About half of design (53%) and advertising professionals (46%) see Web site and email campaign design as a sales opportunity. That's according to The Multichannel Mix - Creatives, a 147-page study that provides an overview of the current media landscape as it applies to creatives, including ad agencies, graphic designers and commercial photographers.
The research was conducted by The Industry Measure, a New York-based firm specializing in the assessment of trends and changes in graphic communications markets.
Such numbers represent record highs and underscore the Internet's growing importance in content delivery. Data gathered by The Industry Measure further validates trends highlighted by others, including a recent Graphic Design USA survey that demonstrated that Web design has become a mainstream business activity for 73% of creative establishments.
In addition to the Internet, the report examines the "newer media," including blogs, podcasting, Webcasting, RSS and mobile. The Industry Measure's Richard Romano, the author of the report, highlights the issues of particular relevance for photographers. He says that more creatives are looking to stock to save time and money on marketing campaigns. While additional media platforms typically mean an increased need for imagery, the media mix is redefining image requirements, such as size, quality, resolution and, consequently, image-licensing costs.
Though photographers are often thought of as suppliers, Romano points out that they are also marketers and advertisers of their own services. "Photographers are not immune from the media-mix concerns," he adds. "We are seeing more and more photographers embrace new media for their own promotion."
Over half (54%) of photographers responding to this survey identified email as the top self-promotion medium. Email promotions and e-letters are going to become even more important over the next 12 months, according to 48% of photographers. Search engine marketing is viewed as growing in importance by 29%. In contrast, photographers feel print was least likely to grow in importance.
Available for $995 through The Industry Measure's Web site, The Multichannel Mix attempts to answer questions such as: What strategies should advertisers and marketers implement? What media and technologies are on marketers' radars? In addition to survey data, the report includes market analysis and expert opinion on the role of print, Web, wireless technologies and other communications platforms.