Many brands believe ad-blocking presents opportunities rather than obstacles when it comes to online marketing, a new study has found.
According to research by YouGov, more than three-quarters of members of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) think ad-blocking forces marketers to engage with customers in more creative ways.
The findings have been welcomed by the CIM, which praised marketers for their “natural thirst for creativity.”
Chris Daly, Chief Executive of the body, commented: “Marketers are naturally skilled when it comes to embracing change and new technologies.
“So it was positive to see the majority of respondents rising to the challenge of ad-blocking.”
However, marketers appear to be less keen on VR and chatbots, with just eight per cent saying they are planning to focus on these areas in the coming year.
Mr Daly said it is “encouraging” to see marketers starting look at new technologies in order to enhance the customer experience.
However, he stressed that the “fundamental skills of their profession in terms of delivering more personalised, targeted and influential campaigns, still sit at the core of marketers’ everyday life.”
Interestingly, the survey found that offering a strong customer experience is becoming an increasing priority for many organisations.
One-fifth of those polled described this as their firm’s main focus, while 15 per cent have actively tried to improve it in the last year to help them keep up with rival brands and customer expectations.
Mr Daly insisted that the customer experience should be a priority for companies in all sectors and put at “the heart of the operation, particularly in today’s customer-led environment.”
He went on to state that it is encouraging to see customer experience being given the consideration it needs at a business level and that marketing is “clearly playing a more strategic role.”
However, Mr Daly stressed that organisations will not be able to deliver superior customer experience unless they invest enough in this area.
This, he said, means marketers have a “clear role to play in demonstrating their value to the business” and for putting forward a case to step up investment so their organisation can meet its goals.
Three-quarters of UK marketers say ad-blocking will be good for the industry CampaignLive
