Think Customers: The 1to1 Blog

Today's issue of 1to1 Weekly highlights a recent Forrester Report that shows how marketers spend their money. Marketers continue to spend on what they had already dedicated resources to before the economic collapse -- traditional marketing and advertising, as well as social media. But for online video and mobile activities, plans for the most part have been scrapped.

While it's smart for marketers to be cautious, consumers are moving toward other areas such as mobile and online video, and companies that can't interact with them there may eventually be at a loss. A recent McKinsey Quarterly article explains that "Consumers are moving outside the [traditional] purchasing funnel--changing the way they research and buy your products. If your marketing hasn't changed in response, it should."

"Today, the funnel concept fails to capture all the touch points and key buying factors resulting from the explosion of product choices and digital channels, coupled with the emergence of an increasingly discerning, well-informed consumer. A more sophisticated approach is required to help marketers navigate this environment, which is less linear and more complicated than the funnel suggests."

This may mean that marketers may need to start taking some risks when it comes to investment in customer interactions. It might be a tough sell to the CFO at first, but if you can understand where, why, and how your customers want to interact with you, that knowledge will be more powerful than any recession.