Tag Management Evolving into Key Digital Data Distribution Platform, According to New Study from Tealium and Independent Consulting Firm

94 percent of digital marketers see data integration as the future of tag management, according to new survey

San Diego, CA (July 9, 2013) — While tag management is still viewed as a key tool for managing digital marketing vendor tags, a vast majority of marketers now see its greater value as a method for collecting and exchanging data between visitors and digital marketing vendors, according to a July 2013 study, “The Evolution of Tag Management,” by Forrester Consulting, a division of Forrester Research.

In the 14-page study, commissioned by Tealium and conducted by Forrester Consulting, 94 percent of respondents said they see digital data integration as the next step in the evolution of tag management. They view tag management as an important solution for their customer data integration challenges, which if solved, can help them better understand the customer journey, and create more effective customer acquisition and retention programs. Based on this perception, marketers are expected to increase their tag management budget by 35 percent this year compared to last year, states the study, which can be downloaded for free at www.tealium.com/evolution.

Based on tag management’s evolving capabilities, Forrester says we are witnessing the emergence of a “digital data distribution platform,” or D3P for short, which can be used for collecting, defining, discovering and distributing digital data faster and more cost-effectively than what is currently available today.

“Marketers are starting to use their TMSes (tag management systems) to help them with their data integration projects and gain clearer visibility of customers as they journey across channels. TMSes are viewed as clean sources of data from across digital touchpoints, helping marketers overcome data quality issues which had previously inhibited data integration,” according to the study, which interviewed 142 digital marketing decision makers.

Additional highlights from the study include:

• 94 percent of marketers see data integration as the next logical step in the evolution of tag management
• 65 percent say they view tags as a strategic solution for managing the exchange of mission-critical data between site visitors and digital marketing vendors
• 96 percent of marketers say they currently have customer data integration challenges
• Lack of IT resources, data quality, and cost are the top three challenges facing marketers when it comes to integrating online data
• Based on its new strategic role, marketers will spend 35 percent more on tag management this year compared to last year

“The results of this study reinforce the challenge that most organizations have in trying to integrate and leverage their digital data to help improve marketing,” said Ali Behnam, President and Co-Founder at Tealium. “We are excited to see that tag management is evolving into an even more strategic role within digital marketing. We certainly see this trend reflected among our many customers, and are proud to be innovating in this area with solutions like Tealium DataCloud.”

According to the study, the effective managing of tags has reaped great rewards for marketers, but tag management has evolved beyond its label. “Don’t let the ‘tag management’ name fool you. Tag management’s digital distribution capabilities make it a critical component of customer data integration strategies,” the report states.

Tags are snippets of code, also known as tracking pixels, that most third-party digital marketing vendors require their customers to embed in their web sites. These vendors span a number of categories, from web analytics and retargeting to display advertising and social media.

In one of its key recommendations, Forrester Consulting reminds readers that not all tag management systems are created equal. The authors say that to solve customer data integration needs, these TMSes need to master three separate areas: defining the data, making it discoverable, and distributing the data to key platforms and technologies for use by data-driven professionals.

To download the free study, please visit http:/www.tealium.com/evolution. For more information on Tealium or its products, please visit www.tealium.com.

Note: Forrester Consulting conducted a double-blind online survey of 142 digital marketing decision makers in the U.S. with familiarity with tag management. The organizations represented in the survey are from a variety of industries spanning financial services, manufacturing, retail, high tech, media and more. Of those surveyed, 32 percent experienced a 1-4 percent higher revenue growth rate against their industry peer group over the last 12 months, while 24 percent experienced 5-9 percent higher growth.

For more information on Tealium or its products, please visit:
http://www.tealium.com