Consumers noted that relevant messages are crucial to ensuring that brands don’t overstay their welcome with consumers. Irrelevant messages make the brand irrelevant to the consumer. Consumers also require personalized messages, so they know the brand knows them. Marketers still think more letters will deliver more results, but that isn’t true.
Two-thirds of consumers (66%) want fewer marketing messages, and 27% feel they are bombarded by marketing messages. When asked if they would like to receive more periodic marketing messages in 2023 versus 2022, 73% noted they wanted more occasional messages.
The message to marketers is that “Less is more.”
80% Unsubscribe: Almost eight in ten consumers (79%) say they unsubscribed from retail brands in the past three months. In addition, 61% of consumers responded they have unsubscribed from three or more retail brands due to too many marketing messages, with 29% cutting the cord with six or more.
Only 9% of respondents open more than 75% of marketing emails. Plus, more than 50% of respondents open fewer than one in four. In addition, about eight in ten (79%) noted that they receive marketing emails from brands they have “no recollection of signing up for.”
However, by far, the relevancy of a marketing message determines the likelihood of a consumer opening a marketing message. Sixty-two percent of respondents (62%) say “relevancy” is the number one factor in opening an email, followed by “identity of the brand” (14%), “personalized to me beyond my name” (8%), and “catchy subject line” (5%). It should be noted that 11% of respondents will never open marketing emails.
Consumers start on a predetermined shopping destiny
A whopping 96% of consumers typically predetermine where they will shop online, with 49% saying “usually” and 35% “sometimes” plus 12% “always.”
Yet, respondents said they have some willingness to try new brands. Thirty-seven percent (37%) of respondents are willing to try new brands at least half the time, while 61% try new brands less than a quarter of the time. Two percent will never try a new brand.
For marketers, it means there is a chance to break through to consumers, but it needs to be the right message at the right place and time. The top motivators to get consumers to act are the following: “a great price of sale” (46%), “a timely offer” (20%), and “a new product” (18%).
When two-thirds of consumers feel exhausted by marketing messages, yet about one-third are willing to try new brands, it means that marketers need precision in their messages and offers to consumers.
Relevancy is crucial in the time and place marketers reach consumers. And the critical components to relevancy are 1) knowing the customer’s likes and dislikes, 2) knowing when a customer needs something and offering it to the customer in the customer’s preferred way, and 3) being there to help, not hassle.
A customer-led marketing platform that empowers marketers to drive measurable growth by planning, orchestrating, and optimizing marketing programs that start with the customer instead of a campaign or product and delivers proven results. An independent December 2022 analysis of the total impact of Optimove by Forrester revealed the following measurable benefits to marketers:
Marketing improvements:
- 578% return on investment (ROI)
- 88% campaign efficiency improvement – campaigns are created faster
- 50% improved reporting efficiency – reporting is done faster and more in depth
- The payback period after implementation of Optimove is less than six monthsBusiness improvements:
- 10% Improvement in customer retention rates
- 15% Improvement in customer order value
- $182,000 cost reduction over 3 years by phasing out existing point solutions –reduced Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
Insight:
Consider the source of this report and what they stand to benefit, but there are some excellent points. Marketing, as repeated messages, is not going to cut it anymore. Brands must go back to solving consumers’ problems and showing that they care. The media is educating consumers that brands are raising prices to maintain margins, and customers have had enough.
According to Statista, in September 2021, the estimated daily spam volume was 88.88 billion spam emails daily. On average, that’s 21 spam emails per person per day. Does any marketer believe their email is going to cut through that clutter?
Marketers need a closer relationship with their customers. They need to ask, “why are you a customer?”.
