Email marketing to get higher spending priority than social or search in 2013

Slightly fewer than half of US business-to-business marketers plan to increase overall marketing budgets in 2013, according to a November survey conducted by BtoB Magazine. But an even larger number, 67.2%, will up digital investment, according to the survey, reports eMarketer.

Web development was the most widely shared digital priority: 70% of respondents planned to increase spending on websites this year. Email marketing also received attention: 62% said they will be spending more on this outreach. “Web 2.0” technologies such as social media and video got somewhat less attention, though still more than a majority of respondents planned to increase their budgets for both formats. A little over one-third of respondents will be spending more on mobile this year as well.

Content marketing, in many ways a natural fit with digital efforts, has grown to become a major focus for B2B marketers. According to a study by Curata, 87% of US B2B marketers used content marketing in 2012.

In 2013, B2B marketers will likely spend on the channels they think are effective in getting content in front of prospects. Of those surveyed by BtoB Magazine, 93% said they used their website for content marketing, followed by social media (65.4%).

But traditional media isn’t completely going away as a content marketing channel either—nearly half of respondents said that print materials were a major part of their content marketing strategy.

Source:eMarketer