We’re now three months into 2013 and many communications professionals are starting to predict what the rest of 2013 will bring for B2B and B2C marketing tactics.  Not surprisingly, cross media marketing tactics are expected to grow as we continue out the 2013 year.

Both the digital and print components of cross media marketing communication are expected to expand, adapt and ultimately grow in usage.  Because of the predicted growth and adaptions in the marketing mix elements, digital marketing consultants and professionals are also expected to become more and more integral to the growth of a brand’s marketing campaign.

Using only one form of communication may effectively reach some of your target audience, but without multiple communication tools and touch points, it would be nearly impossible to expand your message’s reach and frequency to reach more of your audience. The expansion of reach and frequency alone is one of the biggest reasons professionals expect integrated cross media marketing to grow.  In addition to the reach and frequency increase, response rates also increase because a brand’s message has more interactions with its target audience and ultimately keeps the brand’s message top-of-mind.

Due to the rise in digital usage, there will inevitably be more clutter to work through to reach your target audience.  Because of this, print marketing material, such as direct mail, will be used to cut through the clutter of competitor’s messages and reach your audience. With direct mail having an open rate of over 80 percent and 60 percent of online brand searches being initiated as a direct result of a direct mail message, print will prove to be integral in driving traffic to a brand’s digital message to continue interactions between brand and consumer and ultimately increase the campaign’s ROI.

Finally, one of the last predictions for the year is that data will continue to be king and integral in creating relevant messages when communicating with a brand’s core audience. Without relevant data, your brand’s messages cannot be highly targeted and the messages will ultimately some of the ability to capture your core audiences’ attention.

What are your opinions on the prediction of the future of Marketing for 2013?

Timothy Freeman

President

Print & Graphic Communications Association