Nanigans: Almost all retail marketing executives need support from all departments

Marketing executives at companies with at least $100 million in annual e-commerce sales are more focused on demonstrating results, according to a Nanigans survey. In fact, their top three priorities are all growth-focused: improving ROI/increasing sales, acquiring and retaining customers, and expanding/increasing market share. However, the majority (58%) believe their roles are becoming more fragmented among different executives, with nearly all needing buy-in on growth initiatives (93%).

In most cases, respondents sometimes or often received support from:

• Sales/Business Development (62%)
• Product/merchandising (52%);
• Analysis/Optimization (43%)
• Design/creativity (39%);
• Finance (36%).

Most retail marketing executives have at least some control over each of these areas, from promotional channels to product launches, pricing, and store openings.

But overall control over these areas is lower. While the majority say they have full control over promotional channels, less than half have control over ideal customer profiles, website design, product launches, and sales and revenue target setting.

As a result, only 39% of respondents feel they have the control they need to effect change. The issues that most dissatisfied marketing executives include:

• Not having the resources to achieve goals;
• Feeling that their team’s function is misunderstood;
• Feeling like their team’s success metrics are difficult to be properly understood by other teams.

The survey also found that more than three-quarters of respondents believe their CEO is impressed by marketing’s leadership (78%). Reporting directly to the CEO helps, with 91% of marketing executives who report directly to the CEO saying they are impressed, compared to just 52% of those who don’t.

199IT.com Originally compiled from: Nanigans. Please do not reprint without authorization