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Communications & Marketing Survey2017/18Cognitos second survey of in-house communicators & marketers in financial services, technology and professional servicesContentsIntroductionA more integrated, digitally-focused approach from social to media relations PAGE 1Performance andbudget Performance managementInformation on the effectiveness of different channels and activities PAGE 17BudgetsHow priorities will change next year the channels and activities that are the biggest winners, stickers and losers for 2018 PAGE 19Challenges What lies aheadThe obstacles facing communications and marketing teams over the next 12 months PAGE 5Rise of the machinesThe impact developments in technology will have in 2018 PAGE 6Mind the (skills) gapThe spread and depth of in-house expertise PAGE 7Aspirations Communicating changeNew topics being communicated to internal and external stakeholders PAGE 11Using digital to creategreater valueChanging objectives across the whole communications spectrum PAGE 12LinkedIn rules thewavesExploring how different channels are evolving in importance PAGE 13IntroductionWhile there are some similarities with last years survey results such as pressure on budgets, a focus on demonstrating value and talent retention there are some notabledifferences. Encouragingly, in-house teams say that they are working in a much more integrated way. Budgets and priorities, however, are more widely spread going into 2018 than we have seen before. Teams are putting emphasis not only on core communications activities and content, but also on the channel mix needed to reach the right audiences and on the means of effective measurement. The theme of this years survey is therefore adapting to change: how communicators and marketers are equipping ourselves with the right tools, people and technology to adapt and embrace change, in order to drive business growth and protect reputation.We hope you consider these findings insightful, useful and, finally, reassuring; you are not on this journey on your own.The Cognito Research TeamOur survey is based on the responses of 165 in-house communications and marketing leaders from 100 organisations across EMEA, the US and APAC.This year we explore new areas, such as technology and the impact of AI and automation. We seek greater clarity on the social platforms proving most popular and gain an understanding onthe topics shifting in importance.This is the second year we have conducted our global survey, exploring the future of communications and marketing across the financial services, technology and professional services sectors.85% of respondents consider LinkedIn to be more important to the business now than 12 months ago21Challenges The issues faced by in-house teams from leveraging technology to skills40% of respondents say they have limited in-house expertise in communications and marketing technology4 3We asked respondents to outline the obstacles that they expect to face in the year ahead.Securing budget continues to be the biggest challenge, followed by the need to ensure creativity.Adapting to technology is a recurring theme throughout the survey, as teams look to improve understanding from analytics, leverage automation platforms and continue to diversify theirmix of channels and activities.Three-quarters of respondents cited organisational change as a challenge for their teams in 2018. Diversity, and the need to look attractive to potential hires, remains important a priority also echoed when respondents look at themes they expect to be communicating next year.What lies aheadWe all know that technology is fundamentally changing communications and marketing, but which technologies are having the biggest impact?79% of respondents expect that data analytics will have an impact on their team next year. This follows on from our 2016 survey results: the increasing pressure to justify spend, optimise ROI and evaluate different channels and content is driving investment in smart measurement and analysis.Automation, mobile and programmatic are rising in importance, with around half of those surveyed anticipating a moderate or high impact on their teams in the next year. Customers now expect always-on, personal communications, driving brands to take a holistic omnichannel approach. Automation and programmatic make that possibleat scale. More recent developments, and newer technologies such as virtual reality, machine learning and AI, are expected to make less of an impact over the next year. As these technologies and their applications mature, however, the impact on marketing is likely to be substantial; though less immediate. They shouldnt