With Reveal Analytics, we’re told, Natural Insight continues its focus on improving in-store execution while increasing margins and customer satisfaction.

With unprecedented transparency into promotional execution, merchandising, store conditions and in-store marketing events, retailers can now use any mobile device to monitor and react to the challenges of managing the retail environment.

“We are eliminating the retail industry’s biggest blind spot with Reveal Analytics,” said Stefan Midford, CEO of Natural Insight. “Customers can now access real-time mobile dashboards reflecting the status of in-store promotional, merchandising and assisted sales efforts as well as captured photos for visual verification. With a click of a button, brands and retailers can identify and share trends related to project completion, execution compliance, customer feedback, sales influencers and competitive information.”

To learn more about Reveal Analytics, click here.

The post ‘Reveal Analytics’ Debuts at NRF Big Show 2017 appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

We’re told that the deal will add powerful new mobile marketing capabilities to the Clutch platform.

“Marketers have been pressed into using sales platforms that were never the right tool for the job, and because of that, they’ve had to bolt on additional solutions to solve new needs as they arise,” said Clutch CEO Ned Moore. “With this acquisition, the Clutch platform is the first to support the marketer with a comprehensive view of customers across all buying and marketing channels. The addition of Persio’s intelligent mobile platform will allow us to deliver these experiences instantly and with greater context.”

The transaction puts Clutch in a position to capture a bigger share of the $32 billion marketing technology industry, just as brands are increasingly looking to automate mobile solutions to deliver shipping notices, rewards, coupons, brand messages, and more.

“Clutch built its business on unifying data to give marketers an actionable, complete view of their customers, and blending our capabilities with theirs is just natural,” said Persio co-founder Nick Doulas. “Together we can integrate customer data into virtually every marketing activity, from loyalty and gift to direct mail or e-commerce, and of course, mobile.”

The post Clutch Purchases Persio to Extend Mobile Marketing Capabilities appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

According to a briefing provided to MMW, the report tested the accuracy of age information passed on mobile ad exchanges to deliver targeted advertising to consumers.

We’re told that the study compared age information submitted within an ad request across two high-traffic mobile ad exchanges with ages drawn from verified, first-party data.

As a result, significant variances in age were uncovered. In fact, more than 72 percent of ad requests made on an exchange omitted an associated age, and where it was included, more than 60 percent were inaccurate.

“We had strong suspicions about the general accuracy of demographic data, but these results were a surprise even to us,” said Matt Habiger, Chief Data Scientist at Pinsight Media. “Inaccuracies in simple demographic data like age build upon one another, resulting in inefficient ad spend, limited reach and increased waste, which is a concern for the mobile RTB ecosystem.”

For more information or to download a full copy of the report, click here.

The post New Study Reveals Discrepancies in Demographic Data Across Ad Exchanges appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Despite rarely being acknowledged for doing so, the Amazon Marketplace creates opportunities for sellers, brand owners and entrepreneurs to reach customers around the world.

FBA items shipped worldwide grew more than 50 percent during the holiday season, while Prime members ordered millions of items from sellers in the Seller Fulfilled Prime program offering free two-day or next-day shipping.

“2016 was a record-breaking year in sales worldwide for sellers on Amazon. The Amazon Marketplace empowers brand owners and retailers of all sizes, many of them small businesses, to reach customers around the world,” said Peter Faricy, VP for Amazon Marketplace. “In fact, according to our economic studies, sellers have created over 600,000 new jobs outside of Amazon. Sellers are choosing Amazon because we help them build and grow their businesses with impactful programs like Seller Fulfilled Prime, and we’re proud of the fact that sellers are reinvesting their success into their local communities by creating jobs.”

“As a growing business and brand owner, the Amazon Exclusives and FBA programs helped us accelerate our business to achieve more than 100 percent growth in sales this year,” said Ben Arneberg, co-founder of Willow & Everett. “The FBA service handles the work of packaging and shipping orders to customers, which gives us the time to create new products that customers will love. We had our most successful Black Friday and Cyber Monday ever, and on Prime Day earlier in the year our sales boomed more than 10x compared to last year.”

