trends in hr marketing 2010 - 2011

8/8/2019 Trends in HR Marketing 2010 - 2011

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Trends in HR Marketing

Where HR Suppliers Spent Their Marketing and PR Dollars in 2010and Whats Ahead in 2011
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Trends in HR Marketing: Where HR SuppliersSpent Their Dollars in 2010 and Whats Ahead in 2011

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Table of Contents

Introduction .......................................................................................................................3

Supplier Optimism Heading into 2011 .................................................................................... 4

Marketing and PR Budgets for 2011.......................................................................................4

Whos Doing What? HR Suppliers Marketing and PR Activities in 2010 And Plans for 2011 ........ 6

The Importance of Various Marketing and PR Activities ............................................................8

Staying Knowledgeable........................................................................................................9

Social Networking Participation .............................................................................................9

Where the Sales Leads Came From ..................................................................................... 11

How Do You Know Youre Winning? Metrics, Metrics, Metrics. ................................................. 12

Press Releases and Public Relations..................................................................................... 13

Suppliers Marketing and PR Challenges ............................................................................... 13

The Respondents .............................................................................................................. 14

Conclusion: Where the Suppliers are Headed in 2011 ............................................................ 16

About HRmarketer ............................................................................................................ 17


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Introduction

This research report was produced by HRmarketer, a marketing software and services firm focusingexclusively on the human resources (HR) marketplace. Since 2000, nearly one thousand HR andemployee benefit suppliers have used HRmarketer.com and the HRmarketer Services Group t ogenerate publicity, Web site traffic, sales leads and improved search engine rankings (SEO).

This report covers the latest trends and best practices for marketing to the human resource (HR)and employee benefits marketplace going into 2011. The data presented in this report is based onresponses from a diverse group of HR and employee benefits suppliers collected during the fourthquarter of 2010. Topics covered in this report include:

Patterns of adoption and use of various marketing and PR tactics by HR and employee benefits

suppliers including social networking, social media, blogging, podcasting and RSS.

Marketing and PR activities most important to HR suppliers.

The marketing and PR activities that generate the most sales leads for HR suppliers, and thosepresenting the greatest challenges.

How HR suppliers measure the success of their marketing and PR.

Who and what suppliers rely on to stay knowledgeable about the human resources marketplace

and how optimistic suppliers are about the overall health of the human capital marketplace.

The key trends outlined in this report include:

Growth of Web 2.0 tactics like blogging, podcasting and social networking as a means of lead generation.

The growing importance of search engine optimization (SEO).

Continued use of direct e-mail marketing and devaluation of print advertising.

Finally, our team of experts provides analysis on what these findings mean for HR suppliers andrecommendations for 2011.
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Supplier Optimism Heading into 2011

Half of suppliers (50%) were Somewhat Optimistic about the overall health of the humanresource marketplace heading into 2011, up from nearly 41% in last years survey. Along withbeing somewhat optimistic, they expect their revenues to grow moderately in 2011. The numberof suppliers who were very optimistic in last years report was just 9%; this year it wasdramatically up to 27%. Additionally, 23% of them are neutral and expect their revenuesto be about the same. The number of HR vendors who were Pessimistic, expecting revenues todecrease, was 0%! For comparison, last years figure was 19%. A true sign that the economy isrecovering and people are looking to grow their revenue.

Marketing and PR Budgets for 2011

For most of the marketing and PR activities we surveyed (see chart), a majority of suppliers intendto either increase or maintain their budgets in 2011. This is a dramatic turnaround, because lastyear 30% of the respondents said they were decreasing their budgets in 2010. This demonstratesan increase in confidence and is encouraging news to sales and marketing departments that themarketing budgets are growing in order to fund the generation of sales leads as the economycontinues to improve.

Increasing or Decreasing Budgets in 2011?

Marketing activities realizing the greatest budget increases include (1) direct e-mail marketing,(2) online advertising (e.g., Google AdWords), (3) social media, (4) search engine optimization(SEO), and (5) self-publishing original content.


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Activities realizing the greatest budget hits included (1) advertising print, (2) direct marketing print and (3) trade show exhibiting.

For each of the following marketing and PR activities, will you be increasing ordecreasing your budget the next 12 months?


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Whos Doing What? HR Suppliers Marketing andPR Activities in 2010 And Plans for 2011

We asked respondents to report on which marketing and PR activities they used in 2010 and whichones they plan to use in 2011.

