Helping advertisers stay competitive in today’s evolving marketplace keeps Yahoo! researchers extremely busy. In 2011 alone, our Insights team launched more than 50 studies, answering today’s hot-button questions from marketers (read our top 10 studies here). Our team uncovered everything from what online marketing tactics are most cost-efficient to how to market more effectively to different ethnicities.
So what’s top-of-mind for advertisers and, by extension, Yahoo!’s researchers in the year ahead? Lauren Weinberg, Yahoo!’s VP Insights and Research, shares a sneak peek at a few of the key trends, audiences and best practices that her team will bring to your fingertips in 2012.
Discovering the new tablet space and identifying the consumer and the opportunity
In 2011, mobile was one of the most intriguing areas in the digital media space. Yahoo! researchers conducted several studies around significant increases in mobile usage, mobile ad effectiveness and mobile multitasking. Here are some insights to keep in mind as you kick off 2012:
- 80% of consumers are multitasking on their mobile phone while watching TV.
- Half of consumers claim they purchase an item after researching it on their mobile phone.
- 90% of mobile owners access the web from the retail store floor.
“In the coming year, Yahoo! researchers plan to help advertisers optimize ROI by digging more deeply into tablet consumption,” says Weinberg. The Yahoo! research team will likely glean insights on what types of content tablet consumers prefer based on usage of our own iPad app, Livestand, which was launched in late 2011. They will also explore what makes an ad effective on tablets versus other media.
Sharing social media best practices
Social media has had an undeniable impact on the relationship between brands and consumers. In 2011, several Yahoo! studies addressed how brands can leverage advertising, PR and earned media more optimally in today’s digital media landscape. Here are a few insights to keep in mind for 2012:
- Social networks, user reviews and smartphones instantly facilitate the sharing of consumer expertise and experience. 49% of consumers give advice to others, motivated by a feeling of solidarity with other shoppers.
- Sponsored social features around content, like voting and sharing, significantly increase brand metrics for brands associated with those sponsorships, with a 12% increase in brand favorability, a 13% increase in purchase intent, and a 41% increase in likelihood to recommend the brand.
This year, Yahoo! will take our research one step further by partnering with five brands to measure how their Paid, Owned and Earned media work cohesively to drive success. Our goal will be to give advertisers tangible examples of value each channel (paid, earned or owned) provides as well as how they work in concert across different advertising verticals. “We want to help quantify the value of earned media and help brands understand how it fits within their paid media strategy,” says Weinberg.
How has the digital revolution affected moms around the globe
In a key 2011 insight, we learned that dads are becoming more influential within the household and specifically in the shopping process; yet feel that marketing messages largely ignore them. In 2012, we’ll turn our attention to Moms, who are also a key audience segment for Yahoo! and our partners. We are engaging with SMG in a global mom’s study that will help us build better experiences online for moms across the globe.
Tapping into our massive audience
With more than 180 million users in the U.S., Yahoo!’s audience is actually one of the greatest assets that our research team can tap. In fact, in late 2011 our researchers launched a community of almost 15,000 Yahoo! users, whom we call the Yodelers. This exclusive group of Yahoo! consumers has agreed to provide insight into the questions that are most important to our advertisers. The Yodelers provide yet another way in which Weinberg and her team of researchers can analyze actual user behaviors across our network and derive unique, powerful insights that will improve the effectiveness of our advertisers’ campaigns.
Delivering best practices, trends and tips, all in one place
To help advertisers start 2012 on the right foot, our researchers compiled the 10 most popular Yahoo! studies from last year into the Best of 2011 Yahoo! Insights e-magazine. Now you can access a year’s worth of evergreen tips on mobile strategy, ad effectiveness, social media and more—all in one convenient place. Make sure to bookmark this link now for your reference later.
Think of it as our new year’s gift to you!
