Forbes Ad Effectiveness Survey

Forbes did a study on small and big marketeers using digital marketing for their companies on ad effectiveness. For both small and large marketers, the list of effective online tactics was nearly the same , except SEO and e-mail were flipped since for large ones would already have SEOed their sites to maximum. Pay-per-impression ads were also more effective for larger marketers (presumably because they have the funds to experiment in an expensive medium).
To build, maintain or change brand perceptions required different tactics for both small- and large-budget marketers, site or page sponsorship and SEO were considered the most effective ways to build a brand online. The key highlights of the study were:

• Respondents appreciate the halo effect that a website or publication can have on their brand; 43% said that sponsoring a website, page or digital publication is the most effective digital tool when it comes to affecting brand perceptions.
• SEO and Email and e-newsletter marketing are by far the most popular method of digital marketing among respondents, used by three-quarters.
• Respondents were by far the least happy with ad networks, with half saying that the results did not meet expectations.
• 87% measure results of their digital campaigns in some way, the most popular being benchmarking against goals set prior to the campaign.
• The success of digital marketing appears to be measured by physical action, with impact to the bottom line being far and away the most important factor in determining success.
• When it comes to behavioral targeting, the strongest concern by far among respondents was its effectiveness, followed by fear of customer backlash.
• The tools seen as most effective for generating conversions were SEO (48%), email and e-newsletter marketing (46%), and pay-per-click/search marketing (32%).
• In the coming six months, respondents expect that ad networks will see the biggest declines in allocation of marketing spend; viral marketing and SEO will likely see the biggest increases. Behavioral Targeting is the category that is least likely to see any changes in spend.

The study was conducted amongst 112 marketing executives and you can download the study here via emarketeer