Four in five brands want to outsource marketing strategies related to data amid a crisis of confidence about the ability to leverage insights to improve content campaigns, a new report published by Lotame has found.
The “Data Activation & Success Report” suggests that brands are overwhelmed by the scale of data management required to support content marketing, and while 96% believe that this information is either “somewhat” or “very” valuable, many are struggling to put it to use in the right way.
For some, a lack of in-house skills is the problem as one-third said that they simply do not have the “internal resources” to even collect data, while a similar number have no idea where to begin, and 21% do not have the tech or tools available to them to start.
The need to understand the audience’s wants and needs has been a major trend in 2018 and 60% of those surveyed said that data is mostly deployed to make content “more relevant”. Meanwhile, 59% said that it helps to improve the performance of their campaigns.
“For all these organizations, data strategy development, management and execution require sizable investments in talent and technology – and many simply don’t have the in-house capabilities or infrastructure,” Lotame’s Chief Strategy Officer Jason Downie said in a statement.
The vast majority are eager to use managed services, with 78% preferring agencies and other third parties to an in-house solution. Almost a third said that this would also empower them to execute their tactics more effectively.