The post Amazon Sellers Coming Off of Record Year, Says Online and Mobile Retail Giant appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The final numbers aren’t in yet, but numerous studies indicate that consumers now demand discounts and other promotions (free shipping, for instance) in order for retailers to snag a sale.

In other words, deep discounting might have boosted sales a bit, but they also bite deeply into actual profit.

“Retailers, which typically close their fiscal fourth quarter end of this month or early next month, are expected to see their critical holiday quarter profit decline 1.9 percent on average, according to Retail Metrics, a research firm that tracks Wall Street analysts’ estimates and provides retail industry research and data to institutional investors,” reports eMarketer. “While retail giant Wal-Mart’s expected profit decline (thanks to its technology and other investments) is the key culprit contributing to the sector’s decline, holiday discounting is also partly to blame.”

Retail Metrics president Ken Perkins even suggests that 53 major retailers — about half of the group his firm tracked — are expected to see lower fourth-quarter profit.

“Among the holiday winners, Perkins pointed to retailers including Amazon, beauty products seller Ulta, T.J. Maxx parent TJX, athletic gear retailer Lululemon and electronics chain Best Buy,” notes the report. “Still, he said the firm’s December store checks generally found disappointing in-store traffic and conversions.”

One big takeaway from the holiday? It’s hard to make an actual profit without an omnichannel strategy.

“Almost 70 percent of total holiday related spending occurred in stores with both a physical and online presence as consumers routinely favor shopping with retailers that have a physical location, according to an International Council of Shopping Center’s post-holiday shopper survey,” reports eMarketer. “Among millennials, for instance, the survey showed 77 percent of them said it’s important to buy online from stores that have a physical presence.”

The survey found that 91 percent of holiday shoppers made purchases at physical stores — about the same as holiday 2015.

The post Holiday Sales Healthy, But It Took Discounts, Promotions, and Omnichannel to Get There appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The survey, commissioned by Staples and conducted by Wakefield Research, discovered that 85% of American small business owners are “optimistic” about the small business climate in the new year, while 67% think business tax reform should be the top policy priority for 2017.

“Signaling further short- and long-term positivity, 67% of respondents plan to hire employees in 2017, while 91% would be likely to encourage their children to start their own business given the current state of the small business environment,” reads a provided report summary.

Among the report’s key findings:

• 97% of small business owners plan to increase investment in their companies in 2017
• 72% plan to increase staff compensation in 2017
• 93% believe running your own business is the best kind of job satisfaction there is

“We’ve been a small business champion for more than 30 years, and are pleased that small business owners are hopeful and confident as we head into the new year,” said Frank P. Bifulco, Jr., executive vice president global marketing, Staples. “We conducted the survey to better understand the pulse of small business owners and to further identify those priority product and service areas in which we can help our customers achieve success in 2017.”

The post Marketers Take Note: Staples Survey Sees Small Business Optimism appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

And the trend isn’t likely to change in 2017.

That’s per the findings of the International Data Corporation (IDC).

The global ICT research and consulting services firm said in a release that the Middle East and Africa (MEA) wearables market grew 38.3% year on year in Q3 2016 to total approximately 487,000 units.

The growth is being driven by low-cost basic wearables (i.e., devices that do not support third-party applications), which grew 55.9% year on year, while shipments of smart wearables (i.e., devices that do support third-party applications) increased 4.1% over the same period.

“Buyers for smart wearables are limited as the main application for these devices is fitness, which is an area that basic wearables also cater for at a much lower cost,” says Nakul Dogra, a senior research analyst for personal computing, systems, and infrastructure solutions at IDC MEA. “Basic wearables continue to experience higher uptake as their already-low prices are declining further still in a bid to drive differentiation, since there is little to separate the offerings in terms of functionality.”

IDC expects the MEA wearables market to total 1.96 million units for 2016 as a whole, which represents an increase of 38.4% on 2015. Looking ahead, the market is tipped to grow a further 22.6% in 2017 to reach 2.4 million units for the year. The uptake of wearables has been relatively slow in MEA when compared to other regions, so there is still plenty of room for adoption and continued steady growth over the coming years. New product launches in the earwear and clothing categories will also fuel further growth.

