Kristopher Arcand says, “The dust is settling after last week’s exciting Super Bowl. Emotions certainly ran high for those watching the game. Here at Forrester, we were also interested in the longer-term sentiment about the ads that aired during the show. So we reached out to consumers again after a week to capture consumers’ reactions to the Super Bowl ads, to ask them which they liked most, and to ask which made a lasting impression. As my colleague Jim Nail pointed out in a blog post , this year’s ads did not always resonate positively (if at all) with audiences. That said, our ConsumerVoices... [...]

Adam Hayes says, “It seems like every year is labeled ‘the year of video’ by one expert or another — but 2017 could well have the best claim yet. Of course, it’s no secret that video content has become staggeringly popular. And, as with most marketing trends, the more consumers have watched, the more marketers have spent. Brand new research released by Wyzowl suggests that video is more effective, more widely used, and more popular among consumers than ever before. The survey spanned across 311 unique respondents — both marketing professionals and online consumers. Some... [...]

Josh Haynam says, “The whole lead generation process is tough — especially when you only rely on traditional methods. Sending cold emails and scraping together lists can be incredibly demoralizing because, let’s face it — most of those people don’t really want to talk to you. What if you could still reach your lead generation goals using methods that actually add value for your prospects? This utopia of lead generation is, in fact, a possibility. To walk you through some of the different options, we’ve detailed several examples of modern lead generation methods... [...]

Chris McClean says, “Today kicks off what’s always an exciting week for the infosec industry; in between meeting old and new friend at the RSA Conference, we’ll hopefully hear about practical new ideas, technologies, and opportunities for better managing information risk. Coincidentally, I’m proud to announce a new report highlighting the best tactics CISOs and security leaders are using to elevate their game: How To Become A Superstar Security Leader. Will we hear any practical advice like this at the conference? So far, so good. This morning in Moscone West, I already heard some... [...]

Shar VanBoskirk says, “Since 2010, you’ve heard Forrester beating our customer obsessed drum.  It is our idea that in The Age of the Customer, your relationship with your customers are your primary competitive differentiator.  We’ve written a lot about how to put the customer at the center of your total operating model.  But a total customer-obsessed transformation can be daunting because of the completeness it requires.  So many companies we talk to get overwhelmed at the idea of having to change every single part of their business, so they do nothing instead.  How could... [...]

Peter O’Neill says, “As I did in 2016, I thought that I would provide you with a timely reminder that we have reconfigured our events calendar this year, and the B2B Marketing 2017 forum is now scheduled for October 5th and 6th in Austin, Texas. If you have not done so, it is still not too late to catch up on our recent forum — here is a blog debrief and this is a podcast where I was interviewed after the event. Planning is well underway. B2B Marketing 2017 will deepen and expand the discussion of post-digital marketing that we began in Miami in October 2016. Post-digital marketing... [...]

Thomas Husson says, “Virtual Reality generates lots of buzz and massive investments. Isn’t it the next computing platform according to Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg? Hasn’t Magic Leap – the most secretive start-up– raised up to $1.4 billion to deliver on that promise? Together with my colleague Samantha Merlivat, we decided to evaluate the opportunities VR will open up for marketers. In the next decade, we believe that unlike any channel to date, VR will offer highly immersive and intimate experiences with a future integrated with social and IoT. This unique combination... [...]

Samantha Merlivat says, “Much has been said about Virtual Reality in 2016 after a number of companies, like HTC, Sony and Facebook, promised to bring their headset to market in the course of the year. Since then, VR has been on everybody’s lips. VR content creation platforms are mushrooming, VR ad exchanges are starting to appear and agencies have been quick to pitch VR concepts to marketers eager to show their brand is innovative. We think it’s time for marketers to take a step back and ask themselves why they are pursuing VR: What are you gaining from it, and does it make sense for... [...]

Melissa Perrish says, “What a strange time it is to be a marketer. Last year, we on the B2C marketing team fielded hundreds of questions from brands and tech partners alike about the revelations that rocked our worlds: kickbacks, tech consolidation, opacity of even decades-old partnerships, measurement screw-ups from the world’s second largest digital advertising player, and the possibility of a single tweet sending share prices tumbling. And yet… The increasing importance of content—especially video, both live and otherwise—is driving a renewed dependence on agencies. Facebook had... [...]

Brandon Verblow says, “Up until now, paid services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and HBO have dominated US online video viewing, particularly for long-form, TV-style content. Uptake of ad-supported, TV-style online video has been slower; traditional TV providers control much of this content, and they’ve been cautious about making their programming available outside the lucrative TV bundle. Even if many viewers want to cut the cord, they may not follow through as they realize they cannot get all the content they want. YouTube, of course, has a massive ad-supported online video business that... [...]