Taradel (Glen Allen, Virginia), a leading provider of multichannel marketing campaigns, has released released the results of a new survey revealing that small and medium-sized business (SMB) advertisers have embraced data-driven, multichannel marketing strategies – with direct mail and Facebook cited as the top non-referral channels driving return on investment. The survey, conducted in August of 2021 through an online SurveyMonkey questionnaire, polled 166 small business owners and advertisers with questions related to marketing practices, channel efficiency and campaign-management preferences. Notably, 68% of all respondents identified themselves as business owners, with an additional 26% holding management or senior-level roles. When asked how much say they have in purchasing decisions, 88% responded “primary decision-maker” or as having “a lot of say.”
After more than a year of pandemic-related headlines, the report indicated that a small business recovery is well underway. Just 13% of respondents list Covid-19 disruption as their biggest challenge, and the majority (56%) of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), which are highly susceptible to economic shockwaves, cited “increasing sales” as the primary marketing goal heading into 2022. To achieve sales goals, said the report, respondents will need to embrace strategic, multichannel campaigns and MarTech marketing solutions that provide insights into key performance metrics. Over 75% of respondents said they use two or more media channels and 73% said that access to performance reporting is “extremely” important.
“We’re seeing the shift to multichannel happen very quickly,” said Jim Fitzgerald, founder and CEO of Taradel. “Small businesses are still running traditional direct-mail campaigns, but now they want matching Facebook and Google ads too. They want to simultaneously reach audiences at home and on mobile devices. This allows them to track every impression, click, and phone call to make better-informed marketing decisions going forward.”
Other key findings revealed that:
• 76% use 2 or more channels to reach prospects
• 82% of direct-mail advertisers plan to increase or maintain usage
• 95% plan to increase or maintain digital marketing investments
• Facebook and direct mail are the top revenue drivers (excluding referrals)
• 72% of SMBs spend less than $2,500 per month on marketing