To keep pace with the changes taking place in this fast-moving market, IDC has launched its Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker, “which assists vendors that are looking to enter this market, promote new product developments, or accelerate the growth of their wearables divisions.”

To learn more, click here.

The post New Year, New Demand for Wearables in Emerging Markets appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

According to the New York American Marketing Association (NYAMA) and BrandSpark, which worked in conjunction with global data visualization firm Dapresy, marketers will “make big investments in technologies to improve mobile marketing effectiveness and consumer-generated content strategies over the next six to 12 months.”

More than 650 marketers from a wide range of industry sectors across the U.S. were surveyed. The marketers were asked to share their overall strategies, key tactics, challenges, successes, media spend intentions, and ROI expectations.

“Respondents believe that marketing is more important than ever before, and adopting new technologies effectively is a must to stay competitive,” said Lukas Pospichal, the managing director of GreenBook & New York AMA. “Mobile marketing was selected as the trend that will have the biggest impact on marketing in the next 12 months (and 10 years), though only 41 percent have a mobile strategy in place; another 30 percent are planning to implement within the next year.”

Content marketing/branded content, data management and analytics, and online video were cited as the growth strategies destined to be implemented (or solidified) in 2017.

“Accurately measuring ROI, as always, remains a critical challenge for marketers,” notes the report summary provided to MMW. “However, they are increasing spend on channels they perceive to offer the highest ROI. These include CRM/email marketing and social network advertising. Online video is also on the rise, but interestingly has approximately the same perceived ROI as broadcast television.”

What will suffer? Print media foremost — as usual.

“Respondents said the biggest likelihood to cut back on spending is print marketing (newspapers, flyers and magazines), OOH advertising, and radio, in large part because these channels have accounted for a large portion of budget and marketers are looking for money to fund the digital initiatives that are becoming a greater part of their overall mix,” the report adds.

Want to know more? The survey results are available online here.

The post Marketers Will Zero In On Mobile and Consumer-Generated Content Strategies in 2017 appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Across the country, small businesses and consumers alike are getting excited to support their favorite local, independent businesses on Small Business Saturday, which takes place this year on November 26th.

That’s the announcement today emerging from the results of the fifth-annual Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey, released by the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) and American Express.

The report shows that more consumers than ever are aware of Small Business Saturday (58% vs. the previous high of 55% in 2015).

More than six in ten (62%) consumers who are aware of Small Business Saturday and who plan to shop locally on the day say the main reason they plan to shop at small retailers or eat at independently-owned restaurants is because they value the contributions small businesses make to their community.

“Since its inception, Small Business Saturday has brought national attention to supporting the local businesses we love,” said Elizabeth Rutledge, Executive Vice President, Global Advertising & Brand Management at American Express, which founded Small Business Saturday in 2010. “Small Business Saturday reminds consumers of how valuable small businesses are to our communities, and we are incredibly proud to be the founding partner.”

The post Marketing for Small Businesses Could Be Extremely Effective This Year appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Press Release

Video consumption is exploding across all devices and video advertising is the fastest growing advertising category. Adobe is the leader in video content creation and delivery with its Premiere Pro CC and Primetime solutions. Adobe’s acquisition of TubeMogul will enable brands to capitalize on the meteoric shift to online video.

The acquisition of TubeMogul further strengthens Adobe’s leadership in digital marketing and advertising technology. Building upon its expertise in search, display and social advertising planning and delivery with Adobe Media Optimizer, the addition of TubeMogul will enable Adobe’s customers to maximize their video advertising investments across desktop, mobile, streaming devices and TV. TubeMogul’s video advertising platform, combined with Adobe Marketing Cloud, will give customers access to first-party data and measurement capabilities from Adobe Audience Manager (Adobe’s data management platform) and Adobe Analytics respectively.

