Every year there are new tactics, channels for reaching consumers and methods of converting them to consider when devising a marketing strategy. While you may want to double down on efforts that saw great results last year, there may be other items that should be incorporated into this year’s marketing budget to gain the most traction for your brand and help fuel its growth.
The experts of Forbes Agency Council stay up to date on the latest movements, concepts and trends having an impact in the marketplace. Here, they share what “table stakes” look like for marketers in 2022. See some of the key elements they believe should be accounted for in every brand’s marketing budget in 2022 below.
1. A Balance Between Lower- And Higher-Funnel Campaigns
With indoor shopping on a continual decline, brands are subsequently experiencing a drop-off in the brand equity in-store experiences provide. Looking forward, I anticipate brands will attempt to stem the decline by developing an impressive budget-balancing act between higher-funnel brand awareness and mid- and lower-funnel campaigns that emphasize immediate conversions. – Jason Wulfsohn, AUDIENCEX
2. New Channel/Tactic Testing
Include a budget piece solely for new channel/tactic testing that is not held to the same revenue key performance indicators—so if the test fails, it won’t tank the overall marketing ROI. Having a budget that frees the marketing team to test new audience segments, try the next up-and-coming social channels and experiment with new ad creatives while increasing the volume of actionable data is key to scaling in a fast-moving ads environment. – Brian Walker, Statwax
3. Digital And Social Media Advertising
A marketing budget should consist of mostly digital and social media allocations in 2022. Social media advertising allows businesses to predictably generate profit from ad campaigns on a regular basis. The “table stakes” range from a few thousand dollars per month in ad spend for small businesses all the way to tens of thousands, and even several hundred thousand, per month for large enterprises. – Jonathan Durante, Expandify Marketing Inc
4. Investments In The Strongest Conversion-Based Traffic Sources
The best budget allocation should always focus on supporting your strongest conversion-based traffic sources. While growth and trying new things are always important, a business should always have a strong understanding of where their audience is converting from in the highest numbers and invest accordingly. – David Kley, Web Design and Company
5. ‘Content That Converts’
We call it “Content that Converts”—creative assets, strategic storytelling and product personification need to be part of the marketing investment in 2022. Data, connectors for internal tech stacks and tech stack refinement should also be high. Most marketers don’t touch that. However, we do, because all “strategy” talk is pure fantasy until we know what’s driving revenue. – Vix Reitano, Agency 6B
6. Artificial Intelligence Tools
It is very clear that how brands use artificial intelligence will make all the difference in the ways people make their purchases in 2022. As more AI is built into platforms, life is changing for the marketing world. Those who do not know how to make the adjustments with the new tools will perish. – Jon James, Ignited Results
7. Client Retention Initiatives
Plan quarterly to ensure your team has the resources to adjust quickly to market shifts and client needs. Evaluate marketing technology investments often to ensure they are delivering on their KPIs. Invest in current clients. New business is essential, but current clients can provide a lifeline during market shifts. Don’t underestimate the value of client retention when you’re planning for 2022. – Steve Ohanians, WebEnertia
8. Partnerships And Placements That Build Brand Reputation
Smart marketers will focus on building brand reputation far more than just brand awareness. Today, consumers want brands that not only have a story behind what they stand for but also legitimacy from being endorsed by what are seen as credible sources. This can include social influencer partnerships, strategic partnerships with other entities and product placement in popular content. – Stacy Jones, Hollywood Branded
9. The Ability To Uncover And Act On Data-Backed Insights
As competition to earn consumer attention continues to surge, the best marketers will continue to invest in their ability to uncover and act on data-backed insights. The main difference between “good” and “great” marketing will be a brand’s ability to harness actionable insights from both internal and external sources to better understand their target consumers and outmaneuver competitors. – Charlie Grinnell, RightMetric
10. A Mix That Aligns With Target Audience, Goals And Timing
How you set a marketing budget varies based on the size of the business, goals, channels, tactics and other factors. The Small Business Administration recommends that businesses generating under $5 million in revenue dedicate 7% to 8% of their gross revenues to their total marketing budget. In my experience, if you’re launching a new product or going into a new market, that can scale up to 20%. The marketing mix needs to align with your target audience, goals and timing. – Jason Wilson, Strategy, LLC
11. Conversion-Based Testing Of All Campaign Initiatives
Marketing budgets in 2022 need to account for the entirety of the marketing funnel rather than focusing so heavily on the top-of-funnel awareness and attraction portion. Neglecting to budget for conversion-based testing of all campaign initiatives is going to make “table stakes” way off balance. To know when to go “all in,” you must be willing to understand your opponents and their weaknesses. – Bernard May, National Positions
12. A Well-Rounded, Omnichannel Mix Of Platforms
A well-rounded, omnichannel mix, consisting of digital, social and streaming/over-the-top media platforms, will be more important than ever. There will also be a broader offline approach to ensure brands will reach their consumers wherever they are through various forms of content. – Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, Hawthorne LLC
13. An Integrated, Multichannel Strategy That Includes Video
Your marketing budget should focus on activities that work together in an integrated way, thus creating more thrust overall. You should not put all of your eggs in any one basket. Make sure to have a multichannel strategy that utilizes social media, digital advertising, public relations, SEO, email marketing, reputation management and so on. But put aside money for video—this is a must in 2022! – Christopher Tompkins, The Go! Agency
14. Data-Engineering Solutions To Pull In Nontraditional And Offline Metrics
As data continues to disappear due to an increased emphasis on data privacy on digital platforms, optimizing toward in-platform metrics will no longer be sufficient. To gain a competitive edge and break through the clutter, it will be crucial for marketers to invest in data-engineering solutions to pull in nontraditional and offline metrics, such as product margins and in-store foot traffic. – Donna Robinson, Collective Measures
15. Alignment Between Organic And Paid Strategies
Table stakes for marketers in 2022 should consist of prospecting investments on paid search and paid social. An area that occasionally gets less focus is organic social. Investing in organic social is crucial to ensure the strategy is aligned with a company’s brand, specifically its paid media and website strategy. Organic alignment is essential to building the trust and interest of relevant audiences. – Tellef Lundevall, Accelerated Digital Media
