Montana Passes Right To Opt Out Of Targeted Advertising (mediapost.com)

Marketers and PR people are in a wary mood, judging by a new study from CommsCo PR. Of those polled, 55% are more stressed than they were this time last year, and 63% now say they are expected to do more with less. But they are pushing ahead — 58% are increasing their budgets, versus 26% who are reducing them. Another 16% are keeping their budgets the same. Meanwhile, 45% believe AI will drive more investment in marketing, while 34% believe it will lead to reductions. In addition, 65% say AI will drive a wave of productivity. Only 13% are nervous about AI.

Well, it’s (finally) 2021. As we crawl carefully, still masked, out of the shadows of 2020, there is still much unknown. One trend I’m trying to understand is which way the external agency vs. in-house agency pendulum will swing. Some suggest that the multilayered crisis that was 2020 now has in-house teams shrinking due to the economic implications. The answer to this is to outsource marketing and creative to agencies, and save employee salaries, while giving companies the ability to flex the work – and the budget – up or down as needed. Things being what they are these days, the ability to quickly pivot your dollars and your direction is critical. But, I’d argue that there are compelling reasons and opportunities to work with an outside agency beyond the fiscal remedy. Even companies that continue to maintain an in-house team can benefit greatly from working with an outside agency: to support an overloaded team, deliver a shot of creative adrenaline or stir up habitual thinking with a new perspective. Learn more at: https://www.jschmid.com/blog/3-hidden-truths-of-hiring-an-outside-agency/

One of the (many) advantages of working with CohereOne is the ability to aggregate data points from multiple sources to gain a clearer view on what can improve results for our clients. A strategy that has consistently stood out when we review results is the power of using “digital indicators” to identify customers who are more engaged with the brand when making selections on who to mail. We have found three that have proven to work in most cases: Email Opt-in vs. Opt-out: flagging your buyers on whether they have opted out of email marketing is a sure indication that they will not perform as well as buyers vs. those who have continued to hear from you. This delta is as high as 170% better for the opt-in buyers for one of our clients! click read more below for the rest...