By an overwhelming percentage, direct e-mail marketing continues to be the favored marketingtactic of HR vendors and will continue to be so in 2011. Other popular marketing tactics includesearch engine optimization (SEO), trade show exhibiting, and distributing regular monthly pressreleases to media contacts and over a wire service.

The marketing and PR activities growing the most in popularity include Web 2.0 activities:Webcasts/Webinars and blogging. Also showing significant, increased popularity aresocial media and social network marketing (via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.). This isencouraging news, as these cost-effective activities lead to increased online visibility, a criticalcomponent to lead generation and search engine rankings. And as more HR decision makers goonline to find information and solution providers (a trend confirmed in our HR Buyer Reports)vendors with a strong online presence have a competitive advantage.

Also showing increased growth is the self-publishing of original content (e.g. white papers, eBooks,and research reports). The growing importance of self-published original content is a byproduct of direct e-mails popularity, as the most effective direct e-mail campaigns are those with a contentoffer associated with them such as a white paper.

Even though print advertising continues to decline in popularity, it is interesting to note that almost22% of the respondents did not use print advertising in 2010, but plan to use it in 2011. Evenmore surprising is that the vast majority of this 22% are not the large companies but the small andmedium businesses with $1-50M in revenues. Other activities decreasing in popularity includepodcasting and trade show sponsorship.

The following table summarizes the marketing and PR activities suppliers used during the last 12months and whether they intend to use them in the next 12 months.


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QuestionUsed Last 12 Months and

Plan to Use Next 12Months

Used Last 12 Months butWill NOT Use Next 12

Months

Have NOT Used Last 12Months but Plan to Use

Next 12 Months

Have NOT Used Last 12Months and Will NOT Use

Next 12 Months

Trade Show Exhibiting 46.88% 3.13% 6.25% 43.75%

Direct Marketing print 50.00% 3.13% 12.50% 34.38%

Direct Marketing e-mail 78.13% 0.00% 9.38% 12.50%

Advertising print 25.00% 9.38% 21.88% 43.75

Advertising online display (e.g.banner advertising) 31.25% 3.13% 15.63% 50.00%

Advertising Online socialnetwork pay per click 31.25% 6.25% 6.25% 56.25%

PR / Media relations 25.00% 6.25% 18.75% 50.00%

Distributing press releases tomedia contact list 18.75% 6.25% 18.75% 56.25%

Distributing press releases over awire service 28.13% 0.00% 12.50% 59.38%

Blogging 40.63% 3.13% 12.50% 43.75%

Podcasting 15.63% 0.00% 15.63% 68.75%

Webcasts / Webinars 37.50% 0.00% 18.75% 43.75%

Search Engine Optimization(SEO) 50.00% 0.00% 15.63% 34.38%

Create original content (e.g.,white papers) 50.00% 0.00% 28.13% 21.88%

Social Media / Social NetworkMarketing (Twitter, Facebook,LinkedIn, etc.)

50.00% 6.25% 18.75% 25.00%

It is notable that, with few exceptions, HR suppliers continue to expand their marketing and PRactivities across the board, including both traditional and non-traditional (e.g., Web 2.0) activities.

To be effective in todays competitive landscape, HR suppliers cannot rely on just a few provenmarketing tactics. Instead, suppliers must use a combination of traditional and Web 2.0 tactics toengage buyers and were finding the more Web 2.0 tactics, the better for your budgets and yourimmediate return.


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The Importance of Various Marketing and PR Activities

The top five must have marketing and PR tactics for HR suppliers were (1) direct e-mailmarketing, (2) search engine optimization, (3) self-publishing original content, (4) social mediaand (5) Webcasts/Webinars. A surprising finding, given the number of vendors decreasing theirmarketing budgets, was the importance of trade show exhibiting. Trade show exhibiting continuesto be a valued means of interacting face-to-face with HR professionals something most othermarketing activities cannot offer.

The top five replaceable marketing and PR activities those that suppliers said were importantyet would be cut if budgets were reduced included (1) print advertising, (2) print directmarketing, (3) podcasting, and (4) paid buyer guide listings.

