8 of the Top Marketing Challenges Faced Globally [New Data]

Every marketer faces different challenges. Although we typically pursue similar goals, some teams are unable to hire top talent, while others struggle to find the right technology for their needs.

Whatever the case, there is always at least one area that you can improve. In other words, there is always room to optimize the various components of your strategy and turn your marketing into one even more effective source of income.

In recent years, HubSpot has kept pace with a number of global marketing challenge trends. We also interviewed thousands of marketers about the challenges they face and the tactics they used to tackle them directly.

While you may think that global marketing problems have changed dramatically in recent years due to evolving media platforms and emerging technology, you may be surprised by the trends that research has actually shown.

In fact, we’ve found that today’s most common global marketing struggles haven’t changed significantly in recent years.

In 2019, when we were researching global marketing challenges, such as this poll from attestMany of the results we found were pretty similar to those in 2017 and 2018 when we interviewed thousands of marketers for ours Status of incoming reports.

Between 2017 and 2018 our Status of incoming reports noted that the top five challenges remained the same with some slight fluctuations in non-American regions.

According to studies from 2017-2019, Generate traffic and leads as well pThe increasing ROI remains one of the biggest challenges for marketers.

While the unchanging list of challenges is a good sign that marketers are not facing unprecedented obstacles, it is still important to take stock of the factors that continue to hold back marketers. Why? If marketers are facing the same problems as in the past, these major challenges are likely to continue in the future.

So what will happen in 2020?

Below, let’s examine current global marketing issues that are affecting the industry.

1. Generate traffic and leads

Generating enough traffic and leads was according to the Status of incoming reports in 2017 and 2018.

A 2019 poll from Vital shows that more than 35% of marketers face challenges related to leads and / or traffic, which shows that this trend is still continuing.

Actually, Generating leads is the top priority for marketers in 2020.

Why it’s a challenge

Obviously, marketers have trouble getting enough demand for their content. And if progress and competition intensify over the years, it will only be true. With so many options for marketers to publish their content and even more ways to promote it, it is difficult to know where to focus your efforts.

What can you do?

When it comes to creating content that produces enough traffic and leads, marketers should ask themselves two questions: Create really high quality content – the type of content that people need numbers to the? And do you know the type of content that your audience actually wants?

In 2020 The most common marketing strategy for customers is to create exclusive content for customers.

HubSpot Research found this, for example 53% of consumers want to see more videos from marketers in the future, while only 14% want to see more blog posts. Read this to learn more about how the way people read and interact with content is changing HubSpot research report.

Once you know you’re creating the type of content your audience wants, the focus shifts to promoting it in a way that draws your audience’s attention. People are flooded with content more than ever. Consumers don’t have to use a search engine to find answers. Instead, articles fill their newsfeed or hums in their pockets via a mobile phone notification.

2. Providing the ROI of your marketing activities

Measuring the ROI (return on investment) of your marketing activities has remained one of the greatest marketing challenges worldwide compared to the previous year.

Actually, Only 53.85% of marketers surveyed say they even measure the cost of customer acquisition.

It’s still an important way for marketers to understand the effectiveness of each marketing campaign or content.

Proof of ROI is often accompanied by an argument to increase the budget: no ROI tracking, no demonstrable ROI. No ROI, no budget.

Why it’s a challenge

While return on investment is a critical indicator of the success or progress of your campaigns, it is not always easy to track the ROI of each marketing activity, especially if you do not have two-way communication between your marketing activities and sales reports.

What can you do?

When it comes to delivering ROI, it is essential to spend time and resources to connect marketing activities and sales results. This means using both marketing software (like HubSpot) and a CRM solution (like HubSpot’s free CRM) and then tie them together to complete the circle between your marketing and sales efforts with a Service Level Agreement (SLA). In this way you can directly see how many leads and customers are generated by your marketing activities.

We have found that there is no better combination than having an SLA and doing so Inbound marketing. According to the 2018 report, incoming organizations with SLAs had double the ROI of misaligned organizations.

(Use this ROI calculator to simulate the potential ROI You could realize through inbound marketing.)

3. Secure a secure budget

How can you create a successful marketing campaign without a budget? The truth is, it’s pretty difficult. But even if you have a great revenue-generating idea, you usually need to get your budget approved by a higher company.