be ignored.Rise of the machinesExtreme challengeSomewhat of a challengeNot a challengeHow much impact will the following technological developments have on your teams work during the next year?Moderate or high impactLow or no impactData analytics 79% 21%Marketing automation 57% 43%Mobile marketing 54% 46%Programmatic marketing 43% 57%Artificial intelligence 30% 70%Machine learning 30% 70%Virtual reality 9% 91%Securing budget / investment 34% 55% 11%Organisational change 26% 51% 23%Ensuring creativity 25% 63% 12%Adapting to disruption 21% 66% 13%Adapting to new technologies 19% 65% 16%Adapting to regulatory change 16% 55% 29%Attracting / retaining talent 11% 61% 28%Communicating trust or ethics 11% 40% 49%Ensuring diversity 9% 38% 53%Over the next 12 months, how do you rank the following challenges for your communications and marketing teams?65Despite recognising the growing importance of marketing technology, in-house teams acknowledged that a considerable skills gap remains. Nearly 40% of those surveyed believe that their team has limited, or extremely limited, expertise in communications and marketing technology.The gap exists for online marketing more broadly; the top areas of weakness are in digital from social media to digital marketing and advertising.In comparison, team expertise was rated highly when it comes to more traditional areas including media relations, events and corporate communications. Though digital and social areas continue to be weakest, the results show a much broader skillset than our 2016 survey.Mind the (skills) gapRate your companys in-house expertise for the following activities:1 Events 91% 9%2 Corporate comms (messaging, executive positioning) 89% 11% 3 Content creation 85% 15% 4 Media relations 85% 15% 5 Internal communications 80% 20%6 Investor relations 80% 20%7 Brand development 78% 22%8 Public affairs / government relations 67% 33%9 Social media 67% 33% 10 Traditional advertising 66% 34%11 Digital marketing (email, SEO, SEM) 66% 34%12 Marketing and communications technology 61% 39% 13 Digital advertising 57% 43% Moderately/ fully proficientLimited/ extremely limitedModerately/fully proficientLimited/extremely limited9 Social media13 Digital advertising10 Traditional advertising11 Digital marketing (email, SEO, SEM)1 Events2 Corporate comms (messaging, executive positioning)3 Content creation4 Media relations8 Public affairs / government relations12 Marketing and comms technology917 Brand development7867578966855 Internal communications806 Investor relations80668567618 7Only 63% of respondents believe their current website adds value to the firmAspirations How priorities for topics, activities and channels are shifting10 9Communicating changeAt present, when your team is communicating with customers, staff and external stakeholders, are the following topics increasing or decreasing in importance?The biggest concerns among respondents indicate a growing need for digital and social cohesion within the marketingmix.Professionals are split (50% agree 50% disagree) as to whether their company has an effective social media strategy. This is exacerbated by a majority consensus that CEOs in particular do not have well-functioning social mediaprofiles.Although 84% believe they have a solid understanding of the target audiences and customer journeys, there is less confidence in their website; only 63% consider it to add value to the firm.There is widespread confidence in strategy, content and familiar channels, yet a mixed and imbalanced approach to socialmedia. Using digital to create greater value84%16%16% 84%26% 74%28% 72%35% 65%37% 63%39% 61%39% 61%50% 50%64% 36%Disagree AgreeRelocation and regulatory issues relating to BrexitCyber security including workforce and supply chain digitisationSustainability, circular economy andclimate changeEthical standards, consumer protection and fraudCompany values in relation to the Trump AdministrationWorkforce diversityCorporate governance including boardstructure, CEO compensationNo change DecreaseIncrease72% 21% 7%30% 1%69%My CEO has a functioning social mediapresenceWe have an effective social mediastrategyWe produce genuinely differentiatedcontentMy CEO and executive team see the value in investing in new technologies for communications and marketingWe have a coherent communicationsstrategyWe are managing to integrate our marketing and communications activityeffectivelyMajor financial media coverage is vital toenhancing our firms reputationWe have a good understanding of our target audience and customer journeyMy CEOs media/external profile is suitablymanagedOur website adds value to the firm46%49% 5%52%46% 2%60%37% 3%61%37% 2%65%32% 