“Whether it’s episodic TV, indie films or Hollywood blockbusters, video consumption is exploding across every device and brands are following those eyeballs,” said Brad Rencher, executive vice president and general manager, digital marketing, Adobe. “With the acquisition of TubeMogul, Adobe will give customers a ‘one-stop shop’ for video advertising, providing even more strategic value for our Adobe Marketing Cloud customers.”

TubeMogul is a video demand-side platform (DSP) leader according to Forrester Research in its Q4 2015 Forrester Wave Video Advertising Demand Side Platform report. Adobe and TubeMogul share a long list of joint customers that will benefit from the integration of TubeMogul into Marketing Cloud solutions. Joint customers include Allstate, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft, Liberty Mutual, L’Oréal, Nickelodeon and Southwest Airlines.

“Adobe and TubeMogul share a similar culture and vision for the future of advertising,” said Brett Wilson, CEO and co-founder, TubeMogul. “The combination of Adobe Marketing Cloud with TubeMogul’s software creates a uniquely comprehensive platform that will help marketers always know what’s working — and act on it. We’re thrilled to call Adobe home and believe this will be a great move for our clients, team and shareholders.”

The transaction, which is expected to close during the first quarter of Adobe’s 2017 fiscal year, is subject to customary closing conditions. The potential financial impact to Adobe of this transaction is not reflected in financial targets previously provided by Adobe. Until the transaction closes, each company will continue to operate independently. Assuming the completion of the transaction, Adobe believes the acquisition of TubeMogul will be neutral to Adobe’s non-GAAP earnings in fiscal year 2017. Due to the absence at this time of certain acquisition-related cost estimates and purchase price accounting, Adobe is currently unable to provide an estimated impact on future GAAP earnings.

TubeMogul CEO Brett Wilson will continue to lead the TubeMogul team as part of Adobe’s Digital Marketing business.

Forward-Looking Statements Disclosure

This press release includes forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including risks and uncertainties related to Adobe’s ability to integrate TubeMogul’s technology into Adobe Marketing Cloud. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including statements regarding: the ability of Adobe to extend its leadership in digital marketing and other anticipated benefits of the transaction to Adobe and to the combined companies; the effectiveness of TubeMogul technology; potential benefits of the transaction to Adobe and TubeMogul customers, the ability of Adobe and TubeMogul to close the announced transaction; the possibility that the closing of the transaction may be delayed; any statements of expectation or belief; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. These risks, uncertainties and other factors, and the general risks associated with Adobe’s and TubeMogul’s business, could cause actual results to differ materially from those referred to in the forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to Adobe and are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. For a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, individuals should refer to Adobe’s and TubeMogul’s SEC filings. Adobe does not assume any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements or other statements included in this press release.

Adobe assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update these forward-looking statements.

Securities Law Disclosures

In connection with the proposed acquisition, Adobe will commence a tender offer for the outstanding shares of TubeMogul. The tender offer has not yet commenced. This document is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell shares of TubeMogul, nor is it a substitute for the tender offer materials that Adobe and its acquisition subsidiary will file with the SEC upon commencement of the tender offer. At the time the tender is commenced, Adobe and its acquisition subsidiary will file tender offer materials on Schedule TO, and TubeMogul will file a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC with respect to the tender offer. The tender offer materials (including an Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents) and the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement will contain important information. Holders of shares of TubeMogul are urged to read these documents when they become available because they will contain important information that holders of TubeMogul securities should consider before making any decision regarding tendering their securities. The Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents, as well as the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement, will be made available to all holders of shares of TubeMogul at no expense to them. The tender offer materials and the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement will be made available for free at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov.

About TubeMogul

TubeMogul (Nasdaq:TUBE) is a leader in software for brand advertising. By reducing complexity, improving transparency and leveraging real-time data, our platform enables advertisers to gain greater control of their global advertising spend and achieve their brand advertising objectives. TubeMogul was incorporated in 2007 and is based in Emeryville, California with operations in Kyiv, London, New York, Paris, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto and offices across the United States.

About Adobe

Adobe is changing the world through digital experiences. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

2016 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Adobe and the Adobe logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. TubeMogul and the TubeMogul logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of TubeMogul, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

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