For 2020 64% of marketers said their marketing budget has increased.

Why it’s a challenge

Securing more budget is an urgent challenge for global marketing. And it’s often easier said than done to get more budget – especially for smaller businesses that don’t have significant or flexible marketing expenses.

But the key to securing more money for your team may not be that complex. Here’s what you can do.

What can you do?

The key to unlocking the budget is in be able to prove the ROI Your marketing efforts. According to our report, companies that can calculate ROI are more likely to get higher budgets.

Here too, success with inbound marketing plays a major role in increasing higher budgets. Effective strategies obviously lead to results, and our data shows that those who feel confident about their marketing strategy are more than twice as likely to get higher budgets for their marketing teams. But remember, inbound marketing is a long game. If you have a slow start, you shouldn’t step down – in fact, you might consider doubling it.

To learn more about how you can understand and use Marketing ROI, Check out this simple guide.

4. Manage your website

While managing a website is a challenge for marketers, it appears to be less of a threat.

In recent years, fewer and fewer marketers have been concerned about it, compared to other challenges such as “identifying the right technology”, which rose from the fifth to fourth largest challenge in 2010 Initial report 2018.

In 2020 63% of marketers want to upgrade their website.

Why it’s still a challenge

Managing a website was the fourth biggest challenge for marketers in 2017. And chances are that the performance of your website is at the top of your priority list. It is a 24/7 asset that attracts visitors, converts, and ultimately helps you achieve your goals.

Website management issues include several factors, from writing and optimizing content to designing beautiful websites. Here are some things marketers can do to meet this challenge.

What can you do?

First, Read this report to see how your website is building against over 1 million other websites. It also includes an in-depth analysis of the four key elements of website performance and website design, from average loading time and website security to mobile friendliness and SEO.

If your primary challenge in managing a website is related to the skills and resources available, you are not alone. This is especially true for small businesses that don’t have all the internal talent to cover content, optimization, design, and back-end website management.

A solution? Hire freelancers and agency partners. To find freelancers, we recommend:

• Use your personal and professional network by publishing and describing what you are looking for on LinkedIn, Facebook and other social networks.
• Search freelance writers and designers based on their portfolios and areas of interest. For writers, check out Zerys and Satisfied. For designers, check out Behance & Elance.
• Search the HubSpot Services Marketplace, which lists a large number of designers from partner companies and agencies that we considered credible.

Overall, you can simplify website management for your team by hosting your website on a platform that spans all of your marketing channels, such as: COS from HubSpot.

For the projects you want to carry out internally, here is a list of e-books and instructions that may be helpful for your team:

5. Targeting content for an international audience

Targeting is a key component of all aspects of marketing.

With 59% of the marketers surveyed currently sell internationallyIt is important to have an international strategy.

One of the first things every marketer needs to do to be more effective in targeting is identify their buyer personalities to determine who to market to.

Why it’s a challenge

If you are expanding internationally, it can be a great challenge not only to find the best opportunities for marketing to an international audience, but also to organize and optimize your website for different countries.

However, Exchange rates are the biggest challenge for marketers in international marketing.

HubSpot Research recently analyzed the difference in Content preferences around the world.

What can you do?

Download our free eBook The Global Marketing Playbook. There are some really helpful tips to help you take a direction in global marketing, including identifying your top three growth markets, exploring local trends, and choosing the best localization providers.

In addition, When marketing to a new region, the most common tactic is to relocate the product offering.

Keep in mind that your website visitors may speak a variety of different languages ​​and live in completely different time zones. To make your content attractive to a wide audience, you need to keep your global visitors informed as you create all of your content. This means knowing seasonal references, translating units of measurement and money references, and giving translators the tools and permissions to customize and adapt content to a specific target audience as needed.

Finally, make sure that you also optimize your website for international visitors. For more tips and resources on global marketing expansion, go to Browse our international inbound marketing hub.

6. Train your team

As companies grow in size and technology, training your team becomes a bigger challenge for marketers.

Why it’s a challenge

Whether it’s to train them in the concepts and tools that they use every day, or to ensure that they reach their full potential, the struggle is real across the board.

