2019年全球网络展望报告.pdf

01. Introduction 03. Spending Outlook 04. Agency Landscape05. Modern Marketer06. Methodology02. Trends Shaping Tomorrow TABLE OF CONTENTS Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.GLOBALDIGITAL OUTLOOKThe Global Digital Outlook Study is an annual survey of spending trends, adoption of emerging technology, perspectives on the digital landscape and evolving priorities for agency leaders and brand marketers. Now in its sixth year, this study is a collaboration between SoDA and Forrester Research. Were in the business of shaping things experiences, perceptions, business models, culture and more. At our best, we shape tomorrow. But like objects in our rear-view mirror, the future is always closer than it appears. In recent years, digital agencies were a disruptive force to a traditional marketing ecosystem dominated by advertising agencies. But the days of clamoring for respect, a seat at the table and a fair allocation of budget seem quaint now. Today, the innate differentiation of pure-play digital shop is virtually gone and we operate in an increasingly competitive, complex and connected meshwork of agencies, consultancies, product design studios, technology providers, venture labs, production companies, in-house teams and more. Corporate functions (and organizational structures) for strategy, marketing, technology and product design have also collided with new spheres of influence emerging. Collaboration, agility, transparency, speed and a relentless obsession with customer experience are at the core of this new enterprise. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.IntroductionDESIGN FOR CHANGE(continued on next page)Design for Change, the theme of this years SoDA Report, explores how agency leaders, innovators and business executives are navigating these shifting tides with vision, purpose, clarity and courage. Our Guest Editor of The SoDa Report and Co-Founder of MediaMonks, Wesley ter Haar, captured the sentiment perfectly: “Design for change means finding higher ground, thats the only way to stay relevant and stay a step ahead in the eternal race to the bottom. And thats not just our challenge. Brands and businesses across industries know one thing for sure, change is either here or its coming soon, and the next wave of technology, user behavior and digital service will either wash you away or lift you up.” Our findings in the Global Digital Outlook Study support this notion and, this year, we see in both agency leaders and brand marketers an optimism about the future punctuated by a sharp understanding of the need and urgency for change. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.IntroductionDESIGN FOR CHANGETom Beck, Executive Director SoDATRENDSTO WATCHThe 2019 Digital Outlook finds a majority of agency leaders optimistic about the future even as they remain clear-eyed about the challenges facing their businesses. Despite all the doom and gloom regarding broken agency models (vivid images of fire, brimstone and post-apocalyptic demogorgans come to mind), agency leaders are reporting healthy performance in 2018 and a solid outlook for 2019. More than half of agency leaders reported growth in revenue and total profit in 2018 (56% and 55% respectively) and 79% said they are confident that the next 12 months will be even stronger in terms of profitable growth. Confidence levels are bolstered (and, perhaps, justified) by a strong spending outlook from client-side marketing leaders: 53% plan to increase their digital spend in 2019 and 36% plan to increase overall marketing spend. More importantly, 43% plan to increase their spending with external agency partners making this one of the strongest outlooks weve seen since we began tracking in 2013. But if the outlook is strong, agency leaders readily admit that competition, pricing pressure and escalating costs for talent are growing concerns for their business. In 2018, only 39% of agency leaders said they were able to increase their billable rates and 57% agree that pricing pressure is becoming an even bigger factor in winning new assignments. Furthermore, 66% saw competition for their services intensify and 64% said that the rising cost of talent was having a direct impact on their bottom line. Growing competition and continued pressure on operating costs will undoubtedly winnow out more and more agencies with indistinguishable capabilities and inefficient operating model. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.1A BIGGER PIE. AND MORE HUNGRY MOUTHS AT THE TABLETrends Shaping TomorrowThe marketing world has been obsessed with the incursion of management and IT consultancies into the sacred creative territory of agencies. Too much of the industry commentary, however, adopts a binary view on the matter suggesting that only one model will prevail in this battle royale between consultancies and holding companies. This is a simplistic assessment for a complicated and interconnected ecosystem of digital providers of all shapes, sizes and flavors. It also tends to ignore a vast swath of the independent (and innovative) agency market less obsessed with global scale and wall street valuations. While our data this year revealed a 24-point decline in marketers openness to using consultancies for digital agency assignments (53% said they were “Very Open” or “Open” this year vs. 77% in 2017), we continue to see an array of partner types tackling digital initiatives. In fact, there has been little change, year-over-year, in the number of partners marketers tap for digital assignments nearly one-third of marketers use 3 or more agencies/partners for digital projects. Furthermore, there is no dominant partner type and usage of integrated agencies, full-service digital agencies, consultancies and specialized digital agencies is evenly distributed. The bottom line: agency “type” is increasingly irrelevant when defining the landscape for digital services competition and new opportunities are surfacing everywhere. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.2BATTLE ROYALE OR TOKYO DRIFT TO THE MIDDLE? Trends Shaping TomorrowOur findings this year point to an active evolution of the agency business model with some moving towards specialization while others seek to expand the breadth of their influence with new capabilities. An astounding 61% of agency leaders this year said they were actively re-evaluating their core business model. Experimentation with different pricing models (26%), going to market with 3rd party partners to round out service offerings (25%), and deeper collaboration/integration with their clients other partners (30%) are just a few of the directions under exploration. On the capabilities front, agency leaders point to areas such as strategy, data, platforms and technology as key areas for revenue growth in 2019. Interestingly, these capabilities are traditional strongholds for the consultancies and we expect the competitive battleground to expand. Many native digital agencies, traditional integrated agencies and consultancies are racing towards a melee at the center of the marketing and customer experience ecosystem. Its also clear that new areas of specialization have emerged. For instance, more than 30% of all agency respondents said they do not currently offer any services related to voice-based applications, AI-driven digital experiences or experiential installations that blend physical and digital environments. We also see agency leaders tackling a new and unique mix of capabilities across the digital marketing and experience value chain. S4 Capitals strategy to combine global production, content, data and media into a new integrated entity is one such example of the mixed models beginning to emerge. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.3AGENCIES PRACTICE MIXED MODEL ARTS Trends Shaping TomorrowWhat do client-side business leaders want? Brilliant strategies? Mind-blowing creative? Category-busting innovation? Technological wizardry? Lower billable rates? The rock sensation Queen said it best. they want it all and they want it now! And even though (half-jokingly), this is most certainly true, a more pragmatic look at the market shows marketing leaders with a growing desire for partners that can operate collaboratively, nimbly, quickly and effectively. Several findings in our research suggest that marketers are increasingly focused on: Speed. 56% of agency leaders said that speed of delivery is becoming a bigger factor in whether or not they win new projects and 63% of client-side marketing leaders said that producing and publishing personalized digital content, more quickly, is a major priority for their business. Agility. Flexibility and agility are cornerstones of collaboration. Client-side marketing leaders point to “more flexible/nimble working models” as one of the top areas of improvement theyd like to see from their agency partners. On the other side, agency leaders say that “working directly with clients other partners in a more collaborative, integrated way” is one of the top ways in which their typical engagement models are changing. Additionally, more than 60% of all respondents agree that the in-sourcing of digital capabilities is having major impact on the way clients and agencies now partner. Global Digital Outlook 2019, SoDA + Forrester Research. All rights reserved.4SPEED, VALUE, AGILITY AND TRANSPARENCY (continued on next page)Trends Shaping Tomorrow