The Importance of Various Marketing and PR Tactics

Question Increase Same Decrease N/A

Advertising online social network pay per click 28.13% 18.75% 0.00% 53.13%

Social Media / Social Network Marketing (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) 40.63% 34.38% 0.00% 25.00%

Blogging 37.50% 21.88% 0.00% 40.63%

Direct Marketing e-mail 50.00% 34.38% 0.00% 15.63%

Create original content (e.g., white papers) 43.75% 25.00% 3.13% 28.13%

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 50.00% 21.88% 3.13% 25.00%

Webcasts / Webinars 31.25% 28.13% 3.13% 37.50%

Podcasting 9.38% 18.75% 3.13% 68.75%

Advertising online display (e.g., banner) 28.13% 28.13% 3.13% 40.63

Distributing press releases over a wire service 25.00% 25.00% 6.25% 43.75%

Distributing press releases to media contact list 25.00% 18.75% 9.38% 46.88%

PR / Media relations 18.75% 28.13% 9.38% 43.75%

Trade Show Exhibiting 25.00% 25.00% 9.38% 40.63%

Direct Marketing print 31.25% 21.88% 15.63% 31.25%

Advertising print 15.63% 25.00% 21.88%


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Staying Knowledgeable

As expected, suppliers rely on a variety of sources to keep up with whats going on in the HR

marketplace. However, eNewsletters, blogs, social media, and social networking groups are readand visited daily by 23% of the survey respondents, and almost 40% read and visit them weekly.As predicted in last years survey, online media (eNewsletters), social media (blogs), and socialnetworking groups (LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter) are being read and visited daily or weekly asthe primary way of keeping up on what is happening in the HR marketplace. Also worth noting iswho relies on analysts to stay knowledgeable: the 39% who read/visit/attend monthly are mostlyfrom the $5-50M+ size companies and the almost 49% who rarely read/visit/attend are all fromthe $1-5M companies.

How Suppliers Stay Knowledgeable About the HR Marketplace

CategoryRead/Visit/Attend

DailyRead/Visit/Attend

WeeklyRead/Visit/Attend

MonthlyRarely

Read/Visit/Attend

Analysts 3.23% 9.68% 38.71%

Attending events, seminars, trade shows 0.00% 6.90% 37.93% 55.17%

Print trade publications or newsletters 6.67% 16.67% 36.67% 40.00%

eNewsletters 21.88% 40.63% 15.63% 21.88%

Blogs 23.33% 20.00% 10.00% 46.67%

Webinars / Webcasts 0.00% 16.67% 40.00% 43.33%

Social Networking Groups 22.58% 22.58% 16.13% 38.71%

Social Networking Participation

Social networking continues to be popular among HR suppliers, with over 60% saying theyparticipate in social networking. In fact, nearly 95% of HR vendors said their participationin social networking and social media marketing increased in 2010 and will continue

to increase in 2011. Additionally, they will increase the number of networks with which theyare involved.

For those that do participate in social networking, LinkedIn is the overwhelming favorite, with86% of suppliers (who participate in social networking) using this service. The next most popularcommunity was Facebook, with over 48% of suppliers using this service. Twitter is a close thirdwith 46% of suppliers using this social networking service.


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Social Networking Groups

Interestingly, in last years survey, 82% of HR vendors did not attempt to measure the ROI of their participation in social networking and social media marketing. However, now 69% of HR vendors plan to measure the ROI of their participation in social networking and social mediamarketing and only 15% think that measuring social media ROI is important. This is proof thatsocial media and social networking have arrived as a marketing tool when upper managementwants to measure the ROI of social media and social networking marketing.

When asked what are the benefits to social networking and social media marketing, the followingreasons were given:


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What has become clear is that core sales/marketing and organizational objectives are nowregularly pursued via the emerging online social channels.

Another interesting observation is who is using social media and social networking groups:

Where the Sales Leads Came FromThe four most popular lead-generating activities included

1. Direct e-mail marketing

2. Search engine optimization (SEO)

3. Pay-per-click advertising

4. Self-published original content

These findings are of particular interest, as they highlight a trend throughout this researchreport and previous reports HRmarketer.com has conducted: the growing importance of lead acquisition via the Internet. More importantly, the use of the companys Web site as the

primary lead-generating vehicle.


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This makes more sense when you realize that the four activities go hand-in-hand, leading toincreased online visibility, increased Web site traffic, increased sales leads and improved searchengine rankings. For example, the more relevant content you produce and have on a Web site

(e.g., white papers), the better your SEO investments. This same content can also be used in directe-mail campaigns and online advertising to cost-effectively generate leads.

How Do You Know Youre Winning?Metrics, Metrics, Metrics.

In the following table, we show the importance that suppliers place on various marketing and PRmetrics. Gaining an understanding of the relative importance of all these marketing metrics is keyto grasping how suppliers as a whole will be measuring their own performance in 2011.

