The media and advertising service company Publicitas just revealed the results of its first annual survey that asked advertisers, agencies and publishers what they expect from the future, and what they believe the next big technology leaps should be.

Conducted globally in April 2016, their results showcase some clear differences between advertisers’ and publishers’ expectations.

Overall, industry executives across all businesses highlighted content marketing as the number one focus (from a possible 24), ranking this above anything else. The secondary priority on the list shows how advertisers and publishers differ according to the survey: Advertisers are valuing content quality and relevance next, while media owners are not deeming this important enough to even include it within their top 10; they focus more on delivering creative ad formats in a personalized way.

Marketing Priority Ranking by Media Sector (Top 5)

Interestingly, even though ad blocking is still a hotly debated topic in the media, it is not a main concern for the industry. Global marketers across all sectors believe that making content more insightful and relevant will help dilute the trend. In total, 81% of the global marketers surveyed agreed that providing relevant content will help to prevent ad blocking.

Almost all 672 participants approved that developments in mobile technology, and the power of mobile devices respectively, will most likely influence their business in the next 12 months.

Most interestingly, ‘mobile video” has been mentioned only tertiary by agencies, while publishers even put it only on the fourth place, while advertisers did not seem to see the need at all for the “mobile video’ trend.

At least, there is interest in immersive technologies - such as virtual and augmented reality technology - and a clear feeling that both will impact their business in the immediate future. In fact, 70% agree that Virtual Reality (VR) will drive the next technology revolution.

Since consumers adopting new technologies at a faster rate than ever before, global marketers will need to step it up to keep up with demand, Publicitas emphasized, pointing out that more than 80% of advertisers and agency executives expect to increase spend on mobile and an array of digital formats in the next 12 months.

At present, 86% agree that 'technology change is increasing at a faster pace than their ability to track it’. A higher proportion of publishers and agency marketers strongly agree with this statement (46% and 45% respectively), compared to client-side marketers (36%).

Andy Vogel, Global Head of Digital Product, Publicitas, comments: Consumers are adopting new technologies at a faster rate than ever before, and these trends will become quickly realized if the application and monetization models are in place to move these mainstream. It will be interesting to carry out this survey in another year, compare the priorities and industry problems, and see if by using engaging content and the latest technologies we are any closer to aligning businesses with consumer expectations and needs.

Publicitas’ research proves that investment in digital data-driven advertising will continue and that content marketing consolidates its position as the number one marketing priority among global marketers in 2016, as they strive to target consumers with relevant and engaging content in what is proving to be a year of consumer-led marketing.

“As global marketers continue to define the cross-device consumer journey, the media industry must grapple with the changing ways in which content is accessed, produced and distributed, with a clear goal in mind - to connect a buyer with a seller, using relevant content as efficiently as possible. The new technologies and toolsets available to marketing are making it easier to reach consumers with relevant messages in the right formats, and at the right time. However, it becomes essential for publishers, agencies and advertisers to better utilize these tools and improve the delivery of relevant content that fits evolving media formats, and aligns with consumer needs”, Publicitas concludes.

Get more details by reading the whitepaper: http://publicitas.com/fileadmin/uploads/global/Publicitas_Marketing_Priorities_2016_Whitepaper.pdf.

By MediaBUZZ