To counteract this, I will give some tips that I used during my training to ensure that the concepts and tool tips are preserved and have a lasting impact on your team and your marketing.

What can you do?

Take a few minutes to get an overview of the position of your team and to assess the marketing strengths and weaknesses of the individual team members, the specialist knowledge and the passion / commitment to your company. Then objectively assess the priority (or degree of importance) of your expertise and your contribution to previous goals (ROI). Here is a simple assessment tool from Lean Labs to help you evaluate your team so you can find out who needs recognition and who needs coaching.

You can also consider requesting online marketing certification from your team members. HubSpot AcademyFor example, offers certifications, documentation, and training programs to learn the basics of inbound marketing. Google also offers online training and certification for analytics Analytics Academy.

What is special about new hires? We recommend creating a training plan for new team members. Here at HubSpot, every new marketer is listed a 100 day plan like this Set specific goals and help new employees demonstrate their effectiveness.

7. Hire top talents

Hire top talents is another challenge that marketers often report.

Why it’s a challenge

Many companies are shifting more resources to inbound marketing, which means an increasing demand for top marketing talent. But the offer just doesn’t keep up. From finding the right candidate to evaluating the right skills, it can take months or more to find the perfect person.

It also changes the type of marketing talent companies are looking for. After a LinkedIn report 2020Employers are looking for marketers with soft creative skills and hard technical skills. And the rapid pace with which the demand for these jobs is growing has created a gap in marketing skills, “which makes it difficult to find candidates with the technical, creative, and business skills required to succeed in digital marketing . “

What can you do?

Employers are looking for marketers with diverse skills, including digital marketing, content marketing, SEO and social media marketing. To find the best inbound marketer for your team, you should first decide what that person needs to accomplish for your business.

Ask yourself: What are the tasks and duties of the new marketer? What skills do these tasks and duties require? What goals or challenges does the new marketer face? Use your answers to these questions to write a compelling job description. (Here is a long list of pre-written marketing job descriptions to help you get started.)

Next, post your jobs where talented inbound marketers can find them. While traditional job sites like Indeed.com, CareerBuilder.com or LinkedIn help you build a broad network, we recommend Check out Inbound.orgThis is the only job listing service in the world that focuses exclusively on inbound marketing and sales jobs.

Finally, focus on your job description and the 100-day plan for new employees who value people most in their careers.

LinkedIn data from 2020 shows that 87% of active and passive applicants are considering new employment opportunities. The main reason why candidates consider or accept a job is career growth. This means that job opportunities and corporate cultures that offer employees a growth plan find the greatest interest from talent.

8. Provision of an account-based marketing strategy

Account based marketing (ABM) is a new trend that is a growth strategy in which marketing and sales work together to create a personalized shopping experience for a specific group of accounts.

Interestingly, however The most common challenge at ABM is to deliver a personalized experience.

Why it’s a challenge

There isn’t a lot of software to focus on right now Account based marketing. Many companies that implement ABM strategies use manual methods, which means that some accounts are lost in the cracks.

However, Marketers agree that personalized content (56%) and advanced data management (43%) are key to ABM’s success.

What can you do?

To provide a more personal experience, you should use software that you can combine your sales and marketing information with.

For example, HubSpot’s ABM software Bring your marketing and sales teams together with collaborative, intuitive ABM tools that create seamless shopping experiences for your accounts with the highest value.

This software can enable team collaboration and personalize content.

In addition, the HubSpot software has targeting at the account level that has been added to the integration of LinkedIn Ads. In this way, you can address companies according to the status or level of the target account as well as by contacts or subsets of contacts in target accounts. The account overview sidebar, ABM playbook for sales reps, and native integration to link your HubSpot and LinkedIn Sales Navigator accounts help deepen your relationships with people over time and more authentic connections to stakeholders in each account build up.

Is your company facing one of these marketing problems?

A thorough analysis of your marketing strategy and your current performance will help you find out where your greatest marketing opportunity is. This allows you to focus on improving the areas that need the most attention so that you can make your marketing far more effective.

If you are facing a challenge and want ideas for optimal coping, you can always consider getting help from one of the employees different types of marketing training that are available.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in November 2012 and has been updated for freshness and completeness.