The Level of Importance Suppliers Give Each Tactic When Evaluating theEffectiveness of Their Marketing Investments

The three most important metrics suppliers use to measure the effectiveness of their marketingand PR are lead generation, Web site traffic and brand recognition. Two other very importantmetrics included search engine rankings and online media visibility.

All these metrics overlap and are a product of effective marketing and PR. For example, if you havehigh online visibility, you will likely have more brand recognition, higher site traffic, increased sales


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leads and improved search engine rankings. But it all starts with online visibility. This is a criticalpoint. In a recent HRmarketer.com survey of HR professionals, nearly half of HR professionals saidthey go to the Internet first when beginning their search for HR products and services second

only to asking a peer. Therefore, the importance of an online presence is growing every day.

And with the exception of brand recognition, all these metrics are easily measured and extremelyquantifiable. For these reasons, HRmarketer has always endorsed using online visibility, Web sitetraffic and sales leads as three key metrics when evaluating the effectiveness of marketing andPR investments.

Press Releases and Public Relations

Over 50% of HR and employee benefit suppliers plan to increase or maintain their current budgetsfor PR/Media Relations. On the other hand, 47% do not contract with an outside public relationsfirm or marketing agency, which is up from 24% in last years survey and is most likely due tothe PR/Media Relations budgets being decreased in 2010 due to the faltering economy in 2009.Another factor may be the increased value HR vendors place on social media and Web 2.0 activitiesand how many traditional PR agencies have not adapted and therefore do not command the valuethey once did.

More than half of the respondents (55%) send out monthly search optimized releases and theydistribute equally via direct to journalists, HRmarketer.com/PR Web, Business Wire, PR Newswire,and other news wire agencies.

Suppliers Marketing and PR Challenges

Some of the challenges are familiar and perennial: generating more qualified leads, increasingonline visibility, developing the companys branding/messaging (differentiating your company),and properly allocating the marketing budget. The biggest marketing and PR challenges for HRsuppliers lead generation and developing the companys branding/ messaging to differentiateyour company.

It is interesting to note that a major pain point for vendors is branding/messaging (differentiatingtheir company). Clearly, with increased competition and as noted earlier, a continued trend towardbrand extension/consolidation and product diversification, it is becoming increasingly morechallenging to stand out.


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Percentage of Suppliers Identifying as Somewhat Challenging or as a Major Challenge

The Respondents

The research sample from this survey represents the diverse population of HR and employeebenefit suppliers with a common goal: marketing to HR professionals and C-level decision-makersand buyers of HR and benefits products and services.


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What best describes the types of HR products or services you market?

Most industry verticals were equally represented in our sample, with the majority of respondentscoming from talent management, training, recruiting & staffing, and HR consulting. Also well-represented were employee benefit and screening & assessment suppliers. There were also somenew verticals mentioned in the Other category, which are worth mentioning: leadershipdevelopment, employee assistance, and performance management.

However, many suppliers, in response to the question What best describes the types of HRproducts or services you market? answered multiple categories, suggesting a continued trendtoward brand extension, consolidation and product diversification in the human resourcemarketplace. With a down economy, this strategy has proven successful because keeping yourcompany in one category increases your downside risk when that respective market slows.Likewise, we are also seeing major HR solution providers that once focused only on the larger,enterprise-level employer market go down-market, targeting mid-size and small employers.The same trend is being seen with mid size-suppliers having success going up-market.


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Annual revenues of respondents ranged from $1M to more than $50M

The majority of respondents were made up of CEO/ President/Owners (29%), followed by Directors(21%), Vice Presidents (21%) and Managers (17%). Other types of respondents includedSpecialists and Analysts.

Conclusion: Where the Suppliers are Headed in 2011

As the economy continues to recover and vendor suppliers continue to remain very optimistic aboutgrowing their revenues, we expect to see more dramatic year-over-year differences in marketingand PR activities in 2011 compared to 2010. Overall spending will continue to shift incrementally;what worked last year will be repeated this year. But pressure on big-budget expenditures such astrade show exhibiting and sponsorship, and print advertising especially, will be felt most acutelyamong smaller suppliers.

Lessons from the past few years of testing and experimenting with Web 2.0 technologies and thedesire to measure social media ROI have pushed what was once bleeding-edge activities likeblogging, podcasting, Tweeting, etc. into the mainstream and are now top-of-mind with seniormanagement. The evolution of the Internet and Web 2.0 will continue to deliver on the promiseof bringing suppliers, large and small, closer to their potential buyers and existing customers.

