The ongoing recession has many companies considering cutting back on their marketing efforts, but those who stick it out position themselves to benefit from reduced competition.
A survey released this week from Shop.org and conducted by Forrester Research found that although online retailers expect revenues to slow over the next year, they still believe that online marketing is better suited to give them ROI than other forms.
Sucharita Mulpuru, principal analyst at Forrester Research and author of the study, said that these online retailers are in a better position to ride out the recession by using these online tools.
"Because consumers continue to spend online, interactive marketing spend to drive web sales remains a lucrative investment," Mulpuru said. "While other retail channels struggle, ecommerce managers have a unique opportunity to drive more sales and test different tactics that resonate with consumers."
One opportunity for these companies is the ability to reach consumers in a less crowded landscape as some reduce their online spending.
According to the report, 46 percent of retailers said they have no intention of cutting back their budgets while another 24 percent will increase that budget.
As many other studies have shown, the biggest line item for companies is expected to be search marketing, with 80 percent of respondents to the Shop.org survey saying they will be spending more than initially planned on search.
