Today, eighty percent of marketers worldwide agree data is critical for their marketing efforts (see #6 below). All the more reason to put this list together. Here are a variety of recent marketing statistics to keep in mind as you navigate your marketing efforts to consumers, businesses, employees, or whomever else you’re trying to engage.

  1. People love videos on the go.
    There’s no question that videos have become a highly effective marketing tool. How has this affected mobile users? According to a recent global study from Citrix, video now accounts for 52 percent of all mobile traffic.
  1. Globally, social media is growing fast.
    Based on figures released in August of 2015, 30 percent of internet users worldwide were active on social media, social media users had increased by 176 million in the previous year, and Facebook added half a million users every day.
  1. Content marketing is great for leads.
    Looking for new business leads and a big return on investment? It turns out that content marketing in 2015 generated three times as many leads as traditional outbound marketing such as direct mail. And content marketing costs 62 percent less.
  1. Most internet use now comes from mobile.
    Sixty percent of all Internet activity in the U.S. now originates from mobile devices. So, if you’re developing a website in 2016 without focusing on the mobile version, it may be time to rethink your plans.
  1. Email marketing is a workhorse.
    According to a recent survey of digital marketers, email is the single most effective tactic for awareness, acquisition, conversion, and retention, as it yields an average 4,300 percent return on investment for businesses in the U.S. 
  1. Today, marketing depends on data.
    Out of 3000 thought marketing leaders around the world, more than 80 percent said that data is “affirmatively important to the deployment of their advertising and marketing efforts,” and 63 percent said that their spending on data-driven marketing is growing.
  1. Internal communications need creativity.
    The good news: Ninety-three percent of internal communicators say that creativity is important to their messaging, and 90 percent feel that collaboration within their companies would help encourage creativity. The bad news: Only six percent feel their environments support creativity.
  1. Employer branding is more important than ever.
    Focused on attracting the best talent for your company? Keep this in mind: Seventy-five percent of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before even applying for a job, and ninety-one percent find poorly designed online properties to be damaging to that brand.

While technology continues to advance at a blinding speed and influences most of our marketing plans, it’s also important to maintain some perspective this year. According to Richard Shapiro of The Center for Client Retention, “Technology will always be in flux, but emotions remain a constant. Those companies that can incorporate the human component into their service design will be more successful.”