For marketing and PR practitioners, the opportunity to stake a claim for yourself and your companyvia digital communications remains as great as ever. One trend we will follow this year is theinterplay of personal brands with corporate brands. As social media becomes more prevalent, thepeople of your company become direct expressions of your corporate brand values in meaningful


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ways. For example, many companies monitor Twitter to address customer service issues and watchfor complaints before they can go viral. Likewise, your sales and marketing teams can interact withcustomers and prospects, often in real time, in these online social spaces.

Another trend to watch will be the convergence of the marketing and PR disciplines to lead andadvance SEO and online visibility. After years of taking a back seat to the techies, the marketingand PR strategists and content creators are playing a bigger role in SEO. Once the basic elementsof a Web site have been done according to SEO best practices (the infrastructure), its up tothe regular activities of both marketing and PR to drive online visibility thereafter (content andpromotion). Likewise, companies are no longer outsourcing SEO to those who pretend its a darkart mastered only by a select few and at exorbitant monthly rates. In short, SEO will becomeeither a direct goal or a welcome secondary benefit of every activity that a company and itsrepresentatives do online.

The challenge for vendors heading into 2011 will be how to allocate their marketing budgets theharsh reality is that while budgets remain lean the available tactics to choose from continues togrow. Ten years ago we had a limited number of tactics to invest in today, with the growingpopularity of social media, webcasts, online tradeshows, podcasting, etc, the decision of how bestto allocate your budget is complex and many marketing departments are ill equipped to makethese decisions let alone measure them.

By design, the data gathered in these Trends in HR Marketing reports are tactical in nature. Wecan survey and report on the activities HR suppliers spent their budget dollars on and where they

intend to spend money this year. Whats not captured is the particular strategy driving thesedecisions. Marketing and PR strategy will and must vary by company. We hope, though, that thispresentation of data, with our added analysis and perspective, will help inform your strategy andits execution this year.

To view prior Trend Reports and other valuable resources please visit our content library . Wewelcome your feedback and comments. Please reach us via e-mail , our web site or phone us at831-685-9700.

About HRmarketer

HRmarketer.com, a service o f Fisher Vista LLC , is the premier marketing software and servicesfirm in the human resources industry. Since 2000, nearly one thousand human resource andemployee benefit suppliers have relied on HRmarketer as a trusted strategic business partner.
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Our services include:

HRmarketer.com Software : The premier online marketing and PR service in the human

resource industry. Used by more HR suppliers than any other marketing or PR software service.

HRmarketer Services : PR, media Relations, SEO, Direct Marketing, Podcasts, Webcasts andmore.Our full-service agency is one of the largest and most respected firms in the HR industry.

HR List Rentals : Over 100,000 current opt-in e-mails and postal addresses of HR decisionmakers throughout the U.S.

HR Advertising and Lead Referral Program : Secure your full-page color ad and side-by-sideeditorial option in the HR Vendor Directory (published twice per year and distributed to

thousands of HR decision makers) and immediately get 500 welcome aboard leads and anadditional 1,000 leads throughout the year.

What People Say About HRmarketer

HRmarketer is partially responsible for the greatnessto which HR vendors seem now to aspire, for theirmarketing model seems to include intelligence anddialog as critical components of strategy. Miles Jennings, CEO, Recruiter.com

HRmarketers products and services are amazing!

I LOVE IT!!!! I love talking about HRmarketer to myfriends, family and business colleagues. MichaelAllen, President, HR Allen Consulting Services

HRmarketer is an invaluable resource. Not only hasHRmarketer kept us current with the latest eventsand media requests, it has allowed us to compile ahighly relevant list of media contacts where we havedirect contact. Finally, their search-optimized pressreleases service has provided phenomenal visibilityfor our press releases. John Younger, President& CEO, Accolo, Inc.

More testimonials

About HRmarketer:

Founded in 2000.

Nearly 1,000 HR suppliers have usedour products/services.

When you call us, a live personanswers the phone.

Headquartered on the Monterey Bay of California. Sales offices in Texas,Michigan and in Toronto, Canada.

We can turn on a dime.

Were easy to work with.

Were creative.

We believe being on time (andprepared) for meetings is important.

We over-deliver.

Were accountable and we produceresults.
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HRmarketer.com No other marketing or PR firmunderstands the HR marketplace better than we do.

PO Box 10, Capitola, CA 95010831-685-9700

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