The best digital marketing stats we’ve seen this week

This week’s roundup includes news about email marketing, post-purchase communication, automation, and lots more.

As always, you can head on over to the Internet Statistics Database for further stats and insight.

43% of marketing roles at risk from automation

New data from ONS has revealed the risk of automation to a range of occupations in the UK, with around 1.5 million jobs in England predicted to be in danger.

According to the figures, 43% of marketing roles are at a risk from automation, while more senior marketing directors at just 28%.

Meanwhile, recent figures from IDM have identified AI & machine learning skills as the most important area organisations must address, with 87% of marketers stating that these skills are already vital to their organisation’s success. However, this expertise has the largest skills gap present in the data and marketing industry, with a 25% difference between perceived importance for marketers’ current roles and for future career progression.

Marketer’s Guide to AI and Machine Learning

59% of consumers prefer email over other forms of brand communication

A new infographic from the DMA shows that the majority of consumers still prefer brands to contact them via email – despite the popularity of other channels such as social media.

Fifty nine percent of consumers prefer email, regardless of context or purpose. 57% of consumers highlighted their preference for the channel when it comes to ‘pre-purchase’ messages, as did 57% for ‘post-purchase’, and 48% for ‘customer service’ communication.

For the second-most preferred option, 15% of consumers said online ads for ’pre-purchase’ communication. For ‘post-purchase’ and ‘customer service’, 27% and 25% said their second preference was to have these via text messages.

The infographic also states that 24% of consumers cite Amazon as the brand that sends them the ‘best’ emails. eBay and M&S occupy second and third place, both with 9%. However, 49% of consumers couldn’t or wouldn’t name a brand that they think is doing email well.

Marketers prioritise content quality over engagement when choosing influencers

Mediakix’s annual influencer marketing study has revealed that finding the right influencers remains a big challenge for marketers.

In a survey of 162 marketing professionals, 61% of respondents agreed that identifying the right influencers to reach their goals is a pressing issue. Elsewhere, the survey found that spotting fake followers and social algorithm changes poses problems too.

In terms of picking the right influencers, content quality was ranked as the number one factor when doing so, with 81% of respondents suggesting that this is a key differentiator. Interestingly, 78% also cited having the right target audience, with engagement rates in third at 73%.

McDonald’s to personalise over 37,000 drive-thru menus

McDonald’s has just announced that it plans to acquire the personalisation company, Dynamic Yield, marking its largest acquisition in 20 years.

The technology means that McDonald’s will be able to create a personalised experience for consumers, tailoring over 37,000 drive-thru menus to the current weather, up-to-date restaurant traffic, and food trends.

The deal is reported to be worth $300 million, and is part of McDonald’s wider aim to include more technology in its bricks and mortar stores. In 2019, the chain has also announced plans to add self-serve kiosks and digital menu boards to a further 2,000 US locations.

60% of consumers are more likely to buy again from a brand that communicates with them directly after a sale

A Narvar survey of 2,000 consumers has revealed that 60% of consumers want brands and retailers to directly communicate with them after a sale. This is because, when a customer is expecting to hear from the company they bought from, but is passed along to a third-party delivery company or carrier instead, they feel ‘catfished’.

Eighty percent of consumers said that consistent post-purchase communication is fundamental to their desire to buy again from a brand. Meanwhile, the research also found that post-purchase issues like poor delivery communications are responsible for 74.4% of all 1-star reviews on TrustPilot.

Other desirable factors include greater control, with consumers displaying increased loyalty to retailers and brands that allow them to change their mind at the last minute.

Affluent consumers make up 16% of the global online population

A new report by GlobalWebIndex delves into affluent consumers and their technology and social media habits. The research involves interviews with over 550,000 internet users aged 16 to 64.

The report reveals that, globally, affluent consumers make up 16% of the online population. This group is (rather unsurprisingly) an early adopter of technology, with six in 10 saying that having the latest technological products is very important to them.

Interestingly, while affluent consumers are 52% more likely to be high or heavy users of physical press (where luxury marketing spend is traditionally focused), it comes at the bottom of media consumption segmentation. Social media comes first, with 59% of affluent consumers being high or heavy users of it.