At this time of year it seems almost traditional to cast our minds back over the past 12 months and remind ourselves of events and achievements that have made an impact. Sometimes we do this to reminisce, sometimes for amusement and sometimes we do it to see if there is anything to be learnt.

Every year there are a number of surveys and statistics produced concerning business, the internet and the technology that people use to access it. So let’s take a look at some of the facts and stats that were revealed this year and consider how they may impact us and how we can respond in 2014.

Past The Tipping Point

This year we passed the tipping point of more people accessing the internet using a mobile device than those using desktop equipment. In February 2012 a survey by MobileBurn.com revealed that 75% of Americans took their cell phones with them when visiting the bathroom. In October a poll by SOASTA revealed that 84% of smartphone owners in their sample checked an app first thing in the morning, with the most commonly checked being email (67%). It seems we cannot bear to be far from our mobile devices at any time.

What does all this mean? Well, if you don’t have one already you should look into getting a mobile friendly website. This could mean a responsive design or a dedicated mobile friendly site.

Emails

Talking of checking emails, it has also been found that people who are on active email lists that send out promotions purchase 28% more often than people who are not on a list.

This shows that despite reports that responses to marketing messages sent via email have plummeted it’s still worth organising and sending out those broadcasts and follow up sequences. If you are not building a list and keeping in touch with your subscribers you’re missing out.

SEO

Nearly half (48% according to a November Nielsen report) of online shoppers begin by using a search engine, and that search engine is still likely to be Google. This means that, despite the growth of social marketing, it is still worth making an effort at search engine optimisation, even if it seems frustrating at times.

Video

A survey by Emarketer earlier this year found that nearly 52% of marketing professionals worldwide cite video as the type of content with the best ROI. In 2011 Internet Retailer reported that an online shopper is 144% more likely to make a purchase after they have watched a video.

The message here is to make more use of video. Use it to show the product or service you are promoting. There has also been progress in the software that controls video. It is now easier to embed ‘hotspots’ into a video, creating active links on the screen which encourage your viewers to click through to a sales or squeeze page.

It may be hard to accurately predict the innovations that will appear in 2014, but we can use this year’s statistics to identify some trends. Then the key is to act on them.

(More statistics can be found at hubspot.com/marketing-statistics and http://www.invodo.com/resources/statistics/. Take a look, it’s an interesting read.)

P.S. If you aren’t sure how to go about reviewing this year and planning for the next take a look at my post from last year This Is For You If You Don’t Review  and the two posts that follow it.