New Study Finds Marketers Drowning in Sea of Vendors, Technologies and Complexity

SAN MATEO, CA--(Marketwired - May 5, 2014) - A first-of-its-kind study released today shows that in-house marketers at mid-sized companies are literally drowning in a sea of vendors, technologies and complexity. They are in so deep that the majority are interested in bringing on a "mini chief information officer" who can help them deal with and integrate myriad apps, platforms and cloud-based software solutions. The study, "Marketing Got Complicated: Challenges (and Opportunities) for Marketers at Mid-Size Companies," was commissioned by marketing software company DNN to better understand the challenges facing marketers at companies in the mid-sized segment, defined as those with 50 to 5000 employees.

More than half of the study's respondents (53%) use five or more discrete marketing technology solutions such as marketing automation software, CRM, email marketing and social media tools, etc. Fifteen percent use a mind-boggling 10 or more different technologies for their daily work activities. Perhaps most telling of all is that, in a still-shaky economy, survey respondents seem to have difficulty prioritizing marketing activities, identifying five out of seven common marketing tasks as high or very high priority activities.

"The cry for help from mid-market marketing professionals is loud and clear," said Navin Nagiah, president and CEO, DNN. "They have greater and more direct responsibility for revenue in a market where there is a content glut, an over-abundance of software and technology from a multitude of vendors, and a plethora of online social channels to manage. Their jobs have never been more difficult. Ruthless prioritization, a focus on quick and measurable ROI, and embracing data are the needs of the hour."

The study, conducted in conjunction with Lawless Research, analyzed input from more than 300 marketing executives at US companies during February 2014. Its findings point to an urgent need for more effective, integrated content marketing strategies. It recommends that marketers with limited resources must hire wisely, focus on strategy first and execution second in order to ensure they are focusing where it will matter most, and explore integrated technology suites that will maximize resources.

Additional key findings include:

• The top three marketing priorities for mid-sized companies in 2014 are to acquire new customers (87%), increase customer retention (86%), and increase brand awareness (80%).
• 79% of marketing executives say it's a challenge to get (and hold) the attention of target customers, and 72% say it's difficult to find their target audiences online.
• 70% agree that marketing has become more challenging, despite (or, perhaps, because of) the wide range of technology solutions available to them.
• 53% of mid-sized companies use five or more marketing technology solutions. 15% use 10 or more.

79% of respondents somewhat or strongly agree that online communities are a "critical channel" for their marketing efforts. By the end of the year, 77% of respondents say their companies plan to have online communities in place, 90% of them including customers, 77% including employees.

A full copy of the report is available at the DNN site.

DNN will be hosting a live webinar on May 15. The webinar will feature an panel of marketing experts including Ian Gertler, founder and CMO at Symplegades, Inc.; Jeff Korhan, small business marketing expert and published author; Scott K. Wilder, experienced marketer with Marketo and Google; and Sandra Zoratti, CMO at Dispersive Technologies, Inc. and published author. The panel will address the study findings and the overall marketing landscape at mid-sized organizations, as well as share their recommendations on how marketers can more effectively handle current challenges. Register for this webinar here.

About DNN

DNN provides a suite of solutions that make designing, building and managing feature-rich sites and communities fast, easy and cost-effective. The DNN Platform CMS is the foundation for over 800,000 websites worldwide and powers Evoq Content. Evoq Social, our newest solution, enables businesses to create immersive, interactive communities. Thousands of organizations like Bank of America, Aetna, True Value Hardware, Whirlpool, the National Football League (NFL), the US Department of Defense (DoD) and Sports Direct have leveraged DNN to deploy highly engaging business-critical websites. Our rapid growth in product sales and deployments resulted in DNN being named one of the fastest growing private companies in America by Inc. Magazine in 2011 and 2012.

Get started building your online community today -- call us at (650) 288-3150 or visit dnnsoftware.com

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