apps. You can see how many consumers downloaded the app, which users actually use it and how often, and which users pay for it. These metrics feed the custom analytics you need to know your audience, including the ability to target inactive users to re-engage them.
- Android App Tracking: track usage and conversion of an Android app to the same end.
- Cookie-less tracking, full user-agent string information, and device or geo targeting: use these to make the most of the mobile opportunities ahead.
Understanding trends like these gives you an advantage, but integrating them successfully into your 2013 programs is what moves you closer to your goals this year.