3%To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?Unsurprisingly, given the 2017 news agenda, Brexit and cyber security lead the topics rising in importance. Sustainability and diversity also continue to grow in relevance and we have seen an increase this year in content, editorial media coverage and budget dedicated to those issues.Managing reputation has never been more important as communicators and marketersbalance the needs of customers and broader internal and external stakeholders.12 11Strikingly, in the era of fake news and subscription models, trusted sources such as major financial media and to a lesser extent trade media gain in importance.Whilst Google, Twitter and YouTube are also taken increasingly seriously, there is a great mistrust of Facebook, the largest social channel. This is at odds with a view that channels such as Facebook and Instagram, traditionally not utilised in B2B campaigns, offer the greatest targeting opportunities and can prove powerful in getting the right content in front of the right audiences. LinkedIn rules the wavesAre the following becoming more or less important to your business?LinkedIn 85% 14% 2% Major financial media 57% 39% 4% Google 55% 42% 3% Twitter 54% 41% 5% YouTube 53% 41% 6%Financial trade media 35% 56% 9%WeChat 34% 51% 15%Regional business media 28% 54% 18%Facebook 25% 51% 24%WhatsApp 22% 62% 16%Instagram 22% 52% 26%Generalist newspapers 21% 56% 23%Broadcast TV/radio 17% 48% 35%Wikipedia 15% 72% 13%No Change More ImportantNo changeMore importantLess importantFacebookWeChatInstagramWhatsAppYouTubeWhen asked which channels and activities are increasing the most in importance, respondents indicated a clear winner - LinkedIn.Over the last 12 months we have seen an increased appetite for paid LinkedIn campaigns, with more teams looking to capitalise on the channels ever-improving targetingcapabilities. Less importantTwitterGoogleLinkedInWikipediaMajor financial media$Financial trade media$Generalist newspapersRegional business mediaBroadcast TV/radio141361% of respondents will increase spending on content in 2018Performance and budgetThe state of measurement and how priorities will change going into 201816 1556% 44%47% 53%64% 36%56% 44%57% 43%63% 37%63% 37%63% 37%66% 34%66% 34%64% 36%64% 36%72% 28%66% 34%66% 34%Measurement and analytics are constantly cited as areas in which teams and management seek a better understanding. We asked respondents about particular channels and activities where they feel most and least confident with the level of information about performance. Performance managementDo you feel you have enough information about the performance and effectiveness of these channels/activities?This year we saw greater confidence in measurement across the board with over two thirds feeling they had adequate insight into activities such as events, short form content and internal communications. Interestingly, while two thirds are happy with data for long form content, video, media and digital marketing, one third still struggle. Nearly half felt they lacked sufficient information on advertising social and traditional or across both organic and paid social media. With the exception of traditional advertising, these channels should have the clearest analytics. Extracting meaningful insight from the data available appears to be a challenge.Events your ownEvents onlineEvents industryContent short form (e.g. blog)Content videoContent long form (e.g. white paper)Internal communicationsMedia majorMedia consumerMedia trade / investmentMarketing digitalSocial media organicSocial media marketingAdvertising digitalAdvertising socialAdvertising traditional (e.g. print/TV)InsufficientSufficient79% 21%18 17BudgetsThe biggest forecasted winners on budgets for next year are twofold: content and the channels used to get that content in front of the right audiences.This year we saw greater confidence in measurement across the board with over two-thirds feeling that they had adequate insight into activities such as events, short form content and internal communications.Biggest winnersContent creation 61% 31% 8%Digital marketing SEO, SEM, email 57% 37% 6%Social media 54% 42% 4%Marketing and comms technology 52% 44% 4%Digital advertising 48% 40% 12%Corporate comms messaging, executive positioning 42% 52% 6%Biggest stickersInvestor relations 20% 71% 9%Public affairs / government relations 25% 69% 6%Internal comms 30% 61% 9%Media relations 33% 61% 6%Biggest losersTraditional advertising 11% 49% 40%Over the next 12 months, do you see more or less budget going into these activities?LessSameMoreBiggest losersActivities losing budget in
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