Retail marketing has received a tremendous amount of attention over the last 18 months. It has gone from its own department doing its own thing — down
to its own technology purchases — to the center of attention in an enterprise-wide omni-channel transformation. Big, rapid changes mean
lots of new challenges, and this year’s benchmark report shows that retailers are feeling the pressure.

Key Findings:

• Retailers appear to be turning the corner on uncertainty about the economy and uncertainty about what role marketing should ultimately
  play within the enterprise – secondary to merchandising? Or primary function that stands on its own?
• Laggards seem to be on the cusp of leaving behind price as their only competitive differentiator. This has enormous implications for
  marketing, as they attempt to move from price-only strategy and communications, to more brand-oriented marketing.
• Marketing has a lot on its plate already, and the retailers who are moving quickly to consolidate digital and traditional marketing are creating enough
  pressure on their marketing departments that key digital strategies are getting left behind.
• Marketing is much more important to the retail enterprise, and thus marketing tools have increased in their perceived value to the retailers participating
  in our survey, almost across the board. However, a showdown is coming as to which platform will ultimately be the single customer interaction platform that retailers are looking for: will it be CRM or will it be the digital marketing platform that ultimately wins?

Retail Marketing 2013: Organizational Drift contains analysis of the business drivers, opportunities, and organizational constraints
surrounding retail marketing strategies. It also offers up baseline recommendations for successful marketing practices, particularly as retailers navigate
the industry changes brought on by cross-channel shoppers. The report is part of RSR Research’s ongoing efforts to provide market intelligence on retail
technology trends.