Advertising professionals neglect relevance and customer loyalty in favor of ROI

For almost half (46%) of advertisers, proving return on investment (ROI) is the top priority. This is closely followed by better targeting and segmentation (42%) and more efficient use of channels (40%). For advertising experts, the focus is therefore on fast and tangible experiences - even though almost a quarter (23 percent) see data-driven marketing as the most exciting opportunity for 2019 and want to put people at the center. By comparison, content and experience management is the top priority for two thirds (64 percent) of marketers, while less than half of advertising specialists rate loyalty and customer care highest. 

Philip Duffielt, Manager Director Advertising Cloud at Adobe EMEA, comments: "Advertisers and marketers are pursuing the same goal, but they are achieving it in different ways - some focus on building a connection with customers, others focus on data. That harbors risks: If a brand pursues two such different strategies, customers end up with a fragmented and inconsistent brand experience. Both strategies have their legitimate advantages, but the seamless integration of the two is crucial. Our report shows how customer experience management brings advertisers and marketers together to build a consistent brand in the long term."

Greater focus on quality and relevance

"Creativity and metrics go hand in hand. I'm convinced that we should focus much more on quality and relevance this year - supported by automation, the interplay of both factors will give you powerful content in an efficient way," says Mike Klinkhammer, Director of Advertising Sales EU at eBay, on the combination of creativity and data. 

Chris Hirst, Global CEO of Havas Creative and author of the new book "No Bullsh*t Leadership", takes a similar view: "Creativity has to be used intelligently: There are situations where the ad for a sports shoe brand needs to come across as super sexy and appealing. But sometimes the focus is on the question of why my feet hurt when I run - the context is absolutely crucial."

The study highlights that brands with strategies to increase customer satisfaction are on the right track. Companies that focus on building long-term customer experiences are three times more likely than their competitors to exceed their business goals.

Tackling customer satisfaction together

The message of Adobe's "Digital Trends Report" is clear: advertising and marketing teams must join forces and tackle the issue of customer satisfaction together. Only when existing data and insights are combined with ad targeting strategies will a consistent creative relationship with customers be possible. 

"The increasing personalization of customer experiences has led brands to rely more heavily on analytics and programmatic strategies. This is undoubtedly the right way forward. But the industry's big opportunity lies in reconciling data and creativity. Those who can combine campaigns with in-depth target group intelligence and exciting content in real time and play them out via the right channels will achieve relevance and personalization on a grand scale